Instead of kissing me, his nose grazed along the curve of my neck, slow, deliberate.
My breath caught, my fingers curling involuntarily into the fabric of his sleeve.
His hand on my waist tightened slightly, drawing me closer, and every nerve in my body went still, screaming and alive at once.
"Alaric would say…" His voice was low, almost a whisper, his lips barely grazing my ear. "…I can't stay away from you, Serenya. Not even if it destroys me."
The words, lifted straight from the script, sent a shiver down my spine, and I tilted my chin, matching his gaze with a steady one.
"Then Serenya," I said, my voice trembling but sharp, "would tell him to prove he's not all talk."
Lucian's eyes darkened slightly, his jaw tightening. His hand at my waist flexed, pulling me a fraction closer.
The space between us shrank until I could feel the heat of his breath, until my heart was hammering against my ribs like it wanted out.
