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How can someone who’s never spoken a word have such a loud personality?

Just as Nathair picked her up to climb the boulders of the cave alcove where the sunken ship was, she thought,his body is also really handsome.

She flushed at her thoughts, but only due to the way her heart shyly fluttered in response. His shoulders were broad, his chest firm, his biceps and stomach muscles pronounced. He was a very big boy, with a massive hand that spanned her entire waist as he carted her to the top ledge so she didn’t trip again.

I like the way his hands feel touching me.Of course, that was only over her clothing, but their strength and size was impossible to mistake, even with a barrier between their flesh. How would that feel touching more delicate places on her body? Would his gentleness give way to needy roughness?

He placed her on her feet, and they made their way up the tunnel in the dark.

Every day, her trust in him grew, as did her fondness for him. It also brought on doubt.

Paranoid thoughts nagged at the back of her mind.

He’d shown he wanted her, but she feared all this extra kindness was just an act. He was being patient currently. What if he grew tired of waiting for Linh to figure out what she wanted, and then, more importantly, if she would act on it?

What would he do when his patience ran out? Take away her choice, or give up and cast her away like he’d tried to before?

She had no idea what she was doing.

A human and a Duskwalker living together under some strange truce wasodd.But... love? Lust? Some kind of relationship or bond? Was that too farfetched?

Was it... too wrong, even in the skewed reality she was choosing to live in?

And yet, all these pangs kept clenching around her heart whenever he did something nice for her. Each platonic touch to her hair, or even the nape of her neck, had her shivering for more. His claws tickling any part of her felt dangerous, but she associated that danger with Nathair, which meant safe, exotic, and heart-stuttering.

I’m scared of touching him,she thought, her stomach knotting. She bit her bottom lip and shoved her crossed arms – hands still clutching the seashells – against her abdomen when it twisted.

If she let a moment of heat take over, she was scared something would remind her of the horrible past. She didn’t want to lock up in the moment, causing Nathair to think it was his fault and she was rejecting him, when she was the one who had instigated it. She also didn’t want him to be so deep in his own desire that he didn’t realise she’d lost her voice, her ability to speak out, and unwittingly betrayed her by not stopping.

She wanted to try.

However, the moment she felt her nipples bud or her pussy grow slick because he was coiled around her and his tail felt nice between her thighs, her damn throat squeezed. Her hands would shake, and she’d need him to release her before she hyperventilated.

I’m scared of my own desire.Because of what it meant, what it could lead to, and how much something going wrong could damage how she felt towards him.

The fantasy of touching him buzzed in her mind, and the idea of him brushing his hand over her naked body had her wanting to combust with need. Making it real, where she couldn’t control what happened, made the unknown and unpredictable frightful.

She wanted control.

As much as she wanted to trust him fully, he was still... a male. He had his own needs, his own wants. Humans could be rather selfish, so how would a Duskwalker, who appeared more creature than person, be able to restrain himself?

It was selfish to only consider her desires, but if she didn’t think of him as safe, then Linh was... fucked. If he became a source of pain and betrayal, then her only option was to leave and face the Demons.

She’d be dead within a week – she knew it.

She couldn’t go back to her village without help.

What if travellers find me?What if they ended up being just as vile as the bandits?

Linh was willingly trapped here and was putting all her faith in another being.

She felt pitiful, weak, and vulnerable.

In the darkness of the tunnel, a strong limb coiled around her and lifted her into the air. Before she knew it, she was placed into one of Nathair’s arms, and he carted her up the mild incline.

Did he realise I was feeling anxious?He’d brought her closer, as if he’d been able to see it in her face, her body language. Maybe she’d even smelt lightly of fear.

She pressed her face against his exposed ribcage for comfort, thankful he’d reached out.It’s okay. He won’t hurt me. A-and if he wanted me gone, he would have done it by now.She felt he was trying to convey that with just a simple action.