Chapter 11 The Lake #2
Having Thane near is a tease to my senses—especially my eyes as I watch the water cling to his skin, remembering the quick glimpse I got of him completely unclothed—but if it’s all about gold…
at least that’s a reasoning I can understand.
It’s a selfish one, triggered by greed, but if that means I can trust him enough… fine.
“A dead demoness can’t help you swindle your fellow bandits,” I remark.
“Exactly.” There’s a triumphant note to his voice as he runs his fingers through his curls. “I’m so glad you see it my way. Maybe then you’ll stop doubting my swordsmanship. I’ll keep you safe, and if you end up with blood spattered on you, there’s always another stream or lake where we can bathe.”
Oh, goody. More times where I’ll be around my one true mate naked.
If only I was the type of halfling to resist temptations…
I have to. I have to. And if that means I stay as far away from Thane as I can, busying myself with finishing my bath, and waiting until he’s dressed again and making another circle to see if anyone’s come close before I scurry from the water… that’s exactly what I do.
For Rafe.
For… Rafe.
Godsdamn it. Where is he?
The rush of bathing with Thane—even with the distance between us—wears off as my worry for Rafe comes back.
I want to believe that he’s okay. That whoever has him is keeping him safe…
for now. After the way the goldcaps attacked us with a frenzy, then the bandits challenged Thane, I’m finally understanding just how dangerous the Shadowed Woods are.
Whatever happens after, I’m determined to save Rafe first. I suggested we keep walking after we both were ready to go again, but he insisted that we look for a place to bunker down again for rest.
How could I argue? My slice is gone, and I’m sure Thane’s healed, too, but I can’t imagine engaging in four different fights has left him with enough energy to continue.
So I agreed, and before I knew it, he was gesturing beneath another tree just like that one I slept under last night. I shared the pouch of dried meat and thin crackers with Binx. Thane had his own, and we both finished off the last of our canteens that we refilled at the lake before we left.
Murmuring that he’ll get more water in the morning, he collected my canteen, attached them both to his sword belt, then removed his cloak.
“For you.”
I nod, a wordless show of gratitude.
Look, Mom. I’m getting better.
I figure Thane is going to climb up and take his perch now that our supper is done. To my surprise, he plops down next to me, kicking his legs out in front of him. Folding his hands behind his head, his gaze searches for the spattering of stars peeking through the late evening sky.
Still glancing up, it’s obvious he’s speaking to me as he says, “You’re very determined to get this demon of yours back.”
My heart stutters, my worry Rafe only increasing as Thane mentions him. But he doesn’t use his name, and that bothers me for some reason.
“Rafe,” I tell him. “His name is Rafe.”
“That his true name?”
“He’s Rafe of Sombra, spawn of Loki and Kennedy.”
Thane nods. “Rafe, then. He that important to you?”
“Yes.”
Finally, he looks my way. “Your lover?”
The question is casual. Too casual.
I’m not the only one who notices. Binx had already made himself a nest in the skirts of my dress, cozying up now that he was full.
As though he can sense the direction the conversation between Thane and me has gone in, he lifts his chin off of his paws, twitching his ears slightly as a sliver of his white eyes peek through.
I stroke his head, then tell Thane firmly, “No.”
He hums. “Your mate, then?”
My heart nearly skips a beat to hear Thane murmur that word.
Mate.
Maaaatttee.
“No,” I say, and this time I choose my next words carefully. “He’s my friend.”
Thane studies me for a moment longer, like he’s trying to decide if that answers the question he actually asked.
Then he exhales. “Strange thing, devotion.”
“Why’s that?”
He shrugs. “We don’t have it here. Not like that.”
“Devotion?”
“The bonds you were telling me about,” he corrects.
“Fated ones, and what you have with Binx here, and your friendship with Rafe of Sombra. See, Noctavara was cursed long before I was born. No one here has a bonded partner.” He folds his legs in, resting an arm leisurely around his knees. “Not unless they steal one.”
“How do you know that?” I ask.
He gives a small, crooked smile. “Because if we did, we wouldn’t need slavers.”
I swallow, then because I can’t help myself, I ask, “And you? Do you have a lover?”
He shakes his head. “Nah. Not me. Not now.”
It’s the truth. Even if I didn’t know that the fae can’t lie, I feel the honesty as it plucks at our bond like it’s a string.
“Thane—”
He pushes himself up to his feet. “I should head up and be look-out. Sleep tight, Alana of Sombra. Tomorrow we push harder to find your friend.”
As I watch Thane shimmy easily up the tree, I bite down on my bottom lip.
I don’t tell him what I know. I don’t tell him that the pull I feel toward him, or ask if maybe he feels the same. I don’t tell him that he must be able to bond because fate and the gods have given to me… and I tell myself it doesn’t matter.
For now, only Rafe matters.
All of the rest can wait.