Page 119 of The King of Koraha
Rendor must have sensed her mood. “You can’t even stand without swaying,” he said. “Think of how you’ll feel running in the hot sun for a hundred and twenty angles a sun jump. We can use this time to fully recover. We’ll still beat Xerxes to the King. Besides, there’s no need to almost kill yourself on the trip to Qulsary. Then you’ll be useless.” He pulled her close. “You’re allowed to have limits.”
He was using her own words against her! And of course he was right. “I know. But I don’t have to like it.”
Rendor laughed. “I’m surprised you remember anything from the trip to the shelter.”
“I wouldn’t mind forgetting the entire episode.”
“Tell you what.” He lowered his voice to a husky rumble. “If you get some proper rest, I’ll give you an improper experience that will make you forget all your troubles.”
A hot flush shot right through her. At least her libido wasn’t exhausted. “I’ve already gotten some rest, how about a demonstration of what I can expect if I continue resting?”
He picked her up and carried her to the sleeping cushion. Setting her down gently, he said, “Nice try, sunbeam.” Rendor covered her with a fur. “You’re just going to have to trust me.”
She huffed and would have pouted except warmth enveloped her. The softness underneath her also conspired against her. “Don’t look so smug,” she said to Rendor before falling asleep.
At least Rendor wasn’t the type to gloat. Over the next two sun jumps, she regained most of her energy. They also discussed strategy and made plans for when they reached Qulsary. Since Xerxes had spies everywhere, they needed to be careful that no one spotted them. Being dead was an advantage they couldn’t lose. Not until the right time.
At angle zero on that third sun jump—the sixth since they survived the killing heat—Shyla and Rendor climbed to the surface. Worried that their skin might be overly sensitive to the sunlight, they wanted to check how their healing blisters would react. She also wished to test her magic since she had exhausted her power well beyond her limits. There had to be consequences.
Under Rendor’s watchful gaze, she concentrated on a section of sand. It was a relief when it lifted into the air and formed an arrow, which she sent into the side of the dune. Then she created a small sandstorm that swirled around them a few times before she let it die.
Shyla turned to Rendor. “Can you go hide? I want to see if I can find you with my magic.”
“All right.”
She closed her eyes and covered her ears. Memories of being a child and playing hide and seek rose. Simple times that she had complained about. So anxious to be an adult andknowthings anddothings. She’d wasted her youth wishing to be somewhere else, doing something else, and now all she wished was to return to that innocent carefree state.
Opening her eyes, she lowered her hands. All was quiet. Rendor was not in sight and she resisted looking for his tracks—that wouldn’t be fair. She pushed her magic out, scanning the desert in a circle around her. Nothing. Perhaps he’d run further away. She extended her reach and did another sweep. Still nothing. If he was fast or still running, he might have gone far. A third effort produced the same result.
Then it hit her. He might be hiding under the sand. Impressed by his bravery—she never wanted to be buried again—she aimed her power through the sand about a meter down. Nothing! Either he was really good at hiding or she’d burnt out her ability to sense another person. Scared that was the case, she pushed as far as she could go and found a bump. Finally. Except when she dipped to read Rendor’s thoughts, it wasn’t him. She couldn’t read the person’s soul, but they were heading toward their shelter along with another. At least it meant her power worked and they wouldn’t waste any more sun jumps waiting. But where was Rendor?
It took her longer than she’d like to admit to figure it out. And she didn’t even need magic. Just her brain. He was in the travel shelter. She hurried down to join him and share the news.
He studied her. “If the people you felt are messengers, that means your power extends at least twenty kilometers. Unless this is their second stop, then it’s about forty kilometers. Did you know that?”
She didn’t.
“That’s impressive. Can you go further?” he asked.
“Probably not.”
“Probably?”
“It’s been my experience that desperation tends to enhance my abilities.” Unfortunately.
“That’s good because some people experience the opposite when they’re desperate. Speaking of experience…” He stepped closer and lowered his voice. “We have just enough time for my promised improper experience.”
Desire arrowed straight into her core, igniting a blaze of heat—the good kind. She welcomed this fire as he kissed her. It kicked her heartbeat into double time and her skin became overly sensitive to his touch. Each stroke of his fingertips on her neck caused ripples of sensation throughout the rest of her body.
Within a few gasps of breath, all of their clothing was flung to the ground. Her hands explored his muscular shoulders and back until he grabbed them, wrapping one hand around both her wrists.
“Trust me?” he asked.
“Always.”
Then he threw her over his shoulder, carried her to a cushion, tossed her down, and ravished her so completely and thoroughly she forgot all her troubles, as promised. Nothing existed in her world except Rendor.
The messengers arrived at the shelter at angle seventy, which meant her power extended about forty kilometers. She really needed to experiment more. By the time the messengers climbed down, Shyla was dressed and mostly recovered. Every muscle in her body still hummed and her skin tingled. Rendor kept his gloating to a minimum, but she caught him looking at her with a pleased, almost smug expression. No doubt he had enjoyed the improper experience just as much.
