Page 137 of Flame and Sparrow

He continued to admire me, fingertips skating thoughtfully up and down my bare legs as he said, “It’s been a long time since I experienced that with a mortal.”

I didn’t want to think about other, divine experiences he might have had—and how I compared to them—but I couldn’t help but ask, “Is it different, doing this sort of thing with a…um…not-mortal?”

“Different is one way of putting it,” he said, settling onto the bed beside me.

“I’ve heard stories of the appetitessome of you gods have.” I sat up, smoothing his rumpled shirt back into place over my body. “Insatiable lust, wild parties…”

A corner of his mouth quirked. “We were all humans once, and some of our very human urges carry over,” he said with a shrug. “And yes—they’re magnified at times. We can take many forms, too, so I suppose things can get a bit more…ah,feralcompared to what mortals are used to.”

I blushed as my imagination immediately ran wild, thinking of all the different forms he might take, all the different ways he might take care of those very humanurges.

He arched a brow. “But I hope my mortal form was sufficient for you for now?”

I blushed deeper. “More than sufficient. I’m embarrassed I didn’t last any longer than I did.”

He grinned, and I feared I might melt right into the sheets at the sight of it. “Next time we’ll take it slower,” he promised.

Next time.

I felt dizzy, and I didn’t think it was because of the lingering memory of my orgasm. I should have dropped the conversation then and there—for the sake of my own balance—but my mind still raced with questions.

And apparently, I had that particular, curiouslookon my face, because Dravyn smiled knowingly and said, “You have more questions about the gods and their wild sexual escapades, don’t you?”

“Maybe.”

He stood, redressed himself, and gestured for me to continue. “Out with it.”

I cleared my throat. “If you and I were to truly lay together, and we were to fully, well,finish, and you were to…”

He glanced over at me mid-stretch, the trace of a smirk on his lips. “You’re wondering if I can put a child in you.”

“It’s a fair question, isn’t it?”

“It is.” His smirk became more pronounced as he added, “And I do love that you’re already imagining me coming inside of you.”

“I like to be prepared for any and all potential disasters.”

He chuckled. “Would it be disastrous? You truly think so?” He leaned back over the bed, bringing his lips to mine, and I couldn’t resist meeting his kiss. “I can think of far moredisastrousthings,” he mused when he finally dragged his lips away from mine. “But to answer your question, we’re…incompatiblein that way, as far as I’m aware.”

I fiddled with my hair, twisting it into a messy braid only to untwist it again. “Good to know.”

“I’d be happy to demonstrate things further, if you’d like. We can always test—”

I coughed. “We have other business to attend to today.”

“We do, don’t we?” He tried for another easy smile, but it didn’t quite reach his eyes this time—a sign that he was as apprehensive about our upcoming business as I was, maybe. “I need to bathe first. You’re welcome to join me, of course.”

“I have my own room,” I insisted, as tempting as the invitation was.

“Suit yourself. I’ll see you downstairs in a bit.”

I slipped on my pants from yesterday, cringing a bit at how dirty they were—at how dirty I was, in general. I pushed through the grossness, tucking his shirt in and smoothing it as best I could, and then made a beeline for the door. I planned to sneak as fast as I could to my room and jump immediately into the hottest tub of water I could stand.

Unfortunately, I ran into the God of Winter on my way down the tower steps.

He was in the middle of biting into a plum when our gazes met. He took one look at me, stopped walking and lowered the fruit, violet eyes dancing as a smile crossed his lips. “I’m guessing you know why the always-punctual God of Fire is late for the meeting he and I were supposed to have this morning?”

I lifted my chin and tried for as much dignity as I could muster. “He’ll be downstairs in a few minutes.”

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