Page 114 of Kingdom of Chaos
He crosses his arms. “All right, I’ll bite. What exactly should I be feeling remorse over?”
“We’re both to blame for Becks being stuck in the human world.”
Talon arches an eyebrow. “And we’ve both sacrificed plenty to get him back, so my conscience is clear on that front.” He pins me with a knowing look. “But let’s be honest, that’s not what’s really bothering you.”
“What are you talking about?”
He steps closer, and the energy between us shifts. Heat prickles across my skin, my pulse skipping in my throat, throwing me off-balance. The space between us feels suddenly too small, so I take a step back, needing the room to breathe.
“This is what I’m talking about,” he says, giving me a knowing look. “You think you’re betraying Becks because of what’s growing between us.”
I freeze, caught off guard. I didn’t expect Talon to go there. To peel back the layers and expose the one thing I’ve been too afraid to name, even to myself.
“That’s not true,” I say, even though it might be.
“Isn’t it though?” he challenges.
Flustered, I take a step back, but Talon closes the distance again, reclaiming the space I tried to create. He steps in even closer.
“That’s not what this is about,” I argue, but he scoffs.
“You can keep telling yourself that if you want, but deep down, you know it’s a lie.”
Is he right? Maybe. I don’t know. Everything feels tangled.
“I love Becks,” I say, needing to ground myself in something I still believe is true. And needing him to hear it too.
Instead of hardening like I expect, Talon’s face unexpectedly softens, and he sighs. “I don’t deny that you do,” he says, gently. “But sometimes love changes.”
I rear back and hit the brick wall, startled to find I’ve backpedaled across the entire room. “What is that supposed to mean?”
Talon meets my gaze without flinching. “That Becks was your first love, but not your forever love.”
His words hit like a slap, and part of me recoils.
Heat flares in my chest, fueled by a rush of defensiveness. Things with Becks might be complicated right now, as they are with Talon too, but that doesn’t mean I’m ready to give up.
Not on him. Not on us. Not after everything we’ve fought through just to be here.
“Why would you think that?” I ask, warring within myself over whether the anger rising in me is directed at Talon or myself.
Talon exhales slowly. “Becks is a good guy,” he says, and the unexpected admission throws me off. “In a different life, I might even like him. Might have wanted to be his friend. But I’m not going to stand by and watch him stifle your potential or diminish your strength in the name of protecting you.”
“That’s not what Becks is doing,” I shoot back, more defensive than I mean to be. Still, Talon’s words hit deeper than I want to admit.
“Isn’t it though?” he asks, his eyes seeing too much.
“There’s nothing wrong with wanting to protect someone.”
Talon gives me a sad smile. “There is when it means you don’t let them walk on their own two feet. When you refuse to see or acknowledge how strong they are.”
I want to snap back at Talon. To defend Becks the way I always do. But too much of what he’s saying rings true. Isn’t that the very disappointment I’ve been trying to ignore? Not just in the past day, but all the way back during the Chaos trials?
If I’m honest, the lack of support has been gnawing at me for a while now, like a slow-acting poison, stealing what used to bebeautiful between us and turning it into resentment. But I didn’t want to admit it. Because it’s Becks. My best friend. The guy I’ve loved for as long as I can remember.
I kept telling myself I could get past it. Or at least bury it. That maybe Becks would change, especially after learning I had powers. But even today, when he tried to drag me out of that meeting, he proved he hasn’t. And maybe he never will.
Talon’s quiet, but his blue-gray gaze holds me—gentle, steady, and seeing more than I want him to.
