A Little Night Muse(52)

                He frowned. “Another snake skin? This wasn’t here before the                     imp came. I wonder—”

                She reached out and took the cast-off skin from his fingers.                     “Enough mysteries. We still have an hour before sunset. Come inside with                     me.”

                For a heartbeat, she thought he would turn away. But he                     stripped off his glove and put his hand in hers. The warmth of his palm engulfed                     her cold fingers. “Let’s go.”

                He had clustered all the iron weapons at the front door to                     minimize her discomfort, but still the closeness of the metal grated on her                     until she retreated to the bedroom. He checked his rifle and the stock of iron                     bullets one last time before joining her.

                She waited for him, naked in the middle of the bed.

                “Adelyn...” He swayed. “We don’t have much time.”

                “So hurry. If this is all we have, don’t waste a second.”

                Just as well the closures on his shirt were sturdy pearl snaps.                     Buttons would have flown at the speed of his disrobing.

                Then he was beside her in the bed, his big hands everywhere,                     like the agony of iron, but the opposite, a pleasure so encompassing she thought                     she might die.

                They came together in a passionate rush that left little room                     for magic of any sort, and yet she felt the glow of a strange force all around                     them. Not a phae trick, but something they had made                     together, just the two of them.

                She did not want to give it a name. Names had power.

                In the aftermath—too brief—they clung together, limbs and                     fingers, even the locks of their hair, entwined.

                “Adelyn,” Josh started.

                She kissed him, tasting their desire and desperation, unabated.                     “No words. I can’t.”

                He kissed her back, so hard she thought he might break her                     promise to herself.

                But she realized now, as she hadn’t before, that the phaedrealii still had a claim on her. Josh had shown                     her the promise of a new start, but by betraying the runaways to Raze, she had                     stolen that from others who might be seeking a new way, much as her old life had                     been stolen from her.