The fire crackled low between them, casting golden light over Lyra's face as she stared into the flame, silent.
Kael watched her from across the camp. Not hovering. Not pressuring.
Just watching. Waiting.
The kiss from earlier lingered on his lips like phantom magic.
He hadn't meant to hold back.
But something inside him feared what would happen if he didn't.
Lyra stood suddenly.
Not nervous. Not shy.
Just... determined.
Kael's body tensed slightly, like a wolf bracing for a fight.
But she didn't approach with anger.
She approached with truth.
"You keep saying you want to protect me," she said, stepping into his space.
Kael stayed seated, though his pulse pounded.
"I do."
Her voice lowered. "Then stop protecting me from you."
That hit deeper than any dagger.
He stood now, chest rising slowly. "You don't understand what I'm holding back."
She reached for him, fingers curling into his shirt just above his heart.
"Then show me."
Kael kissed her.
This time, there was no hesitation.
No restraint.
It was not soft. It was not tentative.
It was raw.
His hands wrapped around her waist, lifting her slightly as he devoured the space between them. Her back hit the tree behind them, and she gasped against his mouth.
Their bond flared.
A rush of starlight and shadow.
Her magic responded instantly, wrapping around his like vines finding home.
Kael's teeth grazed her lower lip. Lyra arched into him, fingers tangling in his hair.
This was not a kiss of firsts.
This was a kiss of hunger.
Years of want buried in silence.
And now, unleashed.
He slowed only when her breath hitched.
When her hand trembled just slightly against his cheek.
He pulled back, eyes searching hers.
"Too much?"
Lyra's lips were swollen, her chest rising fast.
"No," she whispered. "Just... don't stop if you don't mean it."
Kael exhaled shakily.
"I've never meant anything more."
Their foreheads touched.
The magic around them pulsed once, then settled.
Calmer.
But deeper.
They didn't speak for a long time.
They just held each other. On the forest floor. Wrapped in starlight and shadow.
Lyra's voice was quiet when it finally broke the silence.
"You scare me," she admitted. "Because you make me feel like I could belong to someone. And I've never belonged to anything."
Kael pressed a kiss to her temple.
"Then belong to me."
She closed her eyes.
"I already do."