Page 94 of Sun Elves of Ardani

She shook her head. “Ass,” she muttered.

Neiryn wrote.You need to rest.

“Not yet.”

She picked up a pair of shears and began cutting into the bottom of his vest. He didn’t protest. He didn’t think he could move his body in the manner required to pull it off himself, and it was soaked with blood. When she’d cut away his undershirt as well, she cleaned blood from his skin.

Most people would have found the work unpleasant. But she didn’t hesitate. She didn’t flinch from the dried blood. Her hands worked methodically and quickly—the result of years of practice and desensitization to the most disgusting bits of mortal bodies. Neiryn couldn’t help but smile as he watched her.

“What happened to your hands?” she asked suddenly, turning his wrists to look at his palms. She looked down at him, worried. “Did you do this to yourself?”

He gave another half-hearted shrug and a smile, unable to answer.

She didn’t move for a moment, as if deciding whether to inflict yet more magic on his already spell fevered body. Then she cast another healing spell, holding his hands gently as she worked soothing magic into them. Neiryn relaxed into her touch.

When she was finished, he took her hand, not wanting her to leave just yet. Or ever. He pulled it against his chest, resting it over his heart.

Her cheeks turned faintly pink, as if she’d turned off her attraction to him long enough to be his nurse, and had just remembered that he was not just any patient, and that he was shirtless.

She glanced self-consciously behind her. There were already several people looking over at them curiously. Several more people were looking at something else—two people embracing in the middle of the cavern, kissing. Neiryn blinked in surprise when he realized it was Eliyr and Roshan. Evidently, Neiryn was not the only one feeling the need to express his appreciation for life after nearly dying.

Kadaki exhaled a long breath, her brow smoothing as she looked down at Neiryn. As if she, too, suddenly had no more patience for hiding, she slowly leaned down and touched her lips to his. It was not a deep kiss, but it was heartfelt.

She pulled away when he picked up the notebook again.

No one else cares for me the way you do,he wrote.

It did not adequately describe the way he made her feel.

No one else thought to ask about how he felt. No one else touched him like he was so valuable that he needed to be handled carefully. No one else looked at him with the same love and concern she did.

She looked at the page for longer than it should have taken to read it. She glanced up at him for half an instant, then looked away, suddenly looking anywhere but at him. She bit her lip to stop it from trembling, but her eyes still watered.

“I was afraid—” she began, whispering. “I thought I wasn’t going to be able to save you. If I’d been just a moment too slow, or if I’d not had enough magic…” A tear dripped down her cheek as she shook her head.

She was shedding tears over him. He didn’t think anyone had ever done that for him before.

“And I couldn’t even do a good job of it. I’ve butchered you in my desperation. I should have—”

He pressed a hand over her lips to stop her. A silent, bewildered laugh worked its way up his ravaged throat. She was truly ridiculous. He would be dead if not for her, and she still called herself a butcher.

Her eyebrows pulled together. “You think this is funny?”

He brushed his thumb over her lips. They were ragged and red from being bitten in stress, but they were beautiful.

I love you,he mouthed silently.

Her eyes widened. “What?” When he only smiled at her, she grabbed the notebook and tried to put it in his hands. “Write it down. I can’t understand. What did you say?”

He took her by the collar and pulled her down until she was kissing him again.

The cavern was cold. When he shivered, Kadaki took off her cloak and draped it over him, then curled up beside him.

“I’m just going to rest here a moment,” she said. “Then I need to go help the others.”

He was not particularly surprised when she fell fast asleep a minute later.

Chapter 26

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