Druidess Found (Druidess Trilogy Book 1) Machelle Hanleigh (best ebook reader under 100 .TXT) 📖

She looked behind her to the path and back to the pool. Despite her best efforts to remain unemotional where Moto was concerned, she failed. She was attracted to him, and it went beyond a physical attraction. Something inside of her reached for him. She turned her focus to the pool. The water looked inviting. She still felt like a truck ran over her. She imagined the warmth of the water would help soothe the pain. She knew it would be warm, because she could see steam rising from the surface. It reminded her of a very large hot tub. She slipped the straps of her dress off her shoulders, before she let it slip to the ground; Moto glanced over his shoulder at her.

Kaily glared at him.

He smiled but turned his head back around.

She glowered at his back as she slipped out of her dress. She left on her underclothes. It was a small barrier between her and Moto, but a barrier, nonetheless. She ignored the fact that it wouldn't do any good if he touched her. She sat on the edge and slid into the pool. Every muscle in her body hurt. She was not surprised to find she could barely touch the bottom and only if she allowed the water to go over her head. The water tingled against her skin like tiny bubbles. She felt the warmth seeping into her muscles, soothing the pain.

Moto turned around. He could touch the bottom without any difficulty while she clung to the edge. She watched him. She was indecisive and they both knew it. He stayed where he was and didn't speak aloud or telepathically. She got the distinct impression that he was giving her space to make up her mind. The problem was, she didn't think the decision he was waiting for her to make, was just about her swimming to him. He reclined against the opposite edge of the pool, watching, waiting.

Kaily closed her eyes and allowed the bubbles and warmth of the pool to seep into her soul. She delighted in the soothing feeling of the tiny bubbles bursting against her skin. For the moment time slipped away. Her anger slipped away. She felt nothing but the soothing warmth of the pool. She didn't want to feel anything. She didn't want to think about what happened, the ceremony, after the ceremony, none of it. She just wanted to feel comfort and peace, and she would for as long as she could hold on to that feeling.

What did it matter anyway? She thought. Once she convinced Moto to take her home it wouldn't matter. He would be out of her life for good and she would go back to her quiet existence on a world where none of what she recently experienced mattered. It would be as if it were all nothing but a dream. She opened her eyes. Her gaze found his. She had to play nice if she ever wanted to get back home, no matter what the cost to her emotionally, she needed him. She needed him to get her back home, she amended her thoughts.

She slowly swam to where he reclined. She kept her eyes locked with his, the entire time; judging, waiting, testing him in her own way as she swam towards him. When she finally made it to his position, she grabbed the edge next to him, careful to not touch him. For a moment, she thought she saw a slight frown crease his brow, but it was gone too fast for her to be certain. "Thank you for this," Kaily said. "It is helping to alleviate the ache in my muscles." Not her heart, but she would deal with that later, when she was back home safe and sound back on her world.

"I'm glad," Moto raised his hand as if he were going to touch her, but then turned and pointed to the pools below them. "There seems to be a cascade of pools. I don't see a path to get back up to the top here if we were to explore those though."

She looked over the edge. There were a number of other pools below the one they were in that went down in stair step fashion. Each pool's water shimmered with a slightly different hue. It was a rainbow of faint colors. "It's beautiful here." She glanced back at Moto. There was an uncomfortable space between them, not just physically. He was close enough to touch but didn't touch her. She was close enough to touch him but didn't. She was glad that he didn't touch her, or so she kept telling herself. She fought the urge to reach out to him. He seemed to be experiencing the same struggle. She closed her eyes and rested her chin on her hands clinging to the side. She moved her legs back and forth. A sigh of frustration escaped her before she could stop it. Damn him anyway! She thought.

"What can I do?" Moto whispered in her ear. "How can I help you with the struggle you seem to be having?"

She startled. He moved so that her backside was pressed against his front, his entire front. "Moto, please." Kaily shook her head. What could she say? He had been concerned or something along that line of thought about her not being Kahoali and not being able to understand his world. As it turned out, he was right. They were from different worlds, and it had nothing to do with the fact that they came from different worlds, literally. She would not be a side thing for him; ever. His bond with Sari might not matter in his world, but it did in hers. "I've been through a lot," she turned around to face him and placed a restraining hand on his chest, not that it would stop him. She knew it would not do anything to push him away. He was too strong for her to be able