Page 142 of Thorns & Fire
‘What was that about?’Wren asked, staring after her.
‘Just Thea threatening my life,’ Torj replied.‘Did you have enough time to talk with Hawthorne?’
‘Yes.Thank you for that.’
‘Are you going to tell me what it was about?’
Wren sighed.‘Not yet.Is that alright?’
Torj studied her as she seemed to gather herself, smoothing her palms over her apron and redoing her bun with her hairpin.Gods, she was beautiful.He admired the gentle slope of her neck, the slight flush of her freckled cheeks.
‘You’ll tell me when you’re ready?’he asked.
‘I will.’
‘Then it’s alright.’
He led her back to the table, where Kipp was trying to convince everyone to play a drinking game.
‘Not on your life, Kristopher,’ Torj told him as Kipp tried to push a cup of fire extract towards him.
Wren laughed.‘A wise move, Bear Slayer.You were a tad pathetic the next day.’
‘I learned my lesson,’ he replied, wishing he could pull her closer to him.
Kipp threw his hands up in surrender.‘Fine, fine.I’ll have to ask myrealfriends.’
‘May the Furies take pity on them,’ Torj called after the strategist as he made a beeline for Dessa.
As they found themselves alone, Wren turned to him with a wicked grin, the very sight making his cock twitch.With a quick glance around, she ran her hand over him beneath the table and he swore under his breath.He’d have to untuck his damn shirt to hide the full outline of his cock straining against his leathers.Wren watched him do exactly that, smiling at him smugly.
‘You’re pleased with yourself, aren’t you?’he ground out.
‘Very,’ she replied sweetly, rubbing his shaft again.
He covered her hand with his, giving it a warning squeeze over the length of him before releasing her hand back into her lap.‘Time to go,’ he said, adjusting himself and standing abruptly.They’d done enough socializing for one night, he decided.
‘So soon?’Wren asked innocently.
‘You’d already be halfway up that hill if you knew what was good for you, Embers,’ he replied darkly.
His body hummed with barely contained restraint as he bid the others goodbye and waited for Wren on the outskirts of the gathering.Her eyes were bright with mischief as she rejoined him.They walked along the stone pavers towards the academy.Torj waited until they were out of sight before he pounced.
She squealed as he swept her up in his arms and pulled her into a shadowed alcove behind a statue.‘You’ve been playing a dangerous game tonight,’ he murmured, leaning in to breathe in the addictive scent of her, his nose grazing the delicate column of her throat.
‘What are you going to do about it, Warsword?’she taunted, licking her lips as she stared up at him.
Torj captured her mouth with his.‘Everything.’
CHAPTER 59
Torj
‘Scholars documented rare cases of soul-bonded pairs whose senses transcended mortal limits.What one perceived, the other knew – not through conscious sharing, but as naturally as breathing’
– Tethers and Magical Bonds Throughout History
WREN MOANED AGAINSThim, the sound vibrating straight down into his cock.He knew she’d worked herself up just as much as him by the way her body arched for him.He cupped her breast over her gown and relished the whimper that escaped her, swallowing it with another kiss.
