That uncontrollable, undeniable love scares me. Would it be a mistake if I fell into it again?
“We’re here,” Devin whispers behind me and pulls the reins to a stop.
He dismounts and helps me off Benedict before tying the reins to a tree. Then he leads me to a battered stone house. Ivy creeps up its walls, the windows are broken, and parts of the roof are missing. When Devin pushes on the wooden door, it squeaks open. The inside of the home smells of must, with puddles of water rippling every time the open roof leaks.
“I know it’s not much, and it would take me some time to fix but…” Devin grabs my hand gently and leads me further into the house. “We could make it exactly how you envision it. When the sun sets the light will come right through these windows here.” He motions to a set of them overlooking the Northern Forest where we came from. “The main bedroom is over here, and other bedrooms…” He nods toward some of the open doors.
I slip my hand out of his. “Are you saying we could have my parents come live here?”
The hope in his face falls slightly. “I’m not sure it would be safe for us to contact them. Or at least not yet. But…” He motions to another door that leads out of the house.
We step out into a side yard with an overgrown garden. Beyond it, is a large structure in the distance. We follow a cobblestone path to it, and he opens the double doors for me. It’s somehow in a much better state than the house, just needing a good scrubbing and to replace the windows.
“If you wanted to, we could open a bakery like you had back in Kilamber, or…” Devin slides a cautious look to me. “It would do wonderfully as a dragonblade forge.”
I snap to him, stunned at such an idea. “We can’t?—”
“We can,” he murmurs. Then he walks through the room, the fall of his boots echoing in the emptiness. “Dragonblades are legal in the kingdom of Arterias, unlike Vitalis. Not only that, but if we made our own dragonblades, we could protect ourselves.”
“Protect ourselves from Cyrus if he tries to come after us?” I ask quietly. “If the beast is still out there?”
He stops wandering around the room, then turns to me. “We could protect ourselves from anyone. Anything.”
I shake my head, looking out the window to the rolling green hills beyond. “I can’t.”
“You can,” he whispers back, walking to me. “Think about it for a moment. If we produce dragonblades—we can sell them here legally. We can make afortune. We can send money across the border to your family. We can build a life here you’ve always wanted. I can take care of you, I canprotectyou?—”
“And what if King Aaric finds out we’re here?” I challenge, turning to face him. “If he finds out that Cyrus wants me, I’ll become bait. Or a bargaining chip.”
In the last few weeks, I’ve had time to deconstruct my relationship with Cyrus. I care about him—that much is true. Perhaps was on my way to falling in love with him. But the draw to the beast living within him isn’t something I can conquer—it’s something that wouldconsumeme.
Devin’s smiling again when he digs something out of a chest pocket and presents it to me. Flat in his palm is a simple ring. “Even if he did find out, this is our guaranteed freedom. King Aaric won’t put you in harm’s way if you wear it.”
I flick my eyes from the ring up to him. I don’t want to assume what it is, but I can sense it. The pulse of power, of magic, lifting off it in waves.
Devin drops to a knee before me. “Lyra Goldbrook, I will spend the restof my days making up for all the wrongs I’ve committed. But I can never apologize for falling in love with you. Maybe you can’t trust my word yet, and that may take some time, but with this ring, you can trust that I am tragically in love with you. You don’t have to be my wife—not yet. Not ever, if you don’t wish to be. But please, give me the chance to make it up to you. And maybe one day, you’ll forgive me. And we can live a life we’ve always dreamed about,together.”
Past Lyra would be falling to her knees, sobbing at the chance to be with Devin. Taking him into her arms and never letting him go. It would have been easy for her.
But for me, it’s slower.
Devin’s eyes search mine, soft with an endless hopefulness. Never faltering. Waiting for my decision.
I was in love with him once. All of this was a dream for me before I went to Vitalis. The visions of the river tug on my attention, and then I can’t deny that perhaps this is where I’m meant to be. That this is fate.
A slow smile spreads across my face. I nod, dropping to my knees before him. He captures me in an embrace, and I slowly melt into him. His scent rolls over me, his warmth. It’s like coming home after a long journey.
When I pull back from him, his eyes are glossy with tears. I take his stubbled face in my hands, and for the first time in a long time, I kiss him.
Again and again.
Until again is all I can do.
Sixty-Two
- MARCELLA -
One month later
