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Her eyes made impressively quick work of surveying Isla and her own attire, another combination of a tunic and pants, before slipping to her mating mark, her ring. Then she snapped her gaze away.
Assessment.
Isla rifled through her mind for whatever she could recall about Amalie and Kai’s relationship: on again and off again, a beautiful couple appearance-wise that the pack and its gossips adored, but behind closed doors, they only seemed to be compatiblephysically. If they weren’t all over each other, they were fighting about something. At least, according to Belle.
Isla blanched, biting back her grimace.
Either out of sympathy or for her own selfishness, wanting to evade the awkwardness that had sprouted between them, Isla craned her neck to observe the tree and its glow. “This is beautiful.” She cast her eye to the other trees of the forest, which hadn’t been lit and didn’t have seating as this one did. “Why is it the only one like this?”
Jax slapped his hand against the bark and threw the apple’s core deep into the woods. “My great, great, great grandfather—or he might be an uncle, technically—for some reason, his luna loved this tree and used it as her place to reflect. So, when she died—tragically, of course, as it always goes—he made this a spot for everyone in her honor. Apparently, when he himself was withering away, he spent his last days right here, talking to her and waiting to be with her again. I don’t think he was that old when he died. They were fated mates, and she was his world. A broken heart killed him.”
A somberness cleaved her chest. “That’s…” She couldn’t find the right word, and her eyes dropped to her ring.
“Love is a devastatingly powerful thing,” he said. “For all it blooms, it destroys with even greater force.”
Isla’s eyes flicked back up in time to realize he’d also been observing her ring.
“You know, that may be the most poignant thing to ever come out of your mouth, Jax,” Ameera commented from behind her.
Jax bowed his head. “I try.”
Then his cousin rose from the bench, wiping something from her dress. “If only you hadn’t bastardized the monument by making it a meeting spot for your debauchery.”
“The islanddoes not always equal debauchery, Cousin,” he said over his shoulder before turning back to Isla. “Though, the most lecherous nights have been the most fun. I’ll let your mate tell you some of those stories.”
Isla quirked a brow. “He may have mentioned you tend to embellish.”
Jax’s jaw unhinged. “Nonsense, that prick. Is he still trying to be on his best behavior around you? Even after he put that mark on your neck?”
Isla laughed. “He’s a gentleman when he has to be.”
Jax cocked his head. “And other times?”
Bold question. “Wouldn’t you like to know.”
“Can we go,please?” Amalie snipped. By the time they all looked at her, she was already heading for the lantern-lined cobblestone path behind her.
“Why is your aunt making her do this?” Isla finally asked when she was decently out of earshot. Jax seemed surprised she’d drawn the conclusion. “It’s not hard to tell she doesn’t want to be here.”
“The day I understand my aunt’s motivations is the day the world ends. I simply obey,” he said.
Isla scoured his face for truth, which he seemed to be telling.
The alpha’s nephew gave her a smirk before sweeping his hands in a grand gesture to the rock path cast over by a yellowish glow. “Well, to the sea we go, Your Majesty. We don’t want to miss the ferry.”
“Lead the way.”
* * *
They headed down the path one by three. Isla was intrigued by Jax’s stories as he explained more of the Pack Hall’s expanse and the royal city of Ciryn that was home to those buildings she’d spotted glimpses of behind the sandstone walls. As they drew closer to the coastline before they walked along its edge, Isla sucked in a breath. In the distance, the island’s lights glimmered like stars, not with the ethereal glow of Mavec’s crystals, but in a way that was a bit more ostentatious.
She hadn’t realized she was beaming until Jax commented, “You and Kai really are a pair.”
“What do you mean?” she asked.
“You both look at everything like it’s a challenge. Something to be conquered.” He pointed to the island. “You’re about to have the time of your life over there, and nothing’s going to stop you.”
Isla laughed, tipping her head back as a salty nighttime wind kissed her face.Having the time of her life didn’t sound bad, though she wished Kai had been here with her. “I missed the ocean.”
