by Anna Kashina
She watched Ayalla exit the glade, the trees closing behind her to leave no trace of any path. You will not be disturbed. The knowledge felt comforting, and arousing as she fell into a new reality where everything was allowed.
She turned to Mai, standing beside the water, watching her.
“Get in,” she said, surprised at the need she felt, surely incompatible with the danger they were in, with the way they both barely escaped death to be together right now. A distant part of her mind knew they should be dressing up and walking back to camp. A more immediate, carnal one, couldn’t wait to get him naked next to her. She knew a lot of Ayalla’s power came from raw sexuality, the way she took men whenever she pleased, the way she used their seed to gain even more power. Was this power now part of her too, planted into her by Ayalla to block the Kaddim magic? With the need she felt, she didn’t really care.
She saw Mai hesitate briefly as he likely considered and dismissed the same questions, then obeyed her command, taking off his clothes and sliding into the water next to her. She trembled with need as she drew on top of him, arching to take him in as deep as she could. Her body shook as she rode him in a mad, accelerating rhythm, building up her pleasure so fast that it threatened to burst her from the inside, then releasing it all at once in a sweet, unbearable agony that clenched her insides like a very long freefall. She spasmed again as his release inside her sent her into a new spiral and then, when she felt she could not take another moment of it, into a blackout that robbed her of every bit of strength, every moment of tension she felt ever since the Kaddim link inside her got activated.
The warm water lapped around them as she lay splayed over his chest, the movement of his caressing hands over her back the only sensation that linked her to the outside world. She did not know how long it lasted, and she did not care. She never wanted it to stop.
When she finally found the strength to raise her head, he was looking at her, a grin playing on his lips.
“I could get used to you being like this,” he said.
She raised her eyebrows, feigning surprise. “Like what?”
He laughed, closing his arms around her.
She leaned back into his chest, his closeness stirring her desire anew. Take as long as you need, Ayalla had said. She was surprised to realize that despite the fear of the forest she felt only this morning, despite how frightening Ayalla and her magic seemed, despite the way she had felt so spent only recently, she needed more.
She shifted over him, turning his face toward her, leaning over him to meet his lips. Her stomach quivered with the rising excitement as he responded, his tongue claiming her mouth, his hands caressing her in long, powerful strokes. When he flipped her in the water and entered her again, she shook with the intensity of the pleasure that instantly drove away all other thoughts. She arched into him once again as he built up the rhythm, making every nerve in her body sing in response. It didn’t matter anymore if this carnal need stemmed from Ayalla’s power inside her, or the desires she had been suppressing for so long. Right now she didn’t care.
Just a short while ago she was preparing to die, unable to find any way out of the Kaddim trap. And now, Ayalla’s magic granted her this short rest, where she could pretend that everything was normal and nothing in their lives had ever gone amiss. She intended to spend every bit of her strength riding with this feeling, fully giving herself to it.
They stayed in the water nearly until dusk, enjoying each other again and again, unable to leave each other’s arms. She knew they had to stop before it got dark, but when they finally emerged and dressed up, she felt regret that they could not stay longer, with no one else but the trees to see and hear them. They held each other for one last kiss before turning their backs to the glade and stepping toward the dense line of trees in front of them.
When you are ready to leave, tell the trees. But how did one talk to trees, exactly?
“We, um, we’d like to return to our camp. Please,” she added, aware that even with the beings she used to think of as inanimate it probably didn’t hurt to be polite.
For a moment, everything was silent. Then the trees rustled and fell away, a path opening in front of them much faster than seemed possible. She grasped Mai’s hand and set her foot on it.
Kara looked at her mark as they walked, bringing it closer to her face to see in the gathering dusk. The thorn, level with the skin around it, looked like an odd oval-shaped birthmark, smooth and wood-hard to the touch. Despite its size and the vicious strength with which Ayalla had driven it in, she felt no pain at all.
“You have to tell me everything that happened at Ayalla’s,” she said.
Mai reached over to put an arm around her as they walked. His hand squeezed her shoulder briefly, an emotional gesture that sent a surge of warmth down her spine. “I will. Along with all our plans that involve you.”
She heaved a slow breath of the damp cooling air, infused with the smells of earth, trees, and grass. Her heart swelled with happiness. As long as they were together, she wasn’t afraid of anything at all.
Tomorrow she would be able to finally take full part in his campaign. She hoped this would make a difference to their chances against the Kaddim.
21
Promise
Kyth couldn’t get over his disbelief. He knew Ayalla had no reasons to lie to him about his gift, but everything he learned in the past few hours simply refused to settle in. His power, strong enough to take down the Kaddim Reincarnate? It seemed even more impossible than the idea that he and Alder would be spending the next couple of weeks with Ayalla, who seemed confident enough that this short amount of time would be sufficient for him to master his ability enough to face the reincarnation of the Cursed Destroyer himself, on top of protecting their entire army against the Kaddim magic.
