Page 27 of The Phoenix Inheritance

I cross my arms, refusing to be sidetracked. “Dane–”

“Did you think of me when you did these?” He whispers as he takes a step forward and plays with a small shell right above my ear. The slight contact sends a shiver down my spine.

My lids flutter closed. “A tiny bit.”

The truth is I painstakingly tressed each shell into my plaits with Dane’s handsome face in mind. I figured that once he finally came back, I might as well look my best.

“Well I thought of you every single second I couldn’t do this,” he whispers before hunching down to my height.

He ambushes my lips with a searing kiss, prying them open so he can explore me with his tongue. I whimper, the fire he kindles within me somehow even stronger than ten days ago. My nipples instantly harden as they press into his strong chest. My legs, on the other hand, drop as limp as a wet rag.

Dane grunts and keeps me from falling by wedging a knee between my thighs. As he proves how much he missed me with his mouth, I can’t help but writhe from the sensations. My acrobatics cause me to grind my most intimate parts against his knee, teasing that small nub in my core that drives me wild every time Dane and I make love.

My hands travel of their own accord to untie his mantle.

“Isobel,” he warns in a groan. All of a sudden the kiss comes to an end. Dane grabs my fingers and secures them in his fist. “Not tonight.”

Why not?, I want to wail. I can feel his arousal digging into my flesh. His eyes look more tempestuous than a tornado. His firm lips are slightly swollen, begging for more passion.

That nips my burgeoning sense of rejection in the bud. Dane desires me just as ardently, I realize. It’s not because he doesn’t want me that he pushes me away.

“Alright,” I chime as brightly as I can muster. “Not tonight.”

One thing I cherish so much about this man is that he’s as reliable as a timeworn tree. Though Dane doesn’t want to go any further this evening, I have no cause to doubt the fact that he likes me. Even if he won’t give me the full explanation of why he disappeared for so long, I trust that he has his reasons.

“But if that’s the case, then I’m afraid you’re going to have to ease my hurt feelings with a bowl of my stew.”

He grimaces but doesn’t protest as I trudge to the kitchen and stir the concoction. I take my time seasoning and preparing our meal until the burning between my thighs becomes more tolerable.

Dane doesn’t take the bowl when I hand it to him. He eyes its contents like I’m trying to feed him mud.

“Remember,” I say sweetly, “you were a stupid man a month ago.”

He accepts his serving with a grunt. The instant he gulps down a spoonful his face twists in horror and he stops himself short from gagging. At least he tried to be more polite than the first time, when he actually spat it out.

“Still that bad, hmm?” I ask solemnly, though I’m on the verge of laughing out loud.

Dane screws his lids shut as he stomachs the aftertaste. I can tell he’s trying to come up with something nice to say.

“The best part about this stew is that you made it,” he says in a tight voice. Then his eyes fly open, and his brows knit together in confusion. “But Isobel, if this is the best food you can find in Solenz, why do you even choose to stay here? It’s no place for someone to live, least of all… someone like you.”

I pause, my spoon hovering mid air. “Someone like me?”

A ruddy hue washes over his cheeks. “My brother always says I have no sense of humor, and yet you even make me laugh. You’re meant to be around people.” Dane’s face only turns more crimson as he struggles with so long a speech. “You’re meant to make others smile.”

I can’t answer as I feel myself blushing as well. Dane looks as fierce as an eagle, yet sometimes he says things sweeter than I’d ever dare say. Coming from Dane though, his compliments sound more heartfelt than sappy.

“Won’t you tell me what happened to you, Isobel?”

I’m about to deflect the question, but the look on his face makes me waver. Gentleness, concern, perhaps something deeper…

I’m not sure anyone has cared for me as much as Dane since I lost my parents. And a part of me wants to talk, wants to share the tale I only glossed over with the Hunters. To free the monsters so they’re no longer caged within my memories.

“I didn’t always live here,” I start quietly, setting aside my bowl of stew. “My parents and I come from Gronlund. Did you ever hear of Gronlund?”

He nods without a moment of hesitation. “It was the region of Sowilo where most humans dwelled, down by the southern shore. Mainly fishermen.”

Wistfulness enters my chest as I envision the azure shores and our small house that looked over the sea. “My parents were fishermen. So were all the generations before them.”

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