Page 64 of A Legacy of the Light

“He’s powerful. When he’s around, a lot more people tend to die. I wanted to make sure I was the one to face him if he showed his face,” Tavish pauses. “He’s also my cousin.”

The admission shocks me to my core. Imagine having to face your enemy knowing they are your family? That they betrayed everyone so thoroughly.

“My mother had a twin. Callahan is my aunt’s son.”

I have nothing to say to that, and I look out at the window at the peace of the night, hoping it will soothe some of what’s buzzing inside me.

“You were worried about me, huh?” Tavish teases, breaking me from my reverie with one corner of his mouth tipped up.

I scoff and roll my eyes. “Shut up.”

Tavish snickers and puts his head back on the sofa.

“Can I get you anything?” I quietly ask.

“No, I’m good.”

Back in the bathroom, I pour the water from the bowl down the sink, put the dirty washcloth into the hamper, and swap my boots for slippers. When I return to Tavish, his breathing has deepened and his mouth is slack. He must be exhausted if he’s fallen asleep that quickly. I pull the ivory blanket from the other end and drape it over him.

I settle onto the opposite side of the sofa with my book, too wired to sleep yet.

My movements disturb him and he sleepily opens his lids and smiles a half smile. “I’m glad you’re here,” he confesses before drifting back off.

Butterflies swarm in my stomach, and I’m thankful he isn’t awake to see how red my cheeks have turned.

Chapter 17

A few hours later, I wake as the dawn is turning the sky a soft pink. I glance at the clock. It’s only four in the morning. Tavish is still sound asleep but has shifted so his body is slumped awkwardly toward me, his head almost resting on my calves. I untuck my stiff legs, careful not to wake him when I move.

I take a cushion from the end I was using and place it so his head can rest on top of it in a more comfortable position. I gently put my hands on his shoulders, noticing how strong they feel, and push slightly so his body falls onto the pillow.

Tavish snaps his eyes open and grabs my wrists, pulling me beneath him before a gasp can leave my throat. His lips are pulled into a snarl, and his eyes are dark and unseeing. He pins my hands across my chest, pressing his weight into me. I must have pulled him from a bad dream.

The Craobh Beatha prickles against me as the breath is slowly pushed out of my lungs by Tavish’s strength.

“Tavish,” I gasp. “It’s Elsie! It’s okay. They’re gone,” I try to soothe with what little air I have left.

He doesn’t let up, and my vision darkens around the edges. If he keeps going, he’ll break something.

“Tavish,” I whisper.

He still doesn’t move. Electricity radiates from the center of my chest, rolling over my entire body. It feels like a layer of static coating my skin. The Craobh pulses with power. It pushes out from me like a shield, shoving against Tavish. The Craobh pulses again, sending another more powerful wave rolling across me when Tavish doesn’t let me go, almost as if it’s forcing his powerful frame off me.

He snaps his hands back, the jolt of the Craobh’s magic snapping him into consciousness. “Shit, Elsie. I’m so sorry.”

I gulp in air when he releases me and hide my wince. Pain radiates through my ribs where Tavish was pressing into me.

“I didn’t realize it was you.”

“It’s okay,” I whisper, still trying to get air back into my lungs. “I should have known better than to move you after tonight.”

He cups my face in one of his large hands, staring down at me. “Did I hurt you?”

“No, I’m okay,” I lie. I don’t want him to feel bad for something that he had no control over.

“Don’t lie to me.” He moves his face closer to mine, staring at me. Tavish still rests on top of me, pressing my body down into the sofa. Every inch of my body that touches his is hyperaware of how close we are.

“I promise, I’m okay.”