Page 133 of A Sunwoven Ascent

Stop.

Get it together, Holden.

He clenched his jaw and forced his mind elsewhere. Anywhere else. But then she looked at him again, those bright blue eyes catching his, and everything else in the room disappeared.

This was torture. Actual, physical torture.

Even holding her hand—just her hand—was enough to leave him unsteady, his entire body wound tight as if he might snap at any moment.

And the worst part?

She didn’t deserve this.

Didn’t deserve him.

He was rough, impatient, always one step away from doing something reckless. And she…

She was everything else. Soft. Elegant. Intelligent.

He had known it the moment she woke in the tunnels. The instant her eyes met his and something in his chest locked into place, he had known he was in trouble.

Still, he had tried to ignore it. Told himself she was just another pretty female. Just someone who smelled good. Really fucking good. Enough to make him dizzy if he let himself think about it too long. Like lilacs and vanilla and something warm he couldn’t name without sounding like a complete idiot.

And now here they were.

Dancing.

At this ridiculous excuse for entertainment that people insisted on calling fun.

Holden focused on anything that might kill the heat building in his chest—mud, blood, broken bones, Kaldrek’s armpit, anything—but her scent kept cutting through it, stronger with every step.

“Am I truly so dreadful to look at?” Aurelia’s voice drew him back. “You appear as though I’ve just murdered your favorite pet.”

Holden blinked.

He had no idea what she’d been saying before that.

She cleared her throat, louder this time. “I suppose conversation is not your strength.”

He let out a slow breath. “Quite the opposite, actually. Turns out I’m the most irritating member of the pack. Lucky for you, though, you can barely hear anything over this nonsense you call music.”

“Nonsense?” Aurelia’s brows lifted. “This, sir—” She paused, then sighed. “Well, admittedly, this particular piece is not my favorite. But the instruments themselves…”

She smiled.

And Holden nearly lost his footing entirely.

“Never mind,” she added, rolling her eyes. “You wouldn’t understand true beauty.”

He huffed a laugh, spinning her with more confidence than he’d expected he had. “You’re something else, you know that?”

“I have no idea what you mean.”

Her eyes lit slightly as the music picked up, and he caught it—that moment of genuine enjoyment. So he leaned into it, gave her a better turn, steadier this time.

She stepped closer on the return. Too close.

He couldn’t stop himself from lowering his voice near her ear. “I know beauty,” he murmured. “And you are… frustratingly… the most beautiful female I’ve ever seen. So try me, Aurelia.”