A Thousand Salt Kisses Forever (Third Book in Salt Kisses series)

What could go wrong?

Later that night we lay by a fire. I am not entirely sure why we still built fires, we could now both see in the dark and I no longer felt the cold. When I was fully human, we depended on this to be together during the colder nights, but now the only benefit I got from the fire, was the enjoyment of watching the flames dance.

Llyr, on the other hand, found some kind of spiritual significance in it. Tonight he romanticized about the elements complimenting each other, and I listened, chipping in occasionally with a few facts from my history degree. I told him about an ancient religion where fire was believed to have originated from the water – which was obvs implausible in my humble opinion.

He listened intensely. "Fascinating," he said, his eyebrows clenched.

I swallowed a giggle. Llyr was the stuff my lecturer could only have dreamed of. Unfortunately, he had had to share his teachings with our rowdy, more than often hungover cohort.

Llyr was quiet for some time as he dwelled on all of this, and then he began to speak again, now ablaze with passion. I nodded along supportively but I have to admit, I was starting to drift off.

I loved hearing his ideas about the world, but he was definitely more of a philosopher than I was. Before I just used to watch films with my boyfriends, go out with mutual friends, or sit in bars watching the world go by, but with Llyr, it was more a case of us, the sand, water... and fire. Yet somehow, it was enough.

I wondered if I would slip out of this state of absolute contentment, if it were just the novelty of being together. Surely I might start to miss the entertainments of the modern world at some point. But did I really need cities and TVs? In historical cultures, they seemed to get by okay without any of this, but I loved modern civilization, I mean, it was part of me, I had grown up this way. Will I really continue to need only this?

All this rumbled about in my mind but as I sat there watching him talk, I kept thinking about how much I loved him, how I was quite sure I would do anything for him.

He was thinking the same thing because he began to kiss me all of a sudden and he moved on top of me and ran his hands all over my body. I may be desensitized to the cold but I was in no way desensitized to his touch and I began to feel an excitement building inside of me.

I wanted more than anything to melt into his kisses but those damned worries were now beginning to niggle at me again. All I really feel I need in my life is him, but how can this really be? Is there something wrong with us?

"Llyr?" I whispered.

"Mmm?" he murmured, his lips were now on my stomach, and I could feel his hands on the sides my bikini bottoms.

"Do you think we do this too often?" I said. I really don't know why I had to start the conversation like that. I am so incredibly inarticulate sometimes.

He made a sound, that was somehow frustrated, somewhat baffled, and came back up so that his face was above mine.

Yeah, smooth Crystal.

He looked at me with an eyebrow raised, awaiting an explanation.

"I mean... I just never did this so much with someone before?" I said lamely.

"Is it not what people do when they're in love?" he said impatiently.

"Well, I don't know. I've only ever been in love with you," I replied.

"I've only ever been in love with you too," said Llyr. "But I'm pretty sure this is all a good thing."

"Mmm," I replied, hesitantly.