The Hidden Crystal

Chapter 53

The creak of hinges woke Char from his sleep. He sat up, immediately on alert and annoyed at having his sleep interrupted. The ceiling moss was as dark as the night sky far above. His eyes adjusted quickly, though, and he scanned the room for movement. The door to the hallway was closing. He cursed under his breath and was on his feet, headed for the door in an instant. The point of him sleeping on the sofa was to keep anyone from getting past him, but the sofa was too comfortable, and he was too tired to keep a proper watch. He grabbed for the door and realized at the last second that it was opening, not closing, and suddenly, he was staring down into a familiar pair of brown eyes.

"Char?"

He released the door and grabbed her instead, pulling her into a tight embrace. She gasped in surprise.

"Ch-char, y-you're..."

Wearing a towel. He was just wearing a towel, and although it had held its position remarkably well while he slept, it was still just a towel, and Iris was still pushing him away.

"Sorry," he mumbled, pulling back and straightening the towel. "I'll go change."

"O-okay."

He glanced back at her when he reached Rath's room and caught her looking at him. She blushed and turned quickly away. He smirked and let himself into the darkened room, silently passing the immobile lump in the bed that indicated Rath's presence on his way to the bathroom. Their clothes were draped over the edge of the tub, almost dry, with just enough dampness left to chill Char's skin as he pulled them on. He didn't mind too much, especially with the image of Iris in a fuzzy dwarven bathrobe ingrained into his mind. It was probably floor length, or at least past the knees, on a dwarf, but it stopped mid-thigh on her. And she was very much awake and alive. He couldn't have stopped smiling if he wanted to.

She was still standing in the living room when he returned, hugging herself as she looked around. His eyes automatically slid from the top of her head, down the cascade of thick, chestnut brown hair to her hips, and then further down, where the bathrobe ended and the length of her bare legs began. He reached her feet, shifting nervously on the stone floor, and he closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Now was not the time. Not after what Micah did to her. The thought was a splash of cold water on his face.

"It's okay for you to sit down," he said, coming up beside her.

She looked up at him quickly, her eyes widening with surprise, and her cheeks flushed with color as she looked away just as quickly. Everything vanished from his mind with the appearance of that blush. He chuckled and slid his arm around her waist to pull her close to him.

"Look at me, Iris."

Her lashes fluttered over her eyes as she peeked up at him shyly. He slid his finger under her chin to tilt her face up further. The golden flecks in her chocolate brown irises shone as her eyes met his. He brushed his thumb across her bottom lip, and it fell away from her upper lip, the slight movement catching his eye. Her tongue slipped out to lick the full, pink skin, and he groaned in exasperation.

"How am I supposed to control myself around you?" he muttered, crashing his lips into hers before she could reply. Her arms wrapped around his neck, and he scooped her up, carrying her over to the sofa without breaking the kiss. She settled comfortably on his lap, leaning into him as his kisses continued, her hands warm against his neck as she pressed into him. He held her steady with one arm around her waist, his other hand starting there, but wandering without him really thinking about it, sliding to her waist, down her hip, across the soft, thick fabric to the bare skin of her thigh. She flinched and pulled back with a gasp.

"Char-"

"Sorry." He held his traitorous hand in the air, suddenly not sure what to do with it. Iris was still on his lap, her hair falling in front of her face as she panted for breath. He tentatively reached up to brush it back behind her ear. She flinched again, but didn't pull away.