"Come," I pulled her attention back to me. "Let me show you what paradise actually looks like."
She turned, and when her eyes met mine, some of the tension left her shoulders. "Okay."
I helped her out of the helicopter and then placed my hand firm at the small of her back.
Soon, we stepped onto the stone helipad.
The island hummed around us—alive, waiting, ours.
And still, I wondered why the fuck my Roar would have my personal Scales at my private surprise today. I'd known him for too long to ever think his actions were meant to harm me.
Yet, Reo never made moves without seven reasons hidden behind the obvious one.
Was this a test for my Tiger?
For me?
Or something else entirely?
Did he suspect Hina too?
Or was this all just paranoia in my mind?
Chapter twenty-one
Borrowed Time
Kenji
While the other helicopter took the Scales away, the guards fanned out across the island—close enough to kill for me, far enough to vanish into the scenery.
But for me, they didn't truly exist.
The world narrowed to my Tiger, and the way the wind caught her braids, teasing the tips along her neck and across her shoulder. The way her scent moved through the salt air—black amber and ripe plum—wrapping my senses in the silk of her.
Due to the war, this date on the island was borrowed time.
The silence before the bloody battle.
The romantic calm before the chaotic storm.
And I welcomed it.
Even dragons needed stillness before they burned the world.
Plus, rest would sharpen our blades.
Mine and hers.
I took her hand, and it smoothly fit against mine, small but fierce, soft fingers threading through as if claiming ground.
As we headed down the steps, I traced slow circles along the inside of her wrist with my thumb, feeling her pulse tap against my skin.
The stone steps descended from the helipad in a gentle curve, bordered by Satsuki azaleas in full bloom. They were deep pinks and soft whites.
The ocean breeze carried their sweet fragrance and mixed with the salt air.
“These flowers are so pretty.”
