Page 67 of Savage Guardian

The shattered heart

Could only spy

As the love she craved

Took wing to fly.”

It sounded…amazing. He drew in a steadying breath as he listened, his thundering heart…calming. Soothing. The beast within him laid down and sighed. The love she sang of was so deep and true, he could hold the fire of it in his hand.

Aoibheal was the only one who could offer peace to a man so at war with his own soul.

The lilting beauty of the piano lifted the voice, moving with it, dancing with it. Like two will-o-wisps twirling around one another, teasing and taunting.

Magic.

Fairy magic.

As the song played again, he listened raptly to the lyrics.

“…as the love she craved, took wing to fly….”

Something grasped his heart and squeezed. Fuck. This wasn’t alovesong…it was a heartbreak song. His breath caught. Devastated. The song devastated.

Aoibheal was truly incredibly talented. He just wished she was a better person.

The sound of a horn blaring from outside made him growl at the interruption.

Shaking off the irritation, he put one foot in front of the other and headed toward where Carrie said she’d left her phone. Lifting his head, he caught sight of the producer, Teddy, through the sound booth window, sitting behind the massive soundboard, his headphones on, his hands twisting and pushing dials, as the music and mastery of Aoibheal’s voice continued to play.

To move through him.

Dragging himself away from the booth, he headed toward the bathroom.

Just as he lifted his hand to the nob, the music stopped.

But it wasn’t the silence that made everything within him reel back, it was the voice breaking the silence that did.

“How was that, Teddy?”

The man chuckled. “Perfect as ever, Fae. You done with the piano track? Want to work on the harp?”

She sighed, the sound discordant after such ethereal perfection.

“My throat is a little sore, so yeah, let’s work on the instrumental forSeabhag, so I can give it a rest.”

Seabhag.Hawk.

Struck by that realization, he could only hold his breath as the truth continued to unfold before him. That song, the one that had ripped his heart out of his chest, the one that had devastated him…wasabouthim.

She’d written a heartbreak song about him. Hawk. His Aoibheal washeartbroken…because ofhim.

“You’ve been at this all day today, and all day, every day, these past few weeks. We could take a break…maybe grab a drink.” Teddy was sending Fae meaningful, heated looks, and though he couldn’t see Fae, he guessed she hadn’t noticed the way her producer was eye fucking her.

There was a painful cough. “Well, there isn’t anything I can do about it until this thing is done. We can take a break when we’re dead, Teddy.”

“Shit. Giving you three months to finish an entire album—on your own—is fucking nuts, Fae. Jimmy is out of his mind if he thinks this is fair, or that this will not cause you to burn out.”

Fae sighed heavily, and Hawk could just imagine her shoulders sagging, her head low.

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