A Meet of Tribes (A Shade of Vampire #45)(12)

Serena





I helped Draven to his room as soon as the clouds started to gather above the mansion in heavy, gray rolls.

Everyone else had scattered off to eat, shower, and sleep the events of the day off.

My mind battled with an array of thoughts and memories from the morning, unable to settle on one thing in particular.

Draven didn’t say much once we got to his room. I stopped in the doorway, leaving him to walk in on his own. My intention was to leave him there, then take a long bath and sleep for an eternity.

My feet felt heavy, and my heart had sunk even deeper as I came to terms with my mistake of forcing the Daughter out of her sleep. The repercussions weren’t clear just yet, other than her lack of knowledge. We didn’t even know if her sisters would retaliate in any way, but the one aspect that seemed to worry me the most was the fact that I’d upset Draven. I could feel it in the tone of his voice. I’d broken something, and I felt terrible.

He moved to the bed and started unbuttoning his shirt.

My eyes followed the motions of his fingers. My throat dried up, stirring memories of our kiss and how close we’d gotten to virtually consuming each other. Reason told me to leave, but my body and my soul didn’t listen.

“We’ll have to do an intensive session tomorrow with the Oracles,” Draven said as he removed his shirt. “I’ve asked Anjani to prepare some potions to help with the immersion. Time isn’t on our side.”

He slipped out of his boots and stilled for a moment, as if listening for something.

“What are you doing?” he asked.

“Me? N-nothing,” I stuttered, breathing heavily.

I couldn’t stop admiring his broad chest and massive shoulders. His rune wounds had healed almost completely, leaving behind just a few faint lines that were lighter than his tan.

“Come in. Stay here,” he commanded me, a roughness in his tone that I took to mean that he was still angry with me. Every time I thought about it, I felt worse and worse.

“Why?” I asked, frustratingly unsure of myself.

I wasn’t ready for another verbal pummeling over what had happened under the magnolia tree and my rash use of a shovel.

“What do you mean why?” He shot back. He sighed and changed his demeanor, as if realizing he’d sounded abrupt. “Please stay. I won’t be long.”

He walked into the bathroom, his fingers passing over the nearby furniture for guidance, and closed the door behind him. I stood there for a while, motionless, trying to find a way to smother the regrets that were so quick to bubble up in me.

I wanted to go back to that tent, before we’d stepped back out into the world. I wanted to get lost in his arms again, our lips and minds fused into a single sentient being that knew nothing of pain or sorrow.

Eventually I settled in the armchair where I’d slept before and stared outside the window as the rain knocked on the glass. Thunder echoed beneath the charcoal sky. I caught a glimpse of lightning here and there, zigzagging white lines disappearing in the distance. I closed my eyes for a few minutes and started mentally flipping through Draven’s memories from our mind-meld again. It felt like a safe place right now.

I got a good look at his father. Draven was the spitting image of him with hair the color of sand pouring down his wide shoulders, inquisitive steel eyes, and a smooth nose. Almus had sharper edges, though, as if he’d been roughly carved into stone and brought to life, whereas Draven’s face followed slightly softer lines around his temples and cheeks, with dark brown eyebrows bent in a soft arch.

I watched Draven run around in the backyard with Elissa, laughing in the sun. She looked so happy, so light and full of love. This lonely little boy deserved all the affection she gave him and more. My stomach twisted in knots as I remembered her death through his eyes. His youth and innocence had been forever marred by that moment, reminding me of how he spoke of Eritopia when we first met. It’s cruel, and it will kill you, he’d said. My eyes felt wet.

The bathroom door opened, startling me upright as I wiped the tears from my eyes. My grief at the thought of Draven’s unimaginable pain and loneliness was quickly stuffed somewhere in the back of my head, as the sight of him wearing nothing but a towel around his narrow waist came into full view.

My senses started glitching, my eyes scanning him from head to toe, taking in every inch of wet skin and muscle beneath. I bit into my lower lip as I felt my body succumb to a series of unstoppable heatwaves. I tightened my fingers into fists in a pathetic attempt to keep my cool.

He stood there for a while, quiet and still steaming from his shower, enough for me to forget who or what I was. My mind went blank.

“There are some clean shirts and gowns in the bottom drawer here,” Draven said, his finger pointing at the chest of drawers by the wall next to the bathroom door. “Pick something out and take a shower. I’m guessing you need one as much as I needed mine. I’ll be waiting.”

Yet another command in a rigid tone. This man was a walking, talking contradiction, and once again I felt childishly insecure around him, not knowing whether he was still upset with me or just being his usual authoritarian self.

“What…what do you mean?” I managed to ask. My throat was parched.

“I would like for you to stay here with me today.”

His request was simple, yet I couldn’t focus properly. My energy was at critically low levels, yet my insides burned in his proximity. My brain wasn’t helping with anything.