Rynn slowly turned back to her, his face expressionless. His eyes were fixed on hers and her heart tripped over itself, wondering if she had crossed some sort of line. Time stilled, and even the wind ceased its movement; all she could feel was the beating in her chest, the shaky exhales through her lips. His jaw clenched ever so slightly, one side and then the other, as if they were at war with themselves.
Then he walked toward her silently. He lifted the blankets and slid in next to her, his arm wrapping around her shoulders. She immediately relaxed as his fingers gently skimmed along her arm, over the same spots the dark god had touched, brushing away the feel of him until she could no longer sense his presence.
With her head resting on Rynn’s chest and his steady heartbeat beneath her cheek, she fell into a blissfully quiet sleep.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Rynn
“Darkgod?”Rynnwatchedas Aidan choked on his drink, laughing.
Isla glared at Aidan. “I’m sorry, what else would you like me to call him? That’s the first thing that popped in my head. I know he’s notreallya god,” she grumbled.
Rynn had spent the previous night with Isla tucked into his side after her visit from their mysterious foe. He had almost refused when she had asked him to stay with her, but he found it impossible to deny her anything. He knew it was a mistake; he had begun to crave her nearness and safety in a way he had not felt in millennia. Encouraging these emotions would not end well.
It never did.
Yet he had not been able to turn away from the hesitation and fear in her green eyes. She had needed him as desperately as he wanted her. That day in the clearing when they sparred, she had asked what his weakness was; it appeared she had found it. For his entire existence, when others turned to him in distress, a primal force awakened in him that insisted on resolving their needs. It was in his nature to prove he was capable of doing what must be done to care for them. He could sit aside and watch events unfold before him, but when someone activelyneededhim, he could not resist.
When his lost friend needed retribution, he avenged. When a broken kingdom needed a figurehead, he claimed. And when an enchanting huntress needed safety, he protected.
It had taken him hours to fall asleep again. He had envisioned the faceless man who invaded Isla’s dreams, whose hands touched her like he owned her. Rynn wanted to find this being and rip off those hands, then tuck her away so that she never had to experience such unease again.
Now, they were with the others at the local Snapdragon Inn, updating them on Isla’s latest encounter with the “dark god.” Rynn reclined in his chair and listened to Isla’s euphonic voice, his fingers tapping against the wooden table. His anger surged and whipped at him again as she told the tale, but he held it at bay, gauging the reactions of his companions. They took it in stride and were most interested in the fact that there was a second prophecy they needed to search for in the mountains.
“He gave this information to you freely?” Rynn heard Jade ask suspiciously.
“Well, after I promised to find something else for him—and gave him a lock of my hair,” Isla said as she squirmed nervously in her seat.
“And you said you would do it?” Kai asked, her mouth gaping.
“I wasn’t really in a position to question it when he was waving a knife in my face,” Isla responded.
Rynn stilled. Surely, he had misunderstood her. “Hewhat?” Rynn hissed, his eyes darted up to meet hers. “You failed to mention that part.”
Isla leaned forward and rested her neck on her propped arm with a shrug, as if she did not realize how her words roused the beast within him. “He didn’t hurt me, Rynn. It’s alright.”
“He’s infatuated with you. We could use this,” Jade said.
A dull roar sounded in Rynn’s ears. He contemplated cutting the air from Jade’s throat so she could not finish that thought.
Isla bit her lip and started to speak. “I don’t think he’s—”
Rynn cut her off. “We will not use her to get to him, Jade,” he said, dangerously quiet.
Aidan wagged his eyebrows. “Uh-oh, Rynn’s using his scary voice.”
He had no idea.
Jade sighed. “All I’m saying is that he keeps coming back to her and is willing to give her information. And a lock of hair? That’s incredibly intimate.”
“Or creepy,” Kai muttered.
Jade continued. “It seems he has his guard down around her a little more. He lets her get under his skin. That could be useful if she plays it right.”
Aidan and Kai looked hesitant, but they nodded in agreement. Rynn could not believe their response, could not believe this was even aconsideration. They were actually contemplating putting Isla in danger against a foe they knew nothing about, risking the life of his mortal for their own benefit.
His thoughts screeched to a halt.When had she becomehismortal?
