Page 175 of Bane of the Wild Hunt

That was all I needed to know. The screech of thoughts and the thrum of anxiety was immediately overpowered by the sheer elation thatshe wanted me to kiss her…

The sound she uttered when my mouth opened against hers again tightened my abdomen instantly with arousal. The sensation of her melting into me and eagerly meeting every stroke of my lips and tongue was euphoric.

But before we could get heated, she gave a reluctant groan and turned her head to break our contact without moving away from me.

“W-wait, please,” she panted, although I could hear the hesitation hitching in her voice.

“You want me to stop?” I verified, because it certainly did not sound, feel, or smell like it to me.

“I…No. But I am worried that you might be feeling something that you cannot express with words.”

Yes. The staggering elation of someone being shown all my ugliness, and she had not been repulsed by me. Although I supposed I could see her point that this might not be the best of reasons to impulsively kiss her for the first time. She deserved better than that.

But my elation at not being perceived as repulsive was not theonlyreason I kissed her. If I were honest with her, I’d wanted to taste her well before, and my emotions had merely been heightened enough by her demonstration that I had acted without any of my usual fear or shame.

Iwantedto kiss her. Istillwanted to kiss her.

“It’s okay,” she assured me when she felt me hesitate, uncertain of what to say. “I just want you to be alright.”

“I am alright,” I answered softly, and for the first time in a very long time, it felt like it could be the truth.

Chapter forty-seven

A CREATURE OLD AS THE EARTH

Amira

The meeting with Riordan’s advisors to discuss the Fuath was about as productive as our own ponderings had been. Everyone came to the conclusion that the only Imítheos with the power and inclination to thwart Riordan was his cousin, Nikos. But we had been keeping a close eye on him since he left the city, and there were no reports of him engaging with anyone or any suspicious behaviour.

For hours and hours we talked circles around the issue, and we were no closer to finding answers.

Of course, it did not help that I was so distracted with everything Orion told me earlier. By the thought of that fuckingbrandhidden on his arm and the scars that were clearly a result of him trying to cut or burn it off of him. And then there was his complete confusion over how I could feel that this was a priority.

It broke my fucking heart when I recalled the way he stumbled over his words. Completely overwrought.

But mostly, I worried that kissing his arm had been the wrong thing to do when his past was probably so full of confusing sexual encounters. I feltgrubby. Like I’d taken advantage of himin a vulnerable moment right after I had established myself as safe. I’d only wanted to show him he was not repulsive, but I had not thought enough about my actions to anticipate how he might respond to them.

And I couldn’t even bring myself tobeginanalyzing my reaction to him when he kissed me.

I was not sure why, but when he leaned in, I had been expecting it to feel the same as when Riordan kissed me. Perhaps that was naive, but I had assumed that once one learned how to kiss, then it would be the same, but that was not the case! It was like dancing. There was a rhythm to learn, a sequence that would be unique to us…

If we ever got the opportunity to uncover it together.

“Thank you,” sighed Riordan, dismissing his advisors when he tired of getting nowhere while discussing Nikos. “We will reconvene once I meet with our spies again.”

I waited for the three advisors to leave, smiling for Dio—the only one I was personally familiar with—when he gave a solemn nod on his way past me. Once the door had closed behind them, leaving Orion and I alone with our king, I moved to sit on the edge of the desk in front of my pensive mate.

“You need to sleep on it,” I urged gently when he did not even seem to notice me moving closer.Lover?I added in his mind, and he finally looked up as if he was startled.

“You are right,” he concurred. “I only—”

There was a quiet but rather frantic knock on the door which had Orion bristling and stepping in front of us.

“Come in,” called Riordan, rising from his chair to put a protective hand on my lower back, but it was only Ares who entered the office.

My guardian cast a narrow-eyed glower at Orion that made Orion smirk, before Ares focused on Riordan.

“I did not want to interrupt your meeting, but we heard from Olirik. He is waiting for you in the Spring Quadrant with the envoy sent on behalf of King Balor.”

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