I nodded, trying not to flush. He’d been tongue deep between my legs a few hours ago, yet somehow managed to act business as usual. I wasn’t sure if I admired his casual attitude or worried that his life goal hadn’t measured up to his standards.
As soon as I was in his arms, he ran with me, the other fey falling in around us. The leap from the bridge ripped a squeak from me. Tor dipped his head to mine and brushed his nose against my temple, saying nothing. He didn’t need to. The gesture was reassuring in itself.
We ran in silence for several moments before I heard the first moan. Tor veered toward the nearest house and jumped to the roof while the others did the same on different houses. We watched from our rooftop positions as a herd of infected moved fluidly between the buildings a block away.
Tor’s hold on me tightened fractionally, letting me know he didn’t like what he was seeing, either.
The infected slowed and their calls stopped. The sound of my own breathing seemed too loud in the silence. One of the fey across the street looked at us and pointed straight down. I thought he was telling us to leave the roof until Tor quietly lay back against the outcropping of the dormer’s wall. He kept me close to his side, holding me in place, face to face. His finger pressed against my lips, and I nodded.
While I wanted to believe the infected wouldn’t get to me, that Tor and the other fey would keep me safe, I knew there was always a chance something could go wrong. My pulse began to race. Tor’s finger moved from my mouth and traced from my temple to my jaw, like he was trying to comfort me. I gave him a weak smile, which widened when he flashed his teeth at me.
The suddenness of an infected call so close to us made me jump. Tor shook his head slightly and continued to stroke my cheek. I focused on his eyes and tried to breathe quietly. We stayed like that for several long minutes before he flashed his teeth again and picked me up.
I watched one of the fey jump lightly from roof to roof, following the infected. The rest leapt to the ground and started walking again.