ALAYNA’s POV
Ezra's body is warm against mine, a solid, comforting weight half-draped over me as the early light slips through the frost-laced windowpanes. His bare chest rises and falls in a slow, steady rhythm, the sound of his breathing syncing with the flutter of my pulse.
I lie on my side, tucked beneath his arm, fingers resting against the smooth line of his ribs. I can still feel the heat of last night on my skin, the ghost of his touch lingering in places that ache for him even now. Goddess, I have lost count of how many times we did it last night.
His thumb brushes across my shoulder, then trail lightly down the curve of my spine, sending yet another thrill of tingling sensation all over my body.
“You’re awake,” I murmur, my voice all too raw and husky.
“I was watching you,” he says. “You make these little sounds when you dream.”
I feel my cheeks burn. &l
DRAKE’s POVThe Southlands are too quiet.Every snapped twig beneath my boots feels like a warning. I keep low, eyes scanning through the dense fog tangled in pine needles. The cold is a living thing, clinging to my skin and burning in my lungs. I can still taste the metallic edge of blood and adrenaline from our escape.Damn you, Ezra. You should have just stayed dead.Carlos trails behind me, ten paces back,his movements tight and cautious. “We should’ve gone east,” he hisses, scanning the shadows. “Too many patrols this close to the mountain spine.”I do not answer him. We both know I have led us straight into danger but admitting it tastes too much like defeat and I have had my fill of that."They’re closing in on us,” he continues, his eyes shifting from left to right and I catch sight of his golden iris.Golden Eye.He earned that name lo
ALAYNA’s POVThe dungeon air bites into my lungs with each step. Damp stone walls close in around me, with torches flickering low in their sconces, casting shadows like gnarled fingers across the corridor. The scent of mildew and old blood seeps into my skin. I hate this place. Every brick and every iron latch, filling me with whispers of pain.Ezra walks beside me in silence. His arm brushes mine, not by accident though. I think he wants me to lean on him but I do not.“I can come with you,” he says at last.I pause in front of the heavy iron door. “No, Ezra. I need to do this alone.”His jaw tightens. “Are you sure?”“Yes.” I glance at him and touch his arm. “Please.”He studies my face for a moment. Then he nods and turns Mustachio, the guard stationed at the door. The man looks uneasy, his gloved fingers tapping against the hilt of his
ALAYNA’s POVEzra's body is warm against mine, a solid, comforting weight half-draped over me as the early light slips through the frost-laced windowpanes. His bare chest rises and falls in a slow, steady rhythm, the sound of his breathing syncing with the flutter of my pulse.I lie on my side, tucked beneath his arm, fingers resting against the smooth line of his ribs. I can still feel the heat of last night on my skin, the ghost of his touch lingering in places that ache for him even now. Goddess, I have lost count of how many times we did it last night.His thumb brushes across my shoulder, then trail lightly down the curve of my spine, sending yet another thrill of tingling sensation all over my body.“You’re awake,” I murmur, my voice all too raw and husky.“I was watching you,” he says. “You make these little sounds when you dream.”I feel my cheeks burn. &l
ALAYNA’s POVI wake to the blanket that clings to my skin, warm and heavy and when I shift beneath it, I feel the ache in every inch of my body.Oh.A flush creeps up my face as the memories rush back and I remember and feel the phantom touch of Ezra’s lips on mine, the heat from his hands as they trailed all over my body and his voice of deep timbre that growled my name again and again as he took me. On the sofa, on top of the kitchen counter, against the walls of the tiny corridor and on this very bed.So many places. So many times. Too many that I have lost count. Each time we finished, the heat would come crawling back, insatiable and relentless. And each time, I would reach out to him and each time he answered my call.I stretch slowly, my muscles tender and sore, and the movement drags the blanket lower across my now tender and swollen breasts. I am still naked beneath it. And as I stretch, the wool
EZRA’s POVAlayna wets her lips with her pink tongue and nods her head slowly. “I understand.”That is all I need to hear her say.My lips are on hers before she can even let out a gasp. Hmm…I have waited so long for this, and though she tastes the same, sweet and velvety, the taste of her lips still manages to surprise me every time.My hands glide from the soft curve of her jaw, trailing slowly down the elegant line of her neck, then lower, to the delicate hollow of her collarbone. I take my time, savouring every inch and every shift of her breath beneath my touch. Each stroke carries a need that pulses not only in her body, but in mine. A quiet ache we share without words.Then, my fingers slide down to her breasts, teasing at her already pebbled nipples and she groans into my ears.“There’s no going back after this, Alayna. Once you feel me in you, your
ALAYNA’s POVI awaken to the crackle of firewood by the hearth, noting for the first time how the room is bathed in a soft amber glow. I had been too cold to appreciate its beauty when Ezra brought me here earlier but now, in the quietness of this place, I get to see how amazing this place is. Everything here has been made with great care, from the pastel blue wall to the simple but tasteful furniture. Ezra had prepared this.I blink.Ezra is here with me and I freeze.Shadows flicker across the walls, dancing in the corners like whispers. The air is warm, but it is not the fire that makes my skin burn.It is him.I realize now that my head is tucked beneath Ezra’s chin, the edge of his jaw brushing my forehead. I look up to see stubbles growing from his jaw and wonder how it would feel to run my fingers through them. Would they be soft or prickly, I wonder?I inhale deeply a
ALAYNA’s POVFunny how a moment ago I was ready to end my life.But the return of an old memory has changed everything.Drake…he had let me fall down the stairs. It was him.He had lied to me.Then does that mean everything else he told me was a lie? I need to find out.But right now, the cold is not helping,In fact, the cold wraps around me like a vice, sinking its claws deep into my bones and I sneeze. My blouse, a light green one clings to my body, soaked and heavy. It leeches off every trace of heat I have left so much so that I cannot stop trembling. My teeth chatter uncontrollably no matter how hard I clench my jaw. I cannot feel my toes anymore. Somehow, I lost both my sneakers in the lake.Ezra quickly wraps both arms around me. His hold on me is both warm and solid, like his body was made to shield mine from the world.“Wh…what are…y-you doing?&rdq
ALAYNA’s POVThe cottage is warm and quiet, a stark contrast to the first frost of winter that has spread in the fields. Here, the fire crackles steadily in the stone hearth, casting a soft orange glow that dances across the wooden walls. I sit at the table listening to the small, familiar sounds of cooking; the clink of metal on wood, the gentle bubbling of a pot on the stove and the creak of the old floorboards beneath shifting feet.My father hums to himself as he chops vegetables, his knife moving with a slow but careful rhythm. Odd how I associated him with only bread making before and nothing else. I guess I need to spend more time in the cottage to get to know my father again.Gimli stands beside him, stirring something in a dented saucepan while muttering about “too much salt” even though he is the one who added it. The movements of these two men, one bulky and one frail, are clumsy but od
EZRA’s POVContrary to what many believe, I have always found comfort in stillness, in peace and quiet and in the sound of silence. Even as a child, I would slip away from Orion’s training sessions to sit on these cliffs, gazing out at the ocean, losing myself in the drifting clouds and the soft lapping of waves below. But today, that same silence is unbearable.It kills me.I look at Alayna who kneels before me, her body hunched over and her fingers twisted into the cold dirt. But she is not crying.She has already cried herself dry.Her spirit is hollow, her flame is gone. And I know why.HE had pushed her.I close my eyes, letting the ghosts of Wanda and Mira’s fragmented memories flood in.Alayna’s scream, the crack of bone on rock and the silence that followed.It did not make sense to me before, not fully. I saw only flashes of memory when I pushed into Wanda’s mind ba