Page 108 of Quicksilver

Fisher sank down onto my chest, his weight oddly comforting even though he was crushing me a little. He remained inside me, still hard as tempered steel, his fingers trailing over my skin in small circles, and the reality of what had just happened slowly began to rear its ugly head.

I'd just had sex with Fisher.

I'd just let him fuck the hell out of me, and now we were naked, tangled up in each other's bodies. Eventually, the swathe of shadows around us faded, and the candlelight returned, along with the rest of the room. One by one, the stars painted on the ceiling slowly went out.

Moving slowly, as if he were in no hurry at all, Fisher propped himself up and drew himself out of me. His ink had stilled again, his pupils now narrowed down to points. He was quiet as he got dressed.

I covered myself with a sheet, suddenly very aware that I wasn't wearing a stitch, but I watched him, refusing to look away. Not after that.

Once he was fully clothed again, Fisher fastened his boots and finally looked at me. “I want you to stay here tonight.” No preamble. No mention of what had just taken place.

“Why?”

“Because the camp will still be in chaos. I'll have a lot of things to take care of, and I want to know exactly where you are.”

“Do I get a say in the matter?” I asked.

He looked down at his boots. When his gaze returned to me, his eyes were distant. “Not really. I'll come back for you in the morning. You'll spend the day working on the relics in the camp forge. In the meantime, Archer will be on hand in case you need anything.” A loud crack flooded the bedroom, a number of candles guttering out as a swirling shadow gate exploded into existence behind Fisher. “Try and get some sleep,” he muttered. And then he stepped backward into the black and vanished.

Try and get somesleep?What the fuck was wrong with him? I wasn't going to be able tosleep.My mind was charging. I slumped back into the pillows, frustration warring with confusion, and...wait a minute. I opened my eyes.

He didn't.

He wouldn't have.

I leaped up, taking the bedsheet with me, running for the door. It opened when I turned the handle, and when I tried to step out into the hall...

My bare feet met cold stone without any issue. There was no invisible barrier trapping me inside Fisher's room. Thank the gods for that.

“Good evening, Miss,”

I grabbed the side of the door frame for support. “Gods, Archer, you scared theshitout of me!”

The little fire sprite was alone in the dimly lit hallway. Well, alone except for Onyx, who was lying on his back with his feet in the air. It appeared that Archer had been in the middle ofsupplying belly scratches when I'd burst out of the bedroom, wrapped in a sheet like a mad woman.

“Apologies, my lady. I came because I heard a disturbance in Master Fisher's rooms. When I arrived here, I found Onyx whining at the door, and I decided to wait until...well, until you were finished to see if you needed anything. Intimate relations can be very strenuous.”

“Oh gods, Archer, no, it's okay, we weren't...” I blushed hotly. The situation could only have been worse if it had been Elroy who'd caught me post-coitus. And how the hell had Onyx gotten himself shut out of the room?

“Oh?” Archer looked confused. “In that case, do you need to see a healer? Are you hurt? It sounded like—”

“No, no, I'm fine. Honestly, I'm fine. I—we—” I glanced back over my shoulder into the bedroom, then pulled the door half-closed behind me. “We were just moving some furniture around, that's all. But then Fisher decided he preferred it the way it was, so...so we moved it all back again.” I scratched my head, cringing when I felt the huge snarl of hair that had gotten tangled while we'd been 'moving the furniture.'

Archer didn't look convinced. He was gracious enough not to call me out on my lies, though. “I see. Well, in any case, I brought you up a pitcher of apple juice and some cake so you could replenish your energy levels. Here...” He turned and picked up a small silver tray, offering it to me.

I took it with one hand, smiling tightly. “Thank you, Archer. That was very thoughtful of you. Good night.”

Onyx bolted inside the bedroom as soon as I nudged the door open again. The little fire sprite bowed deeply. He was still bowing when I dipped back inside the room and closed the door again.

23

TICKING CLOCK

I was up,bathed, dressed, and ready for an argument when the shadow gate appeared in the bedroom the next morning. Only Fisher didn't appear from the undulating shadows. I waited a minute, then another full minute, realizing with annoyance that he wasn't coming through to get me and expected me to just head on through on my own.

Motherfucker.

Against all odds, I had managed to fall asleep last night. I'd woken up in a tentatively happy mood, but that had changed the instant I'd caught sight of my naked body in the full-length mirror by the copper tub. Now, Fisher had some explaining to do.