If anything, it’s me who doesn’t deserve him.
“You gave up your entire life for me,” he says, pulling back to meet my eyes. His are swimming with remorse and guilt.
“It wasn’t much of a life, Daegan. You saved me from it.” Sadness crosses over his features, though he tries to muster a flat smile.
He doesn’t say anything further. He wraps his arms around me and buries his face in my chest as we enjoy each other’s embrace, and then, eventually, each other’s bodies, as has become our daily routine.
I still feel as if I’ll never get enough of him.
Chapter 79
“I’ve found something!” Kezra comes whizzing into the room shouting, startling Daegan and me awake. I turn over in our colossal bed.
“Huh?”
“Buried in a sandy dune by the mountainside. On the side which faces east.”
“What did you find?” Daegan asks, wiping at his eyes and sitting up, his chiseled torso on display.
“A pocket of emberstone. Shaped like a large bowl. It’s a lot like the ancient description of the Eternal Pit. Maybe we can… light it? Recreate it?”
Daegan runs his hands though his messy, perfect morning hair, then along his sharp jaw. “It’s worth a try. Can you go inform Raef? Please.”
She nods and flies out the window, not wasting another word on us. I glance at Daegan again, suddenly feeling… anxious. There’s a pit in my stomach that has developed, and I can’t say why. I’m not excited about the new lead like I usually am, but I don’t necessarily think it’s a dead end either.
He falls back against the pillow, wrapping his arm around me and staring deep into my eyes. “I’d rather just stay here in bed with you all day.”
“Me too,” I agree, placing a kiss on his stubbled jaw. “But this feels like… something.”
He nods lightly, holding my stare. “It does,” he whispers in agreement as he pulls me on top of him and squeezes both my ass cheeks with his enormous hands.
~
Everything has erupted into utter chaos. After Daegan and I finally got out of bed, he got dressed in his usual black pants and short-sleeved shirt, and I got dressed in similar attire, but with a purple shirt.
We emerge to find Raef in a panic in the hallway.
“They’re coming,” he tells us in a rush. We follow as he turns and leads us down a hall.
“Who? Where are we going?”
“Battle briefing,” Raef says as he looks back, giving us each a loaded look.
“Fuck.” Daegan tenses beside me, then grabs my hand tightly and picks up the pace.
We arrive in a large room with less windows than most rooms in the palace. There’s a grand, white, marble table in the center with scrolls scattered about, stone figurines, and random weapons lying atop it. Daegan’s father, along with several others who I’m guessing are in some sort of leadership role, are spaced around the table, each one looking more tense than the other.
This is not a planned or carefully organized meeting.
“What’s going on?” Daegan demands calmly as he takes a spot near his father, remaining standing. He pulls me closer until I’m at his side along the table.
Taevis shoots him a glare as he clears his throat and then speaks. “Ten thousand troops are marching onto our land as we speak.”
My heart sinks. Ten thousand. That’s… overwhelming. None of the allies the dragons have gained are here…
Daegan’s eyes meet mine before he responds. He holds me in his gaze like there are still a thousand unspoken words still between us. He looks at me like I’m the most precious thing in this world to him. And I look back with the same intensity. I memorize every fleck of color in his eyes, the way his long eyelashes frame them so beautifully. The moment doesn’t last more than a breath or two, but it seems like an eternity. If the future is taken from us today, I’m glad we were able to reunite at least for a little while.
This could very well be the day the rest of us are wiped out.
