Page 65 of To Crave Truly

Harder. Faster. Deeper.

There was nothing outside of this. Nothing but us.

Nothing but Fenris.

The heat of the bath water seeped into my bones as Fenris and I lay together in our post-sexual glow. He sat behind me, and I lay back against his chest, finally relaxing in the bath that he had made for me.

“That was… wow.” I licked my lips, savouring the taste of him.

“Yes,” he replied, and I could hear the smile in his words. “It was a long time coming.”

I hummed in response, lying further back into his embrace, and, as much as I wanted to let go, to enjoy just being here with him, there was a niggle of guilt pulsing at the back of my mind.

“What happened with Elissa?”

Fenris stilled and sighed. “We drove each other away.”

“I’m sorry.” And I was. I liked Elissa, she was a friend and the thought of her suffering because of me, or something I’d done, hurt.

Sensing the direction of my thoughts, Fenris caught my chin and tipped my head back to gaze into my eyes. “It wasn’t your fault, Lori. We’re adults. How we acted was on us, not you. Okay?”

“Okay.”

He pressed a soft, lingering kiss against my lips. “God, how I’ve longed for this. For you.”

“Me too.”

“I’m sorry it took me so long,” he said as he closed his eyes and pressed his forehead to mine. “I was an idiot.”

I huffed a laugh. “No, you weren’t. You were trying to do what you thought was the right thing.” I cupped his jaw. “Your only mistake was not doing what was right for you.”

He kissed me again, long, and deep. It was a kiss of yearning, and I could feel everything from him. His tongue slowly curled around mine, a sensual exploration and it felt like we had all the time in the world. We didn’t, but in this moment, this little pocket of heaven, we were just two people connecting in the most beautiful way.

He let me go and I settled back between his thighs in the bath. The water had started to cool but Fenris dipped his fingers in the water and called his magic to warm it back up again.

It was a while before Fenris broke the silence. “I… um… burnt down my father’s house.”

“What?!” I shrieked, turning in the bath and sloshing water over the sides.

He snorted and held out his hand. I saw the most beautiful ring nestled on his ring finger. Bands of silver were twisted like branches and there were tiny emerald leaves glistening around the edges. In the centre was a large ruby shaped like a bright red flame and on one side sat a small sapphire and on the other a pale blue gemstone which I didn’t recognise. But that didn’t matter, the thing was stunning.

“What’s this one?” I asked, pointing to the pale blue one.

“Topaz, for air. The gems all represent the elements. Ruby for fire, Sapphire for water, the emeralds for earth and topaz for air.”

That made sense. The sapphire was like a pool of deep water, or the darkest depths of the ocean and the topaz like a clear blue sky.

I looked up at Fenris and for the first time in a long time he truly looked like he wasn’t carrying the burdens of his past. How had I missed that? Had I been too wrapped up in my own pain to see it?

“You look different.”

He smiled warmly. “I feel different.” His eyes glazed over for a moment as he disappeared in thought. “My father won’t be bothering anyone anymore.”

“Good.” I tapped the ring on his finger. “Does this make you the Arch Mage now?”

“Yep,” he said with a waggle of his eyebrows.

I chuckled and a warmth settled in my heart. I traced the lines of his smile and sighed happily. “I’m glad to see you happy, Fenris. I love you.”

---