Page 61 of Tears of Gold

Chapter Twenty-One

Erritt

I glance sidelong at Ava, admiring the smooth curve of her cheeks and following the tempting draw of her jade pendant, half hidden in the soft cleft between her breasts, just visible at her neckline. My girlfriend slumps on the couch, trying to study but rolling a pen around and around in her fingers and gazing at the far wall instead. She hasn’t told me exactly what happened, but I know she’s fought with Harper. I guess that makes two of us.

Harper has lain low in the three days since Skye and Vanrey brought him back. His tracker tells me that he’s been staying in his room. Same as me.

Today, I feel like I’ve woken up from a fog.

Since returning from the palace, both Skye and Vanrey have been knitting my qi back together, a few tiny strands at a time. The head-distorting seizures of pain have finally abated into a manageable ache. I think I’ve studied a bit, but the bright spots in my days are when Ava comes after class and stays the night. Just being in her presence is enough to make me feel calmer and she’s lulled me to sleep several times, telling me Earth tales and stories from her childhood.

I know she’s had headaches, cuts, and bruises after the New Year’s fiasco, but she hasn’t complained. She hasn’t even blamed me for taking her there and leaving her alone. How did someone so forgiving ever fall for a jerk like me? I push the blankets back and stretch myself slowly out of bed.

My movement catches Ava’s eye and she frowns. “Should you be getting out of bed?”

I smile as I cross the room and slide beside her on the couch. “I should when something’s bothering my girlfriend. And I’m feeling much better.”

She stretches up for my offered kiss. It’s such a simple, affectionate move, but it fills me with warmth since it’s so natural for her, and she has no idea how I’ve been starved my entire life of such simple gestures. My heart flutters wildly.

“So, what’s wrong?”

She points with her pen at a piece of paper on the table and says, “I don’t even know what half these words are, let alone how to compare and contrast the arguments.”

When I stare at her, she looks away. So much for having a heart-to-heart. I swipe her pen, the sheet, and a book on the table and read the question. It’s a debate on the ethical diversion of rural water sources for city use from four years ago. I remember attending this session in person. I scribble on the page.

“Hey!” She gently slaps my knee. “You can’t do it for me! How will I learn that way?”

“I’ll catch you up during the holidays.”

She brings one knee up onto the couch, turning to face me. “We have school break?”

“Yes, week after next.”

“Oh.” After a long silence filled only with the scratch of my pen on paper, she asks, “Will you be going to the palace?”

I glance over the top of the paper to find her looking at me through her dark lashes, and it’s so fucking cute my stomach tingles. This woman has me in a mushy puddle with a single look. What a powerful creature.

I reach out and stroke a stray lock of her silky hair. “No, my siren. I never go there unless summoned. I’ll be wherever you are.”

She bites down on her bottom lip. “Oh.”

I swallow down a groan as my cock twitches. “Do you know how h-hard it is to keep my hands off you when you look . . . this cute?”

She looks away, but not before I see her grin. I shift into the corner of the couch, lifting one leg to sit over her thigh. Straight away, she slides her hand up under my loose sleeping pants, resting it against the skin of my shin. Her love radiates through the bond, and the contact soothes some of my jitters.

I’ve got a lot of schoolwork to catch up on, and I know Vanrey has kept all but the most urgent palace reports from me. Most importantly, I must do something about making amends with Harper, but just thinking about how to talk to him twists my stomach into knots. The guy’s temper is off the charts to begin with, and now he’s also wounded, thanks to Skye’s rough handling. I’m not complaining since he managed to talk him into returning, but it won’t improve the rogue’s prickliness.

Well, one thing at a time; I’ll finish this report first and get to the bottom of Ava’s troubles.

Ava tickles my skin past my knee, and my dick jumps instantly jumps to full attention.

“Do you h-have any idea what that . . . does to me?” I ask, my breath hitching.

She blinks big hazel eyes at me. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.” She maneuvers her arm higher inside my pants.

“Oh really?” I scoff. “Be careful what . . . fire you play w-with.”

“Uh-huh.” Her fingers caress the sensitive skin of my inner thigh, teasing me as much as her tone.