Magnus listened, his heart aching with the desire to comfort her. He wasn't sure which "him" she meant...the bastard that had sought to break her spirit or the other who she'd been tasked to kill. It didn't matter...both men had ensnared her, trapped her in a life that stifled her vibrance and quintessence.
But still, she endured. Beneath all the worry and responsibility, she longed to be free. To be herself again. The thought that the weight upon her shoulders would slowly grind down her ardor made it hard for Magnus to breathe. She was not a creature that should ever be in captivity - even if the cage was made of gilded love.
His hand was up before he knew it, gently brushing her cheek. His words were soft, and his piercing blue eyes bore into her soul.
[color=#7CD98A]"I don't know...but it doesn't matter. Each day you are given the opportunity to choose your path anew. Changing your life, making it what you want it to be...that's an adventure that is never out of your grasp." [/color]
He wanted to kiss her with every fiber of his being. To slide his hand to the back of her head and pull her toward him, pressing their bodies even closer together as their lips found each other. He didn't yet...but it was there, dangling in the air palpably. He wanted every bit of her, wanted her body and mind and soul to rejoin his, wanted them to be complete in the way they had been so long ago. But what he wanted couldn't be done in this tavern, even if he did own it now.
And he didn't know if he could stop with just a kiss. Not now, with so much of the past flooding the present. His muscles screamed to wrap his body around hers...but he forced them to quiet, to obey. It was torture in a way that years of pain and blood could not ever hope to compare. It was the second most difficult thing he had ever done.
The first, of course, had been walking away - a sin for which he would never forgive himself.
His hand lingered against her cheek, the feeling of his skin against hers so light it was almost as if he was afraid to be scorched by the passion between them. He wanted to tell her that the chance at a new life was why he was here...why he'd been there for so long waiting for her to escape the tether of her royal husband. He wanted to say that the fetters of responsibility were all in her mind, that her children were old enough and trained enough to bear the weight of the title and kingdom, that they would step up to whatever duty was given to them.
He said none of these things. She knew them already. She just wasn't ready to face the truth. After all these years, she had become afraid of the unknown.
But he was there to remind her that she was still alive. That though she had been battered, she would never be broken. That the life they had dreamt of was still within their reach.
[color=#7CD98A]"The chance at something different isn't going anywhere."[/color] I am not going anywhere.
But still, she endured. Beneath all the worry and responsibility, she longed to be free. To be herself again. The thought that the weight upon her shoulders would slowly grind down her ardor made it hard for Magnus to breathe. She was not a creature that should ever be in captivity - even if the cage was made of gilded love.
His hand was up before he knew it, gently brushing her cheek. His words were soft, and his piercing blue eyes bore into her soul.
[color=#7CD98A]"I don't know...but it doesn't matter. Each day you are given the opportunity to choose your path anew. Changing your life, making it what you want it to be...that's an adventure that is never out of your grasp." [/color]
He wanted to kiss her with every fiber of his being. To slide his hand to the back of her head and pull her toward him, pressing their bodies even closer together as their lips found each other. He didn't yet...but it was there, dangling in the air palpably. He wanted every bit of her, wanted her body and mind and soul to rejoin his, wanted them to be complete in the way they had been so long ago. But what he wanted couldn't be done in this tavern, even if he did own it now.
And he didn't know if he could stop with just a kiss. Not now, with so much of the past flooding the present. His muscles screamed to wrap his body around hers...but he forced them to quiet, to obey. It was torture in a way that years of pain and blood could not ever hope to compare. It was the second most difficult thing he had ever done.
The first, of course, had been walking away - a sin for which he would never forgive himself.
His hand lingered against her cheek, the feeling of his skin against hers so light it was almost as if he was afraid to be scorched by the passion between them. He wanted to tell her that the chance at a new life was why he was here...why he'd been there for so long waiting for her to escape the tether of her royal husband. He wanted to say that the fetters of responsibility were all in her mind, that her children were old enough and trained enough to bear the weight of the title and kingdom, that they would step up to whatever duty was given to them.
He said none of these things. She knew them already. She just wasn't ready to face the truth. After all these years, she had become afraid of the unknown.
But he was there to remind her that she was still alive. That though she had been battered, she would never be broken. That the life they had dreamt of was still within their reach.
[color=#7CD98A]"The chance at something different isn't going anywhere."[/color] I am not going anywhere.
01-27-2023, 03:44 PM
