Page 87 of The Devil In Blue
I couldn’t remember ever being affectionate toward anyone. Lucien had asked me to hold him before like a child in a man’s body, but I was beginning to understand that nothing between Lucien and I had been genuine or a good standard to judge any other relationship on. I wanted to do what felt natural between Rune and me and what felt natural was being close to him.
I moved myself against Rune’s back and slid my hand down the back of his head, raking my fingers through his hair. He took in a deep breath at my touch and turned his head further, showing me the side of his face with a sensual hum. Gooseflesh rippled across my skin and I leaned in, moving his hair aside to press my lips to the back of his neck. I felt him shiver against my body and smiled at the control I was finding I had.
“That is dangerous, little bird,” he whispered.
“Your thoughts are wandering,” I answered, repeating words he’d used on me.
“They are loud today,” he said, turning his glance toward the windows again.
“You’re talking about the Labyrinth.”
With a groan, he stood off the bed and out of my reach, grabbing a pair of pants off the floor and slipping them on.
“I need to tend to them,” he sighed, shrugging on a black leather tunic and lacing it up the front.
“Now?” I asked.
He turned to face me. “Soon. After breakfast, perhaps. Would you eat with me, Briar?” he asked with a smirk that he knew would melt me.
I narrowed my eyes at his coyness and swung my legs over the side of the bed to stand, noting the broken metal cuffs on the floor. When we had moved to his bed, he’d broken them off with his bare hands and dropped them. I kicked one lightly with my toe and unfolded from the bed, still clutching the blanket to my bare breasts. The way Rune’s gaze trailed over me said he was having trouble trying not to flick the blanket off of me and I found that I wouldn’t have minded if he did. I liked the hungry way he looked at me. The way his eyes appreciated every inch of me. It was different than the way others had regarded me. I’d felt like an object before. A soulless, empty thing to be passed from one pair of hands to another. Rune looked at me like a priceless, wonderful treasure.
He said I was in control and the way his breath quickened when I was near made me believe it.
“I will have breakfast with you,” I agreed. “If you let me come with you into the Labyrinth.”
His brows furrowed at that, his head canting to one side.
“You want to join me?”
I nodded, part of me regretting that I asked and another part of me overly eager to experience it.
“I think I should,” I said. “Could I get lost?”
He stepped in close and reached down, taking my fingers lightly between his and raising my knuckles up to his warm lips. His hot breath sent a slow shock through me that went straight to my chest and then descended downward.
“Not if I’m there,” he whispered. “I would never allow it. Never again. But, the Labyrinth is filled with things you may not want to see.”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean that it has a way of uncovering things that we sometimes wish stayed locked away. The mist inside those hedges can be cruel.”
I bristled at that. “Things… like memories?”
He shrugged. “It is different for everyone. The Labyrinth keeps what we’ve lost and only what we want to find.”
“Could I find what they took in there?” I asked, both nervous and excited.
Rune seemed conflicted about the idea. “It’s not always so straightforward. It could break you more than you’ve already been broken or it can reveal ways to heal.”
“Is that why you never told me what the Labyrinth is capable of before?”
His hand came up to brush my cheek. “If you come with me, you must be sure.”
There was so much packed into those words that it nearly stole my breath. The way his eyes pierced me, drowning me in the truth of his statement, made my heart sore. I didn’t think it was possible for my heart to ache that way and yet Rune had it in a vice grip. He kissed my knuckles again and then leaned in, bringing his lips to mine in a slow, tender kiss that somehow felt deeper than any kiss we’d shared before. It was filled with promise and desire and the sweet taste of it lingered on my tongue even after we parted.
“I’m sure,” I whispered. “I… I trust you’ll find me if I get lost. You did once, right?”
“And I’d do it a thousand more times. But, you won’t get lost. I will not lose you.”
