Hunted by Magic (The Baine Chronicles #3)(48)

Then do not fight, a cool voice whispered in my head, one I’d heard before. Sometimes it is better to use honey instead of flame.

I sucked in another breath as another idea came to me, one that made me hot all over and incredibly nervous at the same time. It was risky, but probably the best shot I had at getting past Iannis’s defenses. And right now, breaking the spell on him was more important than my pride.

“Are you giving up, then?” Iannis demanded as I took a step back from the edge of the stream and slipped the chain back around my neck. I could have sworn I saw something like disappointment in his eyes, but his jaw was set and his glare didn’t waver.

“Well it’s too bad you’re not willing to listen to me,” I said as I slid my pack from my back and dropped it on the ground near Iannis’s buckskins. “But since I came all the way up here, I don’t see why this whole trip has to be a whole waste. That stream looks pretty inviting, and I intend to have myself a bath.”

“W-what?” Iannis’s eyes widened as I tossed my jacket to the ground. By Magorah, but had I really just heard the unflappable Chief Mage stammer? “You can’t use the stream while I’m here.”

“Why not?” I asked innocently as I tugged my shirt off over my head. I stretched my arms overhead for a moment, giving Iannis a good view of my nearly bare torso, then allowed the shirt to flutter to the ground. “Is that some kind of Coazi law?”

“No, but Halyma would be furious…” Iannis momentarily lost his train of thought as I unhooked my bra from the front, letting my breasts spill from their confines. Hunger gleamed in his violet eyes, fanning the flames that were already spreading through my lower belly. He cleared his throat as I tossed the bra away. “She wouldn’t want me to bathe with another woman, and might well hurt you in her displeasure.”

At least he didn’t want me to be harmed. Maybe this wasn’t so hopeless after all.

“Who said anything about you bathing with me?” I undid my belt buckle, then slowly shimmied out of my pants and underwear all at once. My breasts swayed along with the movement, and I nearly grinned at the look of raw longing in Iannis’s eyes. Damn, but why hadn’t I done this sooner? “We’re just sharing the same stream.” I stepped out of my pants and toed them away as if my blood wasn’t pumping with fear and excitement, as if my breath weren’t coming short at the thought of entering the water with Iannis wearing nothing but my skin.

“I should leave,” Iannis said, but he made no move as I stepped into the water. His violet eyes burned a trail of fire across my naked body as I slowly waded in, and though the cool water lapped at my skin, the fire inside me only built as I closed the distance between us. He was so close now, within arm’s-length, and I held my breath as I approached. Part of me was afraid that this was just a dream, that in a few moments I would wake up and the glorious naked man before me would be gone.

But when my fingertips alighted on his chest, it didn’t vanish into nothingness. The smooth, cream-colored flesh was real, as were the hard muscles that lay beneath the skin. A sharp, indrawn breath caused his chest to rise, and the crisp, dark hairs teased my skin as I flattened my hands against his chest. His heartbeat pumped hard against my palm, and I caught the flutter of his pulse at the base of his throat as I drew my gaze upward to his sternly handsome face.

“Why are you doing this?” he whispered.

“Because I need you,” I murmured back, and my heart ached at the raw truth in those words. Sliding my hands into the hair at the base of his skull, I allowed myself to savor the feel of his silky cherrywood tresses gliding against my fingers, something I’d thought about more times than I could count but never imagined I’d actually experience. This moment was so surreal, and for a beat in time nothing else existed but the two of us. There were no consequences, no friends or family breathing down my shoulder, no past, no future, no anything. There was only the heartbeat beneath my palm, the water swirling around my hips, and a pair of iridescent eyes that blazed so hot I thought they might consume me whole.

Before either of us could change our minds, I unclasped the chain from around my neck, then slipped it around Iannis’s neck while pulling his body into mine. Our lips clashed, and I nearly dropped the necklace into the water as a bolt of white hot heat lanced my body. Strong arms banded around me as the necklace clasped, and I could feel the heat of the two charms glowing between us as Iannis kissed me back, crushing his mouth against me as his fingers dug into my hips with bruising force. My knees went weak as his arousal pressed against my inner thigh, my fingers digging into his broad shoulders as I gasped, and then his tongue was in my mouth, tangling with mine. He tasted dark and sweet and spicy all at once, a flavor combination unlike anything I’d ever tasted, and I kissed him hungrily, wanting more, wanting everything he had to offer.

“I remember you now,” he rasped, pulling back just far enough to let those glorious words feather over my lips. “I can’t recall ever doing this, but I remember you. How could I have forgotten your fiery spirit for even a moment?” His hand drifted up to press against my cheek as his eyes burned into mine, and if I had been a lesser woman, or perhaps had a looser grip on Iannis’s shoulders, I would have swooned.

“Yeah, well that shamaness did a number on you.” I shifted a little, and my nipples scraped against his chest, sending little zings of pleasure through me. Iannis’s eyes gleamed hungrily, and my lips parted as his head dipped down –