And I couldn’t fucking look away.
“She’s watching you,” Jax murmured, her voice pulling me back to the present.
I didn’t turn my head, but I felt the weight of Elyssara’s gaze even from across the room. “She watches everything,” I replied, my tone deliberately nonchalant.
“She’s watchingyou,” Jax said again, her lips curving into a faint smirk. “And if looks could kill, I’d already be halfway to the grave.”
I chuckled, low and under my breath. “You’d survive. You always do.”
Jax arched a brow, her gaze sharp despite the teasing lilt in her voice. “You’re playing a dangerous game, Kael.”
“I like dangerous games,” I said, leaning back in my chair and letting my eyes drift briefly to Elyssara. She was tense, her laughter slightly too loud, her glances sharper than they needed to be. She was trying too hard not to look at me.
“Do you?” Jax’s tone shifted, turning softer, almost pitying. “Or are you just trying to lose yourself in something that doesn’t matter?”
I didn’t answer. Jax had always been good at cutting to the bone, at seeing the things I didn’t want anyone to see.
“You know how many people are relying on you, right?” she pressed, her voice dropping low enough that no one else could hear. “Merrik and I included. And whatever this is,” she nodded toward Elyssara, “it’s a distraction you can’t afford.”
Her words were a gut punch, but I kept my expression neutral. “It’s nothing,” I lied.
Jax laughed softly, bitterly. “You don’t look at her like it’s nothing.”
Before I could respond, Merrik appeared, sliding into the seat beside me with a casual grace that belied his age. “What’s this? Jax lecturing you again, Kael?” he asked, his voice warm and teasing.
“Someone has to,” Jax muttered, though her lips twitched upward.
Merrik grinned, leaning back in his chair and crossing his arms. “Leave the boy alone, Jaxxy. He’s got enough to worry about without you adding to it.”
“Exactly,” Jax said, her sharp gaze cutting back to me. “He’s got enough to worry about. Andshe’snot helping.”
I clenched my jaw, forcing myself to keep my tone even. “I’m perfectly capable of managing my priorities.”
Merrik chuckled, the sound like distant thunder. “Sure you are. Just remember, priorities don’t mean much if you’re dead—or if the rest of us end up buried because you weren’t paying attention.”
“Noted,” I said flatly, though the words twisted in my chest. They were both right, and I hated them for it.
Elyssara rose from the table, her head held high, shoulders squared as though she were walking into a battle rather than to the bar. Her steps were deliberate, purposeful, every movement carrying a defiance that seemed etched into her bones. She hadn’t bathed in days, her clothes still marked with the dust and grime of the temple and the journey that followed. But it didn’t matter.
She was beautiful, regardless.
I’d felt desire before, countless times. I’d bedded more women that I cared to admit purely because I could. But this wasn’t desire—notjustdesire. My mind had always been sharp. Unyielding. Focused. But this pull to her unraveled me—and I hated how powerless it made me feel. Almost as much as I craved it.
There was something raw about her. It wasn’t the polished beauty of court women—their beauty crafted in gilded mirrors and false smiles, with their carefully arranged hair and embroidered gowns. Elyssara wasn’t just a force of nature—she was the storm itself. Untamed. Fierce. And breathtaking in a way that didn’t allow for pretense.
Jax’s voice cut into my thoughts, low and laced with warning. “She’s trouble, Kael. And you don’t have the luxury of trouble right now.”
I met her gaze evenly, forcing calm into my voice. “She’s an asset,” I said flatly. “If we’re going to succeed, I need to know I can trust her. That requires observation.”
“Observation?” Jax echoed, her lips quirking into a sardonic smile. “Is that what you’re calling it now?”
I didn’t respond, letting my silence speak for itself. But inwardly, the lie churned in my gut. Elyssara wasn’t just an asset, no matter how much I tried to convince myself otherwise. I watched her because she fascinated me. Because her fire and defiance compelled me. Because, Stars help me, I didn’twantto look away.
Jax sighed, her sharp edges softening for a fleeting moment. “I’m not saying this to be cruel, Kael. I just... don’t want to see you lose sight of our goals.”
Jax, damn her, was right. Elyssara was trouble I couldn’t afford. She was a distraction—a dangerous, maddening, irresistible distraction. And yet, when she reached the bar and leaned against the counter, her hair catching the warm light of the hearth, I felt that pull again. It was primal, undeniable, and it terrified me.
I forced myself to lean back in my chair, dragging a hand through my hair in a futile attempt to shake off the tension coiling in my chest. Merrik chuckled from beside me, his gaze following mine. “Let her breathe, lad. She’s not going anywhere.”
