Chapter 35

CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE

Ellery

Snowflakes floated around me as I wandered the gardens. The haunting notes of the music drifted to me while I searched for the wall of roses and kept an eye out for anyone following me.

Switching from one path to another, I encountered some other amsirah along the way. Some of them were alone, but others were couples looking to sneak away for some time alone.

A towering wall encompassed the garden; more lightning rods decorated the top of it, and I spotted some in the bushes and near the trees. I didn’t know if the earl always had this many lightning rods in his garden or if he’d installed them as a precaution against Ryker as they would diminish his ability to draw forth lightning… and mine.

The lazily falling snow melted against my skin and on the blue stones beneath my feet.

Torches, placed every ten feet, lit the pathways crisscrossing the beautiful trees and bushes. Some of them were flowering, and their petals caught the snow.

I passed what had to be the wall of roses Ryker was talking about but kept going to ensure I was alone. With every step I took, my mind screamed at me to go back, but I was already being incredibly foolish by being here; I had to make sure I was at least safe about it.

After what was probably only another ten minutes, but felt like an hour, I headed back to the roses. I hadn’t encountered anyone else in a while and was certain I was alone.

Stopping before the roses that climbed over trellises fifty feet in the air, I marveled at the different-colored blooms. There were reds, yellows, oranges, peaches, blacks, greens, and multicolored flowers.

The colors created a beautiful rainbow wave over the trellises and the rock wall in their center. They flowed over the wall and onto more trellises on the other side before cascading to the ground.

Crystals of snow had collected on some of the petals. Their beads shimmered in the fire from the torch only five feet away.

Entranced by the beauty, I ran my fingers over the delicate petals and brushed away some moisture as I marveled at the flowers and moved deeper beneath the trellis. I ducked to avoid some of the branches and thorns that created an archway between the wall and a trellis.

The torchlight didn’t penetrate beneath the thick wall of roses as I moved deeper into the alcove. I stayed close to the wall to avoid the more ruthless side of the beauty surrounding me, but a thorn caught in my hair, and I had to tug it free.

I almost called for Ryker before recalling the other amsirah in the garden. Is he even here?

I didn’t see him in the ballroom when I left, but he could have been there amidst the crowd. I might have beat him out here and would have to wait for him to arrive.

Biting my lip, I glanced back at the pathway and the dim light beyond. How long would I have to wait for him to arrive?

When I shifted my attention forward again, I made it a couple more feet before something moved in the shadows ahead. I took a startled step back but stopped when Ryker spoke.

“It’s just me.”

When he moved closer, the silver of his eyes and the strong contours of his features became clearer. He had to bend to avoid the thorns, but he still prowled forward in a way that reminded me of a predator stalking its prey.

I had no doubt I was the prey.

My pulse thundered in my ears; I didn’t know if it was from excitement or apprehension. When I woke alone yesterday morning, and my heart broke once more, I’d vowed not to let this man close again, but though my brain screamed words of caution at me, I couldn’t stop the intense physical reaction my body and heart had to him.

No matter what passed between us, I would always love him. He would always be the one I craved, even if I couldn’t have him.

While distrust had become interwoven into the fabric of our relationship, it wasn’t always like that, and I missed him. I ached for the past, but I could never have it back.

I’d broken us, and we could never be the way we once were. I was beginning to realize a part of him would always distrust and hate me.

I shouldn’t have come here. This wouldn’t end well, but maybe it would finally end .

When Ryker stopped before me, I could almost hear him recalling everything I’d done wrong. But his words proved me wrong.

“I’m glad you came,” he said.

I swallowed the lump in my throat as disbelief filled me. “You are?”

“Yes.”

When he held his hand out to me, I couldn’t resist sliding my hand into his. His roughened, calloused palms rubbed against mine as he squeezed. Immortals healed fast, but he trained for countless hours with weapons, and his calluses never faded.

I easily recalled what they felt like rubbing against my skin, caressing me, and evoking sensations I hadn’t known possible until him. Keep it together, Ellery. Don’t let lust cloud your judgment; you’ll only end up hurt again.