Page 48 of Slaying the Shadow Prince
He looked up, worried about what horrified expression he might meet. But it was curiosity lining Drue’s features. ‘Have you ever used them?’ she asked carefully.
‘Used what?’ Talemir looked around the campsite.
She laughed softly. ‘Your wings. Have you ever flown?’
‘Oh.’ Talemir looked away from her. He didn’t want to talk about this. In fact, he’d rather face a dozen more shadow wraithsanda mountain drake than talk about this. ‘No,’ he said at last.
But Drue was insistent. ‘Have you tried?’
Talemir busied himself with unnecessarily tightening the ropes of his tent. ‘No.’
‘Why not?’
‘Because…’ He trailed off.
‘Because why?’
‘What does it matter?’ he bit out. Part of him wanted to tell her, to trust her with the sad and broken truth: that he was afraid. If he flew, it meant that he accepted what he was, that he was done with suppressing that side of himself and willing to embrace it fully. But the other part of him wanted to yank his shields up, to block out the very reality she brought surging to the surface.
He was a monster. That was all there was to it. He would never live a normal life again, would never be free of the shadows that prowled beneath his skin, would never fail to be lured by the song of the dark… Apparently he couldn’t even be with a woman without the wraith tearing through his control and free will.
He rummaged through his pack and took a long drink of the bitter tonic Farissa had made for him. He could almost see the spiral of night before him, tempting him to shed his skin and join it… He drank more tonic, gulping it down, ignoring the terrible taste.
When he looked up, he found Drue was still watching him.
‘Are you thinking of carving out my heart, Wildfire?’ he asked, unable to keep the note of hurt from his voice.
She didn’t look away. In fact, she looked into him, right to his soul. ‘I hadn’t decided…’ she said, her eyes bright. ‘On whether I should use a fork, or the bill of a swordfish.’
Talemir blinked at her, dazed. Then he loosed a tight breath, the tension leaving his shoulders. A laugh followed. ‘The swordfish would probably be best.’
‘My thoughts exactly,’ Drue grinned.
He laughed again, a pleasant warmth spreading through him. Gratitude. Perhaps she wanted to forget what had happened between them, but her kindness, her empathy, shone through. And if that meant he got to laugh with her, pass the time with her, even in the most simple way, well… He had to be content with that.
Though they had erected both tents, neither one of them retired to the shelter of the canvas. Instead, they lay side by side, the campfire crackling nearby, and looked up at the inky black of the night sky.
A smattering of stars winked down at them, infinite.
Lying on the damp grass with their hands behind their heads, they didn’t touch, but Talemir could feel her beside him, her energy, her presence. It was intoxicating. So much that it brought him back to those blissful minutes in the hot springs, before his embarrassment took hold again.
‘Did I scare you?’ he heard himself ask. ‘Before…?’
She turned her head to him, her beautiful face illuminated by the moonlight. ‘No.’
‘Good.’
‘They’re…’ She trailed off, a blush spreading across her cheeks before she tipped her chin back to the sky.
‘What?’ he pressed.
‘They’re beautiful, you know. The wings.’
For the first time in a long while, Talemir’s eyes prickled. ‘Oh.’
‘Don’t let it go to your head.’
He laughed, suddenly feeling lighter than he had all day. ‘I absolutely will. Any more niceties to share this evening?’
