I excused myself from the line of workers and made my way over to him.
“You found me.” I tried for a lighthearted tone.
“About five minutes after you left. Didn’t I tell you I’ll always find you?” He stood unnaturally still, not shifting his weight or his position, shoulders set in a rigid line.
I looked at him hesitantly. “I needed to try to make it right, Griff. After yesterday’s destruction.”
He shoved away from the wall and towered over me, casting me in his shadow. “I see. And the reason you couldn’t wait until I could accompany you?” His voice was soft, but I knew anger was bubbling beneath the surface. I had thought he’d be a little irritated at me, but this amount of emotion surprised me.
I stared up at him and answered in a small voice, “Habit?”
“Then you have some bad habits to break, Princess.” He clenched his jaw, his eyes flashing before going flat again.
People started to look askance at us. I didn’t care—it wasn’t the first time we’d had a public argument, and probably wouldn’t be the last. But he noticed and grabbed my wrist, dragging me outside.
“What has to happen to get you to take this seriously? Just yesterday, you were fighting with Zachariah. He wanted to lock you up in the castle. I backed you when you said you’d take me with you when you left the castle. And today, I find you outside of the castle walls. Without protection. Withoutme.” He somehow managed to sound like he was shouting, even though his voice was barely above a whisper.
“You’re actually worried that I’ll be attacked again, two days in a row? I felt the renewed wards surround us last night. No one can break through that.”
“You don’t know that! Have you forgotten that your attacker is wandering free? Or that despite none of us expecting a hufen to appear at the Saicharan in the middle of Valdris, here we are?”
I opened my mouth, my argument poised on the tip of my tongue, but stopped. There was something in his eyes, a panic in those hazel depths, as we stood on the steps of the temple—the very scene where I likely would have been killed if not for the priestesses. Where only yesterday, he had arrived to find me exhausted, drained, and surrounded by charred stones, shattered windows, and all manner of other destruction. I supposed he could be excused for having a little anger.
“Griff…” I said his name softly, tilting my head up to meet his eyes.
Something flickered across his face before he slammed the mask down tight. Had that been fear? “I know you think I’m overreacting. But when I walked into that temple yesterday—” He cut himself off.
The fight went out of me, and I laid a hand on his arm, the familiar zap accompanying it even as his arm tensed. My fingers curled into his sleeve. “I’m sorry,” I said softly. His eyes shot from where we touched to my face. “I’ll wait for you next time.”
He covered my hand with his own, his thumb stroking across my knuckles. His shoulders relaxed as if the touch of skin on skin caused the tension to release. “I don’t want to control you, Princess. Just keep you alive. So for the love of Voda, help me in that goal. I won’t force you to stay in the castle, like Zachariah wants to. But please, for all of our sakes, tell me when you’re leaving.”
“I will,” I said softly.
We stood staring at each other, neither of us willing to be the first to break eye contact. My heart pounded in my ears and I was increasingly aware of how close we stood to each other when he finally spokeagain.
“Are you going back in?”
I blinked in surprise. “You’re not going to make me go back to the safety of the castle?”
“Princess, I’ve learned I can’tmakeyou do anything. But when this is over, you and I are going to have a talk about this disappearing act of yours.” He fixed me with a long look.
“I don’t see a problem,” I said sweetly, looking up at him. “Since you keep saying you can always find me.”
He closed his eyes and let out a long exhale.
“Too soon?” I asked innocently.
“Too soon.” He held the door open for me, his hand steady on my back. “After you.”
We went back in and joined the cleanup crew including Finn, who looked over at me and winked before continuing to chat with the person next to him.
“I’m glad you wore your sword,” Griff murmured.
I looked up at him, brushing sweat out of my eyes. “You were right. It was stupid to leave it yesterday.”
He looked as if he wanted to say something else, but the line moved on and we continued with the cleanup process. Our hands brushed again and that now-common power zapped through me. The simple contact set my stomach clenching and my heart fluttering as I glanced at him. He was looking at me with his steady hazel gaze, but there was no sign that he had felt anything out of the ordinary.
“The attacks are becoming bolder and more frequent,” he said, for only my ears. I looked at him sharply. “This was the first time one has been seen in Valdris, but not the first to make it this deep into the kingdom. Not by a long shot.”
