Page 119 of Sunsplitter

He shifted onto his knees, knelt beside her with tail swishing the blankets. His eyes smoldered in the dark. His growl came soft. Tentative. Asking if they were still fighting.

Fi reached up and laid a soft hand on his cheek.

No more fighting. For now.

Antal slumped in relief. A new nemesis, this raw space between them, pried apart by all the things they’d shouted in the heat of the moment. Now, the question of whether they could piece themselves back together.

Fi wanted to. She didn’t want these threads to fully fray, to lose this life they’d just begun to build. To lose him.

She didn’t fight when Antal lifted her against his chest. She wrapped her arms around his neck, nestling into his heat. So soft, compared to what he’d just been.

Always soft when she needed him to be.

Black flashed across her vision.

They emerged from the teleport in a clearing surrounded by shiverpines, Winter air frigid against her naked skin. Several hot springs steamed amidst the snow. As Antal carried her forward, Fi moaned in anticipation. She was, upon swift reflection, a little filthy.

She sank into the pool with relish. Scalding water cleansed the stickiness from her skin, heat soothing every ache. Antal wrapped arms around her waist. His forehead settled against hers.

One long, shared breath.

“You’re a stubborn human,” he whispered.

“You’re a fickle daeyari,” she returned, just as soft.

“But I still love you.”

“So do I, Antlers.” That had never been in question.

Antal ran his fingers through her damp hair, straightening nothing. Just touching her. Fi rested her head on his shoulder.

“I’m sorry,” he said. “I’ve treated you poorly, Fionamara. I never meant to make you feel small. I never meant to hurt you.”

Of course he hadn’t. That was the peril of love: the way he could pry beneath her armor, small words to slash the vulnerablespots underneath. Even when he didn’t mean it.

He’d still been an ass.

Fi’s eyes prickled. All her anger had spilled out, leaving only the mushy nonsense behind. She was still annoyed. Of course she was. But with a clearer head…

“I may have been… a little reckless today,” she conceded.

“Alittle?” Antal sounded more tired than chiding.

Fi took his chin in soft fingers. “We could have fought that aedari together. We could have stopped him getting away.”

“We might have. But…”

Beneath the water, his hand drifted to her stomach. Her skin prickled as he traced her scars. Fi gave a small gasp. Antal tilted her a questioning look.

“It feels strange,” she said. “The new skin. Because it’s made of Void, like you?”

He studied her a long moment.

“You’re phenomenal,” he said. “A sheer fucking marvel.”

Fi knew that lilt. That pause. “But?”

He gave another long, dissecting look.