Page 43 of Over the Emerald Valley
As if he could ever forget any of this.
Temaj’s smile was radiant. “Good, yes? Want another?” He held up a second date.
“Are you going to hand-feed me my entire breakfast?” Solon took it and chewed slowly.
“I wouldn’t say no.” Temaj licked his fingers clean. “Though I doubt you’d let me.”
Solon wasn’t ready for the smile to vanish. “Perhaps one more.”
Eyes glittering, Temaj selected a third, placed it carefully between his teeth, and offered it to Solon with a tilt of his head.
Such beauty. Such a tantalizing picture he made. Solon took the date and the kiss at once. Temptation to spend the entire morning like this blazed hot, sending warmth from chest to toes, but important matters loomed. He must rein in this newfound desire and concentrate on duty.
“Have a seat.” Solon pulled out a chair for Temaj. “If we continue this, I’ll eat all the food, and there will be none for you.”
Temaj sank into the chair as if he were made of putty, curling one leg beneath the other gracefully. “Starving might be worth it if you kissed me with every bite.”
Solon huffed a laugh and shook his head. He plopped into the chair opposite with all the grace of an aging soldier, which was to say, no grace at all. “Laying it on too thick to be believable, plucky.”
“You always say that, but it’s true,” Temaj argued, then chomped on a date with a moan. “Mostly,” he said around the food. “I almost forgot how good these were.” He licked honey from his lips.
Solon watched his pink tongue disappear. Temaj caught him looking and smirked. Solon shook his head with a chuckle at how easily distracted he was.Focus on the tasks. Breakfast, planning, action.
He piled his plate with a selection more substantial than glorified candy. How should he begin the conversation? One question filtered to the top of the list.
“Do you know why Abasi doesn’t come out during the day?”
Temaj glanced up from his meal. “I’ve been told it’s a skin condition.”
“And do you believe that’s true?”
“Why wouldn’t I?”
Solon spoke the next bit carefully, gauging Temaj’s expression for a reaction. “Well, because some of the miners think it’s more than that. There are rumors of blood demons. Whispers that suggest Abasi might be one.”
Temaj arched his brows.
“The kind of demon that feeds on the living.”
“And you suspect me to believe that over a skin condition?”
Put like that, it did sound crazy.
Temaj’s expression grew pensive. “Humans are bloodthirsty enough on their own. They don’t need the help of demons to be cruel.” A shiver shook Temaj’s thin shoulders.
Solon swallowed. What cruelty had Temaj experienced for those words to grace his lips? Solon wanted to punish someone. “Are you mistreated here?”
“I’ve already told you I’m treated well.”
“Your master may not be a blood demon, but I’m convinced he’s a criminal.”
“A criminal?” Temaj narrowed his gaze and spoke slowly, “Well, whether he is or not, he’s kind to his slaves.”
Solon caught a hole in this logic. “I thought you weren’t a slave.”
Temaj gave a fierce shrug and held his chin high. “So what if I am?”
Solon spoke gently. “I saw how he treated you, and it wasn’t with kindness.”
