together beneath the heavy counterpane. The near-full moon shines bright enough through the window that his features are illuminated, the sheen of his pearlescent skin catching in the light.
In all the time I’ve known Kiaran, I’ve never seen him sleep. It softens his features. He looks younger, almost vulnerable. He holds me in a tight embrace, his fingers curled in my hair, and something about the gesture makes me feel safe, comforted.
What draws my gaze are the markings across his shoulders and down his arms. I know from kissing them earlier that they stretch down his torso and across his entire back, beautiful swirled designs upraised along his skin as if cut there by a fine blade. I reach to touch them with my fingertips.
Kiaran’s lips curve into a smile. “Do you like what you see?”
Damn. I flush, my face hot, and snatch my hand back. “How do you do that? How do you always manage to catch me staring?”
“Mmm.” Kiaran pulls me closer, kissing me softly on my forehead, my cheek, the curve of my neck. Featherlight touches that bring back the memory of his hands, his lips, everywhere. “I’m an excellent guesser,” he tells me.
“Oh? Then what am I thinking right now?”
“That you like this.” Kiaran’s hand slides down to my hip. “That you want us to stay this way.”
Something about the way he says it makes me go still. “You think we won’t?”
“Kam—”
“Wait.” I press a finger to his lips. “I’ve changed my mind. Don’t answer that.”
Kiaran looks amused. “What shall I say, then?”
“Something else. So then I don’t have to think about you and me or Lonnrach or wherever that bloody crystal is. What’s your favorite color? Do you have a favorite color? To how many places can you recite pi?”
“Kam.”
“No. Not that. Let’s start over.” I prop my chin in my hands. “Tell me—” Kiaran’s lips brush mine. “Tell me . . .” He kisses me again, harder. What was I going to say? I can’t recall. “You’re doing that on purpose.”
“I learned it from you,” Kiaran says. “Improvisation.”
I should have known he’d use that kiss after the wisp attack against me. “Very clever.”
“You said to start over.” Kiaran trails his lips down my jaw. “Shall we begin again? I’m Kiaran.” Another kiss. “You’re Kam.” Another. “Pleased to meet you.”
I laugh. “Introductions don’t generally include kisses, MacKay.”
“This one does.”
“You’re making this far too easy for me,” I say. “First I’m supposed to charm you. Then ensnare you when you least suspect.” In a swift move, I roll on top of him, trapping him beneath me. Our bodies are perfectly lined up, pressed close. I pin his wrists with a triumphant grin. “Ha! There now. You’re mine, Kiaran MacKay.”
The way he looks at me steals my breath. He’s gazing up at me like I’m powerful. Like I’m magnificent. I don’t think I’ve ever felt more beautiful.
Then he breaks my hold and he’s whispering against my lips. “I am,” he tells me. “I’m yours.”
I wake to see Kiaran standing by the window, his back to me. The moon outside frames him in a halo of light. I study the span of his back, the length of his spine, the designs etched into his skin there that must have been burned by fae metal.
I rise from the bed and move to stand behind him. He doesn’t say anything as I slide my fingertips up to the skin at his shoulder to explore the pattern there. Some of the swirls are tiny, some larger. It’s the most beautiful work of art I’ve ever seen.
“What does it mean?” I ask him. I follow the lines over and over, feeling how the skin is upraised in tiny, intricate patterns.
“When a sìthiche makes a vow, their skin is marked with it. It’s a reminder we wear for eternity, a penance,” he says. “That one is my promise to Catríona.”
There’s an ache in my chest, a dull throbbing. “Your penance?”
Kiaran closes his eyes and reaches for my hand, as if he craves the comfort of touch. As if I’m about to disappear. “Each sign represents a human I’ve killed.”
I hold my breath, my eyes roving the length of the design. Oh, god. If I tried to count them, I would lose my place. There are so many swirls, so many. I can’t help it, I rise onto my tiptoes and slide my hand up the design, from his wrist to the underside of his arm.
Kiaran lets me continue my exploration across the span