Page 54 of The Scars Within
I raised up on my elbows. “What? So you’re just going to lay on top of me then?"
His brows raised. “Do you have a problem with that?”
“I-” I opened my mouth to respond but found no words.
“Didn’t think so.”
Rhodes kneeled next to me and pressed a hand against my shoulder, guiding me back to a laying position. I narrowed my eyes in protest but still couldn’t find any actual words.
My heart was racing, and my breath quickened while my curiosity grew. Rhodes leaned over me, blocking the setting sun. Once I was lying completely flat again, he turned onto his back and rested his head on my stomach.
“Why is your heart beating so fast?” He looked up at me.
I rolled my eyes and refocused on my book. Rhodes settled in and opened his novel, too. We read in comfortable silence, the sun slowly sinking behind the mountains, leaving us in twilight.
My hands were itching to run through his beautiful hair. But I resisted the urge. He was fully entranced in his book, holding it with one hand while his other was sprawled across his chest. I kept stealing glances at him over my book. His dark lashes were covering his eyes from this angle. But he looked... at peace. The most content I’ve seen him yet.
I can’t explain the disappointment I felt when he raised up. So, I masked that feeling by getting up to pack my bag while he did the same.
I wandered over to the parapet, letting my feet dangle off the edge.
“Are you staying up here?” he asked.
I glanced back at him. “Yeah, I’ll soak in the quiet a bit before heading down.”
He gave me that same peculiar look he had in the library when I said I wasn’t leaving for the weekend. What was I supposed to do? Sit alone in my room? Both options had their appeal, but I have a view up here—albeit a barely visible one.
Rhodes took a few hesitant steps toward me, his eyes flitting between the ground and my gaze. His eyes paused when he came across something to my left. I looked down and realized he might be looking at my scar. I covered it casually with my hand. He bit his bottom lip softlyand slightly leaned his head to one side. It looked like it pained him to ask, but then… “Would you like to accompany me to the tavern?”
His voice wavered slightly, almost as if he was… nervous.
Rhodes Wylder is asking me to accompany him.
Before I could even process it, he blurted out, “Never mind, it’s fine. Have a good night, Thorne,” and swiftly turned toward the iron door.
Words tumbled out of my mouth before I could even think, “Yes. I would.”
Rhodes froze mid-step, his shoulders rising and falling with deep, measured breaths. He stood with his back to me, as still as the dragon statue guarding the War Chief’s office. Then he turned to face me... and I realized what his eyes reminded me of.
My beacon.
Before I had given up on myself, I saw my beacon as a sign of hope. My light within the darkness around me. It was the only thing I had left to hold on to. The only thing reminding me that there was safety outside the walls that trapped me in.
Until that rusty nail proved itself to be nothing but a beacon of despair. It lured me into its trap, making me believe that I would survive that shed. It took the very last thread of hope left in my soul.
But I don’t know if his eyes are a signal of safety... or a lure of a trap.
I had thought I could see myself being lost with Rhodes. But what if I need to lose a part of myself in order to find another missing piece? A crucial piece to putting myself back together.
Or what if he is just an addicting romance novel with a sick and twisted ending?
“I’ll see you at the stables in twenty,” he said softly before he left me to sit with my thoughts on the rooftop.
Chapter 22
I waited a few minutes after Rhodes disappeared down the turret before hurrying back to my dorm. He didn’t mention what to wear to the tavern, leaving me unsure of how to prepare for the night. As I entered the castle, the cool air was a relief against my skin.
My leathers felt glued to my skin. Stripping them off was no easy task, but I managed, refreshing myself with a touch of Cleo’s fragrance oil. I slipped into a clean pair of taupe breeches and a cream tunic. My top was cinched at the waist, giving me curves in all the right places, with a v-neckline that struck the perfect balance between modesty and revealing.
