Breath (Scales 'n' Spells 2)

Another gift? Not that Baldewin ever called it that, but these simple things he kept picking up certainly felt like one present after another to Tori. He accepted it, as it was rude to do anything else, and it was surprisingly heavy for such a slim package. “Thank you?”

Tori had no idea what the practice was in Germany, but in Finland, you always opened the gift in front of the giver to show your appreciation for it. He promptly did so, and what came out of the box was a rather nice multi-tool. No wonder it had heft to it, then. It was an entirely practical gift. Baldewin was correct; he’d need half the tools on this to make their necklaces later this evening. But it was also thoughtful, as all Baldewin’s gifts to him were.

“Thank you,” he husked. “It’s precisely what I needed.”

“I’m glad.” If words could convey affection so strongly that it felt like an embrace, then that’s how Baldewin’s simple words felt to him. It was there in Baldewin’s eyes, his tone, the open way he stood.

Tori looked up into this man’s face, this amazing dragon who took such excellent care of him, and felt every reserve disappear. He’d had doubts regarding Baldewin and Warin, but they were already so much better to him than his own clan had been. There was no reason to distrust either of them. And Tori was tired of hiding behind lies. Not when it kept him from what he really wanted.

He turned, put his gift and the box carefully down on the nightstand behind him, then closed the distance between him and Baldewin. He levered up onto the balls of his feet to carefully brush a kiss against those plush lips.

Before he could drop back down, two large hands cradled his face, and Baldewin pressed in, deepening the kiss. A happy sigh slipped from his throat as Baldewin took control of the kiss. Their first two kisses had been a matter of desperation, hard to enjoy. But this, this was pure, sinful pleasure.

Baldewin’s hands trailed down over his shoulders and back, snugging Tori tighter into him. He went happily, pressed up against that broad chest, his own hands traveling up to hang onto Baldewin’s shoulders and neck, enjoying the prickly texture of his short hair.

Then Baldewin slipped his tongue into Tori’s mouth, and he startled. Oh! That was…rather nice, actually. Having that hot, firm slickness tangling with his own tongue. Tori tried to mimic him and felt the vibration of a groan as Baldewin growled his pleasure. It immediately went to his head that Baldewin liked their kiss as much as Tori.

A little too much, perhaps, as he could feel himself steadily hardening, and he had to restrain the urge to keep from grinding into Baldewin. Tori was torn. He didn’t want to end the kiss, but letting things ramp up would mean sex, wouldn’t it? Should they—

Baldewin’s hands caught him at the backs of his thighs, lifting Tori further up and into him in a casual display of strength, and Tori’s thought process immediately suffered a cataclysmic failure. All he could think about was how good this felt, to have a man this sexy in his arms.

“Baldewin? Are you in—oops!”

They broke apart, both panting a little, with Baldewin snapping around to see who had interrupted them. He kept Tori close, one arm protectively around his back, as if ready to haul him behind him. But as quickly as he moved, he almost instantly relaxed. “Cassie. Sasha. You made good time.”

“Yeah, we did,” the petite, Korean-American woman responded lightly. Behind her stood a tall, blonde woman who made Tori think Valkyrie goddess warrior. She had the build of a power lifter. If not for the smile on her face, Tori would have been a little intimidated. The two women couldn’t have been more different in appearance, but the slightly possessive arm the blonde had around the smaller woman convinced Tori they were probably perfectly matched.

The smaller woman pushed light blue hair out of her face, looking a little windblown, with a hint of color still high in her cheeks. She was pretty, but what caught Tori’s attention was the hint of mischief that lurked in her dark eyes.

“Annnnd I’m seriously interrupting. Totally my bad.” Except she didn’t look remorseful in the least for her poor timing.

Tori wasn’t at all happy about the interruption, that was true. But he was curious about this mage who looked slightly aglow to him. Her power was steady and true, her aura clear, and he liked the look of it.

He also very much liked that even when they were caught kissing, Baldewin hadn’t moved away and even now kept an arm around Tori’s waist. He wasn’t ashamed of Tori. And Tori reveled in it.

“I should probably thank you for the interruption”—Baldewin’s expression made it clear he had no intention of actually being happy about it—“as apparently I have no situational awareness when kissing him. I didn’t even hear your approach.”