Page 58 of Spears and Shadows (Defenders of the Light)
Adam snorted. “Don’t worry. We’re getting there. But I might need a nice cup of tea to keep my sanity right now.”
As the water heated, he made his way over to the numerous shelves lining his walls and perused them until he came to the short bronze dagger she had noticed the last time she'd been in his room. He plucked it off its stand and brought it to her, offering it to her hilt first.
She plucked it from his fingers and examined the finely crafted blade.
“It’s not a spear, for sure,” Adam said as he watched her. “But it’s better than nothing, and if you can take on a Shadow with tweezers and a coffee pot, I think you’ll make do.”
“I thought it was decorative,” Nora commented as she touched her finger lightly to the edge and was rewarded with a striking pain in her finger. She hissed and shoved the finger into her mouth to suck off the few drops of blood that had gathered there.
Adam chuckled. “It’s pretty, but that doesn’t mean you can’t stab people with it. Besides, this one’s special. It’s good luck.”
Nora raised her eyebrows at him, index finger still in her mouth, but he didn’t elaborate. Instead, he turned to the trunk at the foot of his bed. He rifled through it for a moment before surfacing with a small sheathe that he handed to her.
“Here, that should keep you from disemboweling yourself with that when you tuck it inside your jacket.”
Nora took it from him, slipped the dagger into it, and slid it into the inner pocket of her jacket as he’d instructed. As she worked, Adam brought over their finished cups of tea and passed her one, which she lifted to her lips to let the steam wash over her face.
“Nora, I need to warn you of something.”
Nora looked up to find Adam watching her, his tea forgotten in his hands.
“Something beyond the fact that I’m being used as live bait for evil incarnate?” Nora winced as her attempt at a joke fell flat.
“This is serious, Nora.” Adam’s eyes left no room for argument. “I know you are going to have to get the agent talking to keep him distracted, but you can’t listen to what he says.”
“What?” Nora drew back. “Won’t that make it difficult to keep them talking?”
“You may have to listen to them, but you have to promise me you won’t believe anything they say. The Shadow grows by instilling fear and doubt in their enemies, which is why they love to talk so much. They use their words to feel out weaknesses and turn allies against each other. You can get them talking, but you can’t let them poison you. Don’t let your guard down, not even for a second.”
Nora gulped. The hairs on her body stood on end as she remembered what Adam had told her about what the Shadows could do to a person’s mind. Then Antony’s voice came to her, reminding her that love and hope could help keep the Shadow at bay. Glancing around the collections on Adam’s shelves, she took in all the beauty that was at stake here at the Sanctuary. She looked back at Adam to find his eyes searching her face with a seriousness that bordered on desperation.
“Ok, I can do that.” Nora was pleased by how steady her voice came out.
Adam let out a breath and some of the tension drained from his shoulders at her promise. He was still visibly nervous, though, and Nora’s eyes landed on his fingers, fidgeting on the handle of his teacup.
“I do have something else to give you while we’re here,” Adam continued. “I was planning on giving it to you the other night at the gala, actually, but then… Well, that didn’t really turn out to be the type of evening either of us planned on.”
Adam picked her teacup out of her hand and turned to the trunk behind him to set them down. Nora wondered where on her person she might be able to hide another weapon with her one pocket already occupied by the dagger, but when Adam turned back around, his hands were empty.
“Where is it?” Nora inquired, but Adam didn’t answer, instead stepping towards her until their toes were almost touching. He brought one hand to rest gently on her arm as the other came up to cradle her cheek. As he leaned in, Nora had the split-second thought that this was a very different sort of a gift than a weapon, then his lips pressed against hers.
Nora thought she might be nervous about kissing Adam for the first time, but the experience was not what she’d expected at all. She might have been more prepared for a searing kiss like she had seen in dramatic movies before the leads leapt into a certain-death situation, considering what Nora was about to do. Adam, however, managed to surprise her.
He kissed her gently, savoring her warmth and closeness as if this were all he ever wanted. It felt like warm honey filled Nora’s veins as her hands drifted up to grip the lapels of his jacket, and she began to kiss him back in earnest, causing him to sigh into her mouth.
Adam’s hands grazed her body, leaving sparks in their wake as they came to weave into her hair. He tipped her head back, opening her up to his mouth for further exploration, and Nora went willingly. The honey in Nora’s veins pooled in her belly and she found herself pressing against Adam’s body, wanting to feel more, to mold herself to the shape of him.
It was over far before Nora would have liked it to be, but when Adam pulled away, he left his hand cradling her face. She might have been proud of the distinctly dazed expression on his face if she hadn’t been sure she looked equally stricken.
“I hope that was all right.” Adam’s musical voice came out breathier than usual. “I just had you to myself for a second and well…I’m not exactly sure what the protocol for first kisses is anymore.”
His earnestness earned a soft chuckle from Nora. “Neither do I.” She let go of his lapels and tried to smooth out where her fists had rumpled them. “It’s been a while since my last first kiss.”
Adam snorted as he finally dropped his hand from her face, his other hand on her arm brushing down to intertwine with her own. “Not as long as it’s been since mine.”
“Really? How long has it been?” Nora knew it was rude to ask, but after being shocked by the fact he had once been married, she realized she knew very little about his romantic history.
Adam cleared his throat and shifted his weight. “Let’s just say it’s definitely been longer than you’ve been alive.”
