Page 58 of Stolen Thorn Bride
Perhaps she should politely refuse Gianessa’s offer, find some way to move them all out, and go back to barely scraping by. After all, if her father ever came back, he was sure to object to them accepting the mage woman’s hospitality.
If.Ifhe ever came back.
And suddenly, Kasia didn’t care what her father would think. Her siblings were happy, safe, and well-fed. She wasn’t going to cause them pain to ease the conscience of a man who had given up on his responsibilities years ago. Nor was she going to rip this happiness away from them just because she didn’t feel needed anymore.
It wouldn’t be fair—to them or to her.
But whatwasshe going to do? She could move in with them, and they could go back to the way things had always been… except they couldn’t. Gianessa was a part of their little family now. Rordyn had taken over Kasia’s chores and seemed to be doing a fine job.
If she chose to, Kasia could leave. She could do all the things she’d only dreamed of doing in the past. She could go to Farhall and find a mage who could teach her. Or maybe she could find someone who would love her with all of her faults and curses and flaws.
But that wasn’t really what she wanted—not anymore.
She wanted to flee to a wild, untamed land, where magic was as everyday as breathing. She wanted to return to a proud, fierce people who were locked in an ancient struggle with a mortal foe. She wanted sword-lessons and dreadwolves and disdainful companions who might someday learn to give her a chance. And she wanted one particular person to love her.
One particular elf lord, with icy gray eyes and stern features—dangerous, forbidding, and utterly perfect. But also gentle and kind, with an inner warmth he tried so hard to hide, and a deeply broken heart that had never truly healed.
She had dared to dream, if only for a moment, that he could be hers. But why would someone like Dechlan spend the rest of his life with a human pig keeper?
She was short, graceless, and stubborn. Untrained and untried. But she would have fought for the future of his people with everything that was in her, just as she’d fought for her siblings. She would have fought for their bond. Fought to make something of the life that had been thrust upon them, whether they would have chosen it or not.
But that was not what Dechlan wanted, and she had to…
Kasia was suddenly flung over, flat on her back in the ashes, with a cold, wet nose in her face and an enormous, slobbery tongue swiping away her tears.
“Aral?” she gasped out, shoving him back long enough to jump to her feet and grab his harness. “You can’t be here, love.” She tried to tug him away, but his feet seemed set. “I’m sorry, but if they see you, they’ll only try to kill you, and I won’t lose anyone else, do you hear me? I won’t lose anything else today!”
Then she was crying again, and buried her face in his fur because he was the only one in her world who still seemed to need her.
“Not the only one, Kasia.”
She jerked back to stare at the wolf. She must have spoken aloud. But hadhe?
She heard quiet laughter from behind her.
“No, he can’t speak, though I believe he’s better at communicating than many of us who can.”
Kasia didn’t turn around. She couldn’t let herself believe. Not yet.
“Perhaps if I learn from him, I will do a better job of it this time around,” Dechlan said, and then she felt his hand on her shoulder. “Kasia, please look at me.”
She took a deep, shuddering breath, turned around, and told herself that he was real. His tall form was silhouetted against the sinking sun, and she could see that he was neither armed nor armored. His hair hung loose, and his hands were empty.
“Why are you here, Dechlan?” She was proud when her voice did not waver.
“Because I was not honest with either of us,” he said simply. “Because I spoke with Miach, and he gave me reason to hope. And because you deserve to know the truth.”
“What truth is that?” One of her hands gripped Aral’s fur so tightly it had to hurt, but the huge wolf stood firm, letting her lean on his strength. It was a mercy, because her knees were shaking too badly to hold her up on their own.
“Our bond is a true one,” Dechlan said softly.
* * *
Her eyes shot to his,and his gaze was steady.
“At least, for me,” he added. “I’ve been able to sense your emotions since that night in the forest when you ran from me because of your magic.”
Kasia absorbed that and wondered…