Page 39 of The Hidden Guardian

How did he know?

He continues to let off a rumbling growl as he stalks toward me. I’ve awakened the beast. His glowing eyes are narrowed at me and then his fangs extend. My breath is caught in my chest as he approaches.

“I was just … the wall was …” But as I turn around to show him the crack in the wall, it is no longer there. The cavern wall sits as it always is, dark and covered in dead, leafy growth.

When he gets close enough, he grabs my arm, tosses me over his shoulder, and drags me back upstairs. His growling stops on the second set of stairs, then he’s silent until he drops me into the cave and closes the door behind us. He shoves a wooden chair behind the door. Then he turns to me. All the softness is gone as he begins growling at me again. His hands become animated as he begins lecturing me again. What I did was stupid. I could have been found by anyone late at night and alone in the cave. But it was magic pulling me forward, following that familiar voice. When he realizes his attempt at scolding is futile, he collapses back onto the couch and runs his hands down his face before curling back up. I watch in slight amusement as he goes from animated to snoring wolf in a matter of moments before I walk back over to the bed and slip back in. As I glance around the cave, it’s dark once again, the walls are no longer cracked or glowing here either. But what I find more upsetting—I no longer hear her call my name.

ChapterTwenty-Two

AUTUMN

Blue and green kaleidoscope together along the dark cave wall. Cold has crept into my bones to form an ache. The water glimmers back at me as Onai instructs me from her spot on the lip of the amethyst tub. My arms have since gone numb as they are submerged completely.

“This isn’t working.” She runs her hands down her face. “You don’t feel … anything? The energy of the water, cold—nothing?”

“Not really.”

“I mean, you have an affinity to water, you put Renall in a block of ice, for the love of Gods. I just don’t get it.”

“Me either.” I shrug. It’s been like this for days Onai trying to get me to use my Guardian powers and … nothing happens.

“What were you doing when you iced him?”

“Uh …” I slip my hands from the water and dry them off on my pants. “We were kind of kissing.”

“Oooh, do tell.” Onai leans forward, the tiredness in her dark eyes fades as she perches on her knees. Her braids fall over her shoulder.

“Well, we were getting a little hot and heavy, and I came to my senses and pulled away. When I opened my eyes, he was in ice.”

“You left out all the good parts … what were you thinking about?”

“Mostly that I wanted, umm, to do that with him, but I can’t. I needed tocoolthings down.”

“Why not?”

Renall with my fingers in his dark hair that sets his green eyes alive, eyes that are aways on me. That beard of his tickling down my neck. I sigh. “Renall is really hot.”

“Indeed,” Onai agrees.

“And even though he’s deadly—he’s surprisingly sweet to me, but I just can’t. I’m not ready.”

“What is holding you back? Why stop yourself when you obviously want it?”

“If I give in to this mating bond—this Joining—I can never leave. This will become my home, my family.”

“So?”

“So? What do you mean, so? I had a home, a job, a–”Brother. “Dreams, a life before.”

She nods sadly. “The truth is, Autumn, you can’t go back to that life now, regardless if you have sex with Renall or not. You must start over, so why not start over here with us? With Renall?”

“I can’t.” I would love that, a hot romance with a sexy Renall in a cold cave where all I have is him to keep me warm. But the truth is, reality will set in, eventually. This life is a primitive, barbaric, male-dominated society deciding things for me like it’s the 1800s. “I can’t,” I repeat.

“Why not?” She presses more firmly this time.

“Because …”

“Why?” Her voice rises as ger eyes glisten. “Why aren’t we good enough for you?”

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