Page 129 of The Freedom You Seek
More blood rushed to my face—there was no way in the underworld that he hadn’t noticed what I’d done. Noelk, take me now, please.
“Oh hey, Dion. Have you found everything?” I asked with a fake sleepy voice, trying to mask the extremely awkward situation we both found ourselves in.
Instead of answering, Dion’s lips curled into a feral grin, and even without looking at him, I felt him stalking wordlessly over to me. Bending down, he peeled away the blanket and snatched my hand, the one that had been buried between my legs just moments ago.
My breath hitched as he tugged my fingers closer to his nose. He inhaled deeply, and his nostrils flared again.
“Naughty Naya,” he said, his normally deep voice dropping even lower. The gray color of his eyes was barely visible—his pupils were so blown out that they almost entirely took over his irises.
I was speechless, watching him breathe in my most intimate scent. I tried to pull my hand back in embarrassment, but he only held on tighter.
Dion groaned, and then suddenly, my index and middle finger disappeared between his lips. My heart missed more than just a few beats. The whole situation was so surreal, and as his tongue twirled around my fingers, tasting me, a breathless whimper escaped my lips as he hummed in approval. The heat in my core that had cooled down was back with a vengeance, and I felt like coming only from the feeling of Dion’s rough tongue caressing the pads of my fingers. Any minuscule pressure on my clit would cause an explosion.
After an eternity, he finally released my hand. His eyes stayed on me for a moment longer, devouring me with hisheated gaze until whatever spell had caught us broke, and he stood up straight.
“Indeed, I have discovered what I was searching for,” Dion replied to the question that had slipped from my memory, his voice carrying a hint of longing. The unreasonable side of me wished for nothing more than for him to finish what I’d started, but seeing his face closing off, I knew it wouldn’t happen—most likely never—and in the end, it was better that way.
“So, we’re all set for tomorrow?” I asked, trying hard to pretend that nothing out of the ordinary had happened, even if my voice sounded shaky as I grabbed the blanket and pulled it to my chin. This was so awkward.
“Yes.”Great.One-word-answer Dion was back.
“Thanks for scouting.”
“Never mind. But you should go back to sleep.”
I was grateful Dion didn’t comment on the situation he found me in or his less-than-platonic reaction. Because if I was certain of one thing, then that we both couldn’t stomach any more complications between us.
The next morning, both Dion and I acted as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened yesterday, although I definitely hadn’t forgotten. So many conflicting feelings were raging through me. I was nervous because of the binding, but there was more. I had to confess to myself that I was lusting for Dion, but whenever I dwelled on those thoughts for too long, memories of what happened back in the stable with Jelric rose to the surface. So, I told myself it was most likely for the best that Dion was so opposed to starting anything physical.
Because that’s what it was, purely physical attraction. Dion was my friend—soon to become the Wielder I was bound to—and I never wanted a relationship with anyone, especially not with a controlling bastard who’d told menot too long ago he would rather die before he’d make me his. Dion’s words, not mine, but they suited me well—and emphasized how much he viewed other people as possible possessions for him to own.
I drowned out the small voice insisting that I was lying to myself and telling me I was about to fall for the infuriating man who, at the moment, collected the bag he’d packed and ushered me out of the bedroom, barely giving me enough time to grab my own bag—no, definitely not listening to that little traitor in my head.
“For some components of the Rite, friends and family would be invited under normal circumstances,” Dion said as we wandered toward the main square of Amalach.
We’d decided not to delay what we’d come for another day—after all, there was still the threat of that royal summons hanging over his head. And it was fine with me—by now, I was mentally treating the Rite like a band-aid in need of being ripped off as fast as possible. “Is it necessary?”
“No, not at all. Just as the main ceremony is usually conducted by a priest of Kalag or Immaru, it’s supposed to work fine without it. In the end, everything but the oath and the uniting of the blood is decoration.”
“So we could skip the other customs as well?”
“We could. Do you want to?”
I looked at Dion, then shook my head. Something told me he wanted some pomp, even though it surprised me.
“But we could skip the night apart. I mean, we’ll have to do that anyway if we want to get this over with today. From what Antas told me, it’s customary to spend it withthe people you love—celebrate, do the Cleansing, and in the end, get dressed by them.”
Dion shook his head. “You’re right. There are some parts that make little sense to us.”
“So, what do you propose?”
“The Feasting. The Cleansing. The Binding.”
“It’s only logical to eat and to bathe before conducting the main ceremony. Good thinking, Dion.”
Dion grinned at me and led me to a small area that must have been a beautiful park once. Wild nature had reclaimed the area, and I peeked around while he spread a blanket on the unruly grass. I sat down on it and smiled at him.
“I chose this place because of this,” Dion said as he was sitting as well, and he pointed to his left. My eyes widened slightly when I spotted the patches of wild Nayana flowers next to us. Dion picked one and handed it to me.