Page 15 of Storm In The Sky

Winter had desperately been trying to cling to what he knew, and in this situation, the only thing he knew was Samuel. When Winter couldn’t be with him, he preferred to hide in his bedroom or roam the castle on his own.

That had probably been a mistake. Unfortunately for Winter, he hadn’t realized it until now, and he’d gotten himself in trouble. He wasn’t friendly with the other dragons, and he didn’t know how they’d take it if he tried flying with them. They probably knew by now that Keylon had decided to break the bond that tied him to Winter, and if Winter had to take a guess, people weren’t happy with him. It was a small miracle that they hadn’t kicked him out of the castle yet. He suspected that the only reason they hadn’t was that the bond that he shared with Keylon was still intact. As soon as it was gone, Winter would be out.

He wasn’t sure that was what he wanted anymore. Now that he’d had to give up on his ridiculous idea of being Samuel’s shield, Winter couldn’t think of a reason to ask Keylon to break their bond. He still disliked the thought that he hadn’t chosen it, but there was nothing he could do about that. Alvin had been bonded to Keylon. He’d loved the mage. Winter might not be him, but he had to deal with the consequences of Alvin’s actions. For once, he couldn’t afford to run.

That would be the hardest thing to do.

Still being unused to how large the castle was, it took him a while to find Samuel. He should have known he’d be outside, though. Samuel was an outsider in this castle. He was a mage, but he didn’t have a shield, and even more so, he hadn’t worked with the mages to defeat Carlyle. They’d lived together since then and had grown as close as friends could be.

Samuel was new. While everyone was nice to him, Winter was sure that sometimes he felt like he didn’t belong. Winter had been there for him, but since the kiss, Samuel had to feel even more alone.

Winter did.

When Winter found him, Samuel was sitting on a bench outside the castle wall. He was on the side of the lake rather than the road, so the area was protected by spells that meant he wouldn’t be hurt even if someone attacked. He was watching the two dragons flying above the lake, and now that Winter saw them better, he realized that one of them was smaller. It was probably Marlow’s son. Winter couldn’t remember his name, but he’d been told about him.

But Winter wasn’t interested in the young dragon. He slowly walked toward the bench, wondering if Samuel would leave when he saw him.

When a branch cracked under Winter’s foot, Samuel looked over. A complicated expression appeared on his face, but it quickly vanished, leaving Winter wondering what was about to happen.

“Can I sit down?” he asked.

“You can do whatever you want. It’s not my bench.”

There was a harshness to Samuel’s words that usually wasn’t there when he talked to Winter. Winter didn’t like it. He and Samuel had been thick as thieves since Samuel had found him, and he didn’t know how to live without his best friend. Itprobably wasn’t healthy to be so close to him, but for decades, Winter had only had him.

Winter sat down and stared out at the lake for a moment before sighing. Samuel wouldn’t take the first step, which meant it was in Winter’s hands.

“I wanted to apologize,” Winter said.

Samuel was tense next to him, but Winter thought he felt him relaxed slightly.

“What are you apologizing for?” Samuel asked.

“For kissing you without asking if it was okay. For thinking we could be anything more than friends. For being an asshole and an idiot, especially when it comes to Keylon.”

“Why did you do it?”

Winter continued staring at the lake because he couldn’t stand watching his best friend as he explained himself. “I had to talk to your mother to realize what I was doing,” he said with a smile.

Samuel snorted. “That explains why she called me and told me to give you a chance. She said she didn’t want to lose one of her children and that I needed to be nice to you because things were confusing.”

“Theyareconfusing, but I still shouldn’t have behaved the way I did.” Winter sucked in a breath. “I don’t remember anything before you found me. Every time I try, it’s just a blank space, but I thought that eventually I would recover some memories. When I realized that I wouldn’t, I clung to what I already knew. Ever since you found me, I’ve been terrified of losing you and your clan. I wanted to be truly part of your family, and I thought that if you and I bonded, I would be.”

“You’re an idiot,” Samuel commented.

“I’m very much aware of that. You’ve always been the brain between the two of us, which probably explains why I did something so stupid.”

“You’re not in love with me.” Samuel sounded sure of himself.

“I think I was in love with the thought of what we could have. I wanted to be part of your family and to be sure that I wouldn’t lose everything again. Besides, I might not be in love with you, but I do love you. You’re my best friend, and that’s never going to change.”

“If I’m your best friend, you should have listened to me when I said I didn’t want a shield.”

“I did listen. I just thought that I’d be different.”

“Youaredifferent, but not that much. I never want to kiss you again, Winter. That was like kissing my brother, and it was horrifying.”

He bumped their shoulders together, and Winter laughed. “You forgive me?”

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