“I’m working through it.”
She smiled. “I feel that, too. But you don’t have to do it alone.”
“You’re busy saving everyone else. You don’t need to listen to me whine.”
“This only works if you talk to me, Luxuros.”
“Luxuros,” he mimicked. “Full-naming me.”
“And you say I’m stubborn.”
“I’m not avoiding it. I know that you would tell me if anyone… tried anything.”
“You mean Alastair?” She turned around, folding her legs under her so she could watch his face as he spoke.
“Is that his name?”
“Yes.” She reached for his hand under the warm water, twisting her fingers into his. “And you’re correct. I would tell you. He’s Selenia’s right hand, Weaver of Dreams? Or something to that effect. He seemed to understand our plight. Like he knows what we’re up to. He kept me safe.”
“He was less kind to me.” Lux’s brows furrowed. “Though I couldn’t fault him for wanting you to himself.”
“Nothing like that,” she assured him.
“Thank you.” Lux reached forward and tucked a loose curl behind her ear, the warm water on his hands dripping over her neck.
“Better already,” she said, gesturing to his chest as the red knot settled and unwound into something more manageable, though fiery anger still lingered at the edge. “But you’re still pissed.”
“I’m angry at myself, not you. I didn’t even consider the possibility that might happen. This is now the second time you’ve gotten hurt because I was distracting you. I should have sensed someone there. I should have protected you.”
“Easy, Commander. I also got distracted and failed to protect myself. I’m not a child.”
He nodded. “I’ll work through it. I promise I’m not usually a possessive asshole but there’s something about him. I don’t know. I don’t trust it.” He leaned forward, cupping her face. “The thought of something happening to you makes me physically ill. It’s overwhelming.”
“You’re talking to the woman who burned someone alive for a little tap on your ankle.” She pulled him closer, enjoying the warmth settled over her—she no longer drowned in him, she reveled. “Some of your stress could be rooted in those identity issues we like to pretend aren’t a problem, no?”
She poked him in the shoulder, his eyes rolling.
“I promise we’ll work through those, too. When I’m ready.”
“When you’re ready,” she agreed.
He closed the narrow gap between them and placed a soft kiss on her lips. “I will be ready someday.”
“Mmhmm,” she hummed, pulling his lips back into hers. A pale pink wisp of smoke rose in his chest, tickling her fingertips as she dragged them through his dark hair. Something glittered in the swirls, clinging to the moonlight pouring in through the port in her ceiling. “That’s a new one,” she whispered, glancing at her hands.
“What?” he asked as he broke from her mouth to her neck. She grabbed his face, forcing him to look at her. The smoke intensified as his eyes flared, sparkling as fingers found her hips. She let it fill her lungs, soothing an ache within her.
His hand slipped further, dancing against the inside of her thigh.
A question.
She pushed into his touch, a soft note of delight passing over her lips and encouraging him. As he stroked her skin, the smoke rose, filling every cavern within her heavy heart. Claiming spaces within her she’d never given up before.
She leaned back, allowing him more access to every piece of her, the Tether between them singing in anticipation, even if quieted by the amulet resting beneath the water.
His tongue found hers, burning up every thought she’d had rolling around in her head, crumbling them to ashes. The flames whipped around her heart, flaring into a deep magenta at the ends, expanding from her belly to her lungs and her throat as he moved faster, as he gave her more.
She rested her head against the tile, lost in the wildfire as he moved over her like a shadow. Lux brought his other hand to her cheek, stroking the path of freckles he admired so much. She laughed, her voice pitching up as he leaned forward and she felt how much he enjoyed pleasuring her against her thigh. She closed her eyes again and pulled his forehead against hers, letting the flickering pinks and reds and silvers slip from her mind to his.
