a female to him, but right now I don’t even care. I just want to enjoy this affectionate closeness between us. I hadn’t realized just how much I missed it or how much he’d been withholding himself over the last few days.
His lips brush my hair as I sink into his warmth, his fur luxuriously silky against my skin. He begins to knead and massage the muscles of my arm as he holds me close to him, drawing out soft moans from me as he works on a particular knotted spot.
“Are you in pain? I can speak to Grimsal about making a fresh batch of the poultice for you.”
I shake my head against his chest. I’m a little sore, but right now I just want to enjoy my time with Eliph without him pulling away from me while he’s massaging the goop into my limbs. I’ve discovered that I really hate it when he does that. Even though his body still reacts while he massages the stiffness from mine, there’s about as much intimacy going on between us as if he were massaging his own sister. His body might react, but nothing else is present, and that is frustrating for me when it lights me up like a fourth of July display. I like this closeness too much to give it up already. Not even for a massage.
“Not right now,” I mumble.
“Are you planning on falling asleep on me, Ahandral?” he teases.
The corner of my mouth tips, and I squint up at him awkwardly from where I’m mashed against his large body.
“Would it bother you so much if I did?”
I feel him shift and lift my eyes to watch as he tilts his head back to the sky, his glowing horn vivid as it illuminates his face. He breathes deeply, his chest expanding.
“No, I like you here,” he replies, “so long as you choose to be.”
I smile against his skin and allow myself to relax completely into him. No expectations, no worries. It’s just the two of us leaning against each other—or more like me draped over him—as the day starts to fade around us.
Through slitted eyes, I watch as Grimsal works to spit the fish over our fire. The loud, popping sizzle of fat hitting the fire wakes my stomach up, and it growls expectantly. I pat my belly, silently telling it to hush without so much as easing a fraction of the dead weight I’m putting on Eliph. If it bothers him at all, he gives no indication. Rather, I suspect it can’t bother him too much since his arm is still holding me tight.
My eyelids start to drift shut when he jostles me awake with the slight nudge of his shoulder. I blink up at him, first in confusion and then in concern as it dawns on me that there might be a very good reason for him wanting to rouse me. Before I can work myself up, however, he slides a comforting hand down my back.
“It’s okay, Ahandral. I did not mean to startle you, but you mentioned wanting to work some magic tonight. You are tired so it will only be a small session… Unless you would rather sleep,” he adds with an indulgent smile.
Oh, right. Magic!
I push myself upright, palming the sleep from my eyes even as I battle yawns. I could easily sleep but it can at least wait until after the magic lesson!
“No, I’m awake. Let’s do the magic thing,” I reply excitedly.
I’m sure the grin I offer him is tired, but what it lacks in energy it makes up for in enthusiasm because Eliph chuckles and draws me to my feet as we stand. My stomach dips at the warm feel of his hand on mine, but it quickly disappears beneath another hungry growl. The smell of the cooking fish is wonderful, but he doesn’t allow us to linger. I only briefly see Grimsal grinning us before Eliph draws me over to the water basin.
He doesn’t stop, though, at a safe distance. He’s tugging me over to the water’s edge as if he intends to get in. I’m not a huge fan of sitting in a pool of water outside, but the water looks clean enough—nothing dead floating on top at least. Looks like we’re going in.
I don’t realize that he’s magicked away his clothes until I look over to ask him if I should get undressed. My tongue glues to the roof of my mouth as I watch the light