Page 11 of Magic Cursed
His face grows serious, and he leans in. “I’m offering a business proposition. Would you be willing to work with me, helping the kingdom? I’ve seen what you can do with your magic, and we make a pretty good team. I think we could make a real difference together.”
I drop my gaze, feeling ashamed. He only wants to help Thaaryn and a part of me wants to say yes—a foolish part of me. But what has Thaaryn ever done for me but force me into exile, on the run for most of my life? “Aren’t you afraid I might abuse my magic?”
“I think I could keep you in line,” He winks. “Don’t make a decision now. Just, think about it. You can let me know in the morning.”
“The thing is, I’m leaving Thaaryn soon.”
His brows scrunch. “Where are you going?”
“Far away,” I say. “Now that I have the scale, I have enough money to escape.”
“Why do you want to leave?”
I raise my brows at him. “Are you being serious? I’m a magic user. And while you’ve been really kind to me, you’re not the norm. The people of Thaaryn hate people like me.”
“They’re just scared. If good magic users, like yourself, can show them they have nothing to fear, prejudices will change.”
He’s so naive, a dreamer, and too good for this world. I reach out and squeeze his hand. “I like the world through your eyes, Rock.”
He takes my hand in both of his. “We can help mold the world into a better place. That’s what I’m trying to do, will you help me?” His conviction is contagious, and I could almost believe in the future he imagines.
“I’ll consider it,” I say with a sigh.
He smiles and nods. “Okay, we’ll talk more about it in the morning then.” He rises, still holding my hand. “We should get some sleep. We have another long day of walking tomorrow.”
I nod and stand with him. Then we both turn our attention to the bed. Theonebed in the room. And while it’s spacious, it’s also far too small. We turn back to each other.
“I can sleep in one of the other rooms,” Rock says.
“The other rooms haven’t had a fire heating them, it’ll be freezing.” And I won’t be able to steal the bracelet from his wrist as easily if he’s in another room. “We can share. It’s a big bed.”
“As long as you don’t mind,” he says.
“Not at all, I trust you,” I say. It’s he who shouldn’t trust me.
“I’m just going to go relieve myself in one of the other room’s lavatories, I’ll be right back,” he says.
When he’s gone, I climb onto the bed and crawl under the covers. I lay down, away from his side of the bed, and wonder how I’m going to go about this. The quickest way would be to use a sleeping spell as soon as he gets back, take the bracelet and leave, but the magic will make me even more tired, and I’ll have to leave right away, with no rest as it is. So, the smartest thing will be to wait until he’s in deep sleep, slip the bracelet off his wrist, and then leave.
The sound of the door sliding open, and then his bare feet on the floor, lets me know he’s back. A moment later, his weight depresses the bed. He adjusts the blankets and I feel the heat of his body warming the space behind me. And now I only have to wait until his breathing is deep and even with sleep. But all I can do is imagine his hands sliding over to me, those circles he made on the inside of my arm, the way he was looking at me when I was unclasping my top, the length of him that was pressed to me when we glided through the air.
He shifts and his leg brushes mine. I hold my breath at the slight touch of skin on skin. He shifts again and I feel him so close behind me that it’s a wonder that he’s not flush against my back.
“Sky,” he whispers over my bare shoulder and his warm breath feels like a tender caress.
I squeeze my eyes shut. “Yes?” I whisper back.
“Look at me.” His voice is low, rumbling, dangerously full of lust.
I slowly—knowing full well I shouldn’t—turn to lay on my back. The movement positions me slightly under him, as he’s propped up on his elbow. I look up into those golden brown eyes of his that currently darken when they roam down to my breasts that are no longer covered by the blankets. My nipples pebble under the thin material and he knows exactly what my traitorous body is wanting right now.
“You said you liked the world through my eyes,” he says. “Do you know what I see now?”
I shake my head, unable to speak.
He reaches out and traces the hem of my camisole, the soft touch of his finger starts at my shoulder and slowly makes its descent. “The most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen.” His finger trails lower to skim the swell of my breast and my breathing increases. I slide my hand over his chest. His finger continues to make its path along my camisole to the swell of my other breast. “Do you want me to stop?”
Want pulses deep in me, I give him a sly smirk and I slowly shake my head again. The corner of his mouth curves up. He shifts his body over me, one leg moves to position between mine. The hard length of him presses into my thigh. He leans down to trail feather-light kisses where his touch had already explored. I lace my fingers through his hair and arch into him, wanting to feel as much of him as I can for the few seconds before I stop this. A low rumble of approval comes from him sending a thrill of excitement through my core. I almost change my mind; I almost decide to give in to my carnal wants. Almost.