As we walk through the tunnel, the light grows dim again, making it difficult for me to see clearly. Caelen takes my hand. Threading his fingers through mine, he pulls me along behind him.
It takes a while before his boot stops squelching with each step. I listen as he bemoans that the fine leather is ruined beyond repair now. Although, I suspect he does this to tease me and keep my mind off the darkness and the sounds of skittering creatures moving in the shadows beyond my vision.
Caelen stops abruptly, and panic flutters in my chest. “What is it?”
“The ceiling dips. We will have to crawl. Wait a moment,” he says as he releases my hand. “I will have to get some rope from my pack.”
“Rope? For what?”
“So I will not lose you in the narrow tunnel.”
I swallow hard as panic begins to build in my chest.
The sound of fabric rustling echoes along the walls as he searches his bag. Once he finds the rope, he ties it around my waist. “I will tie the other end to myself so you can follow me.”
I glance behind him at the narrow opening that disappears into solid black. Dark memories flood my mind of the time I spent trapped in a well, when I was a child. I draw in a shaking breath. “Caelen, I don’t think I can go in there.”
He takes my hands in his. “Yes, you can.”
When he tries to pull me toward it, I shrink back. “Caelen,” I struggle to keep my voice even. “Wait.”
Gently, he squeezes my hands, his callused thumbs moving in soothing circles across my knuckles. “You can do this, Lyana.” His voice is warm and smooth like velvet. “I will be with you the entire time. I will not let anything happen to you.”
“You promise?” My voice comes out barely a squeak.
Tears gather in my eyes, but I blink them back. I’m ashamed of my fear, and I hate appearing weak.
“I promise,” he whispers softly.
Together, we get on our hands and knees, and I crawl through the darkness, completely blind and utterly terrified. The hard rock seems to close in around me more tightly with each breath as we squeeze through.
My pulse pounds in my ears, drowning out all other noise as I pull myself along the cold, stone floor. I focus on the taut rope around my waist, anchoring myself to the firm tug of it around my body, reminding me that I’m not alone.
Without warning, it goes slack. Panic seizes my heart. “Caelen!”
“Lyana, the rope came loose. I’m retying it.”
My chest rises and falls rapidly as I struggle to breathe. It feels as though the walls are closing in on me. Blindly, I reach out with my hand and find only hard stone.
Unbidden tears escape my lashes as dark memories return. Caelen’s warm hand finds mine. The hard calluses of his palm scraping softly across mine as he entwines our fingers. “Lyana, it’s all right,” he whispers.
I squeeze my eyes shut, trying to push down my tears. “Caelen.” My voice quavers. “I just need a moment. I can do this. I can do this,” I repeat the whispered words, trying to shore up my courage.
I hate my fear and I hate feeling weak. This isn’t who I am.
Drawing in a deep breath, I slowly exhale, trying to calm my heartrate and breathing. I think of my mother, my brother, and my father. My family is gone. I’m all alone. I need to be stronger than this. I have to be.
“You are not alone,” Caelen’s voice whispers in the darkness, and I realize I’ve spoken my thoughts aloud. “I am here, Lyana. You can do this. You took an arrow for me,” he says. “This is nothing compared to that.”
I nod. “All right. Let’s keep going.”
I focus on my breathing as I force myself to move, one hand in front of the other as we crawl through the tunnel. To my surprise, it gets easier as we go.
“Are we almost there?”
Caelen hesitates a beat before he responds. “I… do not know.”
A nervous chuckle escapes me. “You could have lied to make me feel better, you know.”
“I thought you would appreciate honesty from your mate,” he teases lightly. “You were angry at me for lying about the spiders, were you not?”
A faint smile curls my lips. “Normally, an honest husband is a good thing. But… not in this case, I think.”
He’s silent a moment. “Then… we are almost there.”
I burst out laughing at his joke. “Too late. You already told me the truth; you cannot take it back now.”
“I suppose not,” he says, and I can hear the smile in his voice. “But we will be through it soon enough. I doubt your Dwarvish friend would have sent us this way if the pass were impossible.”
A grin tugs at my lips. “Bran would be shocked to hear how much faith you have in him. I can hardly wait to tell him about it.”
“Perhaps you best keep it to yourself. Dwarves are already full of themselves as it is.”
“And I’ve heard the same of the Elves,” I joke.
He scoffs. “Then, you’ve been misinformed.”
