Page 123 of A Trial of the Heart

“I should have known then,” I said as we returned, holding back my tears. “I should’ve recognized the bond right then and there.Youfound me. Youbrought me back. I couldn’t turn away when it wasyoucalling me home.”

Daxton’s brow pressed against mine, his arms scooping me into his embrace that chased away my fears. “The power you mustered to come back was not mine alone. That beautiful strength came from within you, Skylar.” He stilled, holding me tight. “I’m the luckiest fucking male in existence that you’re my mate, and deeply honored that I’m yours.”

We held each other in silence, simply basking in the presence of each other’s company and treasuring the time we had.

“I believe you’ll now be able to access my memory.”

“How?”

“How else do you get something you want?” Dax teased. “Simply ask. And it does help to sayplease.” I chuckled, following his directions, asking the stone to reveal Daxton’s most recent memory.

In a rush of magic, I was jetted through time, standing outside the outskirts of the meadow in my home of Solace… but in a body that was not mine. I was in Daxton’s. The meadow seemed so peaceful, yet inside, my heart was racing. My anxiety was spinning so high that I thought I would snap in two.

My sharpened eyes scanned the moonlit meadow. Shifters were changing into their animal forms left and right, but my focus was on… well, me.

As Dax, I watched myself fall forward into the tall grass, and it looked like my skin was crawling with sparks of fire shooting beneath my flesh. Panic and dread coursed through Daxton—a desperate need to help alleviate the pain he was witnessing overwhelmed all sense of logic. Something had to be done…

Yet I sensed him hesitate, thinking. Stopping the shift meant I would be among the few who could be chosen for the trials.

As Dax, I heard my scream, and the sound of it vibrated across every bone of my body. The pain morphed into my own. The bond, although muffled, was guiding Daxton to help me. Instinct drove him to release his magic to help counter the pull of the shift that was tearing his mate apart.

Castor’s frightened stare bore into his brother. “Dax,” he warned.

“I have to,” Daxton growled, watching my glowing skin dim as a deep sigh of relief washed through him.

“That was not wise, brother. She’ll know.”

“It’s unsealed. Minaeve will never suspect anything until I allow her to.”

Then the presence of Gilen’s roc stole the crowd’s attention, and as Daxton, I watched as Minaeve made her way through the meadow, eventually stopping at Neera and declaring her the champion. Dread coated Daxton’s beating heart. Even he knew this young, gentle shifter would not survive the trials.

“What the actual fuck is she thinking?” I growled as Daxton.

“You presume she actually thinks before she acts. Cute,” Castor snickered.

Then, an all too familiar voice rang out from the crowd, making the world stop. “Take me! I will compete in the trials. I will travel to the Inner Kingdom and unlock the Heart of Valdor.”

“Has your female lost her mind?” Castor mumbled.

Daxton’s eyes never left me as a warm sensation coursed through his chest. A sense of awe and amazement shocked him to his core. Hope. There was a reason to hope again. “She’s the one. She will defeat the trials.”

“Has your muffled mate bond made you mad?”

“No, it has made me hope.” His voice, my voice, was deathly calm. “She’s the spark of something greater … a belief that a different life is possible. She’s the key.”

The memory suddenly faded, bringing us both back into the present.

“It was the first time I knew I was falling in love with you,” Daxton said with admiration and passion shining deep within his eyes. “You held my heart long before I believe you even knew it existed,” he teased.

I looped my arms around his neck. “I knew it was there—just guarded in a gilded cage. Forced to harden into stone. Do you remember my ramblings about geodes in my letters?”

“Fondly.”

“You’remy geode.” I sighed, running my hand through his silver and ebony strands. “Hard and bitter on the outside but breathtakingly beautiful on the inside. It just took time and patience to break you open.”

His grin stretched across his face as he held me close. “I love you, my Spitfire.”

“I love you, Dax.”

---