Page 48 of Tangled Hearts

“Thank you,” she said, leaning up for a kiss.

I gave her a peck on the nose, not trusting myself to kiss her again.

“Eat, Sol,” I said, nodding at her food.

“I’ll wait for you,” she said.

“Nope, eat.” I put the fork in her hand.

She rolled her eyes at me.

“Thank you, Max and Ryder,” she said, before digging in.

I know I really didn’t do anything but plate her food, but I felt a sense of pride for providing food for her.

“Here, man, eat up.” Ryder handed me a plate and I dug in immediately.

I didn’t know what half the things on the plate were, but they tasted good anyway. If what Addie said yesterday was true, we all needed to keep our strength up. We ate in silence and after we picked up the kitchen, the tension in the room grew.

Oria had no idea what to do, which had made her so scared yesterday. I know being locked away somewhere scared her. It made my skin crawl having to be somewhere secluded again, but if it kept her safe, I would do it in a heartbeat.

Oria went to sit between the twins, she looked stiff when one of them started talking to her. Her shoulders were almost to her ears, her hands were twisting into her shirt.

“We need to figure out what you want to do, Oria,” Ryder said, sitting on a chair.

I sat at the other one even though it was a little small for me.

“Can we give her some time?” Soren asked defensively.

“Time is of the essence,” I said. “I know this is a hard decision, but if what Addie says is true, we need to act now.”

“So, what, we just lock her in another tower? Make her hide?” Soren snapped.

“It’s not our choice,” Ryder said calmly. “It's only hers.”

We all looked at Oria who looked ready to throw up.

“She can’t make this choice. Don’t put the weight of the world on her shoulders,” Soren said angrily.

“Sor,” Gray said in a stern tone.

Soren glared at his brother. “Don’t Sor me.”

“Fighting about this isn’t helping her,” I said, looking at Oria.

Everyone stopped talking and looked at Oria.

“I just don’t think it's fair, that our options consist of locking you away,” Soren stood up, running his hand through his hair. “I told you we would keep you free and I don’t want to go back on that promise.” He paced in front of the fireplace. “Can we trust Addie's judgment?”

Soren looked at Ryder.

“I think we can.” He nodded.

“So, we find a piece of land to hide on?” Soren was getting angrier.

“What if we find an island? Could we buy one?” Gray looked at Ryder. “Maybe we know someone who has an island? Maybe a small island close to the mainland?’

“I think an island is a better idea than just picking a random spot where anyone can walk up to the barrier,” I said, really liking the island. “It would be easier to protect and if it's big enough, maybe it won’t be so bad.”

---