his chest, my limbs not quite sure where they should go. Usually, he holds me and I don’t have to question what I should do.
He lets a minute slip by with my hand held awkwardly above us before he takes it in his and rests it against his abdomen. His warm palm easing any nervousness I had felt just moments ago.
The endless starlight shines above us, lighting up the sky, keeping my attention off of the nerves that fill my restless body.
“Your heart’s so loud,” I finally say to fill the quietness as I listen to the strong beats within his chest.
A long breath is his only reply before he finally replies in a whisper, “That’s because it beats for you.”
My own heart flutters and a smile fills my face. “Have you waited an entire year to use that line?” I ask teasingly.
Laughter rumbles through his chest as he brushes his thumb back and forth against my hand.
“I’ve had a year to think about what I would say to you. I’m just getting started, baby.”
The celebration is wildly heard within the night but for a few moments it’s just him and I.
“Did you speak to the vampires?” I ask in a quiet voice, already knowing the answer to my question.
“I did.” He shifts beneath me, not pulling away but moving with restlessness.
“What did they tell you? Did they tell you where I was?”
He clears his throat. “Don’t ever go back there. They were not left here to help us, Fallon. They might be near dead, but they’re more dangerous than they appear.”
I nod, knowing he’s right, but they still got me what I wanted.
Him.
Thirteen
Mine
The boards creak in protest under the movement of new weight behind me, interrupting another clawing nightmare. My eyes flutter open in the darkness, the shadowed forest greeting me, but I don’t turn to him. He pulls himself up onto my pallet as quietly as possible, the boards whining, the woodlands silent in the presence of an age old predator. The warmth of his body sliding against mine wakes me in an instant.
Over the last couple of weeks, it’s become our introduction to the hours of words to come. These hours are the most we ever speak to one another. The night eats up our words in the warm breeze, words that are lost to us by the following dawn. Passing each other as strangers during the day among the other Wanderers.
“How was your day?” he asks in a hushed tone, slipping his hand easily around my hip. The hard board bites into my side as his gentle fingertips caresses my other side.
His touch settles into my body. A chain reaction of warmth, tingling, and near lightheadedness flows through me.
“Uneventful,” I reply, waiting for his next words, hanging on words unspoken. A feeling of intoxication spreads through me from our few minutes we’ve had together already.
His hand shifts slowly from my hip to my stomach, resting flat against my navel. His strength pulls me closer to his hard body. I feel his breath on my neck before he speaks.
“Kaino pulled me aside today.” He leaves the statement hanging between us for a moment. “He asked if I knew you from somewhere. He said the two of us appeared to be conspiring and asked if there was anything he should worry about.”
My body tenses against him. Kaino noticed us noticing each other? How is that possible? We barely speak in public. Not that it’s a major deal. Raske seems to accept Asher and Gabriel and that’s all that really matters. Would he still accept them if he realized my lack of interest in Kaino and my overwhelming interest in Asher?
Asher’s long fingers start to massage and dance along my stomach.
“What did you say?”
His hand pauses for just a moment before restarting, his touch distracting me from the topic.
“Hmmm, what did I say?” His deep whisper vibrates against my back and into my chest. My eyes close, enjoying the feeling for just a moment.
“Don’t tease, what did you tell him?” I ask in all seriousness.
A low laugh brushes against my hair, rumbling through me in a delicious and unique way. The feeling tumbles through my body and settles low in my stomach.
“I didn’t break his heart, don’t worry so much.” His fingers travel down my stomach, lightly skimming my skin and playing with the top of my jeans. “Why? Would it bother you if I told your prince that I held you in my arms every night? That I