Her Vulnerable Neck
The others were eating their dinner when Beyal left the campfire to sit on a flat surface rock to gaze up at the dazzling night sky not too far away from the camp. Jinja had noted his disappearance and right after she got done eating, she told her friends goodnight before joining Beyal on the rock.
"Gorgeous night isn't it?" Jinja asked tenderly, giving him a warm smile before gazing up at the starry sky above.
Beyal felt his defenses dwindle into nothing as he smiled at Jinja when he looked away from the stars. He could never be on edge when she was around. Much less worry about the future when her voice soothed away all his worries like a natural remedy. "Yes. It is." Beyal said softly so only she could hear him.
"Chase and the others are already knocked out after eating. I swear they're missing out on something magical tonight!" Jinja laughed as quietly as she could, looking back at their friends as they cuddled up in their sleeping bags. Completely unaware of the almost perfect autumn night around them as they slept.
Beyal shrugged his shoulders. "Let them rest. They've been fighting hard against our enemies, though I'm surprised you're still awake Jinja. Aren't you tired?"
"I haven't been able to fall asleep as quickly as I used to lately. I think it's because of Insomnia and the rush of adrenaline from our recent missions." Jinja admitted as she stretched out her arms and gave a yawn. "But I'm glad I'm awake, or else I couldn't enjoy this view with you.."
Beyal felt a blush rise to his cheeks but he didn't shy away from gazing into Jinja's eyes. In that moment he realized how long they've been together and how close they've bonded compared to the others. It was strange considering he used to be a Monk with no prior experience in romantic relationships, but something about Jinja made him start to consider her as something more than a friend.
"It's kinda freezing out here." Jinja said after being unable to handle the silence any longer, "I should've brought a scarf for my neck"
A desire rushed to Beyal's heart before his mind could stop and think about it. He'd felt her hands many times before, they were soft and warmer then he would've liked to admit out loud. And before he knew it, a single thought dominated his mind: if her hands were soft as silk, would her neck be even softer than that?
"Jinja.." Beyal said silently, reaching his hand across and pushing back her hair from her face. Jinja looked at him with widen eyes, unsure of what he was doing. He didn't have control of his body and his heart refused to listen to reason as he leaned forward and brought his lips so close to Jinja's neck that she could feel his breath on her skin. Her heart raced a million miles a minute and her mind grew numb from his warm touch.
But before things could go any further than that, a loud moan came from Bren at the campfire, causing the two of them to turn their heads around to see their friend with his fist up in the air and a irritated look on his face. "Dax you jerk...give me back my core..." Bren said in his sleep, his arm falling back to his sleeping bag and cuddling back up inside.
Jinja and Beyal looked at each other for a moment before bursting out into laughter. Beyal cupped her cheek in his hand and leaned his forehead against hers. "I'm sorry if I frightened you. It's just..your neck looks so inviting and vulnerable that I couldn't help but wonder what it felt like."
"Beyal..."
"You should rest. I'll be up for a while meditating, I'll talk to you in the morning." Beyal said tenderly, he leaned over and kissed her on the cheek. "Goodnight Jinja."
Jinja held Beyal's hand on her cheek for a moment before getting off the rock and heading back to the camp site, her face completely red as she got herself into her sleeping bag. Her heart racing in her chest as the heat from Beyal's breath on her neck still lingered on her skin.