Blackthorn Eternal Bind

Yard Confessions

Morning mist clung to the seaside yard like a lover's breath. Ellen peered from the kitchen window. Her body still hummed from the night's fevered dream. Her thighs tingled with phantom traces. Her skin flushed under her robe. Waves murmured below the cliffs. Luke worked by the stone well. He raked leaves with rhythmic sweeps. His henley stretched across his broad shoulders. His chestnut waves caught the gold dawn light. His pocket watch chain swayed hypnotically. Lorian's eyes. She shivered. She forgot her coffee. She grabbed a sweater and stepped onto the dew-kissed porch.

He straightened at her approach. His gray eyes sharpened on her flushed cheeks. His cool aura cut the chill air. "Good morning again, Ellen. Is the turret holding?" He leaned the rake aside. He wiped his dry hands on his jeans.

"It is solid," she said. She hugged her sweater closer. Her pulse raced under his gaze. "I wrote all day yesterday. The suspects are breathing now. I slept... interestingly." Dream flashes teased her mind. They featured cool lips on her breast and a hard press against her core. Heat pooled low in her body. She flushed deeper.

Luke tilted his head. His eyes searched hers intently. "How was it interesting? Did you have nightmares from the lore? Or did you have breakthrough dreams?"

She laughed it off. She backpedaled fast. "It was just vivid. The gala swirled in my head. It was no big deal." She shifted the subject. "My plot hooks Lorian to Amelia's sister, Eliza. The fiancée scorned him, but the true love was forbidden. There are hidden letters and stolen glances amid the suspects. It fits the vanish drama."

His jaw tightened subtly. His gray eyes stormed. He shifted his weight. His voice edged sharper. "I would never—I mean, the stories say Lorian did love someone. He planned to marry her when he vanished. The girl did have a sister. But Lorian did not love her in that way." His words tumbled out defensively. He caught himself. He cleared his throat. "Local whispers fill gaps. History is messy."

Ellen froze. I would never? The slip echoed in her mind. His upset felt raw and personal. It was like he defended himself. His pocket watch glinted. The rune matched exactly from the archives. "You sound invested. It is like you knew him." Her heart thundered. Her dream of Luke as Lorian blurred the lines.

He exhaled slowly. He composed himself. "Old tales hit close. I have seen echoes in owners' dramas." His cool hand grazed her arm in reassurance. Sparks leaped through her. The touch echoed the dream intimately. "Keep writing. Truth twists sweetest." He pulled away. He grabbed the rake. "The well is clear now. I will check the porch swing next."

She nodded in a daze. Suspicion flickered amid the ache. Who are you? The fog lifted seaward. Waves roared louder. Unseen, his watch ticked backward once.