Page 68 of Caress of Fire
“Is this true?” Fedryc stopped in front of her. “You have not slept in two days? You refuse to eat?”
“You don’t look so good yourself.” The words were hard to get out as emotions welled inside her from having him so close. In her fear and exhaustion, she hadn’t realized how hurt she had been by their fight. How much she had longed to rest her head against his hard, warm chest. “Did Nyra come back?”
Fedryc winced with pain and shook his head. “She flew over the castle twice, but didn’t come back when I called.”
The pain of Nyra’s rejection was obvious in Fedryc’s stiff shoulders and pursed lips, and Marielle found her hands twisting in front of her, itching with the need to touch him. She couldn’t stand his pain, that look of hurt in his eyes.
“I’m sorry.” It was all her broken voice could say. All her broken heart found. “I’m sorry for everything.”
Fedryc’s stiff shoulders slumped a fraction, so slightly she knew only she could have noticed—and she had. Pain shot into his eyes and she found herself crushed against a hard, hot chest. Tears leaked out of her eyes and Marielle wrapped her arms around Fedryc’s waist as hard as she could. Like her life depended on it, because it did.
“Little firebrand.” His hand pushed her hair tenderly away from her face and he bent down, kissing the tears from her cheeks, taking his time to run his lips over her pain, wiping it clean. “You have nothing to apologize for.”
“Yes, I do.” New tears ran down on her face and Marielle let them. It was like a dam had broken and her pain took a liquid turn. “I blamed you, I hurt you when you needed me to support you. I should have been there for you.”
“You were there.” His lips again, on her closed eyes, on her cheeks, her forehead. Tender and light, but so warm it put a balm on her raw soul. “You never left my side. You are the strongest woman I know, and I am the luckiest man on Earth and Dagmar to have found you.”
Marielle exhaled shakily. She couldn’t believe it. This man, this beautiful, strong man was forgiving her for the horrible things she had said to him while he’d been at his most vulnerable. She would never fail him again.
“I love you.” The words were simple but she felt them in her center, in that tiny core of herself that had held on to hope despite all her years of hardship.
“I know.” He chuckled and Marielle opened her eyes, pulling her face away. He was looking down at her like she was perfect. Like she wasn’t the mess she felt inside. “But even though I would give my life for you, you need a good night’s sleep. And a shower. Maybe two showers.”
Marielle chuckled and it was as if a dark, heavy blanket had lifted from her body. Her worry was still there, that fear for the ones she loved that ripped at her heart, but with Fedryc there, she dared. She dared to hope that everything would be all right. That her life wouldn’t end in gut-wrenching agony.
“But what about Devan?” She still couldn’t turn her back on him. Marielle twisted in Fedryc’s embrace to lock eyes with Rela.
“I will stay.” The girl looked down at her brother, her eyes full of something fierce and defiant. “I won’t let him slip between my fingers again.”
Marielle swallowed, then nodded. Rela was young but her heart was set. She loved Devan, had always loved him. He belonged to her now, more than he belonged to Marielle. And Marielle found in her heart that she was okay with it.
“Come now, my little firebrand.” Fedryc swept her into his arms without flinching despite his obvious exhaustion. “Let’s get you to our rooms.”
Marielle didn’t answer. She nestled her head in the crook of his neck, and she was asleep before he left the room.
* * *
She hadno idea how long she slept, but when she woke up, her stomach grumbled, angry and painful as she was pulled from sleep by the smell of something so mouthwatering it had invaded her dreams.
“Open your eyes,” Fedryc said against her hair, his arms pulling her closer. “I can hear your stomach grumbling!”
Marielle smiled but kept her eyes closed. It felt so good to be here in Fedryc’s embrace, absorbing his strength. There was nowhere else where she felt safe anymore. Then her stomach cramped again and she opened her eyes reluctantly.
“You slept for a full day. It’s the afternoon.” Fedryc smiled. “I have to see Henron. Nyra flew close to the castle again today.”
“You stayed with me all that time?” Marielle chuckled. “You were as tired as I was.”
“Yes.” His eyes left her, and sadness clouded his face for a moment. “Nyra is too far away to feed me hervitalem. We’re cut off from each other.”
“Oh.” Marielle’s guts twisted with worry again. “But she will start again, right?”
Fedryc exhaled, then climbed out of bed. He looked better after his long sleep, but there was still an aura of sadness that clung to him like a second skin. She couldn’t truly understand the bond he had with his dragoness, but she could see the effect her leaving had on him. It was like half of him was missing.
“I can only hope she feels the way I do.” Fedryc looked away in the distance, through the window. “Our bond is a powerful thing, but so is a mating bond. I don’t know what I would do if I had to choose between you and her. You are both a part of me. I wouldn’t truly be living if I lost one of you.”
This was the most Fedryc had ever spoken about his bond with the dragoness and Marielle held her breath, not wanting to disrupt the flow of his thoughts. Not wanting him to stop.
“Dragons usually mate without forming a bond. It’s only a union of the flesh, dictated by biological imperatives that have nothing lasting.” Fedryc looked back at Marielle like he knew she needed to understand this part of him, this part of Nyra. “But this time, it’s different for Nyra. I think she’s found her true mate.”
