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“She’s hiding something,” said Vallon.
“Maybe she’s hiding from someone.” I set my piece of bread on my plate, wiping my mouth with my napkin and wondering if Papa or Rukard would send more after me.
My pulse leaped with fear of being dragged back to the village. I wanted to laugh at the turn of events in less than a full day.
Vallon wore that intense expression again, his hard gaze on me. “If the man who raised you or the Mevian sends anyone after you, I’ll kill them, Murgha.”
“You don’t have to murder anyone,” I whispered. “A sound beating will do.”
“It wouldn’t be murder. It would be justice.”
“Nevertheless, we don’t have to leave a trail of bodies behind us. That might make us easier to find.”
“I’d love for them to find us.” He forked a piece of ham into his mouth. “Need to do something with this…aggression.”
“Whyareyou so aggressive? Since we left our little treehouse, you’ve been so moody, like you’re ready to flay people alive.”
I spooned some honey onto the bread and ate a huge bite, licking the spot of honey off my lip. Vallon’s attention was solely on my mouth. I stopped chewing, suddenly self-conscious. But his focus didn’t waver, the red of his irises slowly being absorbed by the black.
I swallowed the bread, the bite going down thickly. His gaze skimmed down my throat, which only increased my pulse, pounding hard at the base.
Vallon eased his back against the booth, flattening his wings wide, and finally met my gaze again. “I’ll let you know what the aggression is about soon enough, but I’m beginning to think you know.”
“I don’t.” Though perhaps I hadsomeidea.
“I’ll show you when we get to my home in the Solgavia Mountains.” His look was savage, predatory.
“What if I don’t want you to show me?”
That was what finally cracked his expression. But his smile with a hint of fang was not disarming at all. It only catapulted my pulse faster.
“It’s too late for that, Murgha.”
Chapter
Eleven
VALLON
Leaving Haldek’s place and being back in the sky with her safely in my arms should’ve calmed me. It didn’t. If anything, it only amplified the heart-rattling emotions beginning to consume my every thought.
She’d been quiet since we left, her expression serious. We’d been flying for a few hours. Other than me pointing out landmarks I thought she might be interested in like when we crossed over Lake Moreen, I’d also remained silent.
“Aren’t you getting tired?” she asked, the wind having pulled strands of her hair loose.
Every now and then, the wind would blow a silken strand against my neck or chin, the soft caresses torturous.
“It might be good to rest a few minutes.” It would be good for me to take a break from her intoxicating scent and the soft warmth of her body in my arms. “Besides, you look cold.”
Her cheeks were pink from the constant beat of the wind, and it was beginning to concern me. She wasn’t shivering, but the temperatures had dropped dramatically since we’d been flying directly north for several hours. Summer in the mountains felt like winter in Lumeria where she was from.
“A warm fire would be good for a bit,” she agreed.
We were directly over the higher foothills of the Solgavia Mountains. I beat my wings and banked us down toward a winding stream. We could fill our canteens there as well.
When we landed, I set her on her feet, then took a moment to wind my arms backward to rotate my shoulder muscles that had become tight and stiff from holding her so long.
“Sorry about that,” she said, watching me.
