Chapter 221: Elise!

“Don’t push it,” Elise muttered, though she made no effort to step away, her fingers still loosely curled in his coat.

He chuckled softly, the sound low in the quiet alcove. “Wouldn’t dream of it.”

For a while neither of them spoke, content to simply stand there in the hush of the ivy and moonlight, the rest of the academy forgotten beyond the courtyard walls.

Soren’s hand found her jaw again, tilting her face up toward his, and this time the kiss was slower, deeper, neither of them in any hurry to pull away.

Elise’s fingers curled tighter into his coat, drawing him closer, and he obliged easily, one arm slipping around her waist to close whatever distance remained between them.

“You’re going to be the death of me,” he murmured against her lips, barely pulling back enough to speak.

“Good,” she whispered, “you talk too much anyway.”

He laughed softly, the sound lost between them as he kissed her again, slower this time, savoring it. The ivy rustled faintly overhead, moonlight filtering through the leaves and falling in soft patches across the stone, but neither of them paid it any mind.

“Elise,” he said eventually, resting his forehead against hers, voice quieter now. “I mean it. I’ve never felt like this with anyone before.”

She opened her eyes, searching his face in the dim light, her usual sharp retort nowhere to be found. “I know,” she said softly. “Me neither.”

“Took you long enough to admit it.” His thumb brushed gently along her cheek.

“Took you longer,” she shot back, though there was no real bite to it, only warmth.

He smiled, leaning in to kiss her forehead this time, lingering there a moment before pulling her into a loose embrace, her head resting against his chest. “Stay a little longer?”

“Just a little,” she said, closing her eyes, listening to the steady beat of his heart beneath her ear, the academy quiet around them, the rest of the world forgotten for just a while longer.

They stood like that for a long while, wrapped in the quiet hush of the alcove, neither one in a rush to break the moment.

Elise could feel the steady rise and fall of his chest beneath her cheek, the warmth of his arms around her chasing away the cool night air.

“You know,” Soren said eventually, voice low, “I used to think you’d never let your guard down like this.”

“Don’t get used to it,” she murmured, though she made no move to pull away. “This is a rare exception.”

“I’ll take what I can get.” He pressed a soft kiss to the top of her head, lingering there. “Rare exceptions suit you.”

She huffed, though it came out fonder than annoyed. “Flattery won’t get you anywhere.”

“It got me this far, didn’t it?”

She lifted her head to glare at him, but the effect was ruined by the small smile tugging at her lips.

He took the opportunity to kiss her again, slower, gentler than before, and she sank into it without protest, fingers curling into the front of his coat once more.

When they finally parted, she rested her head back against his chest, sighing contentedly. “We really should go back soon.”

“In a minute,” he said. “Just one more minute.”

The minute stretched longer than either of them intended, the kind of comfortable silence that neither wanted to be the one to break.

Somewhere beyond the courtyard wall, a bell tolled faintly, marking some hour neither of them bothered to count.

“That’s the second bell,” Elise said eventually, though she did not move.

“Mm.” Soren’s chin rested atop her head, his arms still loose around her. “Curfew is not for another hour.”

“You do not know that.”

“I do not,” he agreed easily. “But I choose to believe it.”

She laughed, a quiet huff of breath against his chest, and tilted her head back to look at him properly.

The moonlight caught the line of his jaw, softened the usual sharpness of his features into something almost unguarded.

She wondered, not for the first time, how he managed to look like that only here, only with her.

“What?” he asked, catching her staring.

“Nothing.” She looked away, feigning interest in the ivy overhead. “Just wondering how long you practiced that line in the mirror.”

“Which one?”

“Take it as you like.”

He grinned, tucking a stray curl behind her ear, his fingers lingering at his temple before falling away. “For the record, I do not practice. It is all natural talent.”

“Sure it is.”

“You wound me, Elise. Truly.”

“You will survive.” She straightened, finally putting a small distance between them, though she did not go far, her hand still resting against his chest. “We should actually go back this time.”

“You said that last time.”

“I meant it less last time.”

He caught her hand before she could step away fully, lacing his fingers through hers, unhurried. “Walk you to the dormitory?”

