She doesn’t stop struggling, her eyes growing wilder with panic. An errant leg catches my knee, and it buckles under me. She takes the opportunity to slip out of my grasp, bolting down the alley. But she barely gets ten steps before I’m on her again, grabbing her arm and slamming her against the wall. The shock of it silences her, but only for a moment.
Her eyes catch mine and widen in recognition.
And then narrow.
“What the fuck are you doing?” I snarl, the anger bubbling up before I can stop it. My heart is pounding, a mix of adrenaline and… fear. Fear that I might not have caught her. And she’d be gone.
She glares at me, defiant as ever. “Let me go.Now.”
We’re locked in a battle of wills, the tension between us crackling like lightning. Her stubbornness is infuriating, but there’s something else too—something that tugs at me, even as I try to push it away. She’s so close, her breath coming in sharp bursts against my skin. All it would take is to lean down just an inch more, and I’d finally feel those lips against mine. The thought of it sends a surge of heat through me, one that I can barely control.
“Are you alone?” I ask, my voice tight with barely controlled anger, trying to focus on anything but the pull she has on me. “Who are you hiding from?”
She doesn’t answer, just keeps glaring at me with thatfire in her eyes. I’m about to shake her for some answers when I hear fast footsteps behind me. I spin around, keeping Eirabella pressed against the wall, and see Mathis appear from around the corner, breathless and looking betrayed.
The sight of him only pisses me off more. “Misplace something?” I snap, grabbing Eirabella by the collar and pulling her off the wall to present her to him.
Mathis straightens, immediately bowing his head in deference. He’s panting, sweat beading on his forehead, but there’s no excuse in his eyes—just guilt. “Rylan. Your Highness… I—”
“I don’t want to hear it,” I cut him off, my voice cold. I can’t deal with this right now. Not after the day I’ve had. Not after catching Eirabella trying to run away.
Eirabella surprises me by yanking herself from me and stepping in front of Mathis, her voice sharp. “Captain Corvane did not misplace me. I just got lost. Wandered away from him.” She shoots him a look that’s half-apologetic, half-pleading, but he shakes his head.
“No. She ran,” Mathis admits, his tone resigned.
“Go back to the castle,” I order, a tone I don’t usually take with him.
“Your Highness—” he tries, clearly reluctant to leave, but glances at my face, seeing I’m done with this conversation.
“I said go,” I repeat, my voice hardening. “I’ll take care of this.”
Mathis bows again, his shoulders slumped in defeat. As he turns to leave, Eirabella calls after him, her voice soft and full of remorse. “I’m so sorry, Mathis.”
He doesn’t respond, but his shoulders square as he just keeps walking, his figure soon disappearing into the shadows of the city.
When we’re alone, I turn back to Eira, my anger simmeringjust beneath the surface. “You ran?” I ask, the words more an accusation than a question.
She meets my gaze, her chin lifting defiantly, full of roiling fury. “You would’ve too if you’d been through what I’ve been through.”
The words hit me harder than I would expect. I don’t know what to say. I don’t know what to do with this anger, this confusion, this... attraction that’s been building ever since I grabbed her in that alley. Fuck. Let’s be honest. That has been building since I first spotted her across that crowded town square. She’s staring at me, her breathing heavy, as she waits for me to respond, and I realise that I’m looking at her too—really looking. After being gone from Aetherhold for a week, I’ve missed the intense pleasure of just getting to… see her.
“You’re… beardy,” she suddenly blurts out.
I blink, caught off guard. My hand comes up to my face, feeling the rough scruff that’s been growing unchecked. “And you’re…” My voice trails off as I frown, my eyes narrowing as I take in her appearance. She’s wearing that teal dress I bought her. The one that had made me think of her the moment I saw it hanging in that street stall. It makes her eyes pretty much jump out of her beautiful face. But that’s not what seems … off about her something that doesn’t fit. Without thinking, I reach down and lift the lace hem of her dress, revealing the extra layers of clothes beneath. What in the…? “Planning on joining the circus?” Her response is immediate—a swift kick aimed at my face, which I dodge just in time. “Stop it.”
But she doesn’t; she kicks out again, and this time I catch her ankle, and she loses her balance and sinks back against the wall for support. “Let me go!”
“You say that to me a lot.”
“You hold me captive a lot,” she retorts, trying to free her foot.
Before I can say anything else, someone walks by the entrance of the alley, and instinctively, I move closer to her, shielding her with my body, my hand sliding from her ankle up to her thigh. It’s a reflex, something I do without thinking, and it’s only when she stiffens beneath me that I realise how close we are. So close that all I can think about is how easy it would be to kiss her right now. My heart pounds at the thought, the ache in my chest intensifying.
“What are you doing?” she whispers.
“Shhh. It’s better nobody sees us here. Either of us,” I murmur, keeping my voice low, my lips almost brushing her neck. “I told you, it’s not safe out here. It’s only safe for you at the castle.”
She practically hisses at me. “If you ever say that word to me again, you’re going to have to refer to being a man in the past tense.”
