Page 6 of All the Chaos of Constellations
It was barely imperceptible in the dim light, but he didn’t miss the way a wave of tension stilled her entire body. She recovered quickly, lifting one shoulder, then letting it fall dismissively.
“I mean, itistradition.” Novalise reached up and lightly touched the sprig of greenery. “Not that I think Caelian’s theory is accurate. It’s practically impossible for two people to fall in love just because they share a kiss beneath enchanted mistletoe.”
“So,” he drawled, leaning in a bit closer, catching the faintest scent of roses and dark berries mixed with tempting vanilla. “You don’t believe in such fancies? Fairy tale endings and happily ever afters?”
“I…” Novalise’s starlit eyes dipped to his mouth, stirring desire to life inside of him. “Maybe. Sometimes.”
“And you don’t think we should test your sister's theory?” They were so close now, he could almost hear her heartbeat. “Just to prove her wrong?”
He didn’t know why he was suddenly intrigued by Novalise Starstorm or why he was attempting to seduce her. Maybe it was the captivating melody thrumming beyond the alcove and knowing they were hidden away while the rest of the world carried on without them. Maybe it was the enchanted mistletoe dangling overhead, luring them to tempt the fates. Or maybe it was simply the fact that Novalise’s lips were slightly parted while her chest rapidly rose and fell, and she was looking at him like he was the only air she needed to breathe.
“It could be fun,” she whispered, her voice soft and lusty, “to prove her wrong.”
Asher bent his head toward her, oddly pleased when she rose up on her toes, placing both of her hands lightly against his chest. “For the sake of tradition.”
She nodded. “Tradition.”
Her eyes closed, her long lashes casting tiny shadows across the highest points of her cheeks. He meant for it to be swift, a brief and fleeting kiss, nothing more.
But the moment his lips pressed against hers, his entire world tilted on its axis. He planted one hand on the wall behind her head to steady himself, and without thinking, his tongue started tracing the seam of her lips. She opened for him willingly, grabbing his coat, her fingers twisting into the fine fabric. When their tongues meshed, the explosion of power between them nearly stole his breath. What should’ve been an innocent kiss morphed into dizzying passion. His skin hummed, his blood burned. Her arms wrapped around his neck, her fingers tangled in his hair. Angling her to deepen the kiss, he snared her by the waist, dragging her flush against him as they gave into the need to touch, to feel, to taste.
Novalise’s hips tilted forward, urging him closer, and he wanted nothing more than to diminish every last shred of space between them. His magic raced toward hers, a fiery blend of black and silver flames wrapped in a moonless night of shooting stars. She nipped his bottom lip as their magic collided. Power throbbed between them, an incandescent pulsing of midnight fire and celestial starbursts.
It was too much. She was too much.
He wasn’t supposed to want her. He wasn’t supposed to want anyone.
Again, she arched toward him, grinding herself against the hardened length of his shaft. His nails bit into the stone where he still gripped the wall of the alcove. If he let go now, he’d lose himself to her completely.
Threads of magic illuminated between them, pulling and twisting, entwining together to form a never-ending strand of power. It snared them both, wrapping around their wrists and fingers, securing them to one another. Gods, she was intoxicating. Addicting. He couldn’t get enough of her. Their magic moved together in a dance of frenzied longing. He tried to fight it, to break free from the curse, but Novalise’s soft mouth was fused to his own, and he simply could not release her.
A thousand sensations Asher had never known rose before him like an angry tide during a storm out at sea. Wave after wave crashed into him, drowning him. Novalise’s heartbeat became his heartbeat, her breathing an even match to his own. The heightened awareness only amplified as he attuned to every last one of her emotions, as her scent caused his knees to damn near buckle. In the back of his mind, he could hear her thoughts if he listened closely enough, a torrent of dreams, fears, and hopes.
Her stars kindled his flames, devouring one another, sealing the bond.
Fuck.
Asher jerked back, breaking their kiss.
Novalise stared up at him, lips swollen and cheeks flushed. But the hollowing out of his heart was the look in her eyes. The understanding. The realization. Theknowingof what just happened between them.
“Lord Firebane.” Her voice sounded distant, like she was calling to him from the mountains but all he could hear was the echo of his name.
He shook his head violently. “Don’t say it.”
“But you felt it,” she sputtered, confusion clouding her once lust-filled gaze. She blinked and her eyes cleared. “Surely you felt it.”
“I didn’t feel anything.” The lie gutted him, but it was better than facing the truth of the matter. The truth he refused to acknowledge or believe.
Novalise’s lips pressed together, and he didn’t know if she was trying to keep herself from crying or screaming. He hoped to the gods it was the latter.
“You and I both know that was more than a simple kiss.” The soft lines of her face hardened into chiseled anger. “The stars never lie, and what happened between us was fate. It was?—”
“Mistletoe,” he fired back. “It’s a damn enchanted flower and nothing else. This isn’t the stars giving you a sneak peek into your future. It’s nothing more than a childish fantasy, a myth based around the charm of the Winter Solstice. Do you want to know what makes me so certain? Because I know for a fact I could never make you happy. And I sure as hell don’t want you.”
Novalise reared back like he’d struck her.
Her bottom lip quivered and her eyes filled.
