Page 24 of Stolen Thorn Bride
“You will not be a burden. And the elves of the Northwatch will not resent you.”
“Youdo,” she returned evenly, with only the barest tremor in her voice. “And don’t think I can’t tell.”
“I do not…” Dechlan wasn’t sure he could finish that statement honestly. He wasn’t really sure what he felt about the human who had so suddenly invaded his existence.
“Resent me or not,” she continued, “I know you would remove me from your life if you could.”
“And what makes you think so?”
She looked him in the eye with a frank sort of sadness. “We’re married, Dechlan. Bonded, I guess you call it. And not once since we met have you ever even asked for my name.”
Dechlan pulled his mount to a halt in the middle of the road, feeling as though she’d kicked him in the chest.
But the human did not stop. She rode away from him, her back straight and her chin high, proud and determined, and all at once, he saw her as what she truly was—the new Riene of the Northwatch.
She might not be an elf, but there was sufficient steel in her spine to manage the title.
He’d wronged her deeply, he realized, and that needed to change.
Starting now.
Chapter 7
They camped that night near a swift-flowing stream, and Kasia found herself unaccountably determined to prove that she was not completely helpless. She watched surreptitiously as Dechlan removed his dreadwolf’s harness and then awkwardly followed suit with Aral’s, after which the two wolves trotted off into the forest.
“They’ll hunt and then return,” Dechlan assured her, so she merely shrugged and began searching the nearby ground for dry wood. What she found, she stacked neatly and then went searching through the various packs for whatever elves used when they needed to start a fire.
It didn’t take long to note that Dechlan was watching her curiously.
“What are you searching for?”
“Flint,” she said briefly. “I was going to make a fire.”
“Allow me.”
Crouching down beside her small stack of wood, he set several pieces to one side and placed his hand gently atop them. Eyes narrowed, he appeared to stare at the wood… until sweat appeared on his brow, and a ribbon of smoke curled up from beneath his fingers.
Magic.
The fire caught, but barely, and as Kasia leaned down to blow gently on the tiny flames, she noticed a look of chagrin on Dechlan’s face.
“That is not normally so difficult for me,” he said, sounding deeply weary.
“Well, for humans, it’s impossible, so I’m perfectly willing to pretend you’ve just done something miraculous.” For some reason, she was experiencing an overwhelming need to make him feel better.
“I was not aware that all humans lacked magic” As he spoke, Dechlan settled back on his heels beside the fire, looking mysterious and inscrutable by its flickering light.
How to explain? “We do have mages,” she admitted. “But they are rare, and other humans often do not trust them.”
There was that word again—trust.
They both fell silent as the flames grew, and after a few moments, Dechlan added another piece of wood.
“You were right, before,” he said finally. “I have done you a discourtesy and allowed my own pain to injure you in turn. While I do not yet understand what part you played in these events, it is clear that you were not told the full import of your actions, and I am sorry for it.”
Kasia was still absorbing the shock of that when he spoke again.
“I would be honored if you would entrust me with your name.”