Page 93 of Sands of Atonement

Good.

Chapter 23

Eshe

Warmth filled the space around my skin. I snuggled deeper, seeking the warmth to spread more. I was all too aware of who had left his hand position around my neck, and then laid it lazily between my breasts, where my robe was parted. He was asleep. I could feel it through his deep breaths on my neck. It left a tingling sensation between my legs, and I wanted to lean more into him. Even my own body betrayed me. I’d never felt that way before with Ezra—with anyone.

When I moved deeper into his arms, I felt his lips brush the inner part of my neck. A burning feeling pooled at the bottom of my stomach. I wanted him to press his lips to me. I wanted him to tighten his hold on me—anything. My breath was no longer deep and heavy, filled with sleepiness. Ezra couldn’t be awake, but I doubted it for a moment as his lips lingered gently on my neck. Did he want to be closer to me? I felt his chest now breathing more heavily and quicker.

His thumb barely brushed over my bare skin between my breasts, bringing raw awareness to the peaks of them. I let out a breath I’d been holding, and then his warm lips moved up my neck, behind my ear. An intense reaction nestled in my core, and I bit back a whimper. I might have given him better access—not knowing what I was doing. His breath fanned over my neck, and I realized then he was definitely awake. His fingers between my breasts began to slowly spread. The peaks of my nipples were hard against the rough, open robe, and I felt myself waiting for something to soothe them.

The air had turned warmer, and I leaned half an inch closer to him. Pressing my chest closer, his mouth lingered at the bottom of my earlobe just before a sound snapped outside our tent.

My eyes flew open. It was still night. Ezra and I lifted our backs off the ground at the same time, his arm still wrapped around my waist. I looked over my shoulder, and his finger was over his lips.

Don’t make a sound, he seemed to say with his dark eyes.

I looked back at the moonlight shadows outside the tent, lurking.

“They left weapons out here,” a man whispered outside the tent. His accent was from Brestan. My God, Ezra left his weapons out there. I scanned around me, maybe he forgot one nearby, but then Ezra placed a finger under my chin and turned me toward him.

He motioned for me to take off my robe.

I felt my eyes widen, my brows furrowed.

He mouthed, Trust me.

My breath clogged in my throat.

Could I trust him?

His eyes peered into mine, and I looked and looked, searching for something that I couldn’t trust.

I did trust him.

Goddamn it.

I didn’t know what he was trying to do, but I trusted him. I didn’t know when or how that happened, but I had a feeling to follow what he told me.

I closed my parted lips, brought my trembling fingers to my robes, and untied every strap. The robe slid off my shoulders, pooled around my hips, and I placed my arms around my bare chest, feeling too exposed.

Ezra took the robe and hid it near him and motioned me back down.

I lay down, shivering though it wasn’t cold. Ezra placed his arm back around my waist and pressed me closer to him. His fingers left a burning trace everywhere they touched. My heart raced. I’d never been naked in the arms of a man, let alone Ezra, the most dangerous man I’d ever encountered.

Suddenly feeling doubtful of whatever plan Ezra had in store, the first of our flaps opened, and Ezra threw a dark, heavy wool around my naked body. He pinned a hand down on my stomach as he lifted his bare back from the ground. I didn’t know when he took his robe off, but it was. At least he had pants on.

The second flap of our tent opened, and three men, one with a flaming torch, appeared through our flaps.

“Who dares enter my tent?” Ezra's voice thundered.

They didn’t respond right away. Instead, the men studied us, Ezra with one arm around me.

“We apologize… we thought you were someone we were looking for,” the man in the middle spoke out. I could barely make out who it was because of the darkness and the blinding torch, but I noticed he had no beard.

There was a long, pregnant pause that passed by.

Ezra’s body was tense. He was analyzing how to kill them. I knew he was. I was never going to admit it, but it felt nice not to have to be on edge to protect myself when I had an annoyingly possessive man to do it for me.