I stood, wiping my cheeks, and my breath caught at the artwork detailing his muscular torso.
Life and death wove around a large tree right over his heart. Half the branches were empty and skeletal, while the other half grew leaves and flowers. The tree stretched toward a night sky, but where thelifeless branches touched, there were no stars, as if death had sucked out all their light.
But what really tugged at my heart was the angel with broken wings, kneeling at the base of the trunk, his head bowed and his clasped hands raised to the heavens.
Ronen said nothing as I openly stared at his body. His silence crept down my spine and forced my gaze up to his face. I refrained from fidgeting under his emotionless attention and approached. His cold mask tracked every hesitant step. I had to keep reminding myself that his expression was no different from before, but for some reason, it seemed different.
Itfeltdifferent.
Despite my nerves begging me to shy away, I kept my eyes locked on his and stepped into his space. There was no gold to get lost in, only black—like he was putting up a barrier between us. I tried to work up the courage to say something. But my tongue wouldn’t move. My mouth wouldn’t open. I needed to apologize. I owed him that much. So why wouldn’t the words come?
His feathered wings ruffled in our stilted silence. My fingers twitched, curious to feel how soft they might be. But knowing their sensitivity, I grazed a finger along the dejected angel’s tattooed wings right above his pants instead. A gentle vibration hummed against my fingertip. He tensed, and my Infernus sang to me, but I didn’t understand the noise.
“I never wanted to hurt you,” I whispered, pulling back.
He grabbed my hand before I dropped it and placed it on his chest. He held it over his racing heart like it served as his anchor, likeheneededmy touch. My own heart fluttered, proving I could no longer deny the warm feelings slipping through my barriers.
“If I had known…” I trailed off. It wasn’t the right time to tell him that I dream-walked to his memory. “I’m sorry, Ronen.”
He searched my face, the corners of his eyes softening, and I was trapped. His mask melted away, leaving only the quiet strength of a male who no longer hid behind the warrior. His thumb moved back and forth against my hand. The rise and fall of his breaths, the warmth of his skin, grounded me, quieting thoughts of Aspen and the punishing need to rescue him.
I wanted to stay in this quiet, gentle moment. I wanted to bask in his golden gaze and forget everything else.
But then he had to speak.
“Is that the only reason you’re here, Lucille?”
My name sounded like a prayer on his tongue—beautiful and reverent. And I had a feeling the moment I opened my mouth, I’d lose that tender baritone.
“I…”
His mask dropped back into place, and he let go of my hand, stepping back.
One word, and I was no longer talking to Ronen—but toGeneralRonen.
“I didn’t think so.” He crossed his arms, exposing what looked like a tattoo of Rune along his forearm. “Let’s finally hear it. I’ve been curious when you’d ask.”
“Ask?” My insides fluttered with unease.
He tilted his head. “Well, I’m assuming the main reason you wanted to apologize was so we’d be on better ground for when you demanded my help for Lilith’s little pet.”
“How do you know about…”
Ronen nodded down at Rune. “If you’re not counting the time your powers lured me into a dream-walk of you and him, then it’s probably best you know Rune doesn’t need her eyes open for me to be able to listen in on conversations.”
I stepped back. “You knew this entire time?”
He followed me, chin tilted up. “Since the day I accused you of being a traitor.”
I stepped back again, shaking my head. Hadanyonein my life not kept secrets from me?
At each step I took, he mirrored me, as if we were two ends of a string.
“For a moment, I thought you were going to admit to it at the tavern. I tried to drive it out of you, but then you asked me to train you instead.”
I scoffed. “So that’s what the whole truth thing was about. Does your tattoo even mean truth, or was that just part of the manipula?—”
My back hit a glowing tree trunk, and my breath hitched when Ronen stepped into me, leaving only a couple inches of space between us. His heat swallowed me whole. His intoxicating aroma of spicy balsam and clove sank into my senses, biting my tongue and infusing my lungs, causing my eyes to flutter in ecstasy.
