Page 100 of Shardless
“Um… thank you,” she mumbled as he placed the book in her hands.
“Anytime.”
Any other day, the cocky smirk on his face would’ve irritated her, made her suspect that he was up to something. Now, however, all she could think about was how his eyes, those impossiblygreen highborn eyes, crinkled when he smiled—a small, insignificant detail that somehow made her knees feel wobbly.
Great. Weak kneesanda weak heart. Maybe the events of the previous day before were starting to age her before her time. Or perhaps it was some lingering effect from the harpy venom. Aether depletion, maybe? Aiden had said that she probably had her own aether supply, and she had drunk the rest of her faeflower the night before when the burning in her lungs had been too much to bear.
When Skye reached up to pull another book off the shelf, Taly ducked underneath his arm, a fierce blush staining her cheeks when she thought she heard a rumbling chuckle. It’s like he was trying to fluster her this morning! Usually, she would be able to deal with his teasing, but for some reason, her mind just couldn’t come up with the proper words to put him in his place. She wasn’t going to be able to get a single, useful thing done this morning if he didn’t back off.
Maybe you don’t want him to back off, came a sly voice from a dark corner of her mind.Maybe you like it.
Taly immediately pushed the voice into an imaginary well, relishing the sound of the receding scream and the splash that came after as she chucked in the bucket and then slammed the cover shut. That little bitch clearly didn’t know what she was talking about.
Placing both hands on the desktop, she pretended to study the scattered piles of discarded books as she tried to once again rein in her errant thoughts.
“You seem a bit edgy this morning, Tink.”
“Geez!” Taly physically jumped back this time. “Stop doing that!”
Skye just shrugged unabashedly as he sidled up beside her. Too close—closer than he would normally stand. “I can’t help but think that your mind might be somewhere else.”
“Yeah, on the forbidden rites,” Taly retorted, grabbing a book off the desktop and opening it to a random page. Her toe tapped out a faltering rhythm on the marble floor.
“If you say so.” That annoyingly suggestive smirk was back, and he stared at the book in front of her pointedly. “By the way, you read that one already.”
Taly felt her cheeks warm as she slowly turned the book around to look at the spine. He was right. Slamming it shut, she growled as she swiped at the correct volume and began to march away. Maybe if she went to the other side of the library, she’d actually be able to concentrate.
She yelped when Skye’s hand darted out and grabbed her by the wrist, sending the book in her hands tumbling to the floor. Before she quite knew what was happening, he had backed her up against one of the shelves beside the desk, caging her between his arms.
“Are you sure that’s it?” There was a huskiness to his voice that Taly wasn’t accustomed to hearing, and his chest rose and fell a little too rapidly, almost like he was out of breath. “Are you absolutelycertainthat the forbidden rites are the only thing on your mind this morning?”
“Yes,” she replied, feeling a little dizzy. She placed a hand on his chest, meaning to push him away. Instead, she ended up twisting her fingers in his shirt, her eyes eagerly taking in the teasingglimpses of smooth flesh and lean muscle she could see peeking through his unbuttoned collar.
When she dared to glance up at his face, she felt her breath catch in her throat. He was watching her with something akin to… longing? Hunger? She didn’t have words to describe that heated gaze, and when his hand moved up to trace her jaw, then her lips, she had to lean against the shelf for support, lest her knees give out.
Sheneededto push him away. If he had his magic, if he could hear the way her heart was racing, she would never hear the end of it. Because surely this couldn’t be real. She was misinterpreting the situation. That was the only reasonable explanation. Hedidn’twant her. Hecouldn’twant her. She was just a human, and he’d already been with dozens of other women.Beautifulwomen.Feywomen. Women like Adalet—a glittering jewel wrapped in silk and lace, her eyes full of dark promises and her tongue dripping with honeyed venom.
Taly couldn’t compare to any of these ladies. She knew this. But she felt rooted to the spot, pinned in place by that inhuman green stare. He was leaning forward now, and, to her great surprise, so was she. Then, before her brain had quite managed to catch up, his lips pressed against hers.
The chaste kiss was impossibly soft—warm, almost reverent. Nothing like the harsh meetings of tongue and teeth that she had read about in romance novels. Far too soon for her liking, Skye pulled away. His expression was strained as he studied her undoubtedly flushed face.
“Is this okay?” he asked, his eyes searching for something, some measure of doubt perhaps. WhenTaly hesitated, her words catching in her throat, he took a step back, self-reproach evident in his expression. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have—”
“No!” Taly tightened her grip on his shirt. Whatever this was, she wasn’t ready for it to end yet. Skye stopped, his eyes finding hers. “It’s okay. I just… I don’t know what to…howto… damn it.” She looked at him plaintively, praying that he would see what she couldn’t find it in her to say.
Skye laughed, relief flowing off him in waves as he gave her a dazzling smile. “Don’t worry. I think I get it.”
He leaned forward slowly—soachinglyslowly that it took most of her self-control not to grab him and speed this along. But then his lips tentatively touched hers, and she felt lost as he gently cupped her face, waiting for her to respond. The moment seemed to last longer this time, and when Skye backed away again, it almost felt painful.
“How about that?” he asked, a small grin tugging at the corners of his mouth.
“Umm… that works, I think,” Taly murmured. Her cheeks felt impossibly warm, and her lips still tingled.
“Really? You just think?” His smile widened. “I guess I’m going to have to try a little harder then.”
With that, his mouth immediately pressed against hers, more firmly this time as one hand came up to tangle in her hair. As Taly began to move her lips in response, hesitant at first but slowly gaining confidence, his kiss became more demanding. His grip on her tightened, but he didn’t press his body against hers—not in the way she needed it. The inch of distance he maintained between their bodies was almost… respectful.
Taly groaned inwardly. Of course, Skye would choosenow, of all times, to start being respectful. Well, if they were already scheduled to have one hell of an awkward conversation when this was done, she should at least enjoy herself in the meantime. At least, that was how her brain chose to rationalize what she did next.
