He flinched again. “Absolutely not.”
Stubborn hunter.
Finally, the hawk relented. It gave a warning screech before retreating, wings beating the air with loud thrusts.
Celina sighed in relief. Rodric relaxed on top of her, his breathing a little ragged. After a moment, he sat up, pulling her with him as he scanned the sky. A fierce scowl displayed his mood.
Immediately taking advantage of her mobility, she moved behind him to check the scratches on his back. His thick leather coat was shredded. Beneath that, some of the deeper marks went all the way through his layers of clothing to his skin. The storm of anger returned even as she pushed healing light into him to take the edge off the pain. How dare the hawk and its master attack! They had done nothing to warrant such a thing.Damn murderous bird!
When she finished assessing his wounds, Rodric captured her wrist and guided her back in front of him. A smile had replaced his earlier scowl.
“What?” she asked.
He tugged her toward him and gave her a quick kiss. “I’m beginning to like this bloodthirsty streak of yours. I can feel all that anger you’re channeling in defense of me. I like it.” His eyes glinted wickedly as he grinned. “A lot.”
“Maybe next time you’ll let me defend myself.” She squeezed his arm. “You shouldn’t have protected me like that.”
The passionate gleam winked out between one heartbeat and the next, replaced by a hard wall. “Celina, I respect you and all the authority you wield, but I willneverbe okay with you in danger. Under any circumstances. It will always be my first instinct to protect you.”
“To your own detriment?”
“Yes.”
She glanced away, blowing out a frustrated breath. Anger at his obstinate need to protect her warred with fear for him putting himself in danger. Yet, she couldn’t really blame him, as her answer would have been the same.
“Why don’t we agree to protect each other and leave it at that for now,” she said.
“For now.” He nodded his agreement.
Touching his chest, she sent a light pulse of magic to him. There was no healing in it, just affection. No other reason than to strengthen their bond. Rodric’s breath caught slightly as she turned away. More than anything, at that moment, she wanted him to start associating magic with her touch. With love.
Walking over to Rogue, she checked the warhorse for injuries. He was still fuming, but otherwise seemed unharmed. Rodric moved around them and spoke to Zora before mounting. Her very vocal, irritated response made Celina laugh. She couldn’t agree more with the sassy horse’s sentiment. Rodric remained alert as they continued to ride, eyes constantly moving as they moved along the path for the threat they now knew existed.
Celinagrippedherreinshard enough to make Rogue fidget as she drew Rodric’s attention. The blind turn ahead spiraled tightly upward around the mountain. Her brother was on the other end of that curve.
“This is it, he’s just ahead.” Tears welled up. She’d succeeded in finding him.
A still fierceness took over Rodric, reminding her of the ice leopard she’d compared him to when they first met. The hunter had taken over his features. He dismounted and motioned for her to do the same.
“Stay close and behind me.” He cut off her protest with a sharp shake of his head. “This is Eldridge, Celina. We don’t know who else may be with him or whether they’re friendly. We don’t need to give them any ideas about who you are or where you’re from until we know it’s safe.”
Celina fought to rein in her excitement and acknowledge that there was still danger around them. “Right. I’ll follow you.”
Rodric nodded, turning to give Zora the commands she had learned meantfollow, quiet.Interestingly, he left offdanger. Hopefully that turned out to be the truth.
Surprise hit her as they cautiously turned the corner. A small, fenced pasture circled a cleared area of land. Beyond it, standing against the mountain face, was a house. Shadows loomed around it, making her tilt her head. It was made in a way that blended into the surrounding landscape, but it was definitely someone’s home. The realization that they’d stumbled onto a homestead startled her. Who lived in such a remote place?
Nearest to them was a roughly made entrance to the mountainside. A wide door was partially closed, blocking half of the entrance. She could hear the animals within.
Heavy footfalls came from the barn, causing her breath to still. A tall man came into view ahead, moving with slow purpose, his back to them as he moved toward the house.
He was alive! Knowing it magically through the bond and seeing him in person were two very different things.
Connor!She shouted through the bond with a pulse of magic.
At nearly the same instant, the cry of a bird of prey rang vibrantly through the air. The man stumbled, freezing for a second before spinning around. His green eyes darted to them—and hardened.
The harsh look hit Celina hard, with real visceral pain.