He was only marginally less surprised to find out that Mai did not end up messing up his part and somehow managed to charm his way into Ayalla’s trust. And of course, knowing that Kara was all right, and, for the moment, free of the Kaddim link, made everything else seem worth it. Watching her and Mai emerge from the forest at dusk looking exhausted but happy in the way he hadn’t seen them in a very long time brought so much relief that he forgot even to feel jealous.
He lifted his head when he saw Lady Celana walking toward him. As she approached, he rose to his feet, offering his hand to help her down by the campfire. She accepted it gracefully, settling on the outstretched cloak beside him.
The royal lady was dressed for the march, her dark pants suit plain and practical, her hair tied into a smooth knot at the back of her head. Not for the first time Kyth marveled how well she fit into their camping life, while also maintaining the same refinement she did at court. It was as if she had a unique ability to wear her surroundings like a garment, bringing them with her wherever she went. To his surprise, he found himself thinking that in her own unique way this quality made an odd parallel to Ayalla. If Lady Celana always wore an invisible mantle of her royal upbringing around her, Ayalla wore a piece of her forest, albeit in a much more literal sense.
“I hope you don’t mind me joining you, Prince Kythar,” Lady Celana said.
“I am delighted, my lady.” The polite phrase came out automatically, but as soon as it left his lips, Kyth realized he meant it. Lady Celana always made him feel good, not only because of the way she tended to lighten up the conversation, but also because of the way she made his self-esteem soar just by looking at him with shy admiration, as if she genuinely cared. He was going to miss her when she departed with the Majat, leaving him behind at Ayalla’s place.
“I, um, was hoping to trouble Your Highness with a request.” Lady Celana’s uncomfortable look piqued his interest. What could she possibly ask him for that she would also find so embarrassing?
“Anything I can do, my lady,” he said earnestly.
Her cheeks lit up with a faint blush. “I would like to ask your permission to stay with you and Alder at Lady Ayalla’s. If this
is agreeable to you, of course.”
Kyth’s eyes widened. “You’d like to stay with us? Why?”
Her blush deepened as she continued to hold his gaze. “Consider this a personal request, my lord. I’d like to, if only because there seems to be no good reason for me to travel to Shayil Yara.”
Kyth shook his head. “You will be a lot safer with the Majat.”
She smiled. “I doubt it, Your Highness. But more than that, I feel that…” She paused.
“Feel what?”
Her blush rolled down her neck. He had never seen her look so flustered.
“I must confess, Your Highness, that when I asked to join this campaign against the Kaddim, one of my main reasons to do it was the fact that it would enable me to stay by your side. This is the place I’d like to keep – if you let me, with full understanding that I never intend to impose on your privacy or make you feel uncomfortable.”
Kyth heaved a breath. He knew she seemed to like him for some reason, but he always believed this was mostly due to the fact that he was the only young man here who shared her high station and thus seemed like worthy company – not that she ever showed inclination to pull ranks with the others. He had originally been opposed to the idea of her joining their party, but had to give in to his father’s insistence, likely driven by the idea that Lady Celana may help him forget his heartbreak and secure an eligible match for marriage. With all these political considerations, he had never given enough thought to the possibility that Celana genuinely cared about him. And now, the way she was looking at him, the way she stated her preference to stay by his side, made him wonder.
He knew her reserve. It never seemed easy for her to communicate her feelings – especially with the way he tended to brush her off every time Kara was in sight. Watching her chest heave as she sat in front of him, blushing to the roots of her hair, made him feel guilty.
He reached over and took her hand.
“My friends call me Kyth,” he said.
Her eyelids fluttered as she raised her eyes to him. She looked so vulnerable that his heart quivered.
“I would be honored if you could address me this way, my lady.”
She smiled. “Kyth.”
The way she pronounced it, as if caressing each sound with her tongue, made Kyth blush too. It felt so captivating to see her look at him like this. Unexpectedly, he found himself wondering what her skin would feel like under his fingers, what it would be like to run his hand through her hair. He stopped himself. Lady Celana was a friend, no more. He was trying to make her feel better, but he shouldn’t be acting as if he could ever promise her anything else.
“Perhaps it would be easier if you could call me by my name too?” she asked.
“Celana.” He felt oddly intimate as he said it, as the use of their names instead of the formal address broke a boundary between them. He laughed “This would take some getting used to, won’t it?”
She lifted her eyes to him. “Yes, it would. And… I am honored to call you my friend. You can’t possibly know how much it means to me.”
Her voice sank to a near whisper, her eyes wide as she looked into his face. Warmth pulsed off her skin as her blush rolled down deeper, all the way into the low cut of her shirt. Kyth hastily averted his gaze before it ventured anywhere improper.
He covered her hand he still held, cupping it between his, feeling so helpless under her disarming gaze. She was beautiful, and smart, and the admiration with which she always looked at him made his heart soar. Was he going to let his heartbreak, the way he just couldn’t stop thinking about Kara, ruin all this?
“I haven’t been very good to you, have I?” he said quietly.
She smiled, her hand inside his hold briefly squeezing his. “You have a deep heart wound. The fact that you are capable of such loyalty to someone who no longer shares your feelings just proves in yet another way how great a man you are… Kyth. And, the last thing I want is for you to feel any guilt. I am not asking you for anything more than just allowing me to be by your side. As a friend.”
