“They can be, but often are not. I am not involved with the current Queen.”
Well that was promising. I inched closer. “Before we leave…we could give each other some company then.”
He stiffened again. It was odd though. I could sense how attracted he was to me. Why did he resist so? His brothers certainly took the opportunity to sample the offerings while they were here. Not me, but I’ve seen them getting it on with others.
Because, well, I’ve been pretty stuck on this grump of a male since I laid eyes on him.
Thus my current state of frustration.
“Leena…it’s not that I’m not interested.”
“Good,” I purred like the horny cat I was.
“But I’m not interested.”
I stopped. “That makes no sense.”
He stood and paced away from me. “We have a war coming. I have…responsibilities.” His dark eyes raked over me full of the longing I knew he felt.
And I had to admit this made him ten times hotter. There was a reason I was attracted to him from the beginning. He wasn’t just hot and enormous. He was thoughtful. His brothers and sisters weighed heavy on his shoulders. He was a good male.
“And your responsibilities make you celibate?”
“No.” He growled. “Yes. But no.” He huffed, cracked his neck. “I will marry a Heida when the time comes. I made this vow to my House and I intend to keep it.”
I looked around, confused. “Did I propose marriage? Because I’m almost positive I only proposed sex.”
He stared for a long moment and in his eyes was a longing I felt mirrored inside myself. A soul-deep desire not just for sex, but for connection. “I cannot have sex with with you, Leena of House of Wren.” Then under his breath, “No matter how badly I want to.” He finished his beer and set the mug on the bench. “The only thing that matters right now is convincing my Queen the Heida need to prepare for this war.” Then he looked away before I could see all his secrets.
And there were definitely secrets.
How interesting.
“Good night, Leena. I will see you in the morning.” He disappeared into the darkness, leaving behind the scent of his desire and the echo of his power.
Atsila of the House of Heida wasn’t pushing me away because he didn’t want me. He pushed me away because he wanted me too much.
