Page 86 of The Witch in the Dead of Night

“And if I can’t?”

Mordric tucked his thumb under my chin, tilting my face up to meet his gaze. “You will,” he assured me. “I have full faith in you.”

Mordric held me close that evening. Anxious about the prospect of spending time apart after our months together, we spent the early hours of the evening in bed with little rest. I wanted to memorize every inch of him. The sensation of his hair spilling through my fingers, his pillowy lips pressed against mine, the scent of dried ink and roses that lingered on his naked skin.

A nightjar’s trill drifted in through the open window as we lay in a puddle of sheets and tangled limbs. I smiled. “That reminds me of the night of the solstice.”

“What does?” he asked, running his fingers through my hair.

“The bird making that funny sound. It’s called a nightjar.”

“I can’t say I’m familiar.”

“We had them in Wealdstone. Well, one. It made its nest in the woods behind our cottage. Before the solstice, I didn’t even realize that there were any in Valnar.”

“It was a lovely night.”

“It was. I asked you why you’d chosen to escort me to the ball.”

His fingers stilled. “Have I proven myself yet?”

“I suppose, although sometimes I still can’t believe it. You could’ve had anyone.”

I gasped, startled as he rolled me into his lap, locking me in his gaze. Nose to nose, I could nearly drown in it. “I didn’t want anyone, Finn,” he growled. “I still don’t. I knew from the moment I first saw you that you were special. That I wanted to make you mine.”

My lips parted, but he shook his head, silencing me. “When I first saw you in the library, trailing behind that raggedy broom, your pretty nose buried in a book, I couldn’t believe it. There had been no witch sightings in Valnar in a decade, and I had longed for one to sit on my council, but that wasn’t all. I almost convinced myself then and there that you had cast a spell on me. I wish I could have spoken to you then, that our first conversation had taken place anywhere other than where it did. But I could sense your fear, and I didn’t want to be the cause of it. And so I left you in peace.”

My heart thudded against my ribcage, remembering the surprise that rolled off of him when our eyes first met.

“When I caught your scent down in Valnar later that evening, and then when I heard what that animal was trying to do to you, I couldn’t think straight. Perhaps I acted too rashly, but I knew that I had to protect you, no matter the cost.”

“He would have killed me,” I whispered. “I don’t blame you.”

“You’ve occupied my thoughts all these months like no one else because there is no one else.” He paused, pressing his forehead to mine. “Because I love you, Finn.”

My breath escaped me in a gasp, as if all the air had been swept from my lungs. No one had ever told me they loved me outside my own family. “You do?”

His grip tightened around my waist. “I know we’ve only known each other for a few months,” he continued, “and if it’s too much—”

Tangling my fingers in his hair, I pressed my lips to his, stealing the words from his tongue. “It’s not,” I said when we parted, my breathing shallow. “I promise you that it’s not.”

My skin prickled as his expression grew grave. He ran a hand through my hair, gathering the strands in his fist at the nape of my neck. I gasped, allowing him to draw my head back, exposing my throat to him. The strap of my flimsy nightdress slipped off one shoulder, exposing my bare chest to the cool air. He palmed my breast, squeezing the sensitive nub of skin at its center until it stood at attention.

Pulling me close, he kissed me fiercely, his tongue invading my mouth. My skin felt oddly tight around my bones as he held me in place. I rocked to and fro against his arousal, the movement driving us both toward the edge. When he finally released me, I kissed him from his lips to the hollow of his throat. Running my tongue along his collarbone, I paused to take his skin between my teeth.

He chuckled. “Wicked girl. I wouldn’t be surprised if you had grown fangs after all this time.”

I grinned, landing another kiss on his lips. “Neither would I.”

His fingers trailed between my thighs, teasing me until I cried out for more. He acquiesced without a second thought, slipping inside of me. I gasped, gripping his shoulders as I rode him. His fingers dug into the nape of my neck, slamming me down as quickly as he thrusted into me. My skin reddened where he touched me, his fingertips leaving marks where he grabbed me by the breast and then hips. His thumb rocked against my center, dragging me toward ecstasy. I cried out, sagging against him as he pumped his hips against me, finding his own release.

Hours later, I lay silent and still as a wraith in his arms, his breathing steady in my ear. He’d drifted off so easily, whereas I remained wide awake, staring at the wall. The niggling voice in the back of my mind scolded me for not saying it back.

The nerve of me, an ungrateful peasant girl from the Outlands who did not return the affections of the godsdamn King of Valen. After all he’d done for me. I squeezed my eyes shut, trying fruitlessly to drive out the guilt. I was indebted to Mordric for his kindness, for the safety that he offered me that no one else could. And I cared for him so deeply. But it was too soon, the words carrying too much promise.

I sighed. There was no way I would get any sleep tonight. I glanced over at him, sound asleep as if he had not a care in the world. Steeling myself, I wriggled out of his arms and whispered a message into my hands. A silver light blossomed from my cupped palms, glowing like a small moon before drifting through the closed door.

I rose as quietly as I could, wrapping myself in a dressing gown. Slipping through the door, I padded in my slippers down the winding corridors toward the library, where I folded myself into an armchair. The fire had long since died down, but I stared into the crackling embers, losing myself in their orange glow.