My night of sleep was far from deep and restful. Instead, it was plagued with overwhelming thoughts, dreams, and memories. Some were heavy, my subconscious clearly concerned over everything we might face now that we were living in the Rebellion camp as well as what our future here might look like. But others were far more…appealing.
The memories of Gabe and myself had desire curling in my stomach. Those thoughts intertwined with other emotions, like the strong sense of affection I felt for both him and Ronan and my desire to kiss Gabe again. My confusing feelings for both of them would have been complicated enough on their own, but then there were the imprints Bastian had left on my subconscious as well. His unusual personality left me a little unnerved at times, but overall, I was fascinated by him. How could I not think of the way he stepped in when he saw me upset and openly told everyone they needed to stop what they were doing because he wouldn’t stand for seeing me like that?
The strange part, though? How the image of him licking my blood from his finger caused my skin to flare hot beneath the covers. I needed to get it together.
Whatreallymade me feel unsettled, though, were the flashes of steel-gray eyes that seemed to haunt my dreams, watching my innermost conflicts play out like we were in a theater…Watching me, just as he had in the hallway the night before…Always watching.
My eyes snapped open as the early morning sun began to filter through the thin curtains of my room. I immediately gave up on the thought of getting more sleep.
A groan slipped from my lips as I rolled over and buried my face in the pillow, trying to not replay what happened last night for the millionth time andespeciallynot focusing on the way Steele looked at me like he wanted to eat me and kill me at the same time. If Steele didn’t like me before, things were about to get far more awkward, especially since we were living under the same roof.
I couldn’t help but wonderwhyhe chose to house us in his own home. Knowing the little I did about the commander, I had to assume it was to keep an eye on us given his distrust of us from the very beginning.
A sudden knock on my bedroom door had me sitting up, and a small wince tugged at my face at my quick movement. The wounds my father had inflicted were settling in fully, the aches and bruises spreading further as time passed. That dark moment felt like forever ago rather than just the previous morning, but my body was acutely aware of the truth of just how recent it was as I slid out of bed.
Lowering my arms slowly, I crossed the space and pulled the door open to find Ronan’s hand lifted to knock again. I’d taken quite some time to get here, after all.
My head tilted back as I examined his familiar, warm expression. His hazel gaze darted over my face, as if he was searching for something. Unfortunately, whatever he saw there had the smile and warmth disappearing as his brow furrowedand anger flooded his expression. His rough, large hand came up to gently cup my jaw in the softest hold I thought him capable of.
I swallowed hard as he tilted my head gently to the left and then to the right, examining my face. His attention was fully on my bruises. He didn’t need to say a word for me to know that was what he was focused on. The fury rolling off him said it all.
After all, unlike all of yesterday, I wasn’t wearing any makeup to cover them, and they’d had some time to grow fully discolored now. While angels did have heightened healing, it only sped the process up some, meaning I’d be stuck with the worst of the injuries for another few days or so. While I wished the bruises had disappeared overnight so I could start fresh here with no reminder of exactly what I left behind, it was better thanweeksof having them linger. I couldn’t deal with the looks and questions they would earn me for that long.
“Beauty, these bruises are so much worse than I realized.” Ronan’s voice was tight with emotion, matching the tick in his jaw as he paused for a moment. “I can’t believe your father would do this to you. He’s supposed to protect you.”
I heard the heartbreak in his words, the utter agony he felt from knowing that I experienced this from the very person who was supposed to love me the most in this world. It completely encapsulated my own feelings, but I just…I couldn’t talk about it. Not yet. There were a lot of layers to unpack there, as well as years of verbal trauma to sort through, before even getting to the physical abuse. My trauma couldn’t be processed properly in the span of a morning chat.
I just offered a small nod, unable to move much from the hold he had on my chin. “They are pretty bad, but they will also heal. I won’t let them define me or mark my soul. Eventually, I know I’ll talk to you about everything that’s happened, but I think for my sanity and our need to prove we can be of use tothis rebellion so we don’t end up tossed out…” I trailed off with a shrug and subtle shake of my head, “Now just isn’t the time.”
“I know,” he responded gently, stroking his thumb across my chin. “I won’t force you to talk about it, Beauty. I told you that. I just wish I had known how bad the bruises were because I would have bought more ofthis.”
My brows rose in question.
His grip loosened enough for me to look down as he pressed a green stone container into my hands—ones that seemed to have a mind of their own and had meandered to rest against his chest while we spoke. The container looked similar to one a moisturizer would be stored in, and I examined it for a moment before leaning away from him slightly. Bringing it closer to my face, I twisted it around to see if it had any labels before giving up and asking, “What is it?”
“It's a salve to help with the bruises,” he explained. The thoughtfulness of the gesture pulled a blush to my cheeks. “I woke up early this morning and managed to find my way to the medical center. Honestly, they were more helpful than I would’ve assumed. They said this would help reduce the discomfort. It contains everything from rosemary to beeswax, and even a bit of magic from their healers. I’m assuming they have Potion Master affinities.”
“Thank you so much,” I said softly, not knowing how to properly convey to him that his thoughtfulness had plowed straight through to my heart.
He nodded before walking to sit down on the edge of my bed and motioning for me to step between his large legs. My feet were moving before I could even think, feeling the natural desire to be in the safety of his embrace. I stepped between his legs with the container clasped in my hands, feeling a strong sense of gratitude for him washing over me. “Seriously, I know ourreception here was less than welcoming, so I can’t imagine it was easy to get this. That was…really amazing of you.”
“I’m not sure they realized I was one of the camp’s newguests, but they didn’t ask questions, so I didn’t offer details. I just said Gabe sent me,” Ronan admitted before a small smile tugged on his lips. “Niz was pissed that I wouldn’t take him with me, though. Anything to do with you he wants to be a part of. It’s quite adorable.”
My heart swelled at the thought of the little wyvern who had quickly become such a special part of my life. The way he and Ronan defended me without hesitation in each situation we’d faced thus far was nothing short of admirable, and heartwarming. I’d never experienced that in friendships or family relationships before, and at this rate, I was going to aggressively become attached to the Beast Tamer and his wyvern.
“Where is he?” I asked, suddenly overcome with the urge to get a quick cuddle before whatever the day ahead had in store for us. I couldn’t think of a better way to brighten the morning. Well…at least one that didn’t include any of the men that kept me up all night.
I was glad Ronan hadn’t taken Niz with him into the market, because while the wyvern was capable of protecting himself and Ronan, I worried that the wrong reaction from someone within the camp could put both of them in danger. Especially if Niz decided to shift in response to a threat he sensed.
“He’s sleeping downstairs. Apparently he was up most of the night flying around and watching the house in some sort of self-appointed guard duty.” Ronan’s tone was one of amusement, and I cracked a smile in return, imagining Niz flying between the front door and back patio, watching diligently for any possible threats.
“I love him,” I admitted with a chuckle, adoring the easy way he brought so much joy to my heart.
“Yeah,” Ronan mused with a smirk. “I’m pretty sure he loves you too. Probably more than he does me, if the way he defied our rules as bonded to shift without my command in order to protect you is any indicator.”
I’d definitely noticed that in the moment, but hearing Ronan confirm how unusual it was drove my love even higher for the wyvern.
Looking back down at the container, I opened it slowly. The aroma of rosemary hit my nose. Taking my finger, I ran it across the surface before lifting it up to my right eye where the skin around it felt tight and swollen from where it hit the corner of the night stand. Ronan watched silently, and I could tell he wanted to help, his fingers twitching from where they sat on his legs.
