novelraw Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty
The muffled growl of her empty stomach rumbled up between them. “Sorry.” Emma giggled. “But I’m absolutely starving.” Painfully starving. She hadn’t had anything but coffee the entire day. As if to punctuate the truth of this statement, her stomach gurgled another even louder protest as she struggled to rise from the bed.
Torin pulled her back against his chest. “So, yer saying I’m not enough to sate ye?”
“Believe me. There are parts of my body that are so sated, they think they’ve died and gone to heaven.” Emma turned and kissed the end of his nose before slipping out from under his arm. She avoided the emotions simmering in his stare. A sudden shyness butterflied through her body. “Really…I’m hungry. Don’t you want something to eat too?”
Torin shrugged as he rolled to his side. “Since the Cailleach awakened me from my sleep, food hasna seemed verra important.” Stretching across the bed, he nabbed the belt loop of the jeans she’d just slid up her hips and pulled her back down beside him. He brushed the back of his fingers along the curve of her cheek. A sad but thoughtful look stole across his face. “At long last, I think I may have finally found everything I ever needed right here.”
How could he say that? A chaos of emotions swarmed within her as she felt herself drowning in the depths of his watchful gaze. Emma hadn’t anticipated a confession of heartfelt sentiment after just one mind-boggling, body-melding encounter. They knew very little about each other and what she did know about Torin scared the living hell out of her. Pressing a silencing finger against his lips, she stammered a whispered plea. “P-please, Torin. Please slow down. We’re just getting started.”
Torin closed his eyes and brushed a light kiss across the tips of her fingers. “‘Tis all right, Emma. I’ll do m’best to never ask more than yer prepared to give.”
In a quiet voice that sounded much calmer than she felt, Emma kissed the end of his nose again and mumbled a heartfelt, “Thank you.” Gently pulling away from him, she scooted off the edge of the bed. She couldn’t face the emotions churning in the depths of that steel-gray gaze. Even the cloudiness tainting his injured eye seemed somehow less severe, giving her a startling glimpse into the man Torin was. His quiet determination sparked with fiery glints of emotion. Come to think of it, Torin reminded her of the dark obelisks where she’d found him: steadfast, strong, and mysterious.
She cleared her throat as she fidgeted with smoothing a shirt across her still rumbling belly. “I’m going to heat up some of Moira’s leftover stew and maybe nuke some hot dogs. Will that be okay?”
Torin froze in mid-stretch. His lips curled back with a sneer of disgust. “Dogs? Are circumstances so harsh in this time that ye’ve taken to eating dogs?”
Emma bit her lip and held her breath. She didn’t dare allow herself the pleasure of releasing the nervous giggles threatening to bubble to the surface. It was kind of funny that she had the capability to shock him just as much as he shocked her. “I promise, Torin, the meat doesn’t come from dogs. It’s bits of beef and pork rolled into a tube. Sometimes, they’re even filled with turkey or chicken. I’m not sure why they’re called hot dogs. It’s what they’ve always been called.”
His pained expression relaxed into one of dubious agreement as he slid from the bed. “Hmpf. I’m still none too certain about this form of meat. But I’ll build up the fire inside yer stove so ye can cook these hot dogs and the stew.”
Emma scrubbed a hand across her face and clamped her mouth shut against another fit of giggles. Poor Torin. The man certainly had some catching up to do. “I really appreciate your wanting to help, but the stove’s gas. All I have to do is turn a knob and I’ll have a fire. I can heat the food with it or with the microwave.” She struggled to keep her mind on the food. Torin’s long, muscular flank reminded her of the delightful use they’d found for the kitchen counter. A use that proved much more enjoyable than food preparation. “Why don’t you get dressed while I go…uhm…get the kitchen sorted out.” That is, if she could walk and her thighs would stop quivering as if they consisted of heated jelly.
Torin fixed her with a wicked grin, rolling his shoulders as he flexed his perfectly sculpted buttocks. “I can help ye in that kitchen, lass.”
“No! You stay here and get dressed. Or if you want to take a shower, the bathroom is over there.” Emma nodded toward a small room adjoining the bedroom as she backed toward the door. The heat in her body was nearing the point of spontaneous combustion. She had to get away from the temptation moving toward her. “Don’t you dare come into the kitchen like that or we’ll never get anything to eat.”
Scooting out the door, she pulled it closed behind her. She couldn’t resist smiling at the deep rumbling burst of amusement echoing from the other side. Torin’s laugh warmed through her like a sip of robust brandy. With a sharp intake of breath, she shook herself free of the mesmerizing sound. It was just one night between two desperate souls. He’d move on soon and so would she.