Page 109 of A World of Ruins

A slither of guilt works up my throat, but I swallow it. They are with me now. Safe and free from the people who would try to harm them back in our village.

‘Well.’ Darius looks at me, the corner of his lips quirking into a smile. ‘There’s always a first time for everything.’

I hum at him gleefully, distinctly remembering that I won the first time.

Beneath the table, Darius places his hand on my thigh again and squeezes punishingly. I jerk, almost hitting my knee against the wood, and he chuckles while my brothers and Tibith have no clue.

My cheeks burn and Darius looks at my brothers as Iker and Illias consider playing the game. When they agree to a round, Darius lifts his mug in a toast to them before draining the last remnants of mead. With a resounding thud, he slams the tankard onto the table and deposits a few dice inside as he fixes me with a simpering smile. The look might as well turn me into a puddle of liquid as I fight an eye roll but fail.

‘How do we play?’ Idris suddenly asks, surprising me with his keen interest in participating.

Darius leans forward, his golden eyes sparkling with anticipation and excitement as he starts to explain the rules.

CHAPTERFORTY-SIX

Chrysos Street at night is bustling with life as my brothers bid us goodbye and retreat to the castle after a few rounds of Liars’ Dice.

Darius told me he wanted us to stay behind for a little bit to witness the different districts without him having to use glamour, or us having to run from danger at every corner.

Not long ago, this would have never been possible. But now it’s quite surreal. It’s a dream just to be with Darius and see him smiling at the people of Emberwell as they greet him and give him their thanks and praise for restoring their home.

A young girl with long golden hair stops us in the middle of the street. She must be about five, and she looks up at us with beaming blue eyes and a toothless smile. ‘Can I say hello to him?’ She points to Tibith perched on Darius’s shoulder.

Tibith, gleeful as always, giggles, and Darius nods at the girl before he gets down on one knee to match her height. The little girl grins, reaching a small hand towards Tibith’s head to pet him.

My heart swoons at the sight.

‘What’s your name?’ Darius asks her.

‘Mira,’ she replies, and during that second, her mother calls from down the street.

Darius chuckles. ‘You remind me of someone, Mira. Someone extraordinary.’ When he looks at me, I realise it is me who shereminds him of. Back when we were children, I gave him the golden coin that I now wear proudly around my neck.

By the time our stare breaks, Mira’s mother is catching up to her daughter and apologising, thinking she had disturbed us.

‘She was very nice, Darry.’ Tibith waves after them. ‘Maybe she can be a friend.’

I place both hands on my hips. ‘Don’t you have plenty of friends already?’

‘There is always room for more, Mrs Nara!’

I throw my head back, laugh and turn to find Darius staring at me with a smile. My eyes narrow, and my lips purse at him in amusement. ‘Did she really remind you of me?’

His smirk promises a smart-assed answer. ‘Same toothless smile.’

I nudge him playfully, which only causes him to snatch my wrist and pull me straight towards him. My body fits into his perfectly as his lips come down to kiss mine for a yearning second.

A satisfied hum leaves my lips as I look up at him.

‘You know,’ he drawls. ‘Now that you’re a power source of immortality yourself, I can imagine our future filled with smaller versions of you and me running around.’

My heart reacts like never before, dancing with a new-found rhythm that pulsates joyfully. Each beat rushes through me, and I think of the day Faye told me how mortals and shifters could never bear children. It would kill us before the child was even born.

Yet now . . .

‘What makes you think they’ll be running around?’ I whisper with a smile against his lips.

He smiles in return. ‘Because they’ll be adventurous, just like their mother.’

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