Page 78 of Artemysia
I wonder if he does remember more, and it’s difficult to talk about. Maybe he honors Marije’s memory by keeping things neat. After all, this woman must have been a mother figure to him until he was six. That has to leave more than a vague impression, and it must have hurtwhen she died. Either way, he doesn’t seem to want to talk about it.
“Speaking of minds…will you please let me check your head injury?” I beckon him with a wave of my hand.
“Finding reasons to come closer?” he says, as prickly as ever. “It’s only a cut.”
“You wish I were closer.”
He lets loose a slow exhale. “I do,” he says, leveling a lust-ridden look at me from under those dark lashes. His eyes glitter, scattering the purples of the glowing pool.
My stomach flips like a fish out of water.
He wades over and bows his head. I rake my fingertips over his scalp and part his hair where there’s the most blood. There’s a gash the size of my thumbnail.
“I could sew it for you.” Gods, his hair is soft.
Calm down, Delphine. It’s probably because the only other hair I’ve touched besides my own is elk coat.
No, his hair is damn soft, and I love it. It’s straight but waves a bit where it’s longer, like down by the nape of his neck.
“That wouldn’t hurt at all,” he grumbles, retreating to his side of the hot spring.
“Fine. It doesn’t look like it’s bleeding anymore, but be careful with it.”
“Is that an order, Captain?” The corners of his lips twitch upward.
“Have youeverfollowed a single command of mine? If I ordered you to swim right now, you’d probably drown yourself just to defy me.”
He frowns, bobbing back and forth. Water gently spills over the edge of the pool. I’ll bet anything he’s considering a snarky reply, but the next time he floats forward, he stops suddenly.
I’m very aware that there’s only an inch of hot water between our bare bodies.
The sinewy muscles of his neck and shoulders flex as he speaks.
“I don’t care about my head, or your orders. I care aboutyouand what you’re doing to me right now. I don’t think I can wait any longer.” His voice comes husky and deep, and I’ve grown fond of what this means. He doesn’t touch me yet, and it’s as if he’s waiting for permission.
I’m not sure I can wait any longer either, so I close the remaining distance and my bare breasts land against his torso. He clutches at my waist to hold me against him, gripping me as if he wants to occupy the same space I’m in.
“I want you, too,” I manage to whisper, parting my lips to steady my breath with a slow exhale.
I angle my head inward to kiss him.
“Wait,” he says softly, at the same time finding my fingers underwater to interlock in his. “Not to be too practical right now, but we didn’t discuss this before. I don’t want to get you pregnant, not knowing what I am. Should I—”
“I’m on a tonic, so I can’t. I wouldn’t risk another life while on a dangerous mission.”
He releases my hand and strokes the curves of my hip, moving down to where my legs meet.
His thumb tilts my chin to him.
We’re suddenly kissing as if it’s the only thing that matters right now.
His hands rove everywhere. Over my ass. Up the sensitive undersides of my breasts. My nipples prick at his touch. He bites my lip. My skin tingles, and hot water splashes ever the edge of the pool. Our bodies crushed against each other, he clasps the nape of my neck with a large palm, sending a delightful shudder down my spine at his demanding touch. My thighs straddle his waist, and I arch my tits out of the water, wanting his mouth on them. He grips the base of my braid and yanks it back to kiss my neck, trailing his lips down to meet my nipple as I moan his name into the dark, cavernous hollows above us.
Underwater, I feel him hardening against me, spiking a tight need where our bodies meet, and we both press into what little space is left between us.
His gaze grows heavy.
“Do you want me right now?” he breathes. The low rumble of his voice travels through my chest.
