Page 172 of The Last One
A slow smile spreads across my face. “Never.”
“Turn around, then.” His voice is soft and teasing. With gentle hands, he covers my eyes with the napkin. “Let’s see how fine-tuned your palate is.”
“And if I win?” I ask, smiling, my breath hot with anticipation.
“You can take anything you want from me.” His tone is now a playful challenge. “Including geld. Lady’s choice.”
“Okay. Deal.” I sense his eyes on me, and my blood rushes at the prospect of lady’s choice—and this lady needs no geld.
“And what do I get whenIwin?” he asks, his words also laced with anticipation.
“When?”A playful smile dances on my lips. “You can take whateveryouwant fromme.” My heart races at the thought, the promise of giving him whatever he wants. And he’s not interested in geld, either.
Jadon says, “Open your mouth.”
I chuckle, an attempt to dispel the nervous fluttering in my stomach. “No bugs, though.”
“No bugs,” he repeats. “Open.”
I part my lips just like he wants, and I smell it before I taste it. Tart and sweet. The spaces around my ears tingle. “Easy. Strawberries.”
“That was a gimme,” Jadon says, his voice warm with amusement. “Next. Open.”
I comply, my face burning beneath the napkin.
He sets the item on my tongue.
I bite. The smooth nuttiness of cheese fills my mouth.
“But whatkindof cheese?” he asks.
“Whatkindof cheese?” I pause, savoring the taste on my tongue. “Goudrake.”
“Wow. Impressive.” He sounds proud.
“I’m winning.” I’ve only begun to impress.
“Next,” he says. “Open.”
I part my lips again.
“Wider.”
A thrill of anticipation shoots up my spine and spreads across my neck. I obey.
Something light sits on my tongue. I don’t know which of my senses I’ll lose myself in first: the flavor that will soon flood my mouth, the tingle in my cheeks as his breath warms my skin, or the luscious aroma of the pine-scented soap he used to bathe.
I close my mouth but only because he tells me to.
Sweet. Sticky. Solid but barely.
“Fig,” I say, my brow furrowed.
“No.”
I gasp. “You lie.”
“Raisin.”
