Rowan supported him the few yards it took to investigate. As they got closer, hope that felt more like a knot in his throat threatened Briar with tears.
It was a carpet of blooms.
He kneeled to pick one of the red flowers, shaped like a bell.
CHAPTER 31
They returned to Rowan’s cottage to brew the potion that would save Briar’s life.
Rowan eased him onto the sofa. It required no magic to steep a few herbs, and he insisted on Briar resting. Left to sink into the cushions, it was the first moment Briar had to take stock of his body’s various aches, and there were many. His joints protested. His blood pumped like poison through his veins. Grit coated his throat like sandpaper.
But he was alive, and safe, and home.
It might not be the last they heard of Linden. No doubt, he’d go to great lengths to defame Briar and restore his own reputation. There would be an investigation. Whatever proof Briar could provide, he would. Otherwise, he had every intention of sitting here for as long as he wanted.
Which was not long. He cast a look toward the kitchen. Aches and pains aside, the sofa was not his ideal source of comfort. Bracing a hand on the arm, he got to his feet and shuffled down the hall. He found Rowan, back turned as he poured steaming water into a mug. Briar came up behind him and looped both arms around his ribs. With a hand over Rowan’s chest, he felt the steady beat of his heart. With his forehead nestled in the valley of his spine, the aura that had drawn him in from the start soothed the ache in his head. He took a deep breath.
One of Rowan’s hands covered his. “You should be resting.”
“Mm-hm.”
“Are you all right?”
“I just…” Briar said, “needed this.”
“This?”
“You.”
Rowan turned and bundled him close, kissing the top of his head. “I never left.”
Briar pressed his forehead into Rowan’s chest instead. “I have to make the test thing. The test to see if I’m still cursed.”
“What does it need?”
“Honeysuckle pollen.”
“I’ll get it.”
Rowan went outside to fetch some from the garden while the potion steeped. After, they returned to the living room and sat on the sofa. The potion, smelling sweet and floral, was too hot to drink. Briar snuck under Rowan’s arm while they waited for it to cool. They needed a shower, a change of clothes, a long night’s sleep. His mind trailed along these thoughts and landed on the next morning, waking to Rowan’s breath rising and falling under his ear. He choked on things unsaid. Rowan had asked if he was all right, but…
“Areweall right?” Briar said.
Rowan didn’t answer. Briar’s heart thudded, and he looked up to see Rowan looking back. The crease of pained worry on his brow yielded to a softer expression. “We will be,” he said.
“I’ve put us through hell.”
His smile was almost mocking now. “You can’t take the whole of the credit.”
“Um,” Briar deadpanned, “I think I can.”
Rowan shook his head. “I knew how I felt about you from the start. I was too much a coward to tell you. Maybe if I’d told you sooner… well.”
Briar reached up to touch the edge of Rowan’s jaw, now fuzzy after several days without shaving. He didn’t think words could mend everything, but he wanted to be open. “I said what I did because I really thought I could save us both on my own.” He swallowed the lump in his throat and pressed on. “The best thing for me was coming to Coill Darragh and finding you. I can’t—I can’t imagine going back to the way things were before we met. Ever since Mum died, I’ve felt… I don’t know. Like I had to prove I mattered to the whole world before I got snuffed out of it. But you always made me feel like I mattered.” A pause to get his voice under control. “I just feel stronger—everything’s justbetterwith you. I was such an idiot. I don’t want you to ever doubt how much I love you.”
Rowan listened. Then he gently tipped Briar’s chin and kissed him. It was comforting, languorous after the long day they’d had. He pulled back to tuck Briar’s hair behind his ear.
“Briar.” Still, the way Rowan said his name was a spell all its own. “I’m not the best with words, but I’ll say this. No hurt you caused is one I’ll hold on to. I was more scared of losing you than getting my heart broke.” He regarded the steaming mug on the coffee table. “I’d not waste a stolen minute I have with you ruminating.”
