Page 87 of A Promise so Bold and Broken

Again.

And again.

But it still wasn’t enough to quell the burn inside her.

Not until a wave of water fell over her.

Squinting as drops of salty water that clung to her lashes teased her eyes, Lessia found Ydren’s large shape snaking its way onto the beach.

Soon the beast surrounded her, and her heart skipped a beat as she wondered whether Ydren perhaps thought it time to punish Lessia for using her magic on her that first day.

But as Ydren curled closer, she was gentle, her thick body not crushing her but…

Hugging her.

The wyvern was hugging her.

A shocked giggle broke through the haze of panic that had threatened to take over as Lessia wondered whether she’d driven away yet another person she loved, and it wasn’t the alcohol that made her wrap her arms around Ydren’s long, wet neck.

Her brows furrowed at how soft Ydren’s scales were.

And her body was so… warm?

Not what she’d expected from a creature that usually lived in the depths of the sea.

Ydren growled softly when Lessia trailed her fingers over her scales, and when the creature pressed her neck against Lessia’s body, she couldn’t help another sob escaping.

“I messed up tonight,” she whispered.

Ydren didn’t make a sound, so Lessia continued.

“I don’t know what happened. I just… I was having fun, and he was there. And… I don’t know… I think I liked it? But now I am afraid he also hates me.”

Lessia sniffed.

She wasn’t sure if she could stand Merrick hating her.

If she could return to how they’d been before growing close during the election.

Gods, why did she make a mess out of everything?

Throwing herself at every person who showed her an inkling of warmth, like a desperate child…

It was humiliating.

And wrong.

Ydren let out a rumbling sigh as Lessia let her arms go limp, and when Lessia met her eyes, the wyvern jerked her head toward the small spot of sand surrounded by her body.

“You want me to sit?” Lessia gestured toward the spot, and when Ydren nodded so vigorously that drops of saltwater stained Lessia’s cheeks like her tears had before, she slumped down with her back against the wyvern.

Probably best she stayed out here for a while anyway.

She wasn’t sure she could face Merrick and the rest yet.

With another deep sound, Ydren rested her head on her own body opposite Lessia, keeping one eye open to follow Lessia’s movements.

Lessia shot the creature a skewed smile when Ydren continued eyeing her, something like curiosity reflecting in the wyvern’s violet eyes.

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