Page 50 of Whispers of Ruin
“We’ll still find the vine; we always have.”
Brokk believed Ryker’s conviction, but he couldn’t help contemplating if the jungle might prevent them from doing so.
“It looks like an ancient temple or place of worship,” Kaylia said. “It’s been destroyed, but alotof power remains in this land.”
The other witches were hushed as they stood around her, their heads bowed as if in reverence, and their hands clasped before them. If he could feel the power here, he could only imagine whattheysensed from this land.
Kaylia gazed around the clearing before dropping her gaze to her hands. She lifted them before her and turned them over as awe flitted across her features.
Something deep inside him shifted while watching her. She was so amazing, and for the first time in his life, he found himself wanting a woman ashis.
Brokk had never given much consideration to marriage and families. He suspected one day he’d have children because he liked them and wanted to be a father, but he’d always believed it would be with a woman who would prefer to move on afterward, like his mother.
Whenever he considered a family for himself, he imagined it would be much like his—a single father raising his offspring with love and guidance—and he’d been more than happy with it.
But now, he wondered what it would be like to have a woman who stayed with him, helped him raise his children, and loved him. And he couldn’t help picturing that woman as Kaylia.
Shit.He ran a hand through his hair and tugged at the ends of it.Slow it down, and stop being such an asshole. One good fuck does not equate to a lifetime.
It had been more than one fuck, but it was still the truth. He had no idea what was wrong with him or why she affected him so deeply, and he was starting not to like it.
But he wasn’t going to let her go, not yet, at least.
Kaylia closed her eyes and inhaled deeply. “So much power.”
“Even I can feel it,” Ryker murmured.
“So can I,” Brokk said.
Brokk was about to turn away when Kaylia’s eyes opened and met his. The passion blazing from their pewter depth froze him as an answering rush of lust flooded him, and something sizzled in the air between them.
Despite their surroundings, his dick stirred, and he almost went to her but stopped himself. He couldn’t take her in the middle of the clearing with everyone watching. However, if he touched her now, that’s what would happen.
“We’ll stay here for the night.” Ryker’s words shifted Brokk’s attention away from Kaylia.
“Yes,” Kaylia murmured. “We can form a strong protection spell over this area.”
“Good.”
Brokk didn’t look at Kaylia again as he helped the others set up a makeshift camp for the night. There would be no huts in this clearing, but many of Ryker’s followers claimed shelter beneath the stones.
Unwilling to sleep with them, Brokk removed a piece of canvas from his pack and draped it over a low-hanging branch. Once settled into place, it created a small shelter where he placed his bag inside.
When he finished, he turned to discover Kaylia and the witches working to weave a protective barrier around them. Her movements and words entranced him as power crackled on the air and more power vibrated up through his boots.
After they established the barrier, the witches turned to creating their own shelters. Brokk buried his disappointment when Kaylia went with them instead of coming to place her things inside his space.
He’d suspected she wouldn’t return to him tonight, but he hadn’t realized he’d still retained hope she would. She was determined to establish a wall between them, and he was as determined to demolish it.
In the end, he would win.
CHAPTERFORTY-EIGHT
Kaylia satat the edge of the clearing, her legs crossed and her hands on her knees as the earth around her hummed. That energy left a crisp, almost ozone taste on her tongue while vibrating so loudly it created a song in her head.
Despite the vast power pulsing beneath her, the earth didn’t emit a happy song. It was one of sadness and loss.
Tears pricked her eyes as the melancholy notes tugged at her heart. Whatever happened in this clearing, whatever destroyed the monuments that once stood here, it was swift and brutal. Time hadn’t knocked the stones down. Monsters did.
