Chapter 36
The next morning, Cal walked hand in hand with Relian in the late morning sunshine. With a smile, she breathed in the crisp air. It woke her senses, and she basked in the sights only autumn could bring. The clearing would soon be appearing before them, and she relished these last few moments of peace. So did Relian, apparently, because he pulled her off the wooded path and led her to a large tree.
He pressed his body against hers, sandwiching her firmly between him and the tree before he parted her lips with his. Once inside, he began a lazy exploration that quickly turned heated. The strong muscles in his arms flexed under her fingers. She’d never get tired of the feeling of that—of him. He skimmed his hands over the sides of her waist until they settled on her hips. Inserting a leg between hers, he shifted her up higher so his sex pressed against hers. Heat gathered in her core. Forgetting where they were, she rocked against Relian and wrung a moan from him. When he pulled away, she groaned in dismay.
He sighed, pink tingeing the high planes of his cheeks. “There’s no time. How I wish it weren’t so, but we’re expected.” He stepped away from her and straightened her rumpled gown. His hands shook, and she couldn’t catch his gaze.
She reached out a comforting hand. Why was he suddenly acting so strangely? As soon as her skin made contact with his chest, she knew the answer. His strong desire rattled him, causing him to flounder. Though no means dictatorial, he was used to being in control, whether over people or his own emotions. He didn’t want to appear any less in her eyes, in his people’s eyes.
She cupped his face, nerves burning in her stomach, and prayed she would say the right thing. “Oh, Relian, you do the same thing to me. Feel my heart.” Her hands grasped his and placed them against the pounding organ. “There’s no shame in that. We just completed our bond, after all, but there’s time aplenty to come back to what we just cut short. We now share an immortal life together.” Her voice choked.
Immortal life. How could those few little words change the course of her life so much? She had a hard enough time saying them, so the actual contemplation of their meaning lay beyond her right now. To be immortal or nearly so, until she gave up her life. She couldn’t wrap her mind around that vastness, the next-to-eternity that stretched before her.
“It’ll take time, my love.”
The understanding in his voice almost broke her, for he wasn’t referring to what made him lose control but to what shredded hers. His hands framed her face, their roles turned around, making her want to sob. She would not; she couldn’t. Everyone expected them shortly. She wouldn’t arrive with red-rimmed eyes and tear-streaked cheeks.
As she sniffled a few times, the irony overwhelmed her—she should be comforting him, not the other way around. Laughing, she tried to explain what she found so humorous, but her gasping breaths made it a slow process. Between those words and their bond, he soon figured it out, though, and joined in the merriment.
His laughter trailed off as he looked down at her. “Yes, we have the rest of our long lives to learn, live, and love. Let that be enough for now.”
The bright eyes that stared into hers gave her the hope all would be right. “I couldn’t have phrased it better.”
He stepped away and held out his hand. “Come, or we’ll truly be late for our own receiving.”
“I want a honeymoon,” she muttered good-naturedly.
They walked back to the path. “That trip you mentioned where a bonded couple retreats to a private locale to indulge themselves?”
“I didn’t say that,” she said with a shake of her head and a smile. “They might go there to sight-see, and their retreat most certainly doesn’t have to be private.” When he looked at her dubiously, she paused. That hadn’t come out quite as she meant it. “Well, the bedroom should be private but not the locale necessarily.”
He bowed his head, his shoulders shaking with the force of his chuckles. “Of course, they wouldn’t want to perform for an audience—unless they’re like us and keep nearly doing so by accident.”
“Relian!”
***
Cal stared at the ring Relian had gifted her with at the receiving. In an effort to stay away from the crush of people in the clearing, she lurked near a tree. Touching the ring, she turned it on her finger and watched the light glint off the band. Its golden glow highlighted the engravings painstakingly etched in the precious metal. Less than half an inch wide, the band sported a nature scene not unlike the forest they wandered from this morning.
The most surreal part was the two figures holding hands in the midst of the scene, one tall and the other much shorter—about a foot, if she and Relian were anything to go by. The clarity of the etchings floored her, as did their surprising life-likeness. It was beyond her how something so small could contain such intricate depictions. She’d treasure it for the rest of her life, not only for its superb craftsmanship but also for what it represented.
When Maggie sashayed up to her, Cal groaned. Her friend looked way too perky for her liking.
“That was an awesome ceremony, don’t you think?”
Yikes, that pertness even came through in her voice. She eyed Maggie warily. “Yes.”
“It was out of this world, but then this place is out of our— What?” Maggie asked, frowning. “Why are you looking at me that way?”
“You either had too much to drink last night, or you’re hiding something.” She gazed at her friend with narrowed eyes.
Maggie glanced away. “What? Now, who’s spray painting the kettle black? I saw somebody quite tipsy after their own bonding ceremony, hanging all over their beloved.”
“I don’t deny that. But what did you do?”
Discomfort flashed over Maggie’s face. Cal’s unease skyrocketed.
“I didn’t do anything wrong.”