Page 60 of Her Ivory Flame

“Hungry much?” she giggled.

“Well, I had to run here to chase you down. Made me a little hungry.”

“You ran here?”

“The horses were too spooked by your performance and so I ran.” He shoved his plate to the side and she gaped her mouth open in shock.

“Wow.” was all she could say and smirked as Doras walked back to grab their dishes.

“I suggest you get out of here before it gets busy. Word is some of the townsfolk aren’t happy they didn’t know about the creatures outside the wall.” Doras warned. “I don’t want you to have to kill anyone else in my bar.”

Kaden nodded and stood quickly, his hand gesturing for her to get up. She didn’t argue, the few people that had come in were staring at them with suspicious looks and she felt it was time to leave.

They made it out of the bar with no trouble and walked up to the grey mare waiting patiently. She untied the mare and threw the rope over its neck.

“Are you riding or walking?” she asked over the top of the mare’s back.

“We only have one horse.”

“It’s not that far, this horse can carry us both.” she shrugged and threw herself up onto the mare, glancing down at him.

He gave her an annoyed look but maneuvered himself up so he was now situating himself up against her back. Her body reacted instantly to his touch, never having been this close and it sparked something in her she couldn’t figure out. It wasn’t anxiety or panic that she would have typically felt, but something friendlier she couldn’t explain.

“Don’t go faster than a walk.” he groaned, something in his voice sounding like he was in slight distress.

She felt her cheeks warm and was thankful he couldn’t see them as they started toward the castle, silent tension heavy between them.

Chapter 23

She knew she was in a nightmare, the chains around her wrist feeling like ghosts rather than real and she was alone in the dark rather than staring at Mavros. Her chest heaved and she couldn’t tell if the cold on her back was from sweat or a memory from the horrific days.

Pressure on her stomach woke her from the foggy haze and when her eyes flew open, she didn't see anything. She was on her back but it was only darkness of the ceiling above her and the pressure was still there.

Turning her head to the side, she was met with Kaden’s sleeping face on the pillow next to her and she jumped in surprise.

They had never shared a bed and the closest they have been to each other, other than fighting, was the awkward ride back from the tavern.

He was out cold, his breathing deep and he was on top of her blankets with his arm stretched across her.

There had to be a good explanation for it, but her only thought was him trying to comfort her while she was having her nightmare. She also knew the last few days have been mentally exhausting for him so maybe he just meant to wake her but collapsed in the process.

Not a single hint of panic from his touch formed, and she thought it strange that there was no reaction. Maybe all the training really was making her better about physical contact, or maybe she was just too exhausted to care.

She just stared at him for a few minutes, the moonlight making his hair glow and noticed the red hue to it again. It must be connected to his eyes and she found herself wanting to touch it but stopped herself.

It would be too intimate and she would probably scare him awake if she touched him. His soldier reflexes would most likely go into overdrive and could cause them both to get hurt.

The urge was there though, and she had to look away from him before she reached out and did it anyway.

She heard a noise outside her door and then the sound of it creaking open. She hesitated to sit up thinking it was maybe one of the guards outside, but when they didn’t announce themself she moved.

She slipped out from under Kaden’s arm, his deep breathing still signaling he was fast asleep and she decided to not wake him just yet. If things got loud enough, she was sure he would hear whatever was going to happen.

Silently she padded her way to her dresser, her axe resting on the top of it and she grabbed it in a tight grip.

Whoever it was, they were not supposed to be in her room. Raine would have announced herself and so would the guards, which meant she had no idea who would try to come into her room in the middle of the night.

Maybe Emris sent someone, but then again he knew Kaden was with her and he was his best fighter.