“It is hardly out of your way.”

“Everything is out of my way if it means more time with you.”

She rolled her eyes, but did not pull her hand back. “That was terrible.”

“And yet.” He raised their joined hands, pressing a brief kiss to her knuckles, his eyes flicking up to hers as he did. “You are still here.”

“Force of habit.”

“Mm-hm.” He did not look convinced, and did not need to be.

They started walking, slow steps over uneven stone, the courtyard giving way to the narrower path that wound along the eastern wing.

The night air was cooler away from the alcove’s shelter, the wind carrying the faint scent of rain not yet fallen.

“Do you think anyone noticed we were gone?” Elise asked after a while.

“Does it matter?”

“It might. If Professor Aldric—”

“Professor Aldric is asleep by now, probably with a glass of that awful brandy he thinks no one knows about.”

“You are terrible.”

“I am observant.” He bumped his shoulder lightly against hers. “There is a difference.”

Elise found herself slowing her pace without quite meaning to, unwilling to reach the door any faster than necessary.

“You are stalling,” Soren observed, amusement coloring his voice.

“I am not.”

“You absolutely are.” He stopped walking, turning to face her fully, still holding her hand. “It is all right, you know. I am stalling too.”

She studied him for a moment, the teasing softened by something steadier underneath. “We have classes tomorrow.”

“We have classes every day. Tonight is already half gone.”

“Then we should not waste what is left arguing about it.”

“Wise as always.” He brought her hand to his lips once more, lingering there before letting it go, reluctant. “Goodnight, Elise.”

“Goodnight, Soren.” She turned toward the door, then paused, glancing back at him over her shoulder. “Same time tomorrow?”

His answering smile was answer enough.

Yet neither of them moved toward the doors.

The alcove called them back with its ivy curtain and stone bench, the quiet place where the world always fell away.

Soren drew her there again, his fingers light on her wrist. They slipped behind the leaves once more.

He lifted one hand, palm open, and whispered the words.

A faint shimmer spread outward from his fingers, the Silent Domain unfolding like a soft veil around them. Sound would not carry beyond the ivy now.

Their breaths, their voices, every small shift of cloth or skin would stay private in this pocket of stillness.

Elise felt the magic settle over her skin, cool and intimate.

“You planned this.”

“I hoped.” His voice stayed low, warm. “No one hears us here.”

She stepped closer until their bodies brushed.

The air between them changed, charged and slow. He leaned down, mouth finding hers in a kiss that started gentle and deepened by degrees.

Her hands rose to his shoulders, then slid into his hair. The kiss built, unhurried, tongues meeting in soft exploration. When they broke apart, both breathed faster.

Soren rested his forehead against hers.

“Tell me if you want to stop.”

“I do not want to stop.”

His fingers traced the line of her jaw, then down her neck to the collar of her cloak. He eased the clasp open, let the fabric fall to the bench.

Her dress came next, buttons yielding one by one under his patient touch. Each inch of revealed skin received a kiss or a graze of fingertips. She shivered when cool air met her breasts, nipples tightening.

He cupped one gently, thumb circling until she pressed into his palm with a soft sound.

Elise worked at his shirt in turn, pulling it free and spreading her hands over the warm plane of his chest.

Muscle shifted beneath her palms as he breathed. She explored lower, mapping the ridges of his abdomen, the trail of hair that disappeared into his trousers. He helped her with the laces, kicking the garments aside until nothing separated them.

They stood bare in the sheltered dark, moonlight painting silver across shoulders and hips. Soren guided her down to the wide stone bench, cushioned by their discarded cloaks.

He settled between her thighs, weight braced on his forearms so he could watch her face.

“You are beautiful,” he murmured.

She reached up, pulled him into another kiss. Their bodies aligned, skin to skin, heat building where they touched. His hand slid down her side, over her hip, then between them.

Fingers stroked her folds with careful pressure, finding the slickness already there. He circled her clit slowly, drawing gasps from her that the Silent Domain kept close. One finger eased inside, then two, curling in a rhythm that made her hips lift.

“Soren.”