Page 110 of Her Ivory Flame

“Kaden, I-”

“It’s ok, we can talk about it later.” He interrupted her, his eyes glancing her direction and they had a calm to them she wasn’t expecting. “You need to eat and get some rest.”

Rest wasn’t going to be easy with how fast her heart was racing, their moment between them still replaying in her head. She still wasn’t sure what she wanted to say, but she knew how she ached for him in ways she had never with anyone else.

“You think Oak wants to actually talk or something more sinister?” she asked quietly before taking another bite of food.

“I don’t get a good aura from him.” Kaden shrugged. “But as long as I’m with you I won't worry.”

She nodded and finished her food quickly, the tension between them changing to more of an awkward feeling than the fire it was before. It was almost like he was avoiding the subject all together.

“I know we need to train, but mind if I check out the library here tomorrow? Maybe there is something here about the war that I can find and try to understand what started it.” She set her fork down and stared at her empty plate.

“Only for a short time. I will send Xander and Boone with you tomorrow to the library if that is what you want while I have a conversation with Oak.” He kept eating but didn’t look at her. “But after that we train all day, long and hard.”

She just nodded and grabbed her plate, the sudden change in his demeanor making her stomach stir in panic. Did she read too much into what he was asking and got her hopes up? Maybe whatever she thought was going on between them was just her imagination. She didn’t have the best track record for trusting her heart, and it seems like he changed his mind.

Swinging her leg off the bed, she went to stand but felt his arm wrap around her waist and pulled her back into him.

“Where are you going?” he mumbled.

“Putting my plate on the table.” she muttered back, her voice shaking. Tears threatened her eyes from the rejection she was feeling, the sudden wall he threw up making her stomach twist.

His head tilted around her and she could see him staring at her from the corner of her eye.

“What is wrong?” he whispered against her ear and she turned away from him, clearing her throat.

“Nothing, let’s just go to bed.” She tried to shrug him off but he kept his grip on her.

He maneuvered his arm and before she knew it, she was on her back next to him, his face hovering above hers and she felt her jawdrop in shock.

“I thought we didn’t lie to each other anymore?” he purred and she was so caught off guard, her throat dried and she just stared up at him.

One of his arms was supporting him, the other moved to cup her face. She felt the tear fall from her eyes and his thumb brushed it away quickly.

“Alyra?” his voice changed to concern and she met his gaze staring down at her.

“I-” she stuttered. “I just wonder why you suddenly shut me out.”

“What do you mean?”

“I can feel you avoiding whatever just happened between us,” she breathed quietly. “My guess is you regret your actions.”

His chest grunted above her and she saw his eyes darken as they kept staring at her. The feeling of his hand leaving her face made her instantly panic and she knew he was about to confirm her suspicions.

“I’m irritated that we got interrupted,” he growled, his free hand pushing under her side and he pulled her sideways towards him as he laid down. “I don’t regret anything when it comes to you.”

Her face pressed against his bare chest and his legs intertwined with hers as they laid above the covers on the bed.

“Don’t overthink and get some sleep. We have time to talk tomorrow.”

Thoughts still raced through her mind, confusion being one of them but as soon as he pulled her in closer to him it was like everything started to fade.

His body was warm and she could feel her eyes start to get heavy after the long day. The food she just ate didn’t help and it didn’t take long for her to fall asleep in anticipation for the next day, Kaden’s hand stroking her back as everything went dark.

- - - - - - - -

Sunlight glowed on her face as the morning sun rose above the nearby mountains, its light brightening her closed eyelids.