Page 31 of The Lightkeeper

Kissing Aurora was the single-most catastrophic event of my entire goddamn, life which was saying a whole fucking lot considering… everything.

The coffee machine buzzed, and I pushed aside the thoughts.Which unfortunately did nothing for how hard they’d already made my dick.The empty section on the paper screamed at me for an answer, so with a low growl, I scribbled in my response and slammed the cover closed.

Events: Aurora.

“Kit?”

My head snapped over my shoulder. Aurora rounded the end of the counter into the kitchen… wearing only my sweatshirt. The sight of her bare legs instantly made me think of how they’d wrapped around mine, clinging to me like my very own vine.

“How are you feeling?” I returned my focus to my mug, filling it to the brim with coffee and wishing I could drown myself in the dark liquid.

“Okay… better I think.”

I grunted. “Your fever broke about an hour ago.”

The Tylenol had helped drastically within half an hour of her taking it, but she’d still been warm. I’d held her all night like a damn fool. Like a sailor who fell victim to my very own siren. I told myself it was so I could check her forehead every hour or so, but that was bullshit. One minute of that time was justified altruism; the other fifty-nine minutes were nothing but pure selfish desire.

“Thank you,” she said, the husk in her voice killing me. Even in gratitude, the woman was pure temptation. “For everything last night.”

Everything?My jaw clamped tight.

“Everything last night was entirely avoidable if you’d just been more careful,” I snapped harshly and took two large gulps of coffee. “The water gets rough around the rocks—much rougher here than the rest of the shore?—”

“I know?—”

“I told you not to be out there when the ocean is even just a little unsettled. Do you know how much worse it could’ve been?” The fact that she’d walked away with wet clothes and a fever was damn near close to a miracle. She could’ve—I shuddered, unable to even handle the goddamn thought.

“I’m sorry. I just get so focused, but you’re right…” She shuddered. “I didn’t realize how quickly it could get bad.”

I made the mistake of looking at her. Her face was flushed, her expression slightly stricken. For a second, I felt a twinge of guilt for berating her, but then I thought of all the other ways this could’ve gone—scenarios I’d mulled over during the hours I’d held her overnight.But she could’ve died.

My mug slammed onto the counter, and it was a miracle it didn’t crack.

“Tell me what happened.” I wanted the non-fevered version of events.

“I found two brood sea stars—” She paused with an unmistakable hitch to her breath.Fuck, she remembered.And now, talking about her work would always be a reminder of the endearment I’d given her. The one that tumbled from my lips before I had a chance to think or stop it because in that moment, nothing mattered except the soft woman in my arms—the one I was kissing without fear or panic or pain;the one who’d let me feel normal again for a few fucking moments.

“And…” I prompted, letting my anger radiate in my voice.

“They’re a hard species to find because they’re sensitive to light, so they spend most of their time living underneath the sand. But because it was later in the day, and the storm clouds?—”

“So you risked your life for a brood?” I levied, staring at her over the lip of my mug.

“Even broods deserve to be understood,” she replied instantly, her glasses making her eyes appear even larger as they regarded me.Like she was talking about me again.

I made a low noise, and she blinked quickly and forged on. “I knew the water was getting choppy around my legs, but it really wasn’t too bad, and then all of a sudden, the wave hit my legs and I went down. I don’t know if it was the angle or what, but from there, another one kind of crashed over me, and that was what really soaked me.”

I let out a slow breath, the course of events not seeming as dire as I’d imagined.But still…

“I came inside to get a towel or something to dry off. The bedroom door was unlocked, and when I went inside…” Her eyes went wide with recollection. “Your drawings… you drew my specimens.” Herentire expression softened. “Why did you draw my specimens?”

Dammit.

“Trying something different,” I offered with a grunt. And it was nothing more than that.Definitely not for the look on her face now.Awe. Admiration.Nor for the swell of pride in my chest because of it.

“They were beautiful. So detailed,” she gushed. “Just incredible, really. I’d love?—”

“They’re going to my gallery,” I said before I added new mistakes to the lingering consequences of yesterday’s.

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