A Court of Sunlight and Shadows

Collide

Lucien's heart beat as if it were about to burst out of his chest. He tried to maintain a neutral expression as she opened the door and let him into her apartment, although all his senses were alert as they had never been.

He knew it, knew it was finally happening. She was beginning to feel what he had felt all this time. Their bond, this magic between them that had been hunting him since that day… she was finally feeling it without running away. 

All he needed was a chance, just a little push to show her how it could be, how he could make her feel. And the fact that she was furious with everyone else… Well, for once, at least, things were turning to his advantage.

Once inside the apartment, her scent entered his nostrils and penetrated deep into his veins. Everything smelled of her.

His mate.

Elain slipped off the jacket, and without that heavy fabric on her he finally took the time to observe her small figure wrapped in the tight dress. It perfectly swathed her soft, delicate curves.

Blood boiled in his veins.

Elain clutched his jacket in her hands. "I can wash it before returning it to you, if you prefer."

He inhaled, already foretasting the way her scent would be imprinted on it after she wore it. Absolutely not, he thought.

 "Don't bother."

She nodded, laying it on the coat rack at the entrance.

From the tension he saw in her movements, and in her posture, he realized she was beginning to doubt whether or not letting him in was a good idea. He shouldn't allow it.

This was his chance to show what he could be for her, and the things she could feel if she just let herself go, surrendering to their magic, to him. The fire in his veins burned and stirred, along with something else, straining that golden thread that united them.

He advanced with slow steps until his feet reached the small sofa in the center of the room, on which he had spent the night only a few weeks before.

"May I offer you-" Elain began to say, but then froze.

Lucien knew what she was thinking about:

He too hated that sharing food meant so much to the fae. Elain had shared the food she prepared with anyone except him since she had been transformed. He watched the delicate white skin of her neck bobbing up and down as she swallowed, straining for words.

 "Some tea?" she finally said, noting the awareness in his eyes.

"Some tea will be fine," he nodded, "thank you."

He took a seat on the sofa while she went to the kitchen and put the water on to boil. He had to make her feel comfortable, appear relaxed. Yet it was not easy with his heart hammering so damn hard. He had never found himself completely alone with her, not for so long. And she had been the one to invite him.

He felt like tearing his clothes off from the heat. The fire had warmed him so far, shielding him from the icy city air. But now, inside the small apartment, surrounded by the scent of his mate, he was burning.

Nevertheless, he took a series of deep breaths, focusing on the noises coming from the small kitchen. He could almost hear Elain's heart beating as fast as his own. He had even seen a glimpse of it, in the slight pulsing of the skin on her neck. 

He needed to be the calm one, to make her feel comfortable. He could do it, he just had to focus and stop acting like a sloppy teenager, like he wasn't a fae with centuries of life behind him.