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My thoughts scatter. All plans and reasoning vanish.

I glower at him, and his smile widens. But his eyes soften. “You should bathe before the water cools.”

I hesitate, and he prowls toward me, the light playing over his bare chest. He didn’t douse his lust at all. He merely hid it.

My mouth turns dry. I’ll ponder Calysian’s travel plans later.

Slowly, gently, he reaches for my tunic, pulling it over my head and immediately removing the band holding my breasts in place. He swallows, looking momentarily stunned before meeting my gaze, his eyes hot. “I’ve missed these.”

My cheeks heat and he gives a low chuckle. “I’ve missedthat, too.” He nuzzles at my cheek, and the movement is oddly…sweet. But he’s already steering me backward, toward the bath, and a sudden thrill jolts through me.

Am I…arewereally doing this?

“I thought you were waiting for me to come to you.”

His eyes darken. “I’m tired of waiting. You nearly died, Madinia.” And then his mouth is on mine, and I let out a sound that makes him smile against my lips.

“Shh,” he murmurs. “We’ll share the bath.”

I get the strangest sense he’s gentling me—the same way he occasionally croons to my mare when she spooks.

“You have no idea how long I’ve fantasized about this,” Calysian says, already rolling my leggings down. My underwear is gone a moment later, and I blink up at him.

There’s something strangely tantalizing about standing naked in front of him while he’s still half-clothed. I’m vulnerable but in a way that makes me shift restlessly, makes me reach out in an attempt to pull him closer.

He slowly shakes his head, still running his gaze over me. I attempt to cover myself, and he instantly catches my hands.

“No,” he warns. “Don’t ever hide yourself from me.”

There’s a strange note in his voice that sends a prickle of unease up my spine. A sense that this decision will have repercussions I can’t yet imagine.

“You’re tensing up,” he murmurs. “I’ll relax you.”

He drops teasing kisses across my neck, my shoulders, my breasts. His lips linger in the spots that make me moan—the spots he already has memorized, and new ones that he pays special attention to. I yank at his pants, and he finally indulges me, pushing them down his hips.

I watch, unable to look away. He gives me a wink as his pants fall to the ground.

Long. Thick. Hard. His cock is perfect, just like the rest of him. I shouldn’t be surprised. He is, after all, a god. And from the arrogant glint in Calysian’s eyes, he’s practically waiting for me to break into applause.

I hate that I find his arrogance so strangely endearing.

“Why now?” I murmur. “You’ve been…different since the swamp.”

“You were hurt. And then I was waiting for you. But you’re stubborn, and I’m out of patience.” He drops a kiss to my forehead. “Get in the bath.”

I don’t argue, my breath shuddering in a low moan as the warmth sweeps up my legs and through my body as I sink into the tub.

When I glance at Calysian, his eyes are so dark, I suck in a breath.

He catches my hand, pulling me forward so he can sit behind me. “I’m going to ensure you make that sound over and over again tonight.”

“One night,” I say, my voice hoarse as I lean back against him. “This can only ever be one night.”

His huge body tenses, but he doesn’t argue, just takes the soap and begins lathering my back, my arms, my breasts. Those huge, calloused hands are breathtakingly gentle, and by the time he finishes washing me, a ball of warmth is spreading through my core, my nipples tight, my breaths uneven.

When he hands me the soap, I turn to face him, water lapping at my breasts.

Reaching out one hand, I stroke his cheek, and his eyes immediately turn heavy-lidded. How is it possible that he’s this touch-starved after so many centuries walking this world?