Flame and Starlight by Dana Isaly
Chapter Twenty-One
Asher rubbed my soon-to-be sore muscles in the bath and then sat next to me on the bed while I curled up for a nap. He traced featherlight circles on my arms while reading his book until I fell asleep. And when I woke up, he was still there, still reading, with his fingers tangling themselves in my hair.
“Do we do anything special for the Solstice tomorrow?” I asked with sleep still heavy in my voice.
“Zemira will give gifts to everyone at dinner. We do a lot of things that you would probably consider Pagan-like? She’ll have Yule logs burning at dinner, and she’ll give each guest a Yule log to burn in their cabin. The kids will be encouraged to go gather pine leaves and make their own evergreen wreaths and little decorations for the trees. Dancing will take place outside in the forest instead of inside.” He shrugged.
“I love Christmas,” I said, snuggling up closer to his side. “My mom used to decorate the entire house from top to bottom in warm lights and pretty decorations. There would be a Christmas tree in every room. Even as I got older, we would still keep up the Santa tradition. I would have to ask Santa for presents as well as her.” I laughed at the memories.
“You miss her.”
I looked up at him. “I do. But I’m excited to start new traditions here, in this world.” He smiled at me. With you.
“I saw a dress that Mavka packed for you. And I’d like you to wear it tonight. Everyone is encouraged to wear the colors of their court tomorrow night, so I’d like to see you in some color tonight.” He rolled off the bed and pulled out a deep red gown from my trunk. It had long sleeves and was made of some sort of gauzy, see-through fabric on the top with a dangerously low neckline and red beading covering every square inch of it. It would look like the beading had been placed directly on my skin. The bottom was pure red silk with a high slit on each thigh.
“Where’s the rest of it? And it’s see-through?” I sat up and ran my fingers down the beading as he held it out to me.
He rolled his eyes at me and laid it on the bed. “Get dressed,” he said as his lips met mine in a bruising kiss. “I want to look at you all night in this thing, knowing I get to rip it off of you later.”
I stared at his back as he walked out of the room, still half-stunned that he wanted me.
“And wear your crown,” he tossed over his shoulder.
“Tiara!” I shot back at him. “It is not a crown,” I mumbled to myself.
* * *
You could definitely see the faint outline of the dagger on my thigh in this scrap of fabric he called a dress. The slits were so high that it peeked out with every step I took. Thankfully, the beading on the chest was strategically placed with thicker fabric behind it to cover my chest. The chance of a nip slip was still high, though. I clasped my starlight necklace around my neck and let it lie against my collarbone, his shadows drifting slowly there even though he wasn’t in the room. My tiara sat heavier on my head after he called it a crown, a new weight behind it.
“I’m practically naked,” I said when I felt him come into the room. More of his shadows billowed around me like smoke.
“Everyone is going to be looking at you tonight and wishing they could take you home,” he said, moving behind me. “But they don’t get to touch you. I do. And if they try, I will hurt them. If they do, I will kill them.” I swallowed. “After babysitting you this past month, I’m eager for a fight.”
Gods, he was beautiful. He was dressed all in black except for his shirt that was bloodred to match my dress. His hair was wild and curled around his face, framing it perfectly. He wrapped his arms around me, and I watched the muscles in his arms flex and move under his tight jacket. Sometimes I forgot how strong he was, how many people he had killed. His power was raw and moved under his skin like his shadows.
He flew us into town, and instantly I felt something was off. I looked up at him, but he seemed unfazed, like nothing felt off to him. I chalked it up to my nerves of seeing everyone after we had been together. I told myself it was stupid to feel embarrassed because my role was his plaything from the start. But I knew now that something had shifted between us, and I worried they’d see it written all over my body.
The air moved differently around me. I just couldn’t shake the feeling that something was different tonight.
“The wind feels strange,” I whispered as he sat me down.
“Could be your lack of clothing,” he quipped and took my hand in his. I made a face at him and followed him into dinner.
