Page 45 of A Thread of Breath and Bone

We both look at the maps spread across the table. Even with the fastest hyperjump reactors, we’re looking at years of travel through uncharted space. We might only have days or weeks before the shadowed crown rises. The math doesn't work, but the Aethermark doesn't care about math.

By the time we’re done, we’ve missed lunch. We call it a day and head to the kitchens in search of food. Thankfully, they’ve set some aside for us. We eat outside on the bridge over Kyrr Falls, the largest of the waterfalls on the palace island. Spray and mist surround us, but don’t soak us. The plate in front of me is full of berries, bread, a slice of meat, and honey.

“I miss Tate,” I say around a mouthful of kayberry. It’s the sweetest of all the berries in Treon. “And Trysten.” I turn and smile at Ryker. “I’m surprised he didn’t come with you.”

“Didn’t have time to talk to him. My mother practically shoved me out the door,” he says with his classic arrogant smirk. He tosses a grape into his mouth and leans back on his hands. He swallows, and his dimple pops out. Visions of crawling into his lap and licking the column of his neck fill my mind.

“I miss Tate, too. Gods, can he come live here with us?” Ciara begs, snapping me back to the present.

I try to ignore the heat pooling within me. As if Ryker can sense where my thoughts have gone, his heated gaze rakes over me, leaving me breathless. I clear my throat and turn toward Ciara on Kellan’s other side. “I mean, I would love that. There are still plenty of rooms. It depends on his parents. Thirik isn’t being evacuated, so I don’t see why he couldn’t.”

“Would your parents get upset?” Ciara asks.

“No. We can send a communication to Thirik later after I run it by my parents when I meet them. I have a meeting with my father after lunch.”

She nods, and we all finish our food. Ezra hovers close by, alerting a servant to retrieve our plates.

“I’ll be back in a little while, okay?” I say to Ryker, kissing his neck. I feel his body heat wrap around me, anchoring me while I breathe in citrus and raging seas. My teeth graze the soft skin.

“Where are you going?” His voice trembles a bit, otherwise I’d think he was totally unaffected. His eyes dart to my lips. My tongue glides across my bottom lip before biting down on it. He groans, capturing my mouth before he bites down on my lips, slowly dragging his teeth across them.

My thoughts flee my mind for a moment before I see Kellan leave Ciara by the entrance to the garden. “I need to talk to Kellan.”

That sobers him. He pulls back and nods. I close the gap between us. Our lips brush slightly, and my breathing gets heavier, harder.

“Fine,” he growls. “Go with him, if you must. But remember whose heart beats within yours, not beside it.” His smirk spreads across his face as his eyes dip once more to my mouth. “Hurry back, love. I don't like the way the air feels when you're on the other side of the palace.”

This makes me snort. I never thought I'd see the day when Anders Rykerson, Prince of Okenen and the hottest guy I've ever met, would ever be jealous. Can’t say it doesn’t make me feel a little good, because I’m definitely reveling in it.

“Are you actually admitting you're jealous, Prince Anders?” I seal my lips with his, sending my world into a frenzy.

He pulls back, his breath hitting my lips. “I'm admitting that your soul lives in my chest, Soraea. When you walk away, I stop breathing correctly. Now go, before I decide the garden can wait, and keep you for myself.”

I don’t answer. Instead, I hurry to meet Kellan in the gardens.

Chapter 18

Raea

My mother’s gardens are similar to a maze, only less complicated. There are still twists and turns, hedges you can’t see over, bridges you can cross, but I know them by heart. Kellan and I have spent our whole lives playing in here.

As we walk, I can almost hear our laughter from years past echoing throughout the rows of shrubs and flowers. We loved playing tag or hide-and-seek.

Kellan is silent beside me as we pass the frost lilies and the hawkthorne trees that are in full bloom. There’s a little bench beside it, but we take a U-turn around the tree, heading straight for the center. I close my eyes and let the thick mist seep into my skin. We take our final turn, and the gilded fountain comes into view. It’s as tall as the hedges with layers of pools that spill into each other. The edge of the fountain is thick enough to act as a bench. I take a seat there while Kellan stands.

“I feel like I’ve lost you,” he starts, breaking the silence that has fallen between us. “And you’re going to be married to him soon.”

I nod, hugging myself, knowing it’s time to have the conversation. I’ve been hoping he’d back off. He had promised, but he’s still clinging. It’s always been Ryker, always will be. There’s no force in the universe that could change that. “You will always be my best friend, Kellan. And you will make a great husband for someone. And yes, that thought makes me nauseous, but it's true. She will be the luckiest.”

He groans, shoving his hands into his hair as he creates some distance between us. “So you’re giving up on us?” he scoffs. “I mean, do you think there’s even a chance the prophecy is wrong or that you’re wrong about him? Gods, Raea, I’m in love with you, and it hurts. I can’t breathe seeing you two together, like you’ve already just given up on anyone else being a possibility.”

“There’s no Bond between us, Kellan. There hasn’t been in a long time. I’ve tried telling you. I’ve made it obvious. Over and over, the truth is brought forth, and still you deny it. It’s not me who is giving up. You can’t give up on something that was never even possible.”

“I don’t care,” he snaps, throwing out his arms. “I won’t give up. Not now, not ever. Screw the damn prophecy. You’re it for me, Rae, only you. I don’t need fate to bind us. My choice has always been you. I won’t give up hope that maybe it will be me.” His voice breaks, and there’s desperation in his eyes. “I’ve loved you every way a man can love a woman—quietly, fiercely, and even when it broke me. But you’re asking me to just walk away, and I can’t.” His chest heaves from his desperate attempts to breathe. “I can’t walk away. I love you so much, Raea.”

My eyes burn. How did we end up here? It felt like not long ago, we were inseparable, and now, I’m on the verge of losing him. If he can’t let me go, he’s going to be the one with a broken heart.

“I don’t want you to give up on me. Maybe that’s selfish, but I want you in my life, Kel. I want you there for everything. And I’m sorry you’re hurting, but do you think that this is easy on me? Knowing that because my soul belongs to another, you’ll leave me over a choice I was never allowed to make. I was born to be his, never yours.”