Page 77 of A Tempest of Shadows

“Mouse!” Ellery blurted.

I turned toward her, but she was already on her feet and striding swiftly across the clearing Tucker and his followers had created. A few amsirah turned to watch as she passed, but most were too busy to notice.

They didn’t pay any attention to the young boy hovering at the edge of the woods. She was a few feet away from him when he rushed out of the trees, ran to her, and threw his arms around her waist.

The impact of his weight staggered her back a step before she recovered enough to hug him back. She lowered her chin to his head as they embraced.

“What the fuck?” Tucker muttered.

“She knows the boy.”

“Obviously. I’ve been trying to get him out of the woods for weeks, but he’s more skittish than a unicorn in a hurricane. Apparently, I just had to be pretty.”

I smiled at his assessment. “That’s one thing you aren’t.”

“Fuck off.”

I chuckled as I watched Ellery with a smile I couldn’t suppress; she had a way of making that impossible. She pulled Mouse away and talked excitedly as she surveyed him to ensure he was okay. The boy didn’t speak, but he grinned back at her.

“That kid’s a goner,” Tucker muttered. Then his attention shifted to me, and a shrewd gleam entered his eyes. “Who is the girl?”

“Ellery Marian; her father also fought in the war and died.”

“Ambrose Marian?”

“Yes, did you know him?”

“I did. We fought together at different times in the war. I’m sorry he didn’t make it; he was a good man.”

Ellery used her thumbs to wipe away some dirt on Mouse’s cheek. It was pointless, considering dirt covered the kid, but it made her happy.

“His daughter is amazing,” I muttered.

I felt Tucker’s eyes boring into me. “I think the boy might be some competition for you.”

I laughed, but I was surprised to realize his words bothered me. They didn’t irritate me because I believed Mouse might be competition for her heart, but because she wasn’t mine.

And I didn’t want her to be mine. I didn’t want anyone to be mine. I had far too much shit going on without the added complication of a woman who was anything more than a good fuck to pass the time with.

But Ellery… she’d be more than that. And while we’d mostly kept our distance since resuming our hunt, I’d never doubted I’d have her. I was waiting for the right time.

Or are you afraid that once you have her, you won’t let go?

It was the first time I’d considered the possibility, and while I didn’t like it, I couldn’t deny it might be true. I liked the woman, and the peace she brought me the day we kissed was something I craved experiencing again, yet I’d kept my distance.

Why?

CHAPTER SIXTY-FIVE

Ryker

But I knew why. There was a time when I’d been a whole man, one who might have been able to care for another and give them what they deserved, but that was many years ago.

The war and, especially, the ophidians had broken and molded me into someone else. I couldn’t give anyone what they deserved anymore, much less Ellery.

Plus, I had my vow to Leo to keep, and I couldn’t let anything get in the way of that. I’d failed him too many times; I wouldn’t fail him again.

“How do you know her?” Tucker asked.