“This couldn’t possibly be enough.”
She swallowed. “I haven’t made it a secret of how much I admire you. I cannot help hoping for more between us, but I know this is not something you or I can possibly control. I’ll take what you can give – with no regrets or false expectations, I promise you.”
A lump rose in his throat as he looked at her. He felt ashamed for not being able to answer her feelings any better than this. He had no right to keep her by his side. But if she wanted to stay, he also had no right at all to turn her away. Not with the way she had opened her heart to him just now.
He lowered his eyes to her hand he was still holding, aware how warm and soft it was, how it quivered in his hold. Carefully, he brought her hand to his lips and kissed it.
“I am not worthy of you,” he said.
She smiled. “Isn’t it for me to decide?”
“I suppose it is.” Kyth hesitated. “If you truly feel you know me enough.”
“I do.” Her smile widened. “I think I am a better judge of character than you give me credit for.”
He met her gaze. “I find your company very pleasant. And refreshing. I find myself missing you when you are not around. One day, I may be capable of more. But I know that here and now this cannot possibly mean much.”
She reached over and lightly touched his cheek. “It does, actually. And, that one day that may yet come – it’s worth waiting for, even if in the end it never happens this way.”
His gaze wavered. “I find it perplexing that you would be interested in me at all.”
She laughed. “I know you do. If you forgive me for saying so, this makes you even more alluring.”
Alluring. This simple word made his head spin. Suddenly, the sight of Kara and Mai, sitting together on the other side of the camp like a pair of love birds, no longer disturbed him so much. He shifted so that he could turn his back to them, facing Celana more directly than before. What would it feel like, to sit this close to her, feeling their entire bodies touch? The thought sent a new wave of blush into his face.
“I wouldn’t want to lead you on or create any false pretenses,” he said.
“I don’t think you need to worry about that,” she said. “So far you have been nothing but honest about your lack of interest in me – as a woman, I mean.”
Honest. He wasn’t so sure this was true, not anymore. Was he feeling this pull for a while? Was he purposely trying to push her away and immerse into his heartbreak instead? “I have?”
“Yes. But I am only saying this to dissolve your fear of leading me on. Not to make you feel guilty in any way.”
“If I made you feel this way, why do you want to stay with me then?”
She looked up at him. “I said I have no false expectations, Kyth. But I do have hope – when and if you are ready for it, of course. Even if this possibility turns out to be ungrounded, I would never forgive myself if I did not explore it to the end.”
Hope. He kept her gaze as they sat leaning toward each other, so close that he could feel the heat of her blush, the smell of her skin, fragrant like fresh lake wind. How was it possible that he never realized her skin smelled so good? Or was it just because he never got close enough to notice?
Her look, shy and direct at the same time, made his heart race. He suddenly realized that if she did continue traveling with the Majat while he stayed at Ayalla’s, he would miss her terribly – not only her cool wit and entertaining stories, but also the way she made his skin tingle and his toes curl when she looked at him like this.
“I don’t want to lead you on or make any false promises,” he said quietly. “But I feel very tempted to take advantage of you right now.”
She leaned closer, until he could feel her breath on his cheek.
“Please do,” she whispered.
He cupped her chin, drawing her into a kiss.
She tasted fresh and sweet, like a sip of the Lakeland cide
r that instantly went to his head. He could sense her uncertainty, as if she was unsure what to do, and her eagerness as she opened up to him, beckoning him to explore. She kissed like the virgin she probably was, yet also like a woman in love, willing to give him everything he would take from her. He took it slowly, first touching only her face, cupping it to stroke her skin and hair, giving her time to ease into his embrace. Her lips opened slowly, hesitant when he first ventured in, then growing bolder as she responded to his caress. Slowly, she relaxed into his hold.
Her body told him so much more about her than words possibly could, her trust as she opened up to him so overwhelming that he felt his head spin. The way she melted into his embrace made him feel as if she always belonged there, urging him to do anything he will, uncertain yet so responsive to his hands.
He gave her all the time she needed, holding back at each step until he felt she was ready for more, finding the places that made her shiver, the ones that made her moan and turn deeper into his kiss. He never thought of himself as a skilled lover, but with her, he felt like one. Perhaps it was because his experience at lovemaking was far more extensive than her non-existent one. Or maybe there was just such a thing as being compatible, fitting together so naturally that everything came easily, without any effort at all.
He knew that in this public setting, with the way he was giving her no promises to hold him to, he couldn’t possibly take this very far. But the way she yielded to his hands told him what they could do if they ever took their relationship to that level. This promise made his head spin as he finally eased away from her, afraid to let this last any longer for fear of losing control. He knew he had no right to her. Not this way. Not just yet.
She was gasping as she drew away, the daze in her eyes telling him so much more than words. He slowly returned to his senses, realizing that the sky now looked much darker than it did when she first approached his campfire. He knew someone could have seen them, and probably had, by the way their side of the camp suddenly seemed emptier than before. He took a breath of air, feeling lightheaded as he met her smile.
