Page 129 of Heavenly Bodies

‘Over what?’ Elara quipped back. ‘The fact that I’m wet and naked or what happened at the solstice?’

He dragged his gaze down, and although she knew he couldn’t see anything below the water in the dim light, she crossed her arms and legs anyway, feeling far too exposed.

‘I meant what happened at the solstice,’ he said, coming closer. ‘But now that you mention it, I’m far more occupied with what’s beneath the water.’

‘Pig.’ She splashed him again, and he laughed. She held on to it, wondering how long it would be before he stopped laughing at her jokes. ‘What do we need to speak about? I’vealready told you how I feel. We should never have gotten tangled up in this. It’s already painful enough. It will only get worse.’

Her mind flicked to the words she had overheard the king saying, and they boiled through her veins. She swam further away from him even as the words twisted in her stomach. She bit her lip to stop herself from caving, from wanting to kiss him again.

‘So you’re saying,’ he said, standing tall again in the water, ‘that this is over?’

She nodded tightly. ‘We need to stop. I was wrong to ignore the prophecy, to think we could be anything more than friends.’

‘I’ve been looking for you all day,’ he said, his voice low. ‘You’ve been avoiding me. Is that what afrienddoes?’

‘I’ve been training so I’m as prepared as possible for when Ariete arrives.’

He moved closer towards her, and she saw his eyes flash as she made out his face more clearly in the gloom. ‘Don’t lie to me, Elara,’ he bit out. ‘And more importantly, stop lying to yourself.’

Indignation rose in her. ‘I’m not,’ she hissed. ‘We agreed to be allies. The last few weeks were a mistake—just us getting carried away from being around each other all the time.’Coward, coward, coward, the voice in her head screamed.

Enzo let out a cold laugh, shaking his head. He turned, making his way back to the waterfall. Then he halted, swearing under his breath as she held hers, sadness rearing its slow head at seeing him leave. He spun, droplets of water flying through the air.

‘It wasmore than that,’ he snarled. ‘And I know you felt it too.’

He waded back to her, standing centimetres from her, thewater swirling around him, making him look like the ocean Star Scorpius himself as anger sparked in his eyes.

‘Have the last few months meantnothingto you?’ His chest was heaving, fury lacing every word. ‘I stayed with you every night. I showed you my art. I gave you mycrown.Doesn’t that tell you everything? Gods, Elara.’ He shook his head, looking up to the heavens. He tilted his head down. ‘Do you really not feel it?’ His breath was a warm caress on her lips.

‘What?’ she whispered.

His voice was guttural, almost broken as he replied: ‘This endlessneed.’

And with a moan, his mouth was on hers.

It was nothing like their other kisses. This was Enzo in his full glory. His tongue forced her mouth open, and she yielded to him, sighing as his hands wrapped in her wet, silky hair. Every part of her body was on fire, and she gripped the back of his neck as he kissed her with a force that sent lightning shocks through her. He yanked her head back roughly, and she gasped as he trailed kisses up to her ear, his hand claiming her throat.

‘Enzo,’ she moaned, her chest pressed to his, both wet and slick.

‘Yes, princess,’ he breathed, licking his way up the column of her neck. ‘Say my name. It’s yours.’

She could feel him below the water, hard against her navel, and it took every ounce of strength in her not to wrap her legs around him.

His mouth flew off her as his chest heaved. His hands were still in her hair as he breathed on her neck.

‘Tell me now,’ he murmured. ‘I dare you. Tell me now that you just want to be friends.Allies.Tell me that this is nothing.’

She panted against him, wanting the feel of his tongue on her again.

‘Just. Friends,’ she breathed. He pushed her back down on the bench submerged in water and sank down, leaning over her.

‘Lie to me again,’ he purred as his hand trailed up her thigh in the warm water, sending a shiver through her. He sucked on her lower lip, and she moaned again as his thumb started tracing circles on her soft inner flesh, closer and closer to where she now throbbed with an ache that had never left her.

‘I hate you,’ she strangled out.

He bit her earlobe gently, then pulled back, watching her writhe in the water. Then, his eyes dark with lust, he bent over her, his hand desperately close to where she needed it to be. His breath was warm as he licked the hollow of her throat and whispered—

‘We’re not friends.’