Page 84 of All the Chaos of Constellations
“Asher, you must know…” She ran a comforting hand up and down his arm in an attempt to soothe. “Surely, you must know you’re nothing like him.”
He looked down at her, his face a void. Empty from years of the transgressions against him. “The stars told me a different story.”
Weighted silence stretched between them. Novalise reached up, cupping his cheek with her hand. Beneath her palm, she could feel every beat of misery, sense all his fleeting emotions. Vengeance. Desolation. Remorse. She let her fingers trace the line of his solid jaw. “What do you mean?”
“I’ve only had one star reading in my life, given by your mother.” Asher’s gaze flicked to her, fleeting, before he returned his attention to the waterfall’s edge. “I’ll never forget the words she spoke to me.”
Unsettled, Novalise let her hand fall away. “What did she say?”
“That I will end up exactly like my father.” He faced her, his gaze fraught with worry. He shoved his hair back from his face, stepping away from her, closer to the edge of the cliff. “I vowed then and there to never subject my wife to the wrath of my temper. I would never raise a hand to her. But I’m no fool, Novalise. Everyone is capable of making promises and breaking them. To ourselves. To others. Eventually, it became easier to accept the fact that not only should I never fall in love, but that I’m simply not worthy of it.”
Novalise clamped one hand over her mouth, appalled by such an admission.
“Before my mother died, she told Cyra and I that the stars promised her a life filled with love. With my father’s death, she thought her fate was stolen from her.” He spread his hands wide, then his shoulders dropped, fully defeated. “Not once did she consider me or my sister. Her love was only for him. Not for us. She took her own life a few days after his death.”
Novalise sniffled, hastily wiping away the unbidden tears falling down her cheeks. “Youareworthy, Ash.”
He opened his mouth to counter her, but she raised one hand, silencing him.
“My soul chose you. And yours…yours chose me.” Grabbing his hand, she placed it over her heart, allowed him to feel the depth of her love, how her heart beat solely for him. “Ever since we shared that kiss on the Winter Solstice, I’ve been yours. I chose you then, I still choose you now.”
Asher’s hand moved to the back of her neck, drawing her close. “Nova…”
She threw her arms around him. “For me, it will always be you.”
They collided in a kiss of stardust and flames. Passion unfurled between them, pulsing through the warm summer night, enveloping them in an inferno of heated lust. His mouth was everywhere at once—her lips, her neck, her shoulders, and that delicate area above her breasts. Her nails scoured his shoulders, and she leaned back to glance down between them, reveling in the way his hardened length strained against his pants. But his touch was a frenzy and this was something she wanted to savor. She wanted to pleasure him, to prove he was worthy of all she had to offer. Reaching for him, she grabbed the waist of his pants. As soon as his cock sprang free, she would draw him into her mouth. Suck him. Taste him. Worship him.
“Fuck,” Asher groaned, nearly stumbling.
She swept her tongue along her bottom lip, and he tracked the movement. “I believe what you meant to say is that you want to fuck me. Am I correct in that assumption?”
Then his voice filled her mind, a balm to her soul.“Such a dirty mouth for such a good girl.”
The corner of her mouth curved into a slow, simpering smile.“Only for you.”
She stepped back, ready to drop to her knees before him.
“Nova! Stop!” Asher jerked forward to grab her. His hand grasped only air.
But it was too late. The soft ground beneath her feet gave way and she slipped, losing her balance. A shriek escaped her and then she was floating through the air, falling. Greenery bled past her, the spray of water splattered against her face. Bracing herself, she sucked in a final breath of air, only to see Asher diving after her, right before she plunged into the faerie pool.
Warm, glimmering water sloshed around her as she kicked, struggling to orient herself. Her gown stuck to her legs, winding around her like a thick vine, weighing her down. She swam harder, fueled by her own self-worth. She was an excellent swimmer. If and when she did die, she refused to let it be by drowning.
Suddenly, a strong arm wrapped around her waist. Asher held her to him, cutting through the water with ease, hauling her to the surface.
They broke through together, with Novalise gasping, sputtering, and coughing, while Asher muttered a rather unsavory stream of curses. He didn’t let her go until her feet could touch the smooth, pebbled bottom of the faerie pool, where the water was no longer over her head. She stood up, drenched and warm from the hot springs, but alive. And more in love than ever.
Still fuming, Asher stalked toward the edge of the pool. He tugged off his tie, and she couldn’t do anything but stare at the wet white shirt suctioned to his skin. Asher yanked it over his head, swearing at all the stars as he tossed it onto the grassy banks. Tiny, incandescent waves lapped at his waist as shimmering beads slid over his bare chest and down his solid abdomen. Steaming mist unfurled around him, taunting her. His entire body looked sculpted from stone, rock hard and near godly. Each dip and curve of his muscled form glistened, causing Novalise’s mouth to water. He shook his head, spraying droplets in every direction before pushing the damp strands back from his face. In the radiant pool, he was the epitome of everything she ever wanted.
Right now, she only wanted one thing.
Novalise was soaking wet, and it had nothing to do with falling off a cliff into a faerie pool.
She waded over toward him, his brow furrowed in an instant. But before he could scold her, because she had no doubt those were his exact intentions, she leapt into his arms. Shock flashed in his eyes, only to be replaced quickly with untempered desire. He caught her easily, staggering back only once, and she locked her legs around his waist.
She wanted him. All of him.
Tangling her fingers through Asher’s hair, Novalise pressed her mouth to his, fusing them together in a burst of starlit flames.
