Page 45 of The Shadow of Polaris

I followed Aryx up the steps, passed the second floor with rows of occupied rooms, and to the third floor loft. Candles, dripping wax down the stained paneled wall, lined the slender doorframe. Ducking through the door, he tossed his pack on a yellow corduroy rocking chair that swayed in the corner and sat at the end of the bed to pull off his boots.

“I’ll take the cot,” he said, rubbing his aching feet.

“Fine.” I swallowed, the room feeling too small, too intimate to share with the man in front of me.

“I’m going to go eat dinner, if you’d like to join me. We should be safe here. I doubt any of the patrons downstairs will recognize you- it seems they’ve drunk enough to not even recognize themselves,” he said.

I began untying my own boots, glancing out the window to watch Arcturas leap over a patch of yellow mums, surprising Kratos, who was grazing peacefully.

“I’ll join you. Tomorrow is going to be a big day. We should probably rest while we can,” I said.

The two of us descended the creaking stairs and took a seat in the inn’s tavern. A jolly, older woman greeted us with two ceramic ramekins filled precariously with steaming pot pie. A flakey biscuit sunk into its thick broth. My mouth watered as the savory steam wrapped around my face, warming my cheeks.

“I’ll be back with some ale,” she said, her voice creaking from wrinkled lips.

The woman’s very essence reminded me so much of the barkeep I’d left behind. Had the city guards come sniffing yet? I suddenly wasn’t hungry for dinner anymore.

“I’m sure she’s okay,” Aryx said through spoonfuls. “You should eat. It’s been a long day.”

“You don’t know that. They could’ve taken her prisoner or had her executed for all we know.” I poked at the dish in front of me, spooning broth over the biscuit.

“They have no evidence to take her in. Besides, the old barkeep’s tough. You know that. She’s probably kicking some drunk patron to the curb as we speak.” He smiled slightly at me, and for the first time, the familiar gold in his eyes warmed.

Aryx was right. Frya was tough. She’d taught me how to survive. How to protect those you care for.

“I just hope she’s okay,” I said and dug in. Suddenly, I craved my old life in the tavern’s back rooms. I missed the way her knees cracked as she hobbled into the room, or the way she jabbed a bony finger at Arcturas when she was up to no good.

“I know. You probably won’t believe me, but I do, too. She had an unmeasurable kindness I’d never experienced before,” Aryx said. Focusing on me, he set his spoon down.

“Yes, she did. Which made it easy to use her to your advantage, right?” I snapped.

Cook returned with two pints. Thanking her, I drained mine and asked for another. If I was to get through a night in that cramped space with Aryx, I’d need some help. After three rounds of drinks and two servings of pie, I was thoroughly satisfied. Once the hazy cloud of exhaustion set in and I could chase away the thoughts of my old barkeep, I retired back up to the loft.

Glancing out the window to check on my wolf, I didn’t notice the soft click of the door behind me. Arcturas and Kratos slept peacefully under the western stars. Their limbs were tucked together, and snouts nuzzled against each other.

“Elpis. I’m sorry.” Aryx stepped to the window beside me. “You were right. I used your pain. It was wrong of me. I wish I could take it all back.”

“Well, you can’t. What’s done has been done.” I brushed past him, his scent tickling my nose as I trudged for the door.

Aryx blurred past me, blocking my exit. He grasped my hand in his, tracing his thumb across my knuckle.

“Step aside,” I hissed, staring at our interlaced fingers.

Electricity buzzed between us. The air thickened between us. Aryx’s eyes were vivid in the warm flicker of candlelight.

“No, not until we work this out.” He lowered his voice, the knob of his throat bumped up and down as he swallowed. My mouth went dry, watching his lips close, then part again. I hated that even now, after everything between us, I still craved those lips against mine.

The warmth of his touch raised goosebumps across my forearms as he traced the curve of my neck up to my jaw, lacing his calloused fingers through my hair.

“The things I said, what we shared, parts of it were real. I know, deep down, you know that,” he whispered. I closed my eyes, desperately wishing for the man standing before me to be Rune again. His eyes were vivid in the warm flicker of candlelight.

“I’ll never lie to you again.” He smoothed a loose strand behind my ear.

The veins in his hands throbbed as he brushed his fingertips across my lips. My skin felt as if it would burst into flames, and I leaned into his touch. I wanted his words to be true, for it to be simple between us. Just him. Just me. I yearned for that connection between us, the physical closeness we once shared.

“From now on, it’s just me, the real me. I promise.” His voice was soft as he lowered his lips to my neck, trailing kisses up my jaw, across my cheek, stopping just next to my lips. Every muscle in my body ignited against him as his hands wrapped themselves around my waist, pulling me closer. Heat pooled low within me, and I clung to every movement of his lips against mine.

“I promise, Elpis, I promise.” Aryx’s kisses grew frantic as he slipped his hands beneath my shirt, tracing the scars of my past across my back. His cotton tunic was so thin between us, I could feel each arc and swell of his muscular chest pressed into me. A hunger unlike anything before erupted throughout my body and I swayed into him, groaning softly against his powerful legs between mine.

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