My embarrassment slowly melted away under the rough burn of his words. One of my hands left the wall and crept down my body. The first touch sent bolts of delight skating along my nerves, and I sighed out my pleasure.
Torran’s breath caught and his arms flexed as he fought to keep his hands on the wall. “That’s it,” he groaned. His power flowed down my body, caressing everything that his hands could not.
My skin lit with pleasure, but worry gnawed on me. “Torran—” I started to protest.
“That wasn’t touching,” he growled, his voice as deep as I’d ever heard it. I shivered, caught in a web of heat and longing. “But it requires precise control, and mine is slipping away,” he continued, his words soft and caressing. “I will not touch you, but let me show you what I would do if I could. Let me feel what you’re feeling.”
I curled the fingers that were still pressed against the cool tile wall. I could not touch him. I would not touch him. With the addition of his power, we were already skating dangerously close to the boundary I’d set. He might say his decisions were his own, and he might think it was true, but until I knew for sure, I wouldn’t cross the line.
Still, I dipped my head the tiniest amount, and that was all it took. Torran’s mind touched mine with a cool rush of power, and I could feel the desire he’d leashed under tight control, but deeper, I could feel his care and respect. Then he sent me a mental image of me splayed on dark sheets, his head between my thighs.
I sucked in a breath as sharp, pulsing desire pushed me to the brink of release.
“Touch yourself, cho orchobr diu,” he demanded roughly, his fists clenched on the wall.
With Torran surrounding me with strength and care, I felt safe and secure and treasured. My fingers stroked through slick heat until pleasure drowned out everything except his whispered encouragement in my ear.
His desire burned brightly in the back of my mind, driving mine higher and higher, and I wanted nothing more than to turn around and lose myself in his lips, in his body.
Only hard-fought control kept me in place.
But even without physical touching, this was the hottest thing I’d experienced in a very long time, and it did not take me long to find release. Waves of pleasure detonated, and I slumped forward until my forehead pressed against the cool wall, trembling from head to toe.
The cool touch of Torran’s mind withdrew, and his hands swept down my back, massaging the muscles that ran along my spine. I groaned as he hit a particularly tight knot. He continued for a few minutes as I caught my breath and remembered how to stand.
When I straightened, I felt him, hot and heavy against me before he stepped back. I glanced at him. “You didn’t . . . ?”
“I’m good. Give me your arm.”
I lifted my right arm and he pulled me deeper into the spray of the shower, then began working on the knots in my upper arm muscles. “But,” I protested, with a wordless wave downward.
He tipped my chin up until I met his eyes. “I’m good,” he repeated. “I am not some untried youth with no patience. I can wait for what I want.”
“And what do you want?”
“You,” he said, expression fierce. “When you are ready and comfortable. Until then, I will wait.”
Chapter Twenty-Eight
I awoke around midday, feeling rested and relaxed. I’d fed Luna before falling into bed this morning and had left her roaming the house, so I hoped all of Torran’s furniture had survived her curiosity.
At the thought of Torran, a warm flush washed through me. True to his word, last night he had massaged my arms, wrapped me in a long, fluffy robe, and sent me off to my bedroom—alone. Lines had been bent but not crossed, much to my mingled relief and regret.
I dressed in the base layers required by the Valovian armor and then put my normal pants and shirt on over them. Tonight we would infiltrate the bunker under the monitoring station. I tried to temper my expectations, but, like Kee, I wasn’t very good at it. If we didn’t find Cien tonight, I would be devastated.
A tray was waiting outside my door with my name neatly written on a luxurious envelope. I turned it over and found a wax seal set with the same looping insignia that lived on Torran’s transport and gates.
I slid a finger under the seal and popped it open. Inside, a single card with Torran’s bold script waited. The note was short and sweet: Dearest Tavi, I hope you had pleasant dreams. If you need anything, I am at your service. Torran had signed it with a spare, neat signature.
I tucked the card back in the envelope and then slipped it into my bag of personal belongings. Maybe it was sentimental, but I wanted a little token of my time here, even if things didn’t work out.
I picked up the tray and made my way to the kitchen. It was late enough that Eli, Chira, and Havil were eating lunch. They all poked good-natured fun at me, but admitted that Kee and Lexi were still asleep, and Nilo and Varro had awoken only a little while ago.
“Have you seen Luna?” I asked. “I’m surprised she’s not demanding lunch.”
“She’s outside with Torran,” Chira said.
My gaze leapt to the door, and I wondered if he would mind if I joined him.
The two Valoffs watched me from the corners of their eyes, but Eli wasn’t so subtle. “Kee was right,” he mused. “You do have a thing for him. I’m glad I punched him. I’ll do worse if he breaks your heart.”
“I don’t need you sticking your pretty little nose in my business, Bruck. That’s a good way for it to get broken. And don’t forget that I can order you to scrub toilets for the rest of your natural life.”
Eli’s grin was cheerful and teasing. “Aww, you think my nose is pretty. What about the rest of my face, Captain? Does it pass muster?” He fluttered his lashes at me.
I bit down on my smile. “You have a face only a mother could love,” I lied. “And the Valoffs will back me up, right?”
Chira and Havil froze. Chira’s eyes traced over Eli’s face. When he smiled at her, her cheeks slowly bled pink, warming the cool tone of her pale skin. Oh ho, I’d wondered, and now I knew.
“Is Eli not considered handsome by human standards?” she asked.
I shook my head, my voice grave. “He’s hideous, I’m afraid.”
Eli flashed the grin that had single-handedly dropped underwear at stations across the galaxy. I clutched my chest. “Turn that away. My poor heart can’t take the horror.”
“She’s lying,” he told the Valoffs across the table. “She has to delude herself lest my incredible good looks scramble her brain.”
I snorted. “So modest,” I said, deadpan. I shook my head sadly. “I’ve lived in close quarters with you for years. I’m immune to your looks and your charm—or lack thereof.”
Now it was his turn to clutch at his chest. “You wound me, Tavi.”
“Luckily we have a medic here who can fix you up,” I said, rolling my eyes.
Eli gave Havil a soft look. “That is lucky,” he murmured.