Page 54 of Taste of Death

“I learned from the best.”

Only when his thumb gently stroked my ankle did I remember that my leg was still in his lap. My body must have tensed when I felt it, because the movement instantly stopped.

“Do you want me to move?” I asked.

“Only if you want to,” he answered.

My leg stayed in his lap. After a few long seconds of silence, his gentle massage of my ankle resumed.

It felt nice. Novak’s touch was so light, I knew there were no ulterior motives or expectations. It was sweet and affectionate just for the sake of it.

He switched hands, reaching for his wine nearby. I followed suit and took an indulgent sip of mine.

The silence began to feel heavy. Neither of us were blind to the fact that things were becoming more physical between us. At the same time, neither of us seemed willing to be the one to address it directly. We were friends, yes. But ever since the ceremony, we were dancing around a line that crossed from platonic to romantic.

Novak’s thumb circled my ankle bone, his touch moving slightly up my shin. He looked straight ahead at the window with the mountain view. His face looked relaxed, content. Was he happy like this, sitting here with my foot in his lap? Did he like having me around to pester him while he worked?

Or was he thinking of having these moments with someone else? Did he keep me around because I was convenient and available to him? Novak didn’t seem like that kind of guy, but that was how guys had treated me back in Sapien. And it wasn’t like I had a lot of experience with men.

“So.” I took my leg from his lap, curling them underneath me again. “I’m going back to Sapien tomorrow night.” I said the first thing to pop into my head to break the silence.

“You are?” Novak looked surprised. “Permanently?”

“Oh no, just to help Blood ‘til Dawn with rebuilding from the attack.”

“Oh.” It might have been wishful thinking, but he looked relieved. “So you’re getting more involved in clan activities, then?”

“I wouldn’t call it that. Cyan tried to talk me out of going.” I leaned my head against the back of the couch. “Be honest with me. Is it a stupid idea?”

“I can’t give a definitive answer because that’s completely subjective.”

“Stop being such ascientist,” I whined.

Novak chuckled. “Whatever I say doesn’t matter because it would just be my opinion. You’re the one going, so what do you think?”

“I don’t know. I want to see the settlement and everyone, but I’m nervous.”

“I think it’s completely reasonable to feel that way.” Novak held up his empty wine glass. “This is good. Do you want more?”

“Yes, please.” I handed him my glass. “Told you Tavia was a winemaster.”

“Is she going with you?” Novak stood and carried our empties to the cabinet to refill them.

“No. I think she’d be perfectly content to never go back,” I admitted. “She never liked how they ran things there. Even if she never ended up with Cyan, I think she would have left to live among the vampires eventually.”

“And you felt differently?”

Novak’s back was to me as he poured our refills, looking even taller than normal from my vantage point. His legs were long and hugged by the dark gray slacks he wore. The shape of his ass was no mystery, leading up to a trim waist and broad shoulders. He turned around with an expectant look on his face, and only then did I remember he asked me a question.

“Sorry, what?”

He smirked, like he knew I was checking out his backside. “You felt differently than Tavia, about Sapien?”

“Oh, yeah I think so. Thank you.” I accepted the wine from him, watching as he sat next to me. Was he a few inches closer than before? “I felt more… loyalty to them, I guess? It’s pretty significant to be the only human settlement in Sanguine, even if everything wasn’t perfect. I wanted to help keep that going, do my part to keep human traditions alive.” I sipped from my glass, letting the wine linger on my tongue before I swallowed. “Although lately, I’ve been wondering if those traditions are even worth keeping.”

“You sound like me with my family,” Novak said. “It’s a tangled mix of feelings, isn’t it? To feel that sense of loyalty while also knowing they didn’t treat you well.”

“Yes, exactly. It’s a headfuck.”

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