Page 108 of The Fury She Holds
“What do you think was going on?”
“We were just having fun. It could never last, even if you weren’t the king.” The title felt foreign on her tongue.
“Is that what it was to you? You were just having fun?” He narrowed his eyes.
She could see he wasn’t happy with the turn in conversation. She too wondered why she talked to him in this way, perhaps to protect herself. She anticipated the inevitable rejection. She wanted to be ready for it. Maybe she wanted to be the one to do it first. He wouldn’t have to feel guilty, and she could walk away with her dignity and call it a fun but temporary distraction.
She stood and brushed off the grass stuck to her pants. “I—thank you for coming for me, for fighting for me. You really—” She inhaled a shaky breath. “For someone who grew up in such a different world, I never would have thought I’d enjoy your company.” She turned to leave.
He stood and grabbed her elbow. “Are you really that upset with me that you would walk away?” The hurt on his face made her bite her cheek to stop the tears from coming.
“What’s there to walk away from, Faron? You’re the king. You have a life to live.”
“You’re walking away from us, Tal!” He grabbed her other arm now. “Don’t act like we didn’t have something. Was it all nothing to you?”
She didn’t voice her thoughts—that it didn’t matter what she felt. Instead, she took a deep breath and said, “You shouldn’t come by anymore.”
“Are you sending me away?” His voice shook with barely restrained emotion.
“You have a kingdom to run. I can’t distract you.”
“I’ll choose how I spend my time. I will not be ordered away,” he growled.
She called her fury to light a fireball in her palm. “Is that a challenge?” She remembered the night in the tunnel not even a week ago. This time, she would send him away for good and save herself the heartache.
“Demon’s snare, woman. I swear, you’ll be the death of me.” He released her and stalked a few paces away before turning back to her. “You are the most infuriating, pig-headed, brilliant fool that I’ve ever met. Swallow your stubborn pride for once and listen.
“Every moment of my life has been spent bending to their will, paraded from meetings to dinners and dances from one meaningless day to the next, an ornament to their machinations. I wassuffocatingin that idleness until you barreled into that room. You brought a light into my world when I’d spent my whole life drowning in dullness.
“From the moment I saw you fighting to save that little girl, a fire has awoken within me. That flame has pulled me to your side every day, and I ache to be near you when I’m away. You are the light that guides me. I can close my eyes, but I still seeyou. Talwyn, I love you. I love your anger, your passion, your fury, your stubbornness, your selflessness. I love your mind, your spirit, and your gods-damned infuriating body and the way you use it against me. I love you. And no amount of your anger is going to drive me away.
“Take me at my word. I love you. I have since the first night you rescued Evania without hesitation, to the night you wrestled with your dress and nearly fell off that balcony, to the night you destroyed that mage who attacked you, and even though you arehells-bent on destroying me, I love you for it. You’ve ignited my soul, and I will fight like the hells to keep it from being snuffed out.”
Tal stood wordlessly and stared at Faron. The orange glow from her flame reflected in his hazel eyes. Her gaze followed the crease in his brow, down his nose, and to the full lips that closed as he swallowed. She let his words sink in one by one. Her eyes danced between the willow, the docks in the distance, and back to him. She studied the outline of his muscled shoulders, how the light of her flame reflected off his bare chest.
Her mind reeled, trying to make sense of his words and tamping her anger over his lies. She had never been any good at reasoning when her emotions ran high, and it took great effort to do so now. A thought occurred to her. “Thatwasyou at the ball.”
Still breathing heavily, he let out a soft laugh and shook his head. “I just poured my heart out to you, and you want to know who danced with you?”
“You told me it wasn’t you.”
He shook his head. “I told you it was the king. I didn’t say hewasn’tme.” He took a tentative step back to her. “You intrigued me before but seeing you so carefree that night unlocked something inside me. I needed to see you again, to get to know you.”
“Wait, does this mean the king makes his own clothes?” Tal remembered the handmade trousers he coveted.
“Well—” Another step.
She didn’t let him answer, and instead said, “And all those favors you were owed. They weren’t really favors, were they?”
“No. They weren’t,” he answered reluctantly. “They were well paid commissions.” He stood a few paces away now, and Tal’s heart beat in her throat.
Tal’s eyes went wide. “The axes?!”
“Those were a gift to me, but I knew they were more suited to you. Anything else you’d like to know?” He chuckled.
“Did you really name your horse after your eyes?” The question had been bothering Tal since she’d made the connection.
Faron laughed freely now. “You can blame Waylon for that one. I didn’t know the color, and he convinced me it was a beautiful name for a beautiful horse.”
