Page 93 of A Spark So Bright
Love.
The word burned through his mind. She'd said she loved him, and he had felt a puzzle piece snap together in his chest. He wasn't just worthy of love. He already had it. Him. Gunnar. A man who had wandered so much in his life that no one had ever tried to love him.
And now here he was, with the most precious of women telling him that she loved him, and he didn't know what he had done to earn such a gift.
Holding her a little closer to him, he pressed another kiss to her hair and promised himself that he would never disappoint her. He would love her. Forever and even beyond that. Into the grave beyond, where only she could see.
Rose stirred against his chest, her hair sliding over his bare chest as she looked up at him. Again, that soft smile. The one he hadn't believed he would ever see. And then she giggled.
The sound did something to his chest that hurt. How long had she gone without laughing like that? How long had it been since she'd let herself feel the happiness it took to have a true laugh bubble out of her?
"When do we have to go back?" she asked.
"I don't know. I'm sure they're expecting everyone back within the hour. Although there are certainly couples who will take longer than that." He brushed a strand of her hair behind her ear, letting the tip of his nail trail along her cheek. "We can take as long as we want."
"I wouldn't mind staying here for a little while." She sat up, and he saw a blush creep across her cheeks as she hid her breasts from his eyes. "I'm not used to being naked around anyone else."
His sweet, shy woman. Of course she wasn't.
"We're all born naked," he reminded her as he sat up with her and stretched his arms over his head. "If you want my shirt, though, I can get it for you."
She made a face, and he swore he saw her other hand steal behind her back to touch the skin there. Where he had come all over her like a boy who had never been with a woman.
He wasn't ashamed of that. He'd been enjoying himself, just like her. But he was certain she was rather... sticky.
He nodded toward the water that glowed a bright green behind her. "Would you like to wash off before you put that shirt on?"
"Very much so."
Rose moved to stand, but after all that she'd gifted him, he didn't want her walking anywhere. She had him now. If she didn't want to step foot on the earth again, then he would carry her everywhere she wanted to go.
Scooping her up in his arms, he walked down into the nearest pool. The water was bracingly cold, a sharp contrast to the usually heated pools and vents where the trolls bathed. He sucked in his breath, his stomach hollowing as he kept walking in with her.
She let out a shriek the moment the water touched her naked skin, clutching onto him for all the warmth he had, which wasn't much left by the time they were both up to their shoulders.
He was getting used to it, though. Slowly. Maybe.
"I thought it would be warmer," she chattered through shaking teeth. "Why isn't it warmer?"
"Only the hot springs are warm. The rest of the water comes from the top of the mountain, where it is currently winter." He'd done cold plunges like this when he was younger, and when the water had been crusted with ice.
Spinning her in his arms, he made quick work of washing her up. A handful of spongy moss helped, although there wasn't any soap for him to get her really clean. He didn't linger or touch as he might have wanted to, but he didn't know what would make her nervous.
If anything, he was as brisk as a servant might have been. Brushing her skin until it was slightly pink, then working through the tangles of her hair.
"How do you always have a rat's nest on top of your head?" he muttered. "I don't understand how this tangles so quickly."
She shrugged. "It's been that way my entire life. If I don't brush it twice a day..."
"So you said."
It still seemed like it should be damn well impossible to knot up like this. Her hair was like felt.
Grumbling under his breath, he worked through all the tangles until her hair was fine and smooth again. It didn't take too long, and by then, both of their teeth were chattering.
Gathering her up in his arms, he strode out of the water and let the icy liquid slough off of his body in massive sheets as he practically ran toward their clothing.
Of course, they didn't have a towel or any cloth to dry themselves. He supposed it wouldn't be that odd if he returned missing a shirt. He held it out for her, only to realize she was staring at him with wide eyes.
