Eva paused in the midst of stretching. "Wait. You're supposed to be with Caden. If you're here—"
Excitement darted through her as Eva searched the shadows. She threw the blanket off her, the fire fox jumping out of the way and letting out a yip as if to chide her for being rude.
Eva ignored him, her gaze bypassing and then locking on a section of the tent that was just a bit darker than the rest.
Eva caught the curve of his shoulder first. Then the hilt of one of the many weapons she knew he kept on him at all times.
There was a reason Caden and his subordinates were often called ghosts by the rest of the Trateri. They had a talent for going unnoticed—at least until they made themselves seen.
Caden was their commander. The best of the bunch.
Eva would never have spotted him if he hadn't made a slight shift, the movement drawing her attention like a magnet.
His stillness made her question how long he'd been there, watching her sleep. Would he have stayed there until morning if the fire fox hadn't woken her?
The fire fox hopped off the upraised pallet made from rugs and thick blankets stacked one on top of another that comprised Eva's bed. He trotted toward Caden, barking once before bypassing the entrance in favor of worming under the wall.
Eva waited until the tip of his tails disappeared before returning her attention to Caden. Her gaze caressed the lines of his shape, the yearning she'd buried over the past few days filling her chest.
She'd missed him. The steady comfort of his company. His warmth beside her at night. That way he had of looking at her, like now, as if she was his moon and stars. The reason for his existence.
"Did you have fun?" Eva's voice was low in the dark.
Caden was a man used to action. It couldn't have been easy wasting his time away in the valley. Peace was bound to get boring after a while.
Sometimes she feared she was being selfish asking him to remain with her. That one day he'd look at her and regret all the things he'd given up.
It was something that haunted her. An inner demon that tried to chip away at her anytime she grew careless.
Caden crossed the short distance to stand by her bed, his features cast in shadows. Eva didn't need light to know her lover. She'd recognize him even in the complete darkness that only existed in the bowels of the earth.
He had an aura that was uniquely his. A presence in her mind that couldn't be mistaken for anyone else.
Eva didn't know if what the Kyren had done to save Caden from death had changed him in some way or if her abilities had grown. But for her, he carried the same signature as a mythological.
Caden stayed silent as he brushed his hand across the blankets toward Eva, stopping only when the tips of his fingertips skimmed the skin of her knee.
Eva closed her eyes, corralling the pulse of desire that wanted to overtake her.
Passion wasn't only about the physical. Sometimes it started in the mind, fed and grown by each small action until finally a simple touch or look ignited it.
"I would have preferred to be with you." Caden's voice penetrated the dark and Eva got the sense he was watching her in much the same way a fox would a mouse it wanted to devour.
Her breath was shaky as she licked her lips. She needed to focus. There were things they needed to discuss and that wouldn't happen if she gave into the magnetic pull humming between them.
"Find out anything interesting?" Eva asked.
A sigh came. One that spoke of weariness and frustration.
Eva shifted so Caden could take a seat. His shoulder brushed hers, the warm press of his skin threatening to sidetrack her again.
"I don't know what we found," he said.
Eva waited, knowing it was pointless to rush him. He'd speak when he was ready.
Sensing his fatigue, Eva maneuvered until she was kneeling behind him. She reached up and dug her fingers into his shoulders.
A groan left his lips as his head rolled back. "Don't stop."
"Keep talking and I won't have to."
A husky chuckle left him. "I'm assuming the Kyren already told you we're no longer alone up here."
"They may have said something to that effect."
"And probably a lot more," he finished for her.
"You know them well." Eva moved her hands to another spot, searching out the knots in his back and working them until they relaxed.
Caden made a noncommittal sound. "Judging by the fact they haven't tried to massacre us or chase us out of the valley, I take it they decided to give us a chance."
"A small one," Eva admitted.
A short silence fell as Eva finished up and then leaned against Caden, flattening her chest against the hard lines of his back. She looped her arms around his shoulders and pressed her cheek against his.
He slid one of his hands into hers, dropping a kiss against it before holding both against his heart.
"It must be bad if you're avoiding the topic," Eva guessed.
"The pathfinder thinks we're outnumbered."
Eva drew back slightly, shifting to get a better look at the side of his face. "What about you? What do you think?"
"I agree. They're hiding out there."
"Are they after the Kyren?"
"That'd be my guess. I don't know if the Kyren were always their goal or if they're taking advantage of the situation. I spoke to Van, and he said their direction indicated they were headed this way before the mist."
Eva pressed her chin into Caden's shoulder and frowned into the dark.
Caden's laugh was humorless. "Van and Gawain's arrival might have worked in our favor after all."
It was certainly timely. That was for sure. Convenient for them that reinforcement arrived at the exact same time as this mysterious army. One would almost think someone was guiding events from the shadows.
"Don't tell Ghost that," Eva said lightly. "He's most put out having to deal with them. I'm not sure how he'd react if he knew they actually turned out to be helpful."
"I can imagine. As strange of a decision as it might seem leaving either of those two in charge, they have the experience and reputation to hold their own. Even against clan leaders."
Eva thought that had more to do with the fact the two simply didn't give a fuck about what others thought, or how Gawain and Van could affect them.
"What about Jane and Drake?"
Caden shook his head. "No. Their skill sets lie in different areas. They're blunt instruments. They could kill a clan leader in the right circumstances, but leading is totally different. It requires a different sort of touch. Besides, I want you to be their only priority."
Caden wouldn't compromise on this point. There were only a few people he semi trusted and all of them had been trained by him. He knew the direction of their loyalties, what made them tick.
As long as Eva continued to be an asset for Fallon and didn't hinder his interests, they'd protect her. If it came down to it, they'd give their lives for her in the course of their duties.
Hopefully, that wouldn't be necessary. Jane and Drake were deadly weapons in their own right. It would take a lot to cause them to fall.
Still, bad luck happened. Death came for everyone eventually.
It was why Eva didn't take them for granted. The knowledge that someone might have to give their life for her was a burden she wouldn't be able to set down anytime soon.