Chapter 34 #2
I bolt out of the tower, escaping Vaylen and his damn blue eyes that see too much. The courtyard stretches before me, mercifully empty.
“Wyndward!” Vaylen calls after me.
I keep walking, my strides long and purposeful. Just leave me alone.
His footsteps quicken behind me, and suddenly his hand grips my shoulder, spinning me around. I nearly slam into his chest as he forces me to face him.
“What happened in Emberton?” His voice carries both command and plea. “What did the King say to you?”
I wrench my arm away. “The Commander told you. I’m cleared for duty.”
Again, I try to leave, but he steps into my path, so close I can smell him—forest and leather and him.
My body betrays me with a shiver of recognition.
His eyes flick down to my mouth, and for a heartbeat, I think he might kiss me right here in the open courtyard.
Wyrm’s rot, part of me wants him to, and I’m afraid it always will.
“Please,” he says, his voice dropping low though no one’s around. “Tell me what happened.”
I stare at him, drowning in his ocean eyes. How can he still look at me like this after everything I said? After I deliberately twisted the knife to drive him away?
“You don’t have to do this alone,” he whispers. “You can trust me.”
A harsh laugh escapes my throat before I can stop it.
“Can I? And isn’t trust mutual?” I step closer, looking up at him with challenge burning in my eyes.
“Trust goes both ways, Vaylen, and you’ve lost yours.
You let your jealousy murder it as plainly as I murdered that fucking Neutro, so don’t talk to me about trust when you’ve shown none yourself. ”
I try to step around him, but Vaylen grabs my arm, his grip firm. He lowers his head, his lips close to my ear, his breath warming my skin. I freeze, caught between wanting to run and wanting to stay.
“I’ve already apologized, Rhealyn,” he whispers, voice rough with emotion. “I’ve made it clear I would do anything for you. But the one thing I won’t do is go against your wishes or force my presence on you if it’s truly unwanted.”
My heart hammers against my ribs. He’s too much of a gentleman to force himself on a woman.
“Maybe you’re acting like this out of anger and pride.
I can understand that.” His fingers loosen on my arm, trailing down to my wrist. “But I hope your anger will pass, and you’ll forgive me.
And when you do, I’ll be right here, waiting.
” His voice drops even lower. “Because what I said in Hearthdale is true... I love you.”
Something cracks inside me. I jerk away, unable to bear his touch, his words, his everything.
“Don’t,” I hiss. “Don’t say that.”
“Why not? It’s the truth, and I know I will go on loving you for the rest of my life.”
I take several retreating steps, shaking my head as if his words sting. “And that would be a mistake,” I say, voice raw. “You’ll find someone else.”
His face transforms, the calm facade cracking to reveal total indignation. “I don’t want anyone else,” he growls, the sound rumbling from deep in his chest.
That growl—dragon’s breath—it sends heat racing down my spine despite everything. “You don’t know what you want.”
Fury flashes across his features, his eyes swimming with silver light—that rare phenomenon when his emotions boil over, when the wind elemental inside him threatens to break free.
“I. Don’t. Want. Anyone. Else.” Each word falls between us like a stone, precise and heavy. He steps closer, erasing the distance I created. “And when you’re ready, you’ll be wholly mine, no matter what.”
A startled laugh escapes me. “Don’t flatter yourself, High Prime.”
The corner of his mouth curls up, not in amusement but something darker, more dangerous. “If not love, then lust will drive you back to me,” he says, voice dropping to a whisper meant only for me. “Because you want to fuck just as much as I do, and you’re too wild to keep yourself in check.”
Heat floods my face, rage and desire tangling together until I can’t separate them.
This is the Vaylen that promised to make mistakes with me over and over again, the one who let me fall from his dragon to teach me a lesson, then pushed me against the wall of his chamber in Sky’s Edge to kiss me until I thought I’d lose my mind.
This is the Vaylen he cages in propriety and rules and duty, the one that makes me feel I don’t truly know him or what he’s capable of.
The Vaylen that both terrifies and exhilarates me.
I step forward until we’re chest to chest, my breath coming fast. “You think you know me so well,” I whisper, tilting my chin up defiantly. “You think you can predict what I’ll do.”
His pupils dilate, swallowing the blue of his eyes. His breath hitches. “I think I know exactly what you’ll do because you’re as drawn to me as I am to you. Because when we’re together, we’re a fucking storm.”
My hands ball into fists at my sides. I want to hit him. I want to kiss him. I want to run and never look back. I want to drag him to the nearest private corner and let him consume me.
“You’re so certain?” I challenge, searching his face. “Then tell me, High Prime, what am I thinking right now?”
His hand rises, thumb brushing across my lower lip. The touch is feather-light but ignites a fire that burns straight to my core.
“You’re thinking you want to prove me wrong,” he murmurs. “You’re thinking you can walk away and never look back. And you’re thinking about how good it would feel if I kissed you right now.”
Oh, fuck! I hate that he’s right. I hate that I’m so transparent to him. I hate that I’m still trembling at his touch despite everything.
“You think quite highly of your abilities,” I spit back, reminding myself of the decision I made. More than ever, I feel something dangerous lurks in the shadows, ready to devour me, and I can’t drag anyone else into whatever this is.
He leans closer, his breath warm against my ear. “I’m the only one who will ever please you that way. The only one who understands you and can be the man you need.”
I shove him back, hard. “What I need,” I hiss, “is for you to get out of my way.”
But as I storm past him, the truth burns like fire in my veins. By Heratrix, he speaks truth. I feel it in my bones. And that terrifies me more than anything else, because if I can’t control this desire for him, what hope do I have of controlling anything else?