SOREN
She froze the moment my fingers closed around her wrist.
Not pulling away. Not yet. Just... still, like she was calculating whether to burn my hand off or allow this momentary touch.
I made the decision for both of us.
Pulled her closer. Gentle but firm. Until she stood between my legs where I leaned against her desk, close enough that her heat washed over me in waves that had nothing to do with magic and everything to do with proximity.
"What are you doing?" Her voice came out sharper than I think she intended.
"You didn't expect me to do this?"
She cursed at me. Something creative in Solmire's dialect that probably translated to anatomically improbable suggestions about my parentage.
I chuckled, pulling her even closer, until I could bury my face in her chest and breathe in the scent of fire and something floral from whatever soap they'd given her. My breath came out cold against the warm fabric of her gown, and I felt her shiver.
