Page 37 of The Elven Healer's Apprentice

“Adela?”

Not trusting my voice, I nodded ever so slightly.

Merlon didn’t ask again. His mouth found mine, and I fell into a world of sensation.

∞∞∞

Merlon

Adela tasted of belonging and acceptance, two things that I had craved for so long. The bite of ginger on her breath mingled with the sweetness of her fingers in the hair at the nape of my neck. Without conscious thought, my magic responded to her touch, welling up in a heady thrill of delight. Before I lost my head completely, I eased back, resting my forehead against hers as my magic and something else deep within savored her closeness.

“And the results of the test?” She sounded as breathless as I felt.

Finally opening my eyes, I encountered her sharp scrutiny, flickers of insecurity in her warm jade eyes. “Perfect,” I whispered and leaned in for another kiss, only to encounter her hand pressing against my mouth again. “You don’t want another?” I asked.

The flicker of desire warming her eyes answered my question.

“First, I need an explanation.”

I kissed her fingers where they rested against my lips, causing her to withdraw them hastily.

“Did you at least enjoy it?” I knew the answer, but I wanted to hear it from her mouth. Just the word made my gaze lower to study hers. Why hadn’t I noticed before how perfectly formed her lips were?

“Does it have any bearing on the experiment?” she asked, squirming to be released.

But I had no intention of letting go just yet. I loosened my hold on her waist but caught her wrist again. Gently guiding her over to my pile of bedding, I settled on it with my back against the wall and encouraged her to sit next to me. She settled cautiously so that we didn’t touch save for my fingers around her wrist. Shifting my grip, I interlaced our fingers.

“Merlon?”

“I like your hands.” I traced the length of her ring finger.

“Stop stalling.” Although her words were blunt, her gentle tone made it clear she wasn’t annoyed.

“Long-ago legends, dating back to before the elves came to live in Eldarlan, told of a concept called fated mates. Only the shadow elves still believe the myth and not even all of them do. My mother believed my father was her fated mate—soul mate—but he wasn’t willing to marry her using the elven spell that merged their lifeforces. In retrospect, I am thankful he didn’t.” Strange to be thankful for something that caused another loved one so much distress. “If he had, my mother wouldn’t have outlived him as long as she did.”

“If she hadn’t, it would’ve deprived you of the love you needed in those formative years.” Adela’s slender fingers tightened around mine briefly. “How does lifeforce merging work?”

A subtle anxiety coiled in my chest. I tried to quiet it with the promising fact she hadn’t retreated yet. “Using magic, the lifeforces of two individuals are melded so that they support each other. While merged, the partners enjoy the benefits of increased health, longevity, and strength. The detriment is that once one of them dies, the other soon follows. One of my uncles—Illeron and Casimir’s father—formed such a bond with theirmother. When she died prematurely, he lived a half-life the rest of his days.”

I chanced a glance at Adela’s profile. A pucker had formed between her eyebrows, but she didn’t appear distressed.

“Casimir and Veta melded their life forces, didn’t they?”

I smirked. “Yes, they are permanently linked.”

“That explains the ebb and flow of the shadows in the room as she labored.”

I nodded. “Cas was feeding her some of his strength. As you know, elven constitutions are stronger than human.”

“None of this explains your experiment.”

“Until recently, I didn’t buy into the myth of soul mates.” I turned her hand over and studied the pattern of calluses on her palm. Her hands were those of a working woman—capable, strong, and beautiful.

Suddenly, Adela straightened, shoulders tense as she shifted to face me. In the process, she yanked her hand free, breaking our connection, but strangely, my enhanced senses only dimmed, fading slowly. I observed the transition with rapt interest, counting down the time it took for my sense of the world to shrink.

“You think we are—” Her head began shaking before she even finished her sentence. “But I am human.”

“And so is Veta,” I pointed out with increasing amusement.

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