Page 74

She walked toward the throne and saw another door below Yurza's feet. Without a thought, she passed through and entered into a garden not unlike the first one she had found a little more than a week ago. Only here, there was nothing but crystals of every color and size growing from lush beds of moss along the ground. She walked over and stared at one massive crystal close to the middle of the room and then finally came to her senses, remembering the others were still probably looking for her, so she brought up her techband once more to make a call.

"Aly."

The low, pained voice brought her around, and there, she saw Ryziel standing only a few feet away, an open doorway to his back. He looked...different, and it took a moment for Aly to figure out what it was.

There was no more tension in him, no obvious look of annoyance or quiet discomfort. Just relief, unmistakably drawn across his face.

"Aly," he said again, as if he couldn't believe she was before him. He started toward her, and it was her turn to tense. She took a step back, and he halted.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" She didn't know what she was saying, really, but she felt like she had to say something to keep herself from bursting into tears at the sudden sight of him. Or from rushing into his arms only to feel him grow rigid then crying and making a fool of herself. He straightened but didn't look around, didn't take his eyes from her.

"It is," he said after a moment, relief turning to concern.

Aly's mouth quivered as she forced a smile. "It really is."

They were silent for a long moment, and Aly thought she could be calm enough now to just walk away, calm enough to pretend she was okay and wouldn't make a foolish attempt to touch him like the last time. She took one long, deep breath then focused on the door. "We should get back. I'm fine to walk." She took a few steps, thankful that her knees didn't give out or that her voice didn't crack.

Ryziel blocked her way. "Look at me," he commanded. Without hesitation, she did, though she wished she hadn't because, as soon as their eyes locked once more, she felt her control slip. Unmoving, she nearly gasped as Ryziel's hand reached out without warning and brushed his fingers through her hair.

"What are you—"

"Thank you," he said, his hand lowering slightly. "For everything."

Aly stared up at him, shocked to silence. His fingers slipped past her hair and carefully touched against her neck. Then her jaw. Then her face. He didn't flinch or hiss. Instead, he moved closer, his face nearing to hers.

"I'm sorry," he whispered. "For everything."

Aly watched him a second longer then closed her eyes, wanting to only feel the touch of his fingers against her skin, to feel the heat of his body close to hers. She tilted her head up, and he brushed her hair back behind her ear then cupped her face with his other hand. She opened her eyes and saw him glaring down at her with his silvery gaze before his mouth came down on hers.

She knew it was meant to be a kiss, though it started off more as a nuzzling of his mouth on hers. She didn't mind. When he lifted his head and watched her again, she felt the breath leave her in a heavy sigh. His hands moved from her face to fall down her shoulders and then grab at her waist, bringing her closer, drawing her into him. She raised her arms then dropped them again to her sides.

"Touch me," he said. "I want you to, Aly."

Heart fluttering, she watched him carefully then hesitantly lifted one hand and placed it firmly at the center of his chest. Ryziel closed his eyes, and she felt him breathe deep. A soft growl vibrated against her palm, but she took it as more of a purr than anything. He gripped her wrist, gently this time, but didn't push her away. Slowly, she let her hand fall down to his stomach. She felt him shiver.

He peered down at her with an intense, half-lidded gaze as she stopped her hand by his hip. Uncertain by his expression if she should continue, she went to pull away, but he held her fast.

"It's all right. I can handle it," he said softly.

With eyes locked, Aly freed her hand from his then raised it once more, this time touching the side of his face, fingers trailing along his cheek and jaw. He closed his eyes again, tensing briefly then relaxing, pressing himself against her hand.

Aly watched, transfixed, his skin smooth under her fingertips, curiously hot, though he didn't seem to sweat. She traced down his neck then curled her fingers under the collar of his suit. She tugged lightly, hoping with every move she made she didn't overstep and make him uncomfortable. Fearing he might pull away from her at any second.

Ryziel opened his eyes slowly but didn't tell her to stop. Daring to ask with her hand, Aly tugged again at the end of his suit, and he seemed to understand. Without a word, he brought his hand up and unzipped his suit, letting it loosen from his hard body. Carefully, Aly peeled it from him till the top half hung off his waist, leaving him bare before her. She placed a hand against his chest once more, feeling the heat of his skin and the hard pounding of his heart in the middle of his chest. She held there for a long moment, just feeling it against her palm until she slowly let her hand fall downward, feeling every tense muscle along his stomach. She felt him tremble and heard him hiss softly and she paused. She brought her other hand up and placed it on his waist, and still, he didn't move.

"How bad is it now?" Aly whispered.

"Not bad..." His hands clenched and unclenched at his sides.

"Should I stop?"

Ryziel shook his head. "I want to feel you."

At that, Aly drew closer, grazing her fingers along his ribs. She didn't know how much he could take before he might lose it, but she was willing to test and see. She brought her face close to his chest and exhaled before pressing her lips to his skin. She heard him inhale sharply then felt him grip her shoulders, but she didn't stop, trailing her mouth lower.

As she was pulled back by his grip, her first thought was that she had gone too far and that he was going to shove her away, but instead, she found herself being pressed against a mossy rock, Ryziel holding her in place with his hips. She could feel the hard part of him between her thighs as he placed his hands on each side of her, his face close to hers.

She could see he was still there, still in control, but he clearly didn't want to stop. And, really, neither did she. Feeling confident this time that he wasn't going to force her away, she took hold of the edge of her suit and unzipped, letting herself be exposed.