Common

Solomon almost regrets bringing his title into the mix almost as soon as the words leave his lips. Judging from the wide-eyed look that she favored him with at the start of their conversation, he hadn't needed the extra leverage of his full title to earn her admiration. Still, he would be lying if he tried to deny that her shyness didn't do something magical to his mind, earning a slow, hungry smile from his mottled lips.

The lean tobiano is equally slow to pull away from the brief touch of her muzzle. Perhaps unintentionally, her girlish charm and naivete has stoked a fire in his belly that crackled happily at the thought of wrapping his larger physique around hers in a more personal embrace. What faces might she make if his lips were to tickle at the hollow of her chest? Would she shy away if he stepped in too close, too fast? Or would she relish it just as much as he did? It had been a long time since he had allowed himself a casual flirtation without the tangled strings of previous relationships or guilt.

A warm chuckle rumbles from deep in his chest as her bashfulness transforms into something like embarrassment, and she schools his expression into something gentler. Her admission of being new - not just to the Commons but to the world as a whole - is not surprising, but it does elicit a surge of protectiveness that makes him want to promise to keep her safe. As if reading his mind, she shifts subtly closer and he again echoes her, adjusting to stand nearly side by side.

"Iscaie," he murmurs in response to her introduction, rolling her name across his tongue. Apart from the low echo of her name, he offers no further interruption as she continues on with her story. She had no problem holding his attention as he listened to her description of her family life, and while a part of him wanted to compare it to the way he felt about his own daughters, it was not strong enough to overcome his innate selfishness. Instead of considering how lost he would feel if one of his daughters simply disappeared, he counted his lucky stars that it sounded as though her father was unlikely to come looking for her. She was, as they said, ripe for the picking.

"What is a kingdom without someone to share it with?" He offers warmly with a roguish wink before elaborating. "I usually come to the Crossing to clear my head and to catch up on the latest island news." He pauses for a moment, his lips crooking into a half-smile as he chooses what to say. "Clearly fate had other plans for me today, although I can't say that I'm complaining about this distraction."

His gaze finally broke from her to lift toward the direction of the Cove - both because his thoughts had drifted to imagining her amongst the mountain pines and fading snowdrifts, and also because he wanted to consider his offer carefully. He was afraid that if he moved too quickly, or went too far, that she would skitter away from him like a frightened bird. Turning back after a moment, Solomon seeks out her gaze before offering again.

"Would you like to see Tinuvel?" Again that half-smirk returns to his lips as he teases slightly, his gaze still earnest. "The Cove may not be prettier than you, but it is the prettiest land on the island, if I do say so myself."

Solomon