Page 194 of Axis of Fire

“I don’t know about other people,” he said softly, “but to me, you become someone I can’t bear the thought of seeing broken.”

“Well, once we return to Istarus, I can’t guarantee I won’t break.”

“I don’t want to lose my family,” I whispered into the pillow, my voice breaking as I tried to muffle the sound.

And the shame burrowing beneath my skin.

“I’ll do everything I can to make sure they let you visit them.”

“You’re only saying that to make me feel better.”

“I’m saying it because, whether I like it or not, I care.”

Silence followed.

The kind that seemed to give me permission to breathe again.

“Why?” I whispered, slipping one hand free from Airis’s gentle hold to wipe away my tears.

“Although I think I already know the answer,” I continued, unable to stop the bitterness that had long ago become part of me—a poison that tried to protect me from pain before it could truly reach me. “Heartbroken girls are probably harder to get into bed with. And that’s what you really want, isn’t it?”

I remembered the words he’d spoken in my adoptive parents’ house.

“We’re already in the same bed,” Airis replied, his tone maddeningly calm.

“You know what I mean,” I muttered with a sniffle.

Airis said nothing.

And honestly, what else had I expected?

For him to confess his feelings after knowing me for only a few days?

That would’ve been ridiculous.

Yet somehow, the ache that settled in my chest after his answer felt just as ridiculous.

“As your mentor, I promise to help carry your pain and protect the things you love,” Airis said after a long pause. “But right now, you need to sleep, Fireling. Today asked too much of you.”

I wanted to argue.

I wanted to stay awake.

But my body had already made the decision for me.

The moment my eyes closed, the noise inside my mind finally faded.

And sleep carried me away.

Chapter 18

The moment we returned to Istarus, Airis dragged me straight to the training hall after we changed clothes.

No break.

No rest.

I was exhausted.