Page 99 of The Black Witch

I frown at him and move away a bit. “I thought your affinities clashed.”

He cocks his head. “They do. It’s like I’ve told you. She thinks it’s exciting. I find it off-putting.”

“Andouraffinities?” I wonder, his hand caressing the small of my back.

He pulls me in closer, his breath warm on my ear. “All that fire. And wood. We match up quite nicely, don’t you think?”

My breath goes uneven, my palm on his chest. He’s so warm.

Lukas grins and steps back, holding out his arm to me.

“Where are you taking me?” I ask with some wariness as he leads me back in the direction from which I came earlier.

“Trust me,” he says. “I want to show you there’s more to this place than crazy Icarals.”

* * *

We wind our way through the torch-lit University streets, past lodging houses and crafter’s Guildhalls. We finally come to a stop in front of an elegant building adorned with impressive wood carvings, scenes fromThe Book of the Ancientsadorning every arch and crevice.

It’s a museum of Gardnerian art.

The young military apprentice on guard duty immediately comes to attention when he sees Lukas and hands him a ring of keys without question.

We enter the building, and Lukas leads me through the deserted exhibit hallways, lighting lamps with a tap of his wand as we pass. I follow him past sculptures and paintings and into a circular exhibit hall.

As Lukas illuminates the room, I marvel at the instruments on display here, many protected under thick glass cases. A grand piano stands in the center of the hall, covered in carvings of trees and different species of birds, flying about the dark, ebony branches.

I’m immediately drawn to one of the violins sheltered under protective glass.

“This is a Dellorosa violin,” I breathe, amazed. They’re the most expensive violins in all of Erthia. Magicked to be perfectly in tune, the bow strings are made from the hair of Asteroth steeds, the swirling decorations wrought from pure gold.

Lukas pulls out his wand, murmurs a spell and points it at the case. A thin green light illuminates the lock before it clicks open. He lifts the glass cover, pulls out the open case and offers the violin to me.

I put my hands up to fend him off. “I...I couldn’t...”

He pushes the magical instrument toward me, insisting. “It was meant to be played, not stuck in a glass case.”

I relent and take the violin from him, the thrill of doing this forbidden thing coursing through me. I hold the exquisite instrument like a fragile newborn, feeling like I’m a child again and have just been given my most longed-for Yule gift.

Lukas goes to the piano and beckons for me to follow.

“What are we playing?” I ask in breathless anticipation.

He smiles and runs his fingers lightly over the glossy piano keys. “You’ll recognize it.”

Of course I do. Filyal’sDeep Forest Dream.

Everyone knows this piece, but played on these instruments, in harmony with each other, it becomes something altogether different. Gone is the nervousness I displayed at my aunt’s party. Here, alone with him, I dive into the music and wind the violin part around the piano music sinuously, as if we’ve played together all our lives. The music is one long, slow kiss, his fingers sliding the deep notes of his song against mine. I lose track of time as we play, his face serious as he moves his fingers deftly over the keys.

Much later, after Lukas brings our final piece to a close and his hands to rest on his knees, I lower the violin and smile at him. He smiles back and I can feel the heat in his gaze. Flustered, I turn away and lower the instrument gently back into its case.

I’m arranging the bow when Lukas comes up behind me. He wraps his arms around my waist, his breath warm against my cheek. “That was beautiful.”

My hands freeze in place on the bow. He begins to nuzzle my neck, untwining one hand from around my waist to gently pull my hair aside so he can kiss me just under it.

That’s when I stop breathing.

I release the bow in my hands and turn around, my back resting against the piano.

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