Page 45 of Only You
‘That sounds lovely,’ he said, gesturing in front of them. ‘Lead the way.’
Damien shouldn’t have been there.
He should have followed her home silently, let her go at the door. He should have ignored how easily they fell back into step with one another. He should have remembered the punishments that awaited him if General Roulet were to find out that he defied his orders again.
Instead, he felt elation walking through the gardens by her side, the sudden switch making his head spin. Yet, he felt torn. Seeing her, finally being able to explain what happened, had put an extra spring in his step initially, but all he could focus on was the lack of vibrancy in her eyes, how hard she clenched her hands together. Whatever pressure she had been previously hiding now hung over her like a cloud. He knew there was nothing he could have done while Roulet had been keeping tabs on him – and still would be until the wedding – but he still felt a pang of guilt.
He should have tried harder to come back.
‘The flowers may be gone are still gorgeous,’ Sabine commented, looking around with wonder. ‘I have never seen anything like this. We never had seasons like this back home. Only wet and dry.’
‘I remember,’ he said. ‘I told you, it sounded much nicer than snow.’
‘You were correct…’ She trailed off, smiling tentatively. ‘You seemed to like my stories.’
‘Your home always sounded amazing.’ He remembered her animated explanations of the lush, far-off lands. ‘I could only wish to have grown up in a place like that.’
Sabine giggled as she faced him, the lost expression from earlier long gone. She looked both vulnerable and fierce all at once as she sat on the edge of a fountain. Damien checked their immediate surroundings. People were exiting the park, but some lingered nearby. Figuring it would look more suspicious if he continued to stand, he took a seat next to her, looking straight ahead.
‘I never stood a chance. Not from the first moment we spoke,’ she admitted.
Damien didn’t dare face her. He wasn’t sure he could handle the look he’d seen on her face, or the sweet promises falling from her lips. He almost wanted to ask her to stop, but he still craved the reassurance that he had mattered to her. ‘I’ve never been able to truly hide from you, even when I wanted to. Sometimes, when you would stay the night, we would breathe in sync. Did you know that?’
‘I… never noticed,’ he said, dumbstruck by her words. He watched the last few people trickle out the garden, guards wandering at the fringes but not paying them attention.
‘I wish I never did. Then, I could be the lady I was meant to be… I shouldn’t be here, putting you at risk. I need to return—’
Damien cupped her face and brought it to his own. Sabine didn’t fight, immediately melting at his touch. It felt like someone had lit a match under his skin, her touch feverish every time her hand brushed him. He pulled her into his arms, the movement muscle memory. How many times had he done this as sunlight warmed her skin? He bit her lip, hungry to recreate that moment with her, his mind turned dizzy with their mutual desire.
And destructive, he reminded himself. She was still engaged, tied to an influential family. Yet, Lamont was no soldier, no fighter like them. The idea that he would ever be stupid enough to try and stop them almost made Damien scoff.
Let him try to take you away, he thought arrogantly as Sabine moaned, clinging to his shoulders.
‘Come with me,’ he whispered when they separated, both breathing heavily. He was ready for her to be reasonable, to remind him that she couldn’t.
‘Okay.’
‘We shouldn’t have done that.’
Damien shook his head where it rested on Sabine’s chest. ‘I think it was your best idea yet.’
He shimmied down to kiss her stomach, and she was very aware of the blanket that separated his lips from her bare skin.
They had escaped to an inn a few streets over. Sabine drew eyes, but Damien kept a proper distance, not stepping inside until the street was empty. The owner narrowed her eyes at them but said nothing at the gold coins Damien tossed on the counter. The bed barely fit the two of them, but it didn’t prove to be much of a problem as their bodies became entangled.
Her skin still tingled in the aftermath, hypersensitive with every move he made, and she had to stop herself from sinking her nails into his back to pull him over her again, instead settling for tracing random shapes across the planes of his back as he continued to kiss her. She bit the inside of her cheek before running her fingers through his curls.
‘It’s a great idea until we have to scramble for our clothes,’ she murmured as she stared at the ceiling.
Damien propped himself on his elbows, framing her face. ‘Your guardians are not down the hall from us.’ He leaned down to kiss the curve of her neck. ‘We’re fine.’
‘What about when I have to go home?’ He groaned, tucking his face into her neck. She wrapped an arm around his waist, kissing his shoulder, and breathing in the woodsy scent that naturally clung to him. ‘I’m still engaged, and you’re still being monitored by Roulet… I don’t know how we’re going to keep this up.’
He pulled away so she could see his face. ‘Then, we figure out a way to get out.’
Sabine raised her brows. ‘What do you mean?’
‘Let’s run away.’
