Yup. She was definitely in tune with him. “He could have—”
“We both knew the risks. And I’m fine.”
Was she? He pulled back, inspecting her closely, a growl rising at the bruises around her neck, even darker than before.
“It’ll all be gone by tomorrow.” She wrinkled her nose at him, then turned her head to address Finn. “My parents and I will stay and fight.”
Rune looked over her head at Chaghan, who gave him a nod. Not a blessing necessarily. The man’s jaw was too tight for that. But…acceptance of a sort. That was a start. Hadyn wouldn’t stay with him if it hurt her parents too much. That he knew for sure. Any woman who’d fought as hard as she had to get them out…that was love.
“Every person we can get is a blessing,” Deep said.
Rune had never wanted to kiss a man before, but he might lay a big one on Deep for including Hadyn in that welcome by saying person instead of dragon. It hit him hard in that second how important that was to him. To him personally. They’d built a remarkably solid connection in a short time. Somehow, his world had reoriented. As though Hadyn had always been there, his center, through all of it.
When the hell had that happened?
The black dragon from earlier stepped closer, and Rune had to swallow back a growl.
“I am Pakan. May I speak with you?” the man asked.
Damnable timing. The last thing Rune wanted to do was let go of her let alone walk away, but he had no doubt what this was about, and he’d given his word. “Of course. In private?”
Pakan nodded.
He turned his head, intending to kiss her, but she stepped back. Distance? Right now? A furtive glance in the direction of her parents told him why.
“Go,” she said. “We can talk later.”
Chapter Nineteen
Hadyn had stayed with her parents in a different room last night, and Rune had given her the space to do that without question.
But now that she’d had that time, and so had Chaghan and Qara, she couldn’t stay away from him. Wouldn’t.
She’d been right. Thanks to Qara’s blood, the headache was all gone this morning. So were the bump on her head and the bruises on her body. Now that she was whole again, the need to see him set her nerves alive as she paced behind her parents through the mountain.
The tricky part was going to be her parents. In the end, they would support her, love her, no matter what she decided about Rune. But getting there…she wanted to give them the time to do that first.
They paused just inside a large room, and the mood that hung over the people who had gathered in the large kitchen area was enough to make Hadyn’s lungs tighten up. Like the deep south in the summer right before a thunderstorm when the air was thick with humidity, so still and heavy.
No one was talking as they ate breakfasts clearly pieced together individually from whatever food had already been in here. That wasn’t what caught her attention, though. More like a moment of déjà vu.
This eating area was set up more like she’d picture a military mess hall. Formed from a natural cavern, it was both wide and long, boasting tall ceilings broken up by several large stalactites and stalagmites that had grown into each other, forming columns. Multiple tables were set up—serviceable wood tables with benches for seating rather than chairs. To the left was the kitchen area with stainless steel counters open underneath, like a kitchen in a restaurant.
And Rune stood at the sink rinsing out his dishes, his back to her.
This felt just like that time in his mountain in Argentina. Only now he was hers and she was his. Not that she had told him that yet. What would he do if she asked him to wait for her parents to settle into the idea a bit more?
Though she wasn’t sure if she could wait.
At the mere sight of him, her skin turned electric with the buzz of her nerves. She let her gaze skate over his broad shoulders, the lean, muscled form of him clear even through his clothing. Everything in shades of black—black hair and eyes, even his combat pants and long-sleeved collarless shirt. The quintessential, cliched bad guy. Except he was the good guy. How had anyone who knew him well missed that fact?
He seemed relaxed, but she suspected, in truth, the man was coiled and ready to strike.
“Hungry?” Calla beckoned her over to where she and Deep sat at one of the tables, her smile welcoming.
Hadyn shot Rune a glance only to collide with onyx eyes focused intently on her face. Not taking her gaze from his, her feet took her straight to him without even consciously deciding to move. Gravity. That’s what he was for her.
She stopped a hair’s breadth from him, his warmth and smoke scent reaching out to curl around her as though drawing her even closer. Tipping her head, she looked him straight in the eyes only to find him watching her with that same intensity. “Hi,” she said, smiling.
“Hey love.”
What was she supposed to say now? With everyone else right there watching, just like last night. Chaghan and Qara included.
A soft grunt was her only warning before he dropped his head and, not touching her in any other way, he claimed her lips with a kiss that made her toes curl and sent desire chasing up her spine. If she didn’t know him better, she’d almost think he was relieved at the contact. Had he worried that her knock in the head had knocked some sense into her where he was concerned?
Not bloody likely.
She smiled against his lips, which made him raise his head. “Something funny?”
Not that she could share here. A glance over her shoulder showed both her parents watching her, one with open concern warmed by love and trust, the other with a scowl.
“Quit that,” she mouthed at Qara, who glanced away.
Hadyn had been right. This wasn’t easy for them. Torn between grief for a son and wanting to support a daughter’s happiness elsewhere.
“Let’s get you fed.” After waiting for her to make a plate, Rune didn’t leave her side, choosing to sit across the table from Calla and Deep, beside her parents.
About that time, she managed to pull her focus from the man back to those around her, that heaviness in the room finally penetrating. “Why is everyone so…”
“We lost four men.” Rune said.
She’d caught the gist of most of the discussion the previous night with all the people who’d come to help them. Apparently, a handful had taken them up on options one and two, which involved abandoning ship so they could run and hide. Not that she blamed them.
“You helped them, didn’t you?” she asked Rune.
That twitchy little shrug was all the answer she got. Which meant yes.