Chapter Sixty-four

Eskil hated but cherished that memory. It was the last one he had of Brenna, and he missed his little child. He stared down at Libelle who was now looking up at him, her eyes were red and slightly puffy. Her cheeks were flush and her lower lip was bright red, the droplet of blood still there. He lightly rubbed her cheek as she pulled away from him.

The sun was nearly set, hidden behind the mountains and casting them in shadows with a crisp breeze flowing over the lake in their direction. He felt the cool air pass over them, and Libelle shivered, her skin prickling from the chill as she seemed to unconsciously curl up closer to him.

I never would have been able to do this with Brenna. He rested his hand on Libelle's neck and bent down over her, capturing her mouth in a hot kiss. His tongue flicked over her sore lip, erasing the small amount blood before his lips locked against hers. He heard her inhale sharply when his tongue pushed past her lips and into her mouth, tangling with hers, savoring the sweet taste of her mouth. His kiss lasted only for a moment but it thrilled him, and he opened his eyes to see her reaction. It was what he expected. Her brows were narrowed together, her teeth were clenched and her fist was pulled back. In an instant, she landed a blow to his chin.

He growled and tightened his grip around her when she tried to stand up. "Sit down, Bren— Libelle."

He heard her frustrated breath and yelped when she bit down onto his arm, the pain causing him to jerk away, thus allowing her to stand up. "I am not Brenna, you bastard!" Her exasperated sigh was long and deep, and her sore eyes looked like she wanted to cry again. She cursed at him and shook her head before turning on her heels. She rushed to her stallion, grabbed his reins and stretched upwards to grasp the saddle horn. She was raising her foot into the stirrup when Eskil grabbed her wrists and spun her around. His eyes were still gold, but the shade was hotter and brighter.

"You're right, you're not Brenna. You are..." His sentence trailed off as he smiled at her, the curve of his lips was gentle. She was angry with him, biting her lip again to stop herself from screaming at him. She was showing great restraint with him, which was impressive.

"I am what?" she growled at him, trying to pull herself free from his hold.

Eskil chuckled. Gods, curse you for this. This is cruel, even for you. "My lifemate."