“Please…” he sighed, “for my sake, will you be a good girl and not push yourself too hard today?”
Auryn shifted, her lips tugging to the side. “I have plans with Thessia.”
His jaw flexed, spine stiffening.
He tipped her chin up with his thumb.
“Lately,” he said, “that’s all you ever tell me.”
She blinked. “What do you mean?”
He didn’t answer right away, just let his eyes search hers—seeking his own reflection there. Hoping he wouldn’t find another’s instead. Then he leaned forward, kissing her temple, her cheek, then the top of her head. A warm, full embrace he hoped would wrap around her like a shield.
Her fingers curled into his cloak. She leaned in, her breath catching as she murmured,
“Don’t…go yet. Not yet.”
He hugged her just a little harder, opened his mouth to say something—
And that was the moment the tent flap rustled.
Thessia stood in the entry dressed in full Riven Blade armor, arms crossed, her braids like whips slung over one shoulder. She didn’t speak. Just stood there, violet eyes sharp and unreadable. Her gaze saw everything and missed nothing.
A moment passed between them.
Unspoken, yet full of thick, charged tension.
Kailorien didn’t let go, pulling Auryn closer. One arm wrapped around her back, the other hand resting over her nape. His lips brushed the crown of her head again.
Then, and only then, did he lift his gaze to meet Thessia’s.
He didn’t blink. Didn’t speak.
Just held Auryn tighter.
As if to say:She’s mine.
Thessia arched a brow.
Another beat.
She didn’t balk. Didn’t waver. Just assessed what was in front of her the same way she would have sized up an enemy before charging into battle. Then—hand on her hip, chin high—she let out a low, amused chuckle. She moved closer, every motion confident—assured.
“All right, little moonbeam,” she grinned, stepping fully into the tent like she owned the ground it was sitting on. “Are you ready?”
Resh didn’t release Auryn, even when she blinked and turned toward the sound of Thessia’s voice. Something in her relaxed immediately. Thatsoft gleam in her eyes—one he’d only started seeing since she’d woken after the rift—lit up like sunlight catching on steel.
“Ready,” Auryn whispered.
Thessia held out a hand, palm tilted just so.
Auryn lifted hers and smacked it lightly—palm, then knuckles, then a twist of the fingers and a press of thumbs at the end. A ridiculous little thing they’d clearly practiced more than once.
Resh watched the whole thing.
Silent.
Seething.
