‘Ouch.’ River’s soft laughter echoed through the open space, tickling my senses, and I did my best to ignore the feeling.
‘It’s the truth,’ I defended my words, lightly punching his shoulder. The amber in his eyes lit up before he flashed me a shy smile, as though the soft touch meant more to him than it should.
I looked away before I, too, got lost in him and his warm gaze. ‘There are better options out there. And despite her cynical approach, she dreams of a mate.’
‘There definitely are,’ he said, utterly convinced. ‘These things tend to work themselves out without much external intervention, maybe just give her time. Why is she in the rush to marry anyway?’
How much could I say without being a bad sister? ‘Miriam dreams of a family of her own.’
River’s eyebrows shot up like he wouldn’t predict that in the wildest of dreams. ‘Kids?’
‘Yes.’ I responded, curious about his reaction. How was eagerness to have children such a shock?
‘Fae don’t usually have age-related fertility issues; she should be fine.’
Touching the rough bark of a fallen tree, I defended Miriam’s actions, ‘I don’t think it’s that. It’s just something she wants, you know?’
‘Yeah,’ he whispered.
Oh, oh… I hoped kids weren’t a touchy subject for him, but the way he dimmed was unmistakable. 'Besides, there is something off about that Luke. Like he doesn’t care about her at all.’
‘That’s sad. A real man would bring the world to their partner—’ he started, gazing into my widening eyes before a bird released its bowels on his shirt.
Talk about great timing. Platonic must have been crossed off from his dictionary because it sounded dangerously close to some sort of declaration.
‘Shit,’ he yelped as I laughed at his attempts to wipe it off.
‘Literally.’
Chapter Twenty-One
Avari
Another day of trekking through the wilderness passed quickly, and the search proved fruitless before we decided it wasn’t the right place.
Neither of us knew what to look for. However, this land seemed too sleepy and peaceful for somebody as formidable as one of the Crones. A part of me wondered whether River chose it on purpose to spend some time alone with me, but I tried to get past it.
He was helping me, even after I told him we were platonic and that whatever we used to have between us would likely never happen again. I didn’t think he believed that, and with every second in his proximity, I struggled to see how I could muster enough willpower to stay away until the end of time—but the hurt from his betrayal lingered. Such hurt couldn’t be doused by a few short, sweet moments. No matter how much I wanted it to.
We drove through long, winding roads I recognised from the time I woke up on the way there and actually paid attention.
‘When do you want to go to the next destination? You probably need some rest,’ River said, visibly more relaxed behind the wheel than two days ago.
‘Rest isn’t the issue, but I have other commitments.’ I didn’t go into detail. ‘Maybe in two days, I’ll let you know.’
His brows drew together as he looked at me. ‘There’s hollowness under your eyes that wasn’t there before. You need rest, Ava. If you can’t get it there and don’t want to go back to the castle, can I at least find you somewhere else in Fogoya to sleep?’
‘No, it’s fine. That’s Willow for you. That apple didn’t fall far from the tree.’ I sighed, reaching up to touch the supposed bags beneath my eyes. ‘Miriam is getting us earplugs anyway.’
Like they could help. The sleep I found beside him was unlike anything else, as though my body recognised his presence on some deep molecular or magical level and refused to surrender to true rest unless he was close enough for me to breathe in the scent of his skin and listen to the low timbre of his voice that always seemed to soothe me… As hurt as I was, it was as though my body hadn’t received the memo, and he could never know just how deeply he affected me.
‘The offer stands,’ he said under his breath. Then he stared ahead and grew tenser by the second until the words blurted out of him, ‘Do you have a man in the Isles?’
‘What the hell are you talking about?’
River swallowed hard. He was making me nervous. Platonic comrades didn’t get to peek into each other’s beds, even if the accusation was so ridiculous that a quiet laugh slipped free before I could stop it. He didn’t appreciate it.
The usual calming warmth that enveloped me whenever we were close had begun to turn uncomfortable. Whatever hewas imagining had him on edge, yet all I could focus on was the audacity of him not only accusing me of sleeping around, but doing so after we’d already accepted that whatever had once bloomed between us was done and dusted.
