---
His gaze stayed on her face. Serious at first. Then softer. Then something darker and warmer moved into it, something that made her pulse jump all over again.
"You are very demanding for a new wife."
Lily's cheeks warmed, but she did not look away. "And you are very difficult for a new husband."
"That sounds like blame."
"It is admiration."
That made him smile.
He lowered his head and brushed his mouth against her forehead first. A smaller kiss. Slower. Intimate in a way that sent a different kind of warmth through her than the deeper kisses before had. It was not less intense. It was more dangerous because of how gentle it was.
Lily's fingers curled lightly against his chest.
Sekhmet felt it.
Of course he did.
He always felt everything where she was concerned now. The shifts in her breathing. The tiny pauses before she answered. The way her body moved closer even when her mind was still trying to pretend dignity mattered.
"You are shaking," he said quietly.
