Page 76 of Claimed By the Fae Lord

"Please," her voice whispered through the tension, a plea for space, for time, for something I didn’t want to give but would.

"Rest," I managed to say, entrusting her with a part of myself I'd locked away. "You’ve been through a lot.”

Her eyes darted down and away. “Yes, today was … hard.”

Squatting, I lifted the robe and helped her get her arms into it. As I tied the sash for her, I said, “I wasn’t just talking about today.”

I leaned down and kissed her forehead. “Get some sleep, flower. We'll speak again in the morning."

I turned and left the room, retreating to the guest quarters below hers. I had a new home here, but I’d never slept in it, nor did it feel right to return to my old rooms in Speirhaus.

The balcony beckoned, a small half circle jutting out into the night, big enough for two chairs and a small table betweenthem. I went to the railing, inhaling the crisp air that whispered through the koyu trees.

I stood stock still as I grappled with the truth that I wanted more from Raina than the fiery collision of our bodies. Craved it. Craved the unguarded laughter and tender moments we shared before fate and familial duty had torn her away from me.

For now, Raina needed space, and I would grant her that. But come morning, I swore to the stars that I would find a way to mend what had been broken.

The soft shuffle of feet alerted me to Raina's presence on her balcony above. My heart thrummed a warning beat, urging caution, but I couldn't resist inching back into the shadowed confines of my room, leaving the doors ajar for the ghost of her to find its way in.

Through the sliver of space, I was displeased to hear Gunnar's deep timbre, and a visceral response gripped me—an urge to charge up there, to protect what was mine from even my brother's eyes.

My hands clenched into fists at the possibility of her standing there, clad only in a robe, within reach of my brother. If he made a move on her I’d portal up there and break his neck.

"Mirrelle will be safe. Brahm is on watch until dawn," Gunnar's voice carried, a hint of mirth beneath the seriousness. "He practically booted me out of the infirmary to stand guard."

A laugh bubbled up from Raina, light and carefree, a sound I hadn't heard very often. I would need to rectify that.

“Why are you here, Gunnar?” she asked the question I badly wanted to know.

"Why do you think I'm here?" Gunnar's voice was low, almost gentle, an odd tone for him to take, especially with her.

"Did Brahm send you to check on me?"

"Partly," he admitted. "Brahm has the guards on high alert, and he wanted me to make sure you and Liam get some rest. But, mostly, I wanted to ask if you were okay?"

There was a pause, long enough for my pulse to throb in my ears. "Physically? I have barely a bruise on me," Raina responded, and I could picture the shrug that likely accompanied her words.

"That's not what I’m asking."

Silence hugged the space between them, and I found myself holding my breath, waiting for her response.

"Am I okay?" Her voice was laced with a sadness that knotted my insides. "I haven't been okay since the day my mother told me I was no longer going to marry Liam, that she and Father had other plans for me."

My heart clenched at the raw honesty in her confession.

"It’s my biggest regret," she continued, the words seeming to pull from the depths of her soul. "I let my childlike fantasy, my drive to be worthy, to feel my parents' love, I let it ruin the only thing that had ever made me happy."

Then she laughed humorously. “I have no idea why I’m telling you this.”

As Gunnar remained silent, I was left hanging, desperate for more yet dreading it just as much.

When he finally spoke, his voice was probing and earnest. "If you had another chance with him, would you take it?"

I leaned closer to the gap, my breath held captive by the gravity of the question.

"There's no ability to travel back in time," Raina replied, a note of wistfulness threading her words.

"Raina," he pushed, patient yet insistent, "I meant now. If you had another chance now."

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