Page 50 of A Promise of Peridot
How funny. I hadn’t been brave a moment in my life for twenty years—crippled by anxiety and worry—and in the span of just a few months I was facing fears left, right, and sideways without as much as a hair raised on my neck.
Fedrik reared back and swung the axe into the supple, mossy wood, splitting the log with one clean stroke. The muscles of his back rippled through his damp white shirt as he struck once more with a grunt and knelt to hand me the split pieces.
“I’m not usually like that,” I said, clearing my throat. “My brother and sister are the brave ones.”
“Really? And you’re the...”
I chewed my cheek in thought. “Responsible one?”
Understanding glinted in his eyes. “You and I play similar roles, then. So your siblings, are they actually brave or just reckless?”
“Most of the time Ryder doesn’t understand enough about a situation to realize heshouldbe afraid. And Leigh is too young to know how much there is to fear.” I regretted the words as soon as I spoke them. She had seen now how vicious the world could be.
Sensing the bleak direction my thoughts had taken, Fedrik took my shoulder in his broad hand. His grasp was warm and supportive. Strong and sturdy like the wood cradled in my arms.
“At the risk of sounding rude... when I first met you, you seemed, well—you seemed a little sad. I’m sorry. For all you and your family have had to endure. If you ever need to talk, I’m around. Healers are too often forced to witness the carnage of battle.”
I wanted to laugh. Iwasthe carnage of battle.
“Thank you,” I said instead.
“I have a younger sister, too. I think you met her briefly in Azurine. Sera?”
“Yes, are you two close?”
“Very,” he said as we sloshed through a patch of mud. “We fight like cats and dogs... or maybe wolves and kittens. But at the end of the day, she’s the most important person in the world to me.”
I offered him a small smile that I hoped conveyed how much I related to his sentiments. “So, who’s the wolf and who’s the kitten?”
“Oh, I’m the kitten without a doubt. She decimates me.”
A rare laugh bubbled out of me, and we both smiled at the sound. Something new was blossoming inside me. More than just appreciation for his chiseled jaw and bright blue eyes or the way his kindness toward me irritated Kane. Fondness, like a warm, brewed cup of tea, seeped into my heart. I liked this sunshine prince. Quite a bit, actually.
“I’m sorry about her betrothal to Kane. I know it ended poorly.”
Fedrik shrugged. “It was a blessing. They wouldn’t have made each other happy.”
I rolled my next words around on my tongue, debating whether I really wanted to know the answer. Curiosity won out. “Was part of your objection to the marriage the fact that Kane is...”
“An asshole? Or Fae?”
I gave a shallow nod indicating the latter.
“I’d be lying if I said I didn’t think it was strange. I mean, he isn’t human, is he? He would’ve outlived her, outlived their children...”
I pursed my lips, nodding again.
“But,” he said evenly, “I’m no bigot. I probably wouldn’t have cared if he had been a decent man.” Fedrik half smiled, though his eyes were forlorn. “But, of course, he wasn’t.”
“Was that why you joined us? To judge him for yourself?”
Fedrik set down the logs in his hands to hack into another fallen trunk. His muscles tensed with each blow and I tried not to ogle the bronze skin of his forearms sparkling with sweat.
“Here,” he huffed, handing me more fresh firewood, and carrying the rest himself. “I wasn’t lying on the beach yesterday. I want Citrine to fight for the side of good, and my parents are more likely to be convinced if we have the blade.”
“You just also don’t know if Kaneisgood.”
“Goodis a general term. Do I think King Ravenwood is a good man? No, not particularly. Do I think his desire to end his father’s reign and halt his conquest of Evendell is honest? Yes. And he’ll need our army to do that.”
