Page 91 of A Storm of Fire and Ash
He smiled, even if it didn’t quite reach his eyes, then turned and walked back toward the main hall. I stood there a moment longer, watching him disappear through the archway. Guilt curled in my chest, tight and quiet. I hated hurting him. But pretending would’ve been worse.
By lunch, the dining hall was filled with the warm buzz of conversations, and I needed the noise. Needed something that wasn’t tangled hearts and regret.
I searched the room forhim.
I knew he was here. I could feel him.
And there he was, sitting at a table in the distance next to Genevieve. He was smiling at her, and my heart crumbled. She was both beautiful and royalty. Of course he would be drawn to her… My mind wandered and I thought about them touching. Kissing. I blinked back my treacherous tears, shook my head from my thoughts, scanned the room, and saw my friends.
Eryn was already seated at our usual table, long legs stretched out, her silver eyes searched the room lazily. Her lavender hair was braided back on one side, the shaved part of her scalp gleaming beneath the light. She looked like some goddess of war lounging on her throne. Gavrin sat beside her, massive arms folded, eating in steady bites like he didn’t notice the way Eryn kept sneaking glances his way. He wore a dark green tunic that stretched tight over his chest, and his single blue eye flicked toward me as I dropped into the seat across from them.
“Late,” he rumbled.
“Had to have my daily soul-crushing conversation with an ex,” I muttered. “Priorities.”
Makar arrived right on cue, sliding into the seat beside me with a smirk and a plate piled far too high.
“You look flushed, Elara,” he said, voice wrapped in that lilting accent of his. “Should I be jealous?”
“Only if you like emotional wreckage,” I said sweetly.
“Oh, I do,” he purred. “But I prefer mine dressed in blood and glory.”
“Then you’re in luck,” I said, biting into a roll. “The blood’s still metaphorical, but give me a few hours.”
Eryn snorted. Gavrin smiled faintly into his cup.
The tension that had clung to me earlier started to unravel, replaced by the easy rhythm we always found together. Eryn reached for a piece of bread, her hand brushed Gavrin’s. They both froze for half a second, then continued as if nothing hadn’t happened.
I arched a brow. “Why don’t you two just confess your undying love for one another? We all know you’re sleeping together.”
Eryn choked on her water and kicked me under the table.
“Ow,” I hissed, grinning as I rubbed my shin.
“You’re impossible,” she muttered.
“You’re deflecting,” I sang.
Makar gave a quiet chuckle. “They think they’re subtle.”
Gavrin smirked faintly, lifting his cup. “You’ve got a lot of opinions for someone who stalks around and cries when she’s drunk.” He took a sip, then added, “Maybe if yougot laid like the rest of us, you’d stop brooding at windows like a tragic poem.”
“You’re one to talk,” I said, peering at him as I pointed my fork at him. “You practically sobbed when you were healing my back, then wouldn’t meet my eyes for a week.”
His smile faded for a moment. “I should’ve stopped it from happening.”
“You couldn’t’ve stopped it… it would have made things worse if you had intervened,” I said gently. “But you were the one who tried to help after, and that’s what matters most.”
His jaw flexed, and he nodded. “Still. Zayn was right, I should have done something.”
Zayn.Did he make Gavrin feel bad about what happened to me? There wasn’t anything he could’ve done…
Makar sensed the shift in the mood, leaned close, and whispered loudly, “He’s just upset because he only got a good look at your naked back and didn’t get to see the front.”
Eryn smacked him with her spoon.
“Please, Gavrin has a smoke show underneath him every night,” I winked towards Eryn.