It seemed to pass normally except for the feeling someone was watching me. I dismissed it as the revealing clothing and my paranoia. But I couldn’t shake it. I tried to look around the room over my wineglass, but everyone was focused on their own conversations, not paying any more attention to us tonight than they did any other night.
Some males’ gazes lingered on my chest, but the moment Asher caught their eye, they quickly averted theirs. I smiled every time, loving the possessiveness that pooled around him. His shadows clung to me tightly, covering a lot of the skin that would’ve been on show otherwise.
Asher laid his arm on the back of my chair, and I felt him twist my waves through his fingers. I turned to look at him, and his eyes were gorgeous in this light. He leaned in and kissed my cheek and then found the shell of my ear. His breath was hot, and it made me burn. My magick cracked and sizzled under my skin.
“I like watching your eyes light up for me,” he whispered. I closed them and took a breath, trying to get my power under control. The last thing we needed was everyone to see my eyes turn a bright glowing white. I smiled and caught his mouth with mine.
“I don’t think you want everyone to see my eyes glow,” I murmured against his lips. I was satisfied when I saw a tinge of my red lipstick left behind there. He nipped my nose, and I laughed, settling into his side.
When I turned my attention back to the table, a bright flash of wild auburn hair streaked across the window opposite us. I jerked up and out of his arm, suddenly alert.
Aoife?
“What’s wrong, princess?” A few people near us scoffed at the nickname. I was too distracted to wonder why.
“I swear I saw someone,” I said, trailing off as I stood to walk outside, the chair scraping like nails on a chalkboard. It had to be her. I was sure of it. He stood up next to me and leaned in so only I could hear in a room filled with Fae hearing.
“Who’d you see?”
“I swear I saw Aoife,” I said, matching his tone. Any relaxation he had gained over the past couple of days disappeared in the moment. His muscles stiffened, and his eyes went grey, all the warmth in them leeched out by how alert he was. He grabbed my hand and pulled me out of the room and into the cold night. People were filtering out around us and mingling as they made their way down the sidewalks.
He took me around the building and down the little alley where the windows were, searching for any sign someone had been there. There wasn’t a single footprint. The snow lay smoothly on the ground. He walked all the way down the length of the building, and gooseflesh prickled over my arms. Something was not right. His shadows swirled nervously around me.
“I know what I saw,” I said, but I could hear the doubt in my voice. He made his way back to me and took my face in his hands. He held my face there, inches from his, so gently, but I could feel the power rolling off him in waves.
“They will not touch you.”
“I know you believe she wants to hurt me. But I just can’t think like that, Asher. She was my best friend. If she’s here, I don’t think she would be here to hurt me.”
One of his hands slipped into my hair, and he fisted it at the base of my skull, tugging it just enough that I felt it pull against my scalp. “She may not want to hurt you, Alyssandra, but I can guarantee that she wants to take you. And I will not let her take you from me.” His voice came out in a growl, and I shivered against him.
“Look,” I said as I wrapped my arms around his neck. “There aren’t any footprints out here. I obviously just made a mistake. I’ve been on edge since we got here. It’s nothing.” He ran one of his thumbs over my bottom lip, and I took it between my teeth. He growled, and it vibrated through my body.
“I will take your ass home right now,” he said, slipping his hands down my body and in between the fabric on my thighs. He squeezed the flesh there.
“You will not,” I murmured against his mouth. “You will take me dancing.” He groaned into my kiss, making me laugh. “Come on.” I tugged him out of the alley and down the sidewalk, following the groups of Fae making their way down. “What better way to show off your plaything than dancing with her?”
I decided not to tell Asher that I swore I saw Aoife’s flash of red hair again at the end of the alley as we made our way out of it. I was either seeing things, or she was here, and neither option was comforting. I knew Asher wouldn’t let her near me if that was what she came for. It was cemented in his mind that I would leave him for her.
I stumbled at the thought, and Asher gripped my elbow. He smiled down at me. I had come to cherish those smiles that he seemed to only share with me. Would I leave him for Aoife? For my family? He swung his arm around my shoulders and pulled me flush against him.
No, I knew I wouldn’t. I wouldn’t leave him for the world.
