Page 139 of To Fight and To Fold

Thea's eyes widened at her sudden proximity. Aaryn could count her freckles if she wanted to. "Yeah?" Thea whispered.

"Tell me one thing you can taste."

Then Aaryn closed the distance between them, pressing their mouths together.

"That was supposed to be my line," Thea murmured, their lips brushing with every word.

"Should've said it then," Aaryn teased. From inches away, she watched Thea's gaze darken, and the dragon in Aaryn's belly flared its wings.

Then there was a hand in her hair, tangling at the nape of her neck and tilting her head back. The second kiss was deeper, and Aaryn parted her lips to welcome her before Thea even asked for entry.

Aaryn had missed this, missed feeling Thea so close, her weight pressing Aaryn into the surface beneath them—whether it was the stuffed mattress or this soft clover. She'd missed hearing Thea's little breaths, and feeling them skate across her cheek when they parted for air. She'd missed the feel of her beneath Aaryn's hands, ever curious and still with so much Thea to explore.

Like now, with Thea laying atop her, the weight of her so grounding and perfect. Her hands framed Thea's hips, and she wished the layers of their clothes weren't in the way, wished she could feel Thea's skin beneath her hands, wished⁠—

Thea scratched her nails down the back of Aaryn's neck and she hiccupped a breath into the kiss, shivers dancing down her spine.

"I love how reactive you are," Thea murmured into the corner of her mouth before sliding kisses down her jaw, onto her throat.

Aaryn was delightfully ticklish there, and resisted the urge to giggle as Thea ghosted her lips and nosed down the length of her neck. Her hands tightened on Thea's waist to keep the urge at bay.

"It makes me want to see you in the throes of the Hoard's touch."

A gasp slipped out and the threat of a giggle faded beneath the press of Thea's teeth, the pull of her lips as she planted a mark there. Aaryn felt her pulse in it when Thea moved on.

Aaryn tilted her head to the side to give her more space and caught sight of Starspark slinking away between the shrubs, flowers swaying in his wake.

"What will it be like?" she asked.

Thea paused, lips hovering over Aaryn's skin, and she swallowed a whine. It was unfair that she had to trade Thea's kisses for information.

"I only know what I've heard. I've never experienced it firsthand," she said. Thea slid to the side, propped her head on her hand, and stared down at Aaryn.

Her face felt hot beneath the undivided attention.

Thea’s arm laid across Aaryn's waist, fingers stroking playfully along her side, threatening to slip under the fabric with every shift.

"And what have you heard?" Even to her own ears Aaryn sounded breathy, affected.

"That it feels… good," Thea began, cheeks flushing a deeper purple. Her fingers tightened around Aaryn's waist for a brief moment, pulling her closer, her hand sliding past the hem of her shirt, onto bare skin. Her palm was hot.

Aaryn reached up, curled her fingers around the collar of Thea's vest, and tugged her lower.

"In what way?"

They were so close Aaryn heard Thea swallow before she spoke, each word honeyed with the same desire pooling in her own core. Her gaze locked onto Aaryn's lips. "It's a gathering," she explained slowly, hand sliding to rest over Aaryn's stomach. "And a release." A pause. "Of magic, yes." Her fingers danced low enough to make Aaryn's breath catch. She lifted her hips slightly, as if to encourage Thea to keep going. "But of other things too."

Her exploration paused.

"It can be overwhelming," Thea warned softly.

Aaryn had heard as such. "That's why I'll have you, right?" Aaryn asked.

Thea blinked down at her, chest expanding with an inhale before she kissed her. Aaryn gasped and slid her hands into Thea's hair, avoiding her horns as she tried to eliminate the concept of distance. Their tongues twined and each of Thea's fingertips were pressing into Aaryn's skin just above her waistband.

"Yes," Thea breathed into the kiss. "You'll have me, baby."

Aaryn did not have the vocabulary to describe what exactly those words did to her. Something flared and tightened and swelled all at once and she couldn't take it anymore. "And what if I want you now?" she asked, tangling her fingers further into Thea's hair so she couldn't escape.