Page 97 of Break Her Heart
“What?” he asked.
I blinked again. “I didn’t know you knew how to wield a blade.”
“I’ve lived for centuries,” he said with a lazy shrug. “You pick up more than a few skills when boredom is your most persistent companion. There are things I can do that would probably surprise you.”
I smiled. “I can’t wait to find out just how many surprises you’re hiding.”
He motioned me forward with a flick of his fingers. “Come on then. Remind me how you took down three Legion soldiers on your own.”
I approached cautiously, tightening my grip on the hilt. Our swords met with a clean, sharp clang that echoed off the stone walls. I stepped back and swung again, testing his defense. He parried easily, his movements fluid, effortless.
We circled each other, our blades clashing again and again, the sound of steel ringing out between us. My breath came quicker, arms warming from the exertion as I twisted andducked, trying to catch him off guard. He smirked at every failed attempt, clearly enjoying himself.
I feigned a left swing, then shifted my weight and came at him from the right. He blocked it just in time, and I caught a flicker of something serious in his eyes—like maybe he hadn’t expected me to move that fast.
But then, just as I moved in again, ready to press my advantage, he vanished in a blink. He was behind me, his blade already lifted.
I spun, scowling. “That’s cheating!”
He raised a brow. “It’s not cheating; it’s using my strengths.”
I stomped my foot, half laughing, half annoyed. “Then I want fangs and speed too! That only seems fair.”
His smirk faded, eyes locking on mine with an intensity that made my breath catch. “Would you really want that?”
I hesitated, the question catching me off guard. “I haven’t really thought about it,” I admitted. “But… I don’t like the idea of aging while you stay flawlessly young. That doesn’t exactly seem fair either.”
He took a step back, raising his sword again. “I don’t know,” he said, the edge of a smile tugging at his lips, “I’m not sure I could handle eternity with your attitude.”
31
August
Dinner had gone exactly as it always did: tense, drawn out, a chess match of veiled insults and subtle threats. And Winnie… she didn’t just sit through it. Shethrived.
She smiled at the cruelty. Tilted her head when someone tried to bait her. And when Lavina tried to jab at her with some cutting remark about manners or bloodlines or whatever bullshit she was stretching to be offended by—Winnie gave her a look that made the entire table fall silent.
Gods, it turned me on so badly I didn’t even wait for dessert. I just stood up, took her by the wrist, and led her straight back to our chambers.
She didn’t ask why. She already knew.
Even now, hours later, I was still drunk on the memory of it—of her. Of the way she didn’t flinch. Of how she belonged there, at that table, in that world.
Mine.
“It is so weird to see you with your siblings.”
That caught me off guard.
“Why?”
“Until recently, Adar and I had always been so close.”
“You were raised a lot differently from me.”Understatement of the fucking century.
She let out a soft giggle.
“What is it?”
