Total pages in book: 129
Estimated words: 121339 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 607(@200wpm)___ 485(@250wpm)___ 404(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 121339 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 607(@200wpm)___ 485(@250wpm)___ 404(@300wpm)
“Didn’t decide to run, huh?” he said, the teasing tone not reaching his solemn eyes.
She’d thought about leaving for a split second…and that had been stupidly long enough. She wasn’t a complete idiot.
Instead, she’d used the makeshift toilet, shed her clothes, dressed in a huge robe Tarian had in the bathroom, and stared at the water contraption until Kayla and a female called Faelynn had come in to help. Faelynn was their healer, incredibly powerful and insightful in all things medicinal, and incredibly introverted. She hardly made eye contact the whole time she’d been there.
Daisy didn’t answer Tarian’s question. She’d thought a lot about things last night—about whom she might trust, why, and all the reasons behind those answers. She’d gone over all the details she knew, all the ways this venture could unravel, and thought about the choices at her disposal if Eldric was correct. She’d thought about the ways this new information, if true, would change her mind.
“I didn’t wake when you came in last night,” she started.
“No.” His gaze didn’t waver. “I magically made sure of that. I needed some attention from Faelynn. My…meeting didn’t go as smoothly as planned.”
“Why didn’t you want me awake for that?”
He hesitated. “Because you needed your rest. And it…wasn’t pretty.”
She felt like smiling…and like cursing. He didn’t want her to worry. How cute. But it wasn’t his fucking choice to make.
Smoothing down her anger, she said, “Please stop deciding when I should and should not sleep. If I want to sleep and can’t, I’ll ask for help. If I want to be awake when you stumble in bloody and crying, you need to let me.” She shrugged. “If only so I can make fun of you for not being able to defend yourself.”
He watched her, his eyes starting to sparkle from the last comment. “Fair enough,” he murmured.
Now it was she who was watching him, noticing the tension in his body that he was trying to hide. The embarrassment…and the shame from the treatment he’d had no control over. That this court and those horrible creatures had forced upon him. That they, and the gods with them, needed to answer for.
Anger unfurled in her. She kept a tight rein on it, though. Anger wasn’t needed from her right now. Anger would come later.
Because of Dylan, she had a lot of experience in this role. She’d been the third leg of his tripod for many rough nights as his memories of the past had resurfaced. He’d occasionally needed someone to help him out of the darkness, and he trusted her.
Sometimes all she’d done was listen, sometimes she’d raged, but she’d always made it clear she was there for him. No matter what he needed to share or what he chose not to, she took it in stride and returned unconditional love and support. And she would—if she ever saw him again—for as long as she lived. That was what it meant to be family.
Tarian wasn’t her family—far from it—but she wouldn’t turn away a wounded soul. She wouldn’t pass up the opportunity to help him claim vengeance. Fuck this court. Fuck those royals. Fuck those terrible gods who shit on their children instead of helping them.
She took a deep breath. Not giving in to the rage was easily the hardest part of this role. She constantly struggled with it.
“That dream…was your memory,” she surmised in an even tone. “The one Circus Tent Martha was talking about.”
He barely nodded. “You need to know why I will ask for various things from you. Why I need to make a show of my reaction to you.”
She shook her head slowly. “I don’t need to know why. I trust you, remember? What I need is to believe your reasoning is valid. And I do. I need to know your past in order to stand witness. I need to understand your pain so I know how to support you when you need help shouldering it. When it overwhelms you, I will stand in and be your strength. And so help me gods-that-actually-give-a-shit, if she tries to do that in my presence, I will—”
She clenched her jaw. Easily the hardest part of this role.
He grabbed her as though he couldn’t help himself, cupping her cheeks, his fingers diving into her hair. He kissed her passionately, his tongue delving into her mouth and tangling with hers. He held her in place, kissing her with everything he was, like it was a compulsion. A deep, desperate need. She felt it with every fiber of her being, swept away with his taste. His touch.
They were both breathing hard when they separated. His eyes sparkled harder now despite the pain she saw there.
“So adorable,” he whispered, his tone gravelly and deep. “Your fury is refreshing, actually. I have always loved your viciousness. The Fallen are supportive and sympathetic. They are mad, but I think the years here have worn us all down. That was the most public display she’s ever done, but she has wanted to claim my desire since the very first time I set foot in this court. A big part of me thinks that’s why they killed Sansy the way they did.”