368 Dragged Down

LERRIN

Holding Suhle was almost as wonderful as kissing her.

Almost.

Her hood was back and she was warm and soft in his arms, her cheek resting on his chest, her breath fluttering her hair. He held her, but loosely, trembling with the restraint it took not to explore her with his hands, but she trembled too, and not for the reasons he would wish.

Her scent was a complex mix—relief when she pressed into his chest, grief, and fear foremost. But a new kind of fear. It had a quality he hadn't sensed in her before.

What is it, Suhle? he sent. There's something more.

She sighed. I fear where this will take us. I fear what might become of me. I fear what will become of you. Lerrin, Reth is not an easy foe. There is a reason he has had no challengers. He… it would be so much better to meet him at the table—