Page 66

Dusk settled around us as Adrian started a fire on the sandy bank of a small lake, a short distance away from the castle.

Fireflies filled the sky, their glow bouncing off the stillness of the water’s surface.

Sigrid and Cal didn’t waste any time, stripping down to their undergarments without a care in the world, and rushing toward the water. They ran in as far as they could before diving beneath the black surface, while I recoiled slightly from where I stood, counting my breath until they resurfaced.

Adrian sat down in the sand, a bottle of liquor beside him. “Need some courage?” He offered me the bottle, his asshole smirk gone, for now.

I accepted it, taking a drink, enjoying the feel of the warm sand on my feet that still held the heat of the day, eventually plopping myself down next to him, waiting for the liquid courage to find me.

“Not a fan of water?” He eyed me, his attention making me take another drink before handing the bottle back to him.

Instead of answering, I watched Sigrid and Cal wrestle each other, Sigrid’s laughter echoing in the air as Cal threw her over his shoulder.

It’s just water, Bryn.

And no one here is going to hold you under.

I wished for a moment Leo was here. Perhaps he would know what to do to help me in this situation.

But in his place, I was stuck sitting next to his commander, listening to him take his own drink from the bottle.

“Want to tell me why you don’t want to go in?”

“I don’t see you rushing in, either,” I said, shocking myself with the amount of animosity in my tone. “Sorry,” I murmured, reaching back for the bottle in his hand.

He pulled it out of my reach. “I’ll give it to you if you go in with me.”

I looked back at the water and shivered.

His voice grew serious. “I’m not going to let anything happen to you.”

I shrugged my shoulders. “I don’t like water,” I said simply, hating how small I felt, reverting back to the fear.

I’d been making strides, but now here I was, being a coward. Again.

I exhaled deeply. I’d had enough of myself. I needed to get over this fear once and for all.

No more pushing it off.

No more letting it control me.

“If my hair gets wet, I’ll kill you.”

Adrian stared at my hair. “I swear, I won’t let one gorgeous strand get wet.”

I rolled my eyes, standing, the rush of the liquor making my footing uneven.

Adrian was on his feet in an instant, his hand shooting out to steady me. The intensity of the heat in his touch adding to the warmth from the alcohol.

“Thanks,” I whispered, feeling flushed, as I turned from him and started to take off my clothes; my bra and panties doing little to hide the outline of my breasts and the curve of my hips.

Adrian discarded his shirt and pants quickly beside him, then deftly removed a necklace from where it rested on his defined chest before tossing it onto his pile of clothes.

Out of the corner of my eye, I could tell he was trying his best not to look at me, his throat working to swallow.

He took another mouthful from the bottle before letting it fall to the sand and offering me his hand.

Lacing my fingers through his, I tried not to stare at him, at his broad chest with dark hair, or at his stomach that narrowed with deep muscles just above his briefs, and instead focused on the feel of the water, not the feel of his hand, as we stepped in, wading out to join Sigrid and Cal.