hawk & sable

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE,

HAWK & SABLE | TWENTY-FIVE

CIRI HAD KISSED men before. Kind men who wished to marry her. Who had to deal with a careful rejection moments later when she pulled away, forcing her cheeks to flush. Attempts at passionate kisses she had carefully subverted and avoided.

She'd never asked someone to kiss her. Or kiss someone because she wanted to. There had been men she admired from afar, giggling behind fans, but those were shallow, skin-deep. She'd never truly cared.

She cared now. Her lips still locked on Laurence's, neither daring to pull away, scared the magic of the moment would end.

This is what Cass felt. What she feels. No wonder she was so grumpy in the past six years. I would be too. And she was by far the more well-tempered of the two.

And then his hands were in her hair, and any rational thought in her head vanished. She lost herself in the feeling of skin against skin, lips against lips, tongue against tongue. Let him treasure her. Pretended for a moment she deserved any of this. That any of this would stay when the moment was over. He was not for her.

But she was selfish. So she'd take what she could for now.

It was almost as if he could read her thoughts. He pulled away slightly. She followed, but he stopped her.

"Ciri?"

His voice was soft and full of tenderness. Tenderness she did not deserve. This could not continue. It would only end in disaster. She should be wise, like she always was. But Laurence had always seemed to scramble her wits, even when she was no more than a little girl.

"We should not do this."

His laugh was sharp in the dark, quiet night. "Should have said that earlier, shouldn't you?"

"I was an idiot."

"Ciri— no, don't pull away. Damn. Stay with me."

"I should not. We should not—"

"—what's wrong?"

"My wits were scrambled, but now I've regained them, that's all. I should go."

"Ciri—" He must have seen the conviction in her eyes, because he let out a sigh and nodded. "Fine. Go. But this isn't over. Not by a long shot."

She gave the handsome boy in front of her one last longing look before banishing the feelings from her head. "It must, I'm afraid."

✢

"WE ALL KNOW the plan," Irina repeated, glancing at her assembled allies. "Right?"

"Shut it," Danna snarled. "Yes, we damned know the plan. You've been drilling it into our heads for the past five hours."

Asteria tilted her head, lips quirked up. "You've been awake for four."

Danna glared at her friend. "She haunts my nightmares, Ast. And why do you know when I woke up?"

"Fantastic," Irina deadpanned. "Everyone else?"

Ciri hadn't glanced at Laurence yet. She didn't know how good she was at hiding longing. It wasn't an emotion she felt often. If anyone else noticed their awkwardness, they kept quiet about it. She felt a hint of gratitude.

"We all know the plan, Irina." Lady Myrina pulled a finger through her dark, long hair, bored. "Don't stress it." Rhys stood next to her, since they were the ones who'd be heading in, looking calm. That was a lie, probably. Rhys might like to act cool and indifferent to everything, but it was a clear facade. An armour to protect herself with. Someone used to getting hurt.