Siege And Seduction

24

She pulled her heavy shirt over her head and situated it next to mine along the wall. I had to force my breathing to stay steady as my eyes drifted over to where she sat in a bright red bra, either unaware or uncaring of her effect on me. Her skin was so smooth and unblemished that it didn’t seem real, like she was made of porcelain and should be kept on a shelf for display. Her softly rounded breasts were perfectly cupped in the lingerie, giving them a round firmness that begged to be squeezed. I could imagine the way my tongue would feel as it lapped a path from her graceful neck down to each of those rosy peaks. What the f**k had I been thinking not getting laid before I went on this little adventure? Not only would it have been ideal to recharge my magic, but I might have been able to think with my head instead of my d**k. Yeah, right. There was no way in hell I would have been able to sit across the fire from all that naked skin without wanting to taste it, whether I’d gotten off before the trip or not. Oblivious to the rising tent in my pants, Morgan rifled through her bag until she pulled out a flask and took a swig of its contents. Head back, her neck contracted as she swallowed several gulps, then she licked the stray moisture from her lips. I wasn’t sure she could have been any more tempting if she had tried. “What do you have there?” I asked in a guttural baritone. Way to keep that one under wraps. She met my eyes, hers narrowing ever so slightly. “Faery wine, would you like some?” she offered, extending the flask toward me. I took the cool metal and downed a generous portion of wine. The sweet drink was a welcome change, coating my throat and igniting an instant fire in my chest. Faery wine was potent. The Fae didn’t d**k around with their intoxicating drinks, and Morgan’s wine had been especially well brewed. I could taste the swirl of several distinct fruit flavors along with the tang of picca fruit, which gave the wine its potency. I took one more swig before handing the flask back to her. “You can’t imagine what it’s like seeing wine and other indulgences and not being able to enjoy them.” I said a small prayer, thanking the gods my voice had returned to normal. “You could have drunk wine, or whatever your drink of choice, while you were a wolf.” “Not having hands or the ability to talk made that somewhat difficult. I could have gotten my point across, but I guess it was never important enough to work at.” I poked at our meager fire, hoping to keep it lit as long as possible. Morgan handed me a protein bar from her bag and began to open one for herself. I knew Merlin had stocked the house with food for her, but seeing something as human as a protein bar in Faery was odd. She took a bite of her bar, then fiddled with the foil wrapper. “What was important to you?” “Enjoying each day I was given. Helping the man who had saved me. That was about it—life was pretty simple as a wolf.” I smirked at her across the fire. “Eat, run, maybe an occasional fight over territory.” “You interacted with other wolves?” she gaped. I took the flask for another drink, knowing where the conversation was headed. “Yeah, a part of me became my wolf. In particular, when I was around other wolves.” “Did you have wolf s*x?” And there it was—the question that had been inevitable. “Yeah … I did,” I grumbled with a swig. “A wolf has urges, too.” She began to giggle uncontrollably, and it was obnoxiously cute. I smirked at the thought of telling Morgan just how cute she was. She would probably try to take my head off. She wasn’t the type to appreciate being called cute, but that was precisely what made the look so appealing on her. Her smile softened her features and offered an unfettered glimpse at the woman she might have been had her mother not been taken from her at such an early age. The only reason I had been granted this exclusive peek at her mellow side was the wine. She was halfway drunk on just a few gulps from the canteen. Good, maybe she won’t remember the conversation. I took one more swig and handed the flask back to her. She calmed herself and took a drink, eyeing me sheepishly over the flask. “What kind of things do you do for Merlin, aside from guarding damsels in distress?” “Whatever he needs, but I’m often on my own. We go long intervals without seeing one another.” “That sounds familiar. Being his apprentice was educational but it also involved a lot of self-study.” Her words dripped with sarcasm. On some women, it made them bitchy; on Morgan, it made me want to kiss the sass out of her. I lifted my shoulder in a small shrug. “I didn’t mind so much. I like having time to myself. Plus, I couldn’t complain. Merlin did so much for me, and I was f*****g unbearable early on. He never gave up on me, even when it took me years to come back to myself.” When I glanced up at Morgan, her eyes were at half-mast. I wanted to ask her more about her relationship with Merlin. While I didn’t want to upset our easy conversation, I figured catching her while she was tipsy was probably my best shot at getting answers. “Tell me more about you and Merlin—why you hate him so much.” As I’d hoped, she didn’t fly into an incensed rage this time. Her deep blue eyes stayed soft, and her head tilted softly to one side. “He was the reason my mother was taken from me. It was his sister who took her and tortured her. All this time, he let me believe she was dead.” Her voice faded, and for a second, I could see the terrified little girl she had been. “You can’t blame him for his sister’s actions,” I offered quietly. “I know, but where was he when Mab showed at our door? Where was he when I was strapped in that chair and forced to watch as my mother was nearly beaten to death? Why did it take him two long years to figure out who was behind her a*******n? Why didn’t he tell me she was alive?” Her voice broke on her last words, and the wolf raged inside me to pull her into my arms and protect her from all the pain. “He’s powerful, but he’s not omniscient. Did you consider he may have been just as affected by her loss as you were? Maybe even more so as an adult because he carried the weight of his own blame.” I had pushed too far. She sat tall, her blue eyes glinting with shards of ice. “I don’t expect you to see it from my perspective. You think he can do no wrong, just like you think Guin walks on water.” “Actually, I can’t say I have an opinion of her. I’ve never even met the woman.” Her rigid stance relaxed just a touch as she peered at me with confusion. “How? Don’t you go to court with Merlin?” I glanced down at my hand where I’d been toying with several pebbles. “I’ve always had a certain … aversion to court. Merlin never forced the issue, so I never went. I’ve mostly called Earth home.” “Well, at least that’s one thing we can agree on,” she announced with a sigh. I met her eyes with a grin. “Oh, yeah? You a fan of Earth?”