Rory POV

Sometimes I think Silas lost his mind. It’s been a few weeks since he told me he would give me his whole world, and he hasn’t mentioned it since. Every day we do the same things. Hunt for food for dinner, practice his polymorphic spell, practice my healing magic, and tend to the lodge like it’s our house. We went to town a few times to resupply things, but we haven’t talked to anyone else otherwise. And, damn it, the man is getting to me. He affects me more than Jerico did, and it’s exciting and frightening.

“Better run, Red,” Silas hollered from the lodge door.

We had just finished cleaning up dinner when Silas turned to me and suggested we play tag. The loser has to tell the winner a deep secret. This isn’t the first game we played like this. I usually win these games because he insists on chasing me through the forest. Darting under the low branches, I run further into the woods. My heart pounds right out of my chest as I hear him catching up, and I find myself wondering what might happen if he wins for a change.

So far, Silas has told me about being a ballroom dance champion when he was fourteen. He served in the military from age fifty to sixty-five. All elves serve in the military for a time. His secret was he caused the most havoc for his commanding officers. Silas was supposed to serve for twenty years, but they found him so annoying they let him off five years early. He fell in love once, but the girl left Gleaca with her family when he was seventy-five. Silas hopes he never has to take the throne, but his sister is almost 600 years old already. He loves his sister more than anything, and he’s been by her side since their parents died forty years ago.

Silas was close. I had a choice to run or let him catch me. If I do let him catch me, it can’t be that easy. I snuck around the tree trunk and took off running. He appeared next to me with a dazzling smile that caught my attention. A tree root got the better of me as I began to tumble to the ground. I reached out and grabbed Silas’ wrist, pulling him down with me. We twisted together and rolled through the brush until we collided with a tree. My back took the brunt of the collision, and I felt things pop in my spine.

“Gotcha, Red,” Silas said softly as he sat himself up.

“Oww,” was all I could manage.

Silas pulled me into his lap despite my cries of pain. He poured his healing magic into me, and I felt myself become warm. There was popping in my spine again causing the pain to flair until it snapped into place. I felt relief surge across my body. Silas healed me again. This man was coming to my rescue again. Maybe, I should have just stayed in one place instead of trying to let him chase me.

“Thanks, Si,” I let my hand graze his jaw.

He put his hand over mine to keep it there. The tension between us was palpable. We had been playing this dangerous game of getting close to each other. Allowing ourselves to have stolen glances and welcomed touches. Chasing me was another way to fan the flames between us. Alcohol suppressed every reason in my mind why we shouldn’t be together. Honestly, the list had grown shorter every day since he said he wanted a future with me.

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Our eyes were locked on each other. The inches between us were disappearing. His breath was hot on my cheeks. If I had something to say, I could remember it. His lips nearly touched mine. He stopped moving, waiting to see if I would kiss him. Logic was gone. The world evaporated. I leaned in and let his warm feeling envelop me. My lips followed his movements, and I swear my magic responded to his kiss.

Lightning crackled around us. Silas didn’t stop or flinch from my magic surfacing. The kiss deepened. His arms cradled me against him. I was sitting on his lap. My hands had moved from his jaw to soft black hair. For a moment, I missed my own black curls, but the thought faded when Silas ran his fingers down my back. Everything about this moment felt right just like Aunt Leah had told me it would be. We kissed until my breath gave out and we parted.

Silas looked at me cautiously, smiling. “Gotcha, Red.”

I giggle. “Yeah, you won.”

A thought crossed his mind as he became concerned. “Was that kiss my prize?”

“No,” I assured him, hugging him tightly. I want to give him something more than a simple kiss. He wants to give me his world, so maybe I should let him into mine. “You know, I wear a glamor charm, right?”

His eyebrows scrunched together. “I knew it was a possibility. You mentioned another name once when you were bitten by that goat.”

“Well, shit. I am terrible at keeping secrets,” I sigh. “What did I say?”

“You called yourself Rory Bishop,” he smiled.

Yep. I screwed myself. Stupid goat venom. Aunt Leah would have me running laps for my lack of discretion. I have a feeling Silas might end up knowing most of my secrets. “Yep. Rory is my name.”

He tucked a loose strand of hair behind my ear. “Rory,” he whispered to me. Tingles ran up my arms from his smooth voice.

I crawled out of his arms and stood up. “Are you sure you want to start this with me, Silas?” My voice cracked from the anxiety building in my belly. “Silas, I had convinced myself that I could never have a serious relationship with anyone. Being a hybrid made me feel unlovable because it was dangerous to be involved with me. My parents died protecting me. Jerico might have loved me, but he died protecting me too. I am so protective of Ema and those who raised me for that reason.”

Silas rose to stand in front of me and kissed my forehead. His hands remained on my cheeks. “Did I not make that clear enough? Yes, Red. I want to protect you and build a future with you.” Another kiss on my forehead. “I have been drawn to you since I learned about a book thief at the Wizard’s Guild. It was that same feeling that led me to you after the showdown with Athyra. The peace that we find in each other’s embrace is unlike anything I have experienced. If there really are matches made in the heavens then I firmly believe you are mine.”

Those words had my heart pounding out of my chest. This is what falling in love feels like. Excitement from finding some you want to share everything with, and anxiety over the possibility that the person will crush you with just a few words. Was I in love with Silas? Not yet. I knew for certain that I would be if time allowed it. All the secrets of my life will be his if I marry him. This was our moment. The chance to decide what the future might hold for us.

My cheeks were burning again. “So, you want to marry me?”

His left hand moved to my waist and pulled me close. “Yes, but we don’t have to.” I could tell he didn’t want to pressure me. “We could walk away from Gleaca and travel the world.”

My hands covered his for a moment. “Then, change my life, Silas. Make a choice for us, here and now.”