Page 8 of The Twelve Nights of Halloheen

Isla froze in the warmth of Tisuran’s proximity, afraid to move, to even breathe. She’d never experienced a sharp punch of lustbefore. Honestly, she never expected to desire anyone. He was in every part of her senses. The skin of his hand on hers. The sight of him filling her vision. His thrumming rumble making gooseflesh break out across her skin. Even his smell filled her nose, rich and mouthwatering.

“Maple.”

“What’s maple,loreline?” His murmured question and the use of the Talin equivalent of sweetheart shocked her out of the moment.

“Uh, you smell like maple,” she explained woodenly, suddenly realizing how close they were. If either of them moved a little, they’d be kissing.

Releasing his hand, she fiddled with the front closure of her garment. She should step away or at least break eye contact. She didn’t do either. “Do you think there’s enough ki? I know Ulanian and Jarnian could use up an entire shaker of it each.”

Tisuran ignored her question and asked one of his own. “Do you like maple?”

“Yeah, it was my favorite candy growing up,” she said, then noticed the wetness glistening on his cheek. Without conscious thought, she reached out to run shaking fingers over the side of his face. Her fingers were quickly covered in an oily substance and the smell of maple grew even stronger.

She knew each of the Talins produced oil from the scent glands in their cheeks. Even if they weren’t producing enough to make the sides of their face shiny, every Talin had a unique smell because of the oil. Usually it was faint and fleeting, but with her fingers coated in Tisuran’s bonding oil, the smell hung heavy around them.

Unlike other Talins with their cloying scent of flowers or fruit, the smell of Tisuran’s bonding oil made her mouth water. She wanted to rub the oil all over her body and let the heat warm her to her core.

The mental image made her heart pound with lust.

On the heels of the lust was fear. Unbidden, memories of being held down and hurt flashed through her mind. No, not tonight! She didn’t want to think about those things ever, but especially not on the first night of Halloheen.

Her vision went a little fuzzy. Shit, there were tears in her eyes. She was going to cry and have a meltdown right here in front of everyone.

“I need to go.” Panicked, she turned and fled.

Her small size was an advantage as she darted through the crowded building. Soon she was bursting out of one of the side doors and into the cold darkness of Sorana’s night.

Chapter 4

Isla’s guide to Twelve Nights of Halloheen (excerpt)

The main goal of the Night of Fire is to remind us what it was like to live without modern technology. You’re supposed to cook only on an open fire and use fire for light and warmth. Because fire is so dangerous, the Night of Fire is celebrated outside even though our ancestors probably used fire indoors. At the end of the evening, there should be a display where colorful substances are exploded high into the sky. That’s how our ancestors told the Universe that we were on our way to the stars!

Tisuran

Tisuran immediately chased Isla through the crowd, but his human was fast. By the time he followed her into the night, she’d disappeared. Tracking her footprints, he caught up as she reached the fringe of the forest surrounding the settlement.

“Isla, no!” he shouted as he snatched her into his arms. She panted, terror and pain easily read in her expression. Concerned he’d caused her distress by restraining her, he was quick to set her back on her feet. But still, he kept his body between Isla and the forest.

“Isla, please,” he begged. “Tell me what’s wrong.”

Body shaking, she pressed the heels of her hands to her eyes. It broke him to see her suffering and be helpless to even understand what was causing it.

“Not you,” she mumbled so softly he almost didn’t hear it.

He dropped to his knees to put himself in a vulnerable position, then sat back on his heels to see her face clearly.

“Will you explain what happened?” he requested.

She hugged her arms around herself as a violent shiver racked her body. Tisuran wasn’t sure if it was caused by the chilly night air or her turbulent emotions. As he watched, she pulled a deep breath into her lungs, held it, then released it slowly.

“You won’t like what I say,” she warned him.

“Nothing can wound me more than your silence,” he answered with a soothing rumble.

She shivered again. Now he thought it was caused more by the cold than her mental state. She’d run out of the communal building without an omnie. While it would need to be far colder to effect a Talin, the humans could quickly succumb to even the mildest change in temperature.

“You can take as long as you need to find your words, but while you search, we could go somewhere warmer,” he coaxed.

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