Page 71 of Cherished By the Gargoyle
The quiet hallway feels suffocating, and I struggle to keep my breathing even. How will I stand quietly as Aurora binds herself to him, to watch her place her hand in his, promising herself to him forever?
Everything in me rails against it, a primal cry echoing deep within my soul. Aurora should be mine… my mate, my heart, my everything.
But that cannot be.
Ryllen is her future, and I loathe him for it even as I respect him.
When we enter his chambers, he turns to me. “Your devotion to your duty is admirable, but it goes beyond that, doesn’t it?”
I still, his blunt question catching me off guard.
Before I can reply, he adds, “You are more than a guard. You are her friend… her confidant.” His expression turns contemplative. “She has been honest with me. She says her heart belongs to another. Tell me: do you know this individual?”
I stiffen. The question is casual, but there is a knowing glint in his eyes.
“She had many friends,” I say carefully. “There were plenty our age in the village.”
Ryllen studies me, his posture easy but his eyes too shrewd. “Do you believe he will be a problem?”
And then I see it: the truth beneath his words. He knows. He has known from the moment he asked, and his kindness, his quiet dignity, makes it all the more unbearable.
He’s not accusing. He is not posturing. He’s simply... concerned.
“No,” I say, forcing the word past my tightening throat. “There is nothing for you to worry about.”
Ryllen studies me silently for a long, tense moment before nodding slightly. “I’d like to speak plainly then.” He pauses a moment as if searching for the words before he finally says, “I understand neither of you knew the truth back then. I would never hold either of you accountable for any... feelings that may have grown.”
“Nothing happened.” It’s not a complete lie, but neither is it the truth. What we shared was far from nothing. It was everything to me.
Ryllen watches me for a long moment before nodding. “I believe you.” He hesitates briefly before adding, “I will make sure she wants for nothing. Aurora will be the center of my world.”
“I know.” The ache in my chest tightens painfully as I force the words past my lips. “I’ve seen how you are with her.”
Ryllen looks down at his hands. “My whole life I’ve been told she would be mine. That I would save her from this curse. But now, meeting her... she is suddenly real to me. Not some ideal or imagining. This is new for both of us. But I vow to you, I will always put her first. I will be devoted to her.”
His honesty surprises me, softening the bitterness twisting within my chest.
“She deserves love,” I reply, pushing down my emotions. “And I believe with time, it could… build between you.”
Ryllen studies me, tilting his head thoughtfully. “I’ve heard gargoyles don’t quite love, not in the way humans or Fae do.”
I let the assumption stand. It’s easier to keep this painful truth locked away. And it is the lie Fiora told Aurora about my kind, and I need her to believe it.
“I believe I can grow to love her as well,” he says. “I already admire her and consider her a friend.”
Something about the way he says it, the measured weight behind the words, tells me he understands this may not be the fate he once imagined, but it could be one worth living for.
“Nothing else remains between you two now?” Ryllen asks, his sharp gaze holding mine.
“Nothing,” I say, the word bitter in my mouth but truthful. There cannot be.
Ryllen studies me for a beat longer, then nods. “Then I will take you at your word. Gargoyles are a noble people. Aurora has lost enough. I will not stand in the way of your friendship.”
Surprise flickers through me at his quiet kindness.
Even though everything inside me detests the idea of Aurora with another male, I know Ryllen is a good man. An honorable man. And I know without doubt that he will care for and protect her.
And that knowledge will be enough. It has to be.
