AllFreeNovel
Share Us
His eyes lift on the corners with a tight smile as he waits for me to respond. I’d rather be alone, but for now, I need to play nice and hold up appearances. “I suppose I could use some air.”
A satisfied nod and a wave of his hand towards the doorway is all he offers. “After you.” I swish my dress to make sure I show the hilt of my dagger peeking through the slit before leading the way.
We’ve been walking in silence for a while as my slippers sink with each step, becoming full of sand. Birds soar above the sea before diving down to skim just above the water’s surface, their talons dipping in.
Aiden’s arm casually brushes against mine as we continue to follow the edge, where land and water merge together. “I’ve insisted the seamstress make a dress for you to wear to my father’s celebration tomorrow. It will be delivered to your room in the morning.”
“Thank…you,” I ground out, not wanting to consider what kind of monstrosity he thought to have created.
“Emma, I—” He sucks in a sharp breath when his hand makes contact with my arm. He doesn’t let go. Instead, his fingers grip harder, almost bruising against my skin as he stops and turns me towards him. “You’re freezing,” he says on a breath.
I watch him for a moment as he takes his other hand to trace the black veins that spiderweb underneath. “Yes, but it has nothing to do with being outside.”
I thought I might feel the smallest glimmer of warmth at the touch of another, but I feel nothing. His touch falls numb against my skin. Deep, deep down, that lost sliver of myself—I think—is thankful his touch only repulses me.
He drags his eyes up to mine with a crease between his brows. “You’ve lost your light, your warmth.”
I hold his gaze. “I never truly had my light before, though. Did I?” My words have a hard edge to them that I didn’t intend, but the scar around my neck reminds me of the light I could never reach. Aiden notices, too, for his eyes shutter when they take in the raised skin, a mangled remnant that will forever decorate my throat.
His fingers tremble where they remain on my arm as I tip my head to force him to peer into my black orbs. “No.” He lets out a deflated sigh. “But I do want to apologize. For the things I said and for all that was done to you. I-I didn’t know, Emma.”
“He will pay.”
Aiden silently nods. “You already made him pay, didn’t you? You killed King Oren.” The sun suddenly hardens its light, causing his face to scrunch as he looks up to the sky.
“I wasn’t talking about King Oren.”
His green eyes slam into mine and I cock my head to the side as I wait for his response. “My father?”
Staring blankly at him, I allow my silence to answer for me. And once he understands, he scratches behind his head and looks out to the sea. “You know I can’t allow that.”
“How would you stop me if I stole your father’s still-beating heart from his chest while you were asleep?”
His eyes flare for the briefest moment before he reins it in. “Emma, you must know…I still love you. Even this version of you.” His hands gesture down my body and I remain unmoving. “I still want this to work, even if I’ve had a hard time forgetting your actions towards me before you became this. But my father…” He exhales a long sigh with a swipe of his hand down his face. “He can be unreasonable at times, but don’t make me choose who would see the end of my sword.”
Those green eyes harden, revealing the core of who Aiden is underneath his manicured mask. “One day, we won’t have to worry about him. Once he steps down, it will be you and me who rule as King and Queen of Asov.”
Sharp pinpricks of pain break out over my skin for the first time, with unease coiling tightly in my gut at the thought of being crowned next to him. A wave of nausea crashes over me and makes the ground ripple beneath my feet.
“Woah.” Smooth hands grab both sides of my waist to keep me upright. “Are you okay?”
I brush a small piece of hair out of my face that became unleashed from its braid by the wind. “Yes.” My heart beats faster than it ever has since the darkness claimed me, and I wipe my palms over the front of my dress. “That has never happened before.”
The tips of his fingers dig into the silky material of my dress, but I can barely feel it as I grasp hold of myself. “I’ve got you.”
“I’d like to go back to my room and rest for a while.”
“Of course, I’ll walk you back. Maybe it’s the heat from the sun.”
He keeps his hand on the small of my back as he leads me to my room, while I rack my mind for what could have caused that reaction. As soon as I see my room, I don’t hesitate to curl my fingers around the handle, pushing my door open. I desperately need to be alone to clear my head.
“Emma, wait.” I pause in the middle of my threshold and look back at him. He reaches into his pocket and pulls out a white seashell to place in my hand. “It’s yours,” he says softly. His mouth opens and closes a few times before he speaks again. “Let me know if you need anything, but get plenty of rest before the celebration tomorrow. I’m looking forward to seeing you again.”
The obsidian in my eyes begins to swirl and the need to tell him no sits on my tongue. But I swallow it down, not sure why I’m getting a rush of unsettling feelings when I’m supposed to not to feel a damn thing inside.
Instead, I say, “Tomorrow, then.” The door closes behind me without another look at his sea-green eyes that I could easily ruin in my dark storm.
After Aiden brought me back to my room, I drifted off into a deep slumber, only to wake up in complete darkness with no sign of light peeking through the balcony doors. As I lie there, gazing up at the ceiling, the last flicker of the candle’s flame illuminates the room with a faint orange glow. I’m not sure how much time passes. Despite my exhaustion, sleep eludes me.