I laugh again, the sound echoing loudly in the enclosed space. I stop abruptly and lower my voice. “Sorry. I did not mean to be so loud.”
“It is all right,” he replies. “I quite like the sound of your laughter.”
Happiness blooms in my chest as I follow him through the darkness.
When we finally reach the other side, soft light spills in from an opening in the ceiling. It’s not much, but I can at least see Caelen much better now. We stand and I tip my head up toward the light, relishing the cavernous space around us.
“We should rest a bit and eat something,” he says. “We still have a long journey ahead of us, I’m afraid.”
“All right.”
Together, we sit side by side as we eat some of the bread and cheese from our packs. I shiver slightly and Caelen pulls out the bedroll and wraps it around me. “What about you?” I ask. “Are you not cold?”
“It is… not unbearable,” he replies.
I lift the corner and drape it over his shoulder, wrapping it around us both. “Is that better?”
He flashes a handsome smile that makes my heart flutter. “Yes, it is. Thank you.”
I lean into Caelen, eagerly soaking up the warmth radiating from his body. “Thank you for helping me earlier.”
“Of course.” His gaze sweeps to mine. “Have you always had a fear of enclosed spaces?”
“I fell down a well when I was younger. Arthur and I were playing with Bran and his brother Rob. They said it was a wishing well. I leaned over the edge to make a wish, and fell in.” I shudder, and Caelen tightens his arm around me. “I was trapped for several hours before they got me out.”
“That had to have been terrible.”
“It was. And it’s made me afraid ever since. But I realized something earlier.”
“What was it?”
“If I am to regain my throne and rule Eryadon, I cannot afford to be afraid anymore.” I swallow against the lump in my throat. “I am the last of my family. I am alone now.” The words settle in my chest like a heavy stone. “I have to be brave.”
He cups my chin, tipping my head up to his. “You are not alone, Lyana.”
His gaze travels over my face like a gentle caress. I could so easily lose myself in his eyes. Caelen is not at all what I expected of a High Elf. He is warm, and kind, and caring. But it is not just that. Something about him draws me in.
I reach up and cup his cheek. I brush my thumb lightly across his full, lower lip. Maybe it is my recent fear that makes me so bold as to touch him in this way, or perhaps it is something else.
My heart pounds, and my entire body thrums with anticipation as he leans in close. The soft mint of his breath washes over my skin a moment before he closes the small gap between us. His lips brush against mine in a tender kiss.
He pulls back just enough to skim the tip of his nose alongside my own. He runs his fingers through my hair and cups the back of my head, pressing his lips again to mine in a tentative kiss, gentle and exploring. His masculine scent—cinnamon and spice—surrounds me.
His hands slide around my waist, pulling me close as he traces his tongue along the seam of my lips, asking for entrance.
I gasp, and his tongue finds mine, lightly stroking against it. Fire sparks deep within and our kiss becomes more urgent. He buries his hand in my hair, gripping the long strands to angle my face up to his as he claims my mouth with his lips and his tongue.
The soft scraping of stone echoes nearby, startling us both, and we pull away.
“What was that?”
A low growl rises in his throat as he scans the dark tunnel ahead. “Do not worry. I have warned them away.”
“Them?” I ask, my voice nearly a squeak. “As in… more than one?”
He arches a brow. “Do you really wish to know?”
His question gives me pause. “Will whatever they are leave us alone?”
He nods.
“That’s good enough for me, then.”
He stands and extends his hand, pulling me up beside him. “There are more of them coming, however. We should go.”
His words send a small shiver down my spine, but I force myself to push down my fear.
With my hand in his, we continue on through the darkness. He says nothing of our kiss and neither do I, but my mind keeps returning to the memory of his lips upon mine.
I should not have kissed him. We have already agreed to annul our marriage. He does not want a human wife.
And yet… he did not pull away until we were interrupted. Maybe he feels something for me, just as I do for him.
Or perhaps he regrets it, and that’s why he does not mention it.
I feel so foolish for having kissed him when he probably does not even want me.
I want to ask him about this, but each time I open my mouth the words die in my throat. I’m not even sure where to begin.
But as we continue, I realize that we have far greater problems than this. We need to focus on surviving, not on analyzing emotions and feelings that may or may not be returned.
I force myself to push down my emotions. I’m in danger of losing my heart to this man, and that is something I do not want to risk. But as I glance at Caelen, I realize that it’s already too late. I’m falling for him. And now, I can only hope that he somehow feels the same.
