Chapter 62 Elowen
ELOWEN
The inn Theron finds is tucked just off the main market road, its wooden sign creaking gently in the night breeze. Warm light spills from the windows, and the sound of low conversation drifts out as he pushes the door open and guides me inside.
The common room is cozy with a low ceiling made of thick wooden beams and a wide hearth burning at one end. A few patrons sit at scattered tables, but it’s quiet compared to the chaos of the market outside.
The innkeeper looks up as we enter. His gaze goes immediately to my eyes, and a slight frown creases his face. But then his gaze drifts to my hand and he clearly sees the ring. The tension in his face relaxes and he comes towards us with a genial smile on his homely face.
“Good evening, friend,” he says to Theron. “Will you and your wife be wanting a room for the night?”
I feel my breath catch in my throat. Nobody said anything about me being Theron’s wife!
But the big Drake shifter doesn’t miss a beat.
“Yes,” he says easily, his arm coming around my shoulders and pulling me close against his side. “We would.”
His simple words send a rush of warmth through me, followed immediately by that same overwhelming sense of connection. I feel his emotions surge again—protective and possessive. He’s claiming me—and he really seems to mean it.
I have to swallow hard to keep from reacting. Instead of saying anything, I just smile.
The innkeeper nods, apparently satisfied.
“You came at a good time,” he adds as he reaches for a key. “Tomorrow’s the day the King hears grievances. Court will be open from morning till midday.”
Theron stiffens slightly beside me.
“Tomorrow?” he asks. “So soon?”
I can feel his dismay. Maybe he thought we had more time. I know I did.
“Aye,” the innkeeper says. “Couldn’t have timed it better. The whole City will be having a holiday—grievance day always is.”
“Thank you,” Theron says. “That’s…good to know.”
The innkeeper nods again and hands him the key with instructions on how to get to the room.
Theron takes the key, and we head upstairs in silence but I can feel his disappointment and dismay. The time we have left together is even shorter than we thought.