Page 90 of Destroyer

She was leaning against him now for support. One of his buttons pressed painfully into her cheek. His hand moved to curl in her hair, his fingers making slow, soft strokes against her neck.

Minutes passed. Eventually, her breathing slowed, her tears with it.

Gently, tenderly, Fen separated them, holding Ru with reverence as if she herself were a priceless artifact. He took her face in his cool hands and looked into her eyes.

“You’re burning up,” he whispered. “Are you back now?”

Ru stared back at him, shaking, her face plastered with the salt of dried tears. The fire inside her was gone at last, and in its wake rose a distant unease. “Fen?”

“Ru,” he said, as though her name were a prayer, his voice heavy with relief.

His hands on her face were so comforting, such a salve after that fire… the heat. She felt feverish, light-headed. “I’m sorry,” she managed, unable to meet his gaze now. “The stress… it got to me. I think the artifact… it was fueling me, pushing me. I just felt soangry, and…”

“And some other things,” Fen said, smiling a little.

Ru closed her eyes. Her words and her actions came back to her in figments. “Please tell me I didn’t do anything embarrassing. I remember coming in here, telling you to sit — I’m so sorry, Fen — and I ranted about the artifact and asked you to protect me, and…” she shook her head. “You must think I’m mad. Maybe I am mad.”

Fen looked conflicted for a moment, his expression unreadable. Then he pulled her into a hug. “Everything’s fine. You’re safe. You were under the artifact’s spell for a while, that’s all. And I think… part of me was, too. For a moment. But if it puts your mind at ease, nothing you could say would ever…” he let his words trail off, and in a matter of heartbeats, he broke the hug, stepping back to run a hand through his dark hair.

“I should… you need rest. We can talk about it tomorrow if you’d like. If you need anything, I’ll—”

“Wait,” said Ru, cutting him off. “You’re not leaving, are you?”

He blinked, uncertain. “Do you want me to stay?”

A chasm yawned between them, and Ru knew…hopedshe could close it with a word. And whatever had happened between them — twice now, twice caught up in a mad push and pull, a magnetic draw that defied logic and explanation — she couldn’t let him leave again, not like before. Not now, when she knew exactly what she wanted.

“Yes,” she said, and the relief of speaking it was like a drink of cool water on a summer day. “To sleep,” she clarified, heat rising in her cheeks. She wouldn’t touch him like that tonight, wouldn’t think to. “I don’t want to be alone.”

His expression softened, and she almost thought she saw the same relief mirrored in his expression.

“You only had to ask,” he said.

Ru’s heart overflowed in her chest.

CHAPTER31

Consciousness found Ru slowly, first with the glance of morning light across her closed eyelids, then the movement of her curtains in a light breeze. The window was open, letting in the noises from the courtyard. Then came the hum of insects, birdsong, and laughter drifting in from early risers on their morning walks.

And as she rolled over in bed to make herself more comfortable — she had time to sleep for another half hour, at least — her outstretched arm knocked against something warm and unexpected. Fen.

Everything from last night came flooding back. She remembered being so tired she could hardly keep her eyes open, crawling into bed with her clothes on, Fen’s arm draped over her as she fell asleep.

Ru’s eyes shot open, and she was met with Fen’s lazy, sleepy smile.

“Morning,” he said. He lay at the far edge of the bed, on top of the blankets, still fully clothed. But his lids were heavy with sleep, and his expression was so gentle it almost hurt. “You talk in your sleep.”

“Do I?” She was having difficulty not inching closer to him. She couldn’t remember the last time she had woken up feeling so safe and rested.

“And you kicked me in the shins at least twice,” he added, his smile widening. “I’d kill to know what you were dreaming about.”

“Probably oversized men taking up the whole bed,” she laughed.

“A terrible nightmare.” His expression softened. “How are you feeling?”

“Like I drank too much wine last night. My head is very upset with me.”

He hesitated, his hand almost imperceptibly moving as if he was about to reach out to her. Then, as if thinking better of it, he rolled out of bed, stretching his arms wide.

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