A Little Night Muse(33)

                The bad things weren’t far at all, just over the next valley,                     where the spoors would be growing, where the rebellious phae would be taken by the Queen’s Ruiner. She forced herself to                     look up at Josh with a tremulous smile. “You are a good man to bring me                     here.”

                Had she ever met a good phae?                     Glorious and powerful, yes; never simply good. But Josh’s goodness put him so                     terribly at risk. How would he even recognize phae                     peril? He certainly hadn’t seen it in her.

                By bringing the phaedrealii                     intrigue here, she was endangering his valley as unfairly as she’d been banished                     from her place. The knowledge chewed at her with teeth like Bunco’s, dull and                     grinding, but she didn’t see any other way to get home.

                Unable to apologize or explain without betraying herself, she                     had nothing to offer him except a musetta’s                     exhilaration. She reached out to tangle her fingers in the waistband of his                     jeans. “Let me be your dessert.”

                He stepped between her spread knees. “You are sweet.” His voice                     was husky.

                “No, but I can pretend for you.”

                “Adelyn...”

                She slid off the stool to her knees and unzipped his jeans in                     one graceful move. His erection surged from behind the denim before she had                     safely cleared the little steel teeth.

                She smiled at him as she tugged his jeans lower. “What were you                     thinking over there at the dirty dishes?”

                “About you. I was thinking about you.” He propped one bare foot                     on the stool, giving her full access.

                She slipped her fingers under his sac, caressing the hot, heavy                     weight of him. He groaned when she breathed across his damp tip.

                “Ah, Adelyn. I want you so bad.”

                “You have me,” she assured him. For this moment. As for what                     came next...That too would be him, if the jerk of his hips was any indication.                     She would give him this. Never mind that the phae                     only took and never gave. This once, she would be musetta and he would remember her forever, if only in his                     dreams.