Total pages in book: 131
Estimated words: 121924 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 610(@200wpm)___ 488(@250wpm)___ 406(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 121924 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 610(@200wpm)___ 488(@250wpm)___ 406(@300wpm)
The candidates hurried after him … which left Talon and I alone, aside from the Laelaps.
Turning away from them, he caught my eye, gestured at my knapsack, and hefted up his own. My belly doing a series of nervous flips, I shot the dogs a quick smile, grabbed my knapsack, and then followed him down a different tunnel.
He stopped at the first door we came across and shoved it open. As he lit each of the candles and sconces with a wave of power, I entered behind him and reluctantly closed the door.
The room was pretty basic. The bunkbeds were positioned near the back wall, a large trunk positioned at the base of each one. A chandelier of candles hung from the domed ceiling. There was some wood shelving here and there, along with several wall niches. A bench was pressed against the walls nearest the bunkbeds, and there was a wash basin opposite them.
There was also a huge spiderweb in the corner of the ceiling, which was not a reassuring sight.
Talon went straight to the bunkbeds on the left hand side and dropped his knapsack on the floor. He sat on the bottom mattress and began unlacing his boots—all without acknowledging my presence.
All right.
A whistling sound came down one of the small holes in the walls as I made a beeline for the bunkbeds parallel to his. It was chilly in here. Though the burning candles provided a little warmth, it wasn’t much. Still, their scent gave the musty smell of the space a “lift.” For that I was grateful.
I sat gingerly on the mattress and grimaced. Gods, it was freezing. And thin. And lumpy.
Still, it was an improvement on hay bales.
As his boots hit the floor with a thump, I removed my own. I heard a rustle of clothing, and then something else met the floor. My peripheral vision told me that it was his tunic.
I was honestly proud of myself for resisting the urge to get a good look at that chest I’d once had the pleasure of ogling up close.
I tucked my boots beneath the nearby bench and then snagged a blanket from a wall niche. It was old, thin, and scratchy. But it was better than nothing.
I hesitated in removing my breeches. I’d planned to sleep in my tunic—it was nearly as long as my slip, not to mention thicker, so I preferred wearing it when sleeping around others. But if I took off my pants, would he think that I was trying to flash him some skin to tempt him?
Ugh, who cared?
Besides, no way was I sleeping in breeches that had bits of burr sticking to them.
I stepped out of them and, without once looking in Talon’s general direction, slipped into bed. A little shiver raced down my spine as I sank fully onto the cold mattress. I dragged the blanket over myself and lay on my side facing the wall.
There was a slight whoosh of sound, and then the room went dark.
I closed my eyes and huddled beneath the blanket. Warmth seeped into my body in slow excrements, but that didn’t help relax me. I shifted repeatedly, trying and failing to get comfortable. It wasn’t the mattress, or the temperature. It was that my entire system was tense from being in a confined space with Talon.
I did that thing where I went somewhere else in my head. I dived into my memories. Memories of my time with my parents—of our modest little hut, of the times I’d fenced with acolytes, of the amazing bread my aunt baked, of how sweet and happy my parents had been together.
Soon, the images in my head swam, changing from memories to the first stirrings of a dream. Eventually, I drifted off.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
A sensation cut into my dream, slicing through the tableau of images. A sensation that was uncomfortable. Intense. Building.
I shot to full wakefulness as my heart started thumping hard in my chest and a familiar crackly energy filled my veins.
Feelings were rushing through me. The same emotions I felt before or during a battle. Anticipation. Determination. Exhilaration. A trickle of fear.
Restless and overstimulated, I couldn’t simply lie there. Couldn’t stay still. I threw back my blanket and got out of bed, my movements rushed and jerky.
A sconce came to life, and I saw Talon blinking up at me, his head raised from his pillow.
My fingers twitched. “I need to get out of this room awhile,” I blurted out, my words coming a little too fast.
His eyes narrowing, he sat upright, his chest deliciously bare.
“I’ll be back soon, I just—” I stopped as he shook his head. “I’ll be fine, I’m not going to wander around; just hang in the living area.”
Again, he shook his head, swinging his legs over the edge of the bed.
I absently fisted my tunic and twisted the material. “Look, I’m not going to be able to get to sleep anytime soon. If I stay in here, I’ll pace and pace and pace. I don’t expect you to understand what I’m feeling right now, but it’s … I can’t stay here.” I needed to do something; needed somewhere for all this energy and emotion to go.