Liora Skyheart - sweet enchantments

Chapter 13

I try to gather my thoughts, but they slip from my mind like water. I had something important to tell Liora. I was running up to the office, and then... the collision, the fall. And now... we're tangled together on the floor, and I still can't bring myself to move. I'm to lost in the sensation of Liora's hands pressed to the small of my back, the scent of her perfume wrapping around me. The moment stretches between us, tense with anticipation that slides under my skin and dances in my stomach like butterflies. There's a tiny, distant part of my mind telling me to get up, to apologise to Liora, to tell her what I came here for. But... I can't bear to pull away. So, I do the exact opposite. I let myself lean forward that last little bit, pressing my lips to Liora's. Where before the tension around us was like a building storm, now it feels like it's crashing down all at once. It's a sharp, heavy feeling, almost enough to make me gasp, and just for a moment I feel a little dizzy. all that from just a... this the softest pressure of Liora's lips against mine, returning the gentle affection, and I realise all at once. It's not just the kiss. It's Liora. It feels like this has been building since the moment we met. And it feels... right. I'm not even totally aware of what I'm doing until my hand is already in motion. I curl my fingers gently into Liora's hair, spilling like silken moonlight around her. When our lips part, it feels like a small eternity has passed. But I realise all at once that it hasn't been that long at all, maybe a moment or two. Such a quick kiss, and yet my world feels totally knocked off its axis.

"Arinn..."

When I open my eyes, I find Liora gazing back at me, eyes a little wide and filled with an emotion I've never seen before. for a moment, I'm completely distracted by the blush staining her cheeks, pleasantly flustered by the realisation I put it there. But at the same time... she's so still beneath me, almost like she's scared to move. I feel a stab of sharp concern, terrified for a second that I've done something very wrong, but when Liora speaks her voice is gentle.

"I am glad to see you are unharmed."

A giggle, bright and unexpected, bubbles out of me. I feel a tiny bit of the tension leave my body as I realise, she's not upset with me. Liora doesn't relax, though, even as her eyes trace over my features, and when she speaks again her voice is even softer.

"I—apologise. I took advantage of that situation, and I... I shouldn't have."

Liora has gathered the mantle of her authority around her shoulders, putting on her professional voice even as her eyes drop to my lips. She's apologising... for the kiss? A denial leaps to my lips immediately, because I was the one who initiated it. Because I wanted to kiss her. I still do. I opened my mouth to point that out, or tell Liora she doesn't have to apologise, or just say anything at all. But Liora is still so tense beneath me, I find I can't find my tongue at all. I know I need to say something, but I have no idea what. I'm frozen in that moment, close enough that I can feel our breaths mingle between us, but unable to move. A tinkle of China draws me out of my thoughts, and back to the present. Sitting in Liora's bedroom, with a completely appropriate amount of distance between my boss and I, it feels like it could have all been a dream. But... I reach up to press my fingertips to my lips. I can still feel the gentle pressure of Liora returning the kiss tingling there. And then there's Liora. She hasn't said anything else since I finally got to my feet and helped her up. She just started making tea, supplies floating around her like satellites in orbit as she magically gathers them. It's like she's trying to ignore what just happened, the distance between us bordering on awkward. But every now and then her eyes find me again, and the blush still staining her cheeks darkens slightly. I know I should say something, but... I still haven't been able to figure out what. The whole situation has left me uncertain and so off balance that I almost jump when Liora finally breaks the silence again.