Page 82 of Heart’s Prisoner

"You are supposed to savor it..." she mumbled.

Xerus licked his lips and teeth, mulling over the wine. His eyes lit up.

"You like it?" Lana said.

Xerus grunted, offering her back his glass, wanting more. Lana laughed quietly and poured him another glass. He again drank it down quickly.

"My brethren would greatly enjoy this," he said, staring down at his glass.

"Perhaps we have something to trade then?" Lana inquired, taking another sip of her own.

Xerus' mouth widened. "Perhaps."

"There are effects to drinking too much though," Lana warned as she saw him pour himself another glass, filling the cup almost to the brim. "It can make one feel a little off..."

"Off how?" Xerus asked.

"Like...dizzy. Or careless." She watched as he took another generous swig. "Maybe it won't affect your kind the same though..."

Xerus seemed to take the hint, taking slower gulps. Lana tried to contain her laughter as she finished her own. "I'll admit I’m not big on alcohol myself but, on special occasions, I like to indulge."

Xerus tapped his fingers along his knee, regarding her lazily. "This is a special occasion?"

Lana set her glass down and shrugged. "I think it is," she said timidly.

Xerus tilted his head. "How so?"

Lana chewed on her lip, already she was beginning to feel the effects of the wine. She had always been a lightweight. "Because we are together," she said.

She didn't even think before she said it, just blurted it out like it was some secret confession. Heat rose as she realized though that she might have given too much away. She thwarted his gaze, looking down at her hands, her glass, the ground, anything but him.

"You are...happy we are together?" he asked.

The room was beginning to feel a little too warm, Lana could feel sweat trickling down her neck and back. She clasped her hands tightly together. 'Can't take it back now. Just let it out, Lana,' she thought.

"I am," she said, closing her eyes. Then she laughed. "I'm happy you had lied and didn't decide to hunt me down and..." she couldn't finish the rest. Her heart pounded wildly in her chest. "I am glad things are back to how they were before because..."

Xerus bent his head forward. "Because...?"

Lana did look at him then, her gaze entrapped with his. "Because you are my friend." She said it as steady as she possibly could but the slight waver in her tone might have given her away.

Xerus' eyes narrowed, his mouth twitching. "Friend?"

For a moment Lana feared he would dispute that claim. His eyes flickered over her sharply.

"Are we not?" Lana's voice this time did waver and she cursed silently.

Xerus straightened, thinking. "I do not know."

A stab of pain hit her chest. "Oh. I thought maybe..."

"I don't think friends fear another," he said blatantly. "Unless that is some strange human trait."

Lana frowned. "I don't fear you."

Xerus bowed his head. "Your heartbeat says otherwise."

Lana stiffened. Xerus nodded then slowly rose. "You humans are a confusing breed, you know? You fear me yet you try to please me. You show affection when you think I am dead but when I am alive you turn from me."

---