Page 12 of The Wind Dancer
I nodded, but I couldn’t take my eyes off her. She stood up, her skin glittering in the soft light.
“If you need me again, call,” she said before leaving.
I was left alone, though not entirely. Her image lingered in my thoughts like warmth that refused to fade. After leaving the bath, wrapped in a fresh robe, I returned to my room. The water had washed away the dirt and blood, but not the tension coiled beneath my skin. Mei Lin remained in my mind. Her touch. Her voice. Her scent. It was as if she were still standing beside me.
I went to my room, closed the door, and threw the robe on the chair. The clothes I ordered were already on the bed. I quickly changed, feeling fatigue beginning to set in. I went to the door and looked out into the hallway. When I saw the servant, I gave him a few more coins and asked him to call the healer to my room.
She came just a couple of minutes later, as if she was expecting my summons.
“You called? What’s the matter?” she asked, her voice low, but there was an unmistakable undertone in it.
“Come in,” I said, stepping aside to let her pass.
She came in, and I closed the door behind her. Her scent, a mixture of jasmine and something else, something subtler, seemed to fill the entire space. I felt my heart start beating faster.
“You look well,” she said, studying me. “Do the wounds hurt?”
“Not right now,” I replied, trying to remain calm. “But that’s not why I called.”
She smiled, and there was a playful twinkle in her eyes. She came closer, her silk robe rustling slightly with every movement.
“And why did you call?” she asked, her voice almost a whisper.
Instead of an answer, I reached out and caressed her face. Her skin was as soft as silk and as warm as sunshine. She closed her eyes, leaning her head on my palm.
“You know perfectly well,” I said, feeling my breathing getting heavier.
She opened her eyes and held my gaze. It was clear she knew exactly what I was talking about, but that she was having fun drawing the confession out of me.
“Then we want the same thing,” she said slowly, her voice hypnotizing.
I leaned in and kissed her. The kiss was as sweet as honey and as hot as a blazing flame. She answered without hesitation, wrapping her arms around my neck, pulling me closer.
We moved toward the bed, not breaking the kiss. The silk robe slipped off her shoulders and fell to the floor, revealing her pale skin. I felt my heart start pounding even harder. I could’ve sworn she was a goddess, how radiant she was. For a change, I felt lucky, because she had appeared before me tonight.
We fell onto the bed, and she pressed up against me. Her skin was hot, and her breathing ragged. I kissed her neck and shoulders, tracing a slow path downward, feeling her tremble from my touch.
“Feng Lao,” she whispered, her voice full of desire. Somewhere far in the back of my mind I wondered when I had told her my name.
A kiss distracted me from the thought. And her hands sliding across my back, and her body arching against mine urged me to continue. The delight of exploring every curve took priority.
And everything seemed to melt away. Nothing seemed to matter, no pain, no enemy, nothing except her and me. Only this moment which seemed to last a delightful eternity.
Her body was my refuge, her touch my salvation. And when the climax of this bliss finally came, I felt all the tension, the pain, the fatigue leave me, only lightness and peace remained.
She lay next to me, her head on my chest, and her arm wrapped around my waist. Her breathing was steady and she smiled, relaxed. I hugged her, feeling her warm skin against mine.
“That was wonderful,” I whispered tenderly.
For a heartbeat longer, I let the silence linger.
And then I asked in an icy tone.
“How do you know my name?”
CHAPTER 5
She didn’t flinch.
