Page 32 of The Stones for It
I turned away before she could see the flush colouring my cheeks, but her hand was suddenly there, pulling me back to face her. I kept my eyes on the rough textured wall, fissured and cracked.
“Vrath.” Her thumb brushed my clenched jaw. “Look at me.”
I drew in a deep breath, only realising my mistake when her alluring hot metal and vanilla scent tried to spell me, but I dipped my chin to meet her gaze.
“I know what it’s like to feel as though your whole life is about protecting others,” she murmured.
Everything in me stilled, latching on to her every word.
“In a way… it makes you feel like less. Like sometimes your own life isn’t as valuable.” She blew out a breath. “I used to be a soldier.”
My hands landed on her hips before I realised I’d moved, pulling her in close like I could keep her safe from a danger that had already passed.
Panic rendered me speechless. The thought that I could have met her on the battlefield horrified me. She could have been just another poor soul to haunt my nightmares, and it sickened me.
I didn’t realise I was shaking until her small hands gripped my forearms.
She swallowed, delicate throat working like it was inviting my attention. “The war ended before I was deployed, so I can’t relate to what you went through… but… in case nobody has told you…” She trailed off and her captivating eyes turned piercing. “Youarevaluable, Vrath, and not just for how much damage you can do or take, or what you’re willing to sacrifice for others, but foryou.”
An irrational sense of anger consumed me.
“You don’t know the first thing about me,” I growled.
I’d just insulted her and her entire species. I could have killed her. Her body broken beneath my shadow hammer or cut into countless parts by my dark blades.
“I know you’d take iron to the chest to save a stranger.” Her lips twitched. “That you’d jump out of a tree to catch a mortal you don’t even like. That you’d feed me when I’m hungry. Shelter me from acid with your wings. That you’re not afraid of my sharp edges like I’m not afraid of yours.”
“Kelsea.” Her name left my lips like a prayer to the stars.
Why was I fighting this so badly? Every ounce of my being strained towards her. It had been ever since I’d first laid eyes on her.
I closed the distance between us, forcing her back against the cave wall. She tipped her chin up as her back hit the volcanic rock.
Everything about her was stunning. From the silky waves framing her heart-shaped face to the freckles teasing across the slight bridge of her pert nose. The expressive coffee eyes determined to challenge my control. Rosy, full lips that begged me to claim their softness.
I planted a hand above her head, caging her with my body.
She sucked in a breath and stole mine along with it.
“You’re wrong,” I whispered, leaning close.
An adorable frown creased her brows. “About what?”
“That I don’t like you.”
She gave an amused huff. “If that’s how you treat the people you like, then remind me never to get on your actual bad side.”
My lips twitched. “I wouldn’t say I liked you either.”
“Ouch,” she deadpanned, digging her blunt nails into my chest like she was about to push me away.
I reached up, fisting my claws in the wet strands of her silky hair.
“I’d say that I’m obsessed with you. That I crave you. That you’ve burrowed beneath my skin like an addiction that won’t leave me alone. Every thought I have seems to lead back to you. I both crave and dread it when you open that bratty mouth of yours. The urge to punish you is overwhelming, but at the same time I want to taste those fierce taunts of yours on my tongue.”
My frustrated growl vibrated the scant air between us, and I tightened my grip in her hair.
She notched her chin, challenge flaring in her eyes. “Then what are you waiting for?”
