Page 29 of To No End

I glanced out the window, the daylight still burning strong. It would be too forward to drag him up to the room and strip him. Which was what I had in mind.

“Actually, I have a list,” I said boldly.

“Oh, do you now?” His interest was piqued. He continued, “And what’s something we can check off today?”

He hadn’t a single clue that he was the next thing on the list, but I had to dredge up something else or I’d blow my cover.

“Do something that scares me,” I replied, trying to sound intriguing and adventurous rather than innocent and meek. He cocked his head to the side.

“I think I’ve got an idea that suits this request,” he offered slyly.

He threw some coins on the table to pay for our meal and began to usher me up and to the exit.

“Hey, I can pay for my—” Before I could finish, he interrupted.

“I know you can, but I’m not allowing you to.” He continued his stride to the exit and I quickly followed, making up the distance between us.

We headed back to the stable, and he told me it wouldn’t be too long of a ride.

“We’ll take both horses,” he nudged me toward Rain and Alcar.

“What, you think I can’t keep my hands to myself?” I quipped flirtatiously.

He continued to prepare our horses and replied coolly, “I know you can. But I cannot.”

I was shamefully blushing at his response and almost blurted out an excuse that Rain was too tired, but that was too desperate. Trace had this way of being salacious but then acting as if he were commenting on the weather. It was infuriating, but also the exact reason he was so damn alluring. He exuded experience and casual confidence. I shuddered to imagine the number of lovers he’d taken with this charade of interested indifference. It was certainly working a number on me.

We both mounted, and he uttered, “Follow me.”

Before I could even question the destination, he took off at full speed, but I met his challenge with enthusiasm.

Rain and I kept pace with Trace and Alcar for the majority of the distance. I was probably being quite stupid, putting this much trust in him as he led me farther and farther away from anywhere I had been or could find my way back from. For all I knew, he could have been leading me to my demise. A place so isolated no one would hear my screams. But at this point in time, I would have followed this cloaked rogue into oblivion.

I tried not to let him notice my stolen glances of his wind-blown hair being swept off his face, revealing more of his sharp, handsome features in the sunlight. When he slowed Alcar, we followed suit, and arrived upon a small body of water surrounded by trees and a rocky backdrop. The center of the water was terrifyingly dark, the bottom impossible to see, implying it was very, very deep.

He dismounted and casually tied Alcar and Rain to some trees off to the side. I dismounted and began to pace around the edge of the water, “What are we doing here?” I questioned anxiously, since Trace hadn’t indicated what his idea was before we arrived.

“You want to do something that scares you. This will do the trick.” He pointed at the body of water.

“I’m not scared of swimming,” I remarked.

“Of course not. Someone who’s going to spend so much time with the Seafarers surely isn’t afraid of the water...”

His intent was lost on me. Was this some sad attempt to get me naked in the water, because I had saved that item on the list for another time.

“However, the Sav eels can be quite intimidating. What with those rows and rows of razor-sharp teeth, they could skin a tiny thing like you in mere seconds.”

My eyes widened with fear, and I felt myself holding my breath as I took a step back from the water I had been peering into. He continued to look at me knowingly, like he expected me to just welcome the insanity of his proposal.

“You’re crazy if you think I’m getting in there with those eels.”

He laughed. “You said you wanted to do something that scares you.”

“Yeah, Trace, but I’m not trying to die today!” I exclaimed, as if that needed any further explanation.

He walked up to me and placed his gloved hand on my lower back, as if that would bring me comfort. He nudged me closer back to the edge as we both peered into the pool of water.

“The good news for you is the eels are nocturnal; they’ll remain in the dark depths of this pool until sunlight no longer blankets the surface.” He paused, as if explaining that made the situation any more enticing. “That is, if you trust their natural instincts.”

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