(Wren Speaking)
My head was swimming. Even though my mind kept telling me we just met, I felt like I'd known him forever. He could be so infuriating one moment and incredibly sweet the next. When he glanced up, his eyes were glowing catching the moonlight coming in through the blinds—they were the perfect shade of sky blue.
I bit my lip and wrapped my arms around my knees. "Wow, I never thought... Well, of course, you have the— What I mean is it never occurred to me that anyone has that kind of money. But I guess that comes with being King. Huh?"
"First," he said correcting me. He sat up and brushed my hair out my face. His fingers tickled my neck sending shivers down the back of my arms. Then leaning in, he caressed the side of my neck, placing tiny little kisses all the way up to my ear. "I knew it wasn't going to be easy coming after you. It's just that I never thought it was going to be so hard not having you around over the past few years. The days ticked by, torturing me with the memory of you, like a dream that might have been—slowly driving me crazy."
Then his lips skimmed mine, tasting them like he wanted to be sure I was real. A tender honesty lingered in his kiss. But it was his hunger for more that hummed through us. The emotional connection between us was so intense I could feel his desire. When I ran my tongue along the inside of his mouth, he groaned and pulled away, dropping the link between us.
"God, stop. I can't take it."
"What?"
"You— You need to figure out what you want," he answered, rolling onto his back. "I think it's obvious how I feel." His hand washed over his face and turned over to face me.
Not even realizing it, I had wrapped the edge of the sheet around my hand and was picking at an invisible frayed hem with my fingers. I wet my lips, in thought. My memories continued to evade me like smoke, ever present but not solid enough to grab on to. Deep down in my gut, I knew he was telling the truth about everything. I took a full breath in and let it out, "It's just that—"
"It's complicated?" He finished my sentence, catching me off guard. "No, it's not." He picked up my hand and interlaced our fingers together. "You either feel the same way about me, or you don't."
"That's not the probl—" I paused. Shocked at what I almost blurted out. Slowly raising my eyes from my hands, my breath hitched when our eyes met. Kellan was leaning on his elbow, resting his head in his hand, smirking.
"Just figure something out?" he said, kissing the back of my hand.
"Yeah, only that you're utterly intolerable."
"Well, you've known that for years. But I don't think that was what you were going to say," he said with confidence. "You're in love with me."
"You only wish you were hot enough for that to happen," I said, looking away, dropping my gaze to rest on the patchwork quilt.
He let go of my hand. Without lifting my sight, I saw him raise the bottom his shirt. Then a crumpled white t-shirt dropped into view, landing on top of the denim patch I was staring at. "Seriously," he said lifting my chin with his finger. I scrunched my eyes shut. Good luck. He can't convince me if I can't see him. Then, something wet run up my cheek.
My eyes snapped open. "Did you just lick my—" Whoa—damn. Any resolve to stand my ground melted away with my first shirtless glimpse of him. Ahhh, gorgeous, sculpted and cocky as hell. Ugh.
"You were saying? Not hot enough?" He smiled, running his hands up and down his abs then folding them over his muscular chest.
I just bit my lip, afraid of what other blundering remarks I might spit out if I said anymore. You're not getting anything out me. I'm holding my ground, I thought.
"That's it." Reaching out, he pushed me onto my back and threw a leg over me pinning my arms to the bed. He smirked, then raised an eyebrow. "Operation tickle torture begins now."
"You wouldn't. Nooo—" A fit of laughter escaped my mouth as he moved his fingers under my arms and over my ribs.
"Bwahaha...Kellan, s-st-stop!" I hollered, as he continued. Trying to break free of his hold, I squirmed every which way I could to relinquish his attack.
"You know what I want to hear," he said with a devilish grin on his face.
Tears streamed down my cheeks while I tried to catch my breath from my nonstop laughing. "Okay... You're not...t-terrible to look at."
"Nice try. Not good enough." He reached behind him and dug his fingers into my hips. I laughed even harder and tried to buck him off of me.
"All right..." I gasped, "You're hot. You're hot. Now stop, pleassse!"
"And—"
"You're right," I blurted, shaking from my giggling. "Can't...take it anymore."
He smiled enjoying every second of my torture. "I'm right about what?" he playfully asked, lifting his hands ending my anguish. I took in a deep gulp of air, then breathed it out. It was clear he expected me to say it. The full declaration or he wasn't getting off of me.
"I don't know why. Loving you seems like the most self-defeating thing I could possibly think up." I let out a long sighed. "But you're right. God, everything would be so much easier if I didn't." While I spoke, the water sweep on his chest washed back and forth like a wave gently washing up on the shore of a beach.
He moved his knees and released my arms. Still watching the rolling surf, I raised my hand and placed it on his chest, then lifted my eyes to meet his, feeling my heart race. "You're right. I love you."
"Finally. It's about time you recognized my awesomeness." He smirked then placed his hand on a piece of the water flourish showing above the bust line of my dress. "You have my heart and my love," he said softly.
With his words, the flourish came alive, and a burst of water moved from my inky water etching up my arm and over his sweep. Then, when the sweep's waves crashed against his skin, it let out a huge surge of water that circled and flowed down his arm splashing my chest covering the flourish. He leaned down and placed a kiss on top the water circle marking.
When he lifted his head, his eyes were glowing a light violet color. Placing his hand over mine, he removed it from his chest. "Your turn," he said, pointing at the spot where my hand been.
"I don't understand."
"An Acklemarian love vow is always sealed," he said closing his eyes.
I sat up on my elbows, leaned in, and placed my kiss on his sweep. My lips cooled, and my something inside me swirled making my heart beat faster and faster. My skin flared in an intense burning heat, then felt wet and cool. Just when I was about to black out, the spinning stopped. He was hovering over me when I opened my eyes.
"Your eyes, they're violet," I whispered.
He turned and plucked his shirt off the bed, then tossed it over his head putting it back on. "So are yours. They change color if a vow of love is exchanged, they go back to normal once a couple has exchanged a ring promise, though." He climbed under the covers and put his head on my pillow.
"What? Are you kidding me?" I buried my head in my hands, feeling panicked. "Jaxon is going to know about our love exchange thing. I still have to tell him it's off before I can make that kind of commitment to you," I mumbled. "Oh, God... He's going to kill my mother, and then he's going to kill me. I think I'm going to be sick."
"It's going to work out," he stated calmly, rubbing my back. "Jaxon isn't going to know, at least not yet anyway. All we have to do is get to the Water Circle, pull some stones from the vault, then I'll arrange to have the dowry sent back. You can't tell him before he has the payment or he doesn't have to accept your refusal. Our laws clearly state, he holds the ring contract until the dowry has been returned and the penalties paid."
"Glad you're so casual about it."
"Hey, that's not fair. My decision to be with you is pitting my circle against the Fire Circle," he said with a little heat behind his words. "There's nothing casual about it. I've thought about it every day for the past three years."
"I know, sorry." I yawned, exhausted and ready to collapse from everything that happened over the past few days.
"Come get some rest. We can make a plan in the morning."
"Fine, but this plan better be good and include rescuing my mother." I lay my head down on the pillow and tried to get comfortable.
He kissed the back of my head. My fading tired thoughts were quickly drifting to sleep. I wasn't sure, but floating in my mind, I thought I heard him say, Give me a chance, my love. I've never given up on you.
Twinkle, twinkle little STAR, Oh, I wonder where you are.
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