sworn I felt a...” He shook his head and squeezed his fingers tight around the chair. “Nevermind that. Clearly, I was wrong. The Winter Court will be lucky to have you.”
I swallowed hard at the look in his eye. What had he been about to say? He’d felt...something. What? Was it the same thing I felt when I looked at him? But that was impossible. He was just using his magic on me. I was certain of it.
“So, do you think I should be reading up on the strengths of the Summer fae?”
His smile was so bright, it was almost blinding. “You’ve had a hard past few days. I’ll make it easy on you.” He leaned forward and whispered into my ear, sending a swarm of goosebumps storming down my neck. “Summer fae are known for their healing powers.”
I pushed myself up higher on the pillows, wincing when a new blast of pain went through my leg. “Well, that would sure come in handy right about now.” A pause. “The nurse is a Summer fae, right? Why didn’t she heal me, then?”
“Technically,” he began as he shifted closer to the bed, his movements as graceful and purposeful as a lion’s once again, “we’re not to use our healing gifts unless absolutely necessary. It can drain us, you see.”
“Drain you how?” I asked, trying to focus on the conversation rather than how close his body was to mine.
He lifted a shoulder in a shrug. “It can make us tired and weak, particularly if the injury is serious. We then need time to recover, which isn’t ideal when we have foes to fight or academies to run.”
“Right.” I sighed and leaned back onto the pillows. “That makes sense.”
He grinned and slid a hand onto the bed, resting it a mere inch from where my thighs were covered by the thin white sheet. “That said, I’m feeling inclined to help you, Norah. You’ve had a tough first week, and it’d be a shame for you to miss any of your classes. Why don’t you and I make a deal? I’ll heal your leg, and you can give me something in exchange.”
Both his words and the tone of his voice sounded full of danger. A flashing red light blazed in my head, blinking furiously in an attempt to stop me from making a very stupid move. Liam didn’t unnerve me as much as Rourke and Kael did, and he certainly hadn’t used me as bait or abandoned me on a cliff to face a Redcap on my own.
Yet.
He was his own kind of dangerous. One that I should probably run far, far away from.
But this damn leg...
I winced at the pain.
Also, I was…curious. I couldn’t help myself. His hand was so close to my thigh. Did that mean he had to touch me to heal me? My skin buzzed with excitement.
I clearly needed to get a grip.
But then I gave Liam a nod with my breath held tight in my throat. “All right. Are you going to touch me?”
Oh god, that sounded far more suggestive than I’d meant. Partially because my voice was practically a strangled whisper.
His smile widened.
Before I knew what was happening, Liam slid his hand underneath the sheet. His fingers whispered across my bare thigh, tracing lazy circles around the bandages that had been wrapped around my wound. I couldn’t move. I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t even blink. Blood roared in my ears as every single part of me focused on where his skin met mine.
I felt on fire. Delicious, exquisite fire.
It took every ounce of self-control not to squirm.
“So, would you like me to heal you then?” he said in a teasing voice. “Or shall I remove my hand?”
My breath shuddered from my lungs. “Healing, please.”
It was all I could say, and even those words sounded strained and whispered, like the sound of the wind rattling through the trees.
“Very well,” he murmured. He dragged his fingers from my skin and onto my bandage where he continued to caress my leg. I tensed at the expectation of pain, but none came. Instead, a soothing warmth flooded through me. It felt as though the sun had risen from behind the clouds, beating down on my skin as I soaked up the summer rays. My whole body felt alive and electric. Warm and soothed and free of pain.
That warmth slipped up my leg and built between my thighs. Sparks dotted my visions as I stared up at the ceiling, not daring to look