Page 55 of Brambles and Bellflowers
We had a rule—one that had worked well for us over many lifetimes—and it was that unless there were no other choice, we would never intervene with or undermine each other’s relationship with Mu. Our relationship as a quintet was entirely different than our relationships as individuals.
I sighed and fought the urge to go to her. Would she even talk to me?
“Fix this.” Julian threw the broken sticks into the fire, pushing himself to his feet, and the glower he threw in my direction would have struck fear into the heart of a lesser man. “Or you won’t even get the chance to live to regret it. We’re going on patrol.”
Titus also stood, pressing his hands against his lower back as he stretched. Then, the two of them disappeared into the forest, lingering nearby but far enough to give us privacy.
I glanced at the tent, my chest swelling with a foreign and unwelcome energy.
Was I nervous? Impossible.
Maybe it was too soon; she’d wanted to be left alone. I couldn’t barge in there now—
Then, as though the gentle wind had brought it directly to me, I heard it.
A low sniffle.
Damn it, she wascrying. I shouldn’t be surprised, but the sound caused my hair to stand on end and my teeth to clench so tightly I thought they might break.
What the hell was I doing?
I grabbed one of the still-rolled-up sleeping bags and an extra lantern and made my way to the tent. This wasn’t the time to be a coward. We had to clear the air between us.
“Bianca.” I knelt at the opening, using my free hand to grope around for the zipper. “I’m coming in.”
“G-g-go away.” Her voice shook, and the sound tore at me. Every stutter was a reminder of my failures.
This was ultimately my fault.
Bianca was right to question our past connection. I should haveknownthat something wasn’t right with Bailey, and I should have felt that she was in danger. The fact that she’d had to live through any of it was my failure.
“I can’t do that.” I sucked in a breath, steeling my courage, and unzipped the tent with one quick movement. I couldn’t let her shut me out again.
The soft light from the fire barely touched the recesses of her shelter, throwing her form into shadows. But what I could see was enough to melt away the last of my pride.
Bianca was curled into a ball on the opposite end of the tent. My heart tore at the sight.
I crawled through the opening, re-zipping the entrance behind me, and turned to her.
The sight of her tears made something dark and ancient stir within me. The protective rage I constantly fought to contain threatened to break free. Large, wounded eyes peered at me, and I was suffocating at the sight of her tears.
Her gaze held no accusation or annoyance, though I’d expected it. There was no more fight left to her. Instead, she just looked tired.
“I’m sorry,” I said as, once again, the foreign words escaped. I wasn’t used to apologizing, and I found myself doing it more often than not with her.
I dropped the blanket and lantern to the side and knelt in front of her, holding out my hand. I longed to hold her, but our relationship had changed so much—even since she first entered our group. Since finding out about her past, I had become more cautious and wary, and I restrained myself unless she signaled she was receptive.
But right now, I wasn’t sure she even liked me anymore.
My heart pounded, and my mouth was dry. Why wasn’t she responding? Her attention remained fixed on my hand, but she didn’t move to accept.
“I’m an idiot.” I glared at the ground between us. I’d ruined everything.
Bianca’s voice was so soft that I almost missed it. “You’re not an idiot.”
I lifted my eyes, meeting hers. She hadn’t moved, but the darkness was fading from her expression.
“I know you think I am,” I offered, unable to hold back my grin. “You’ve always been able to spot the holes in my logic.”
