Chapter 8 Eight
I stayed in Orion’s arms longer than I expected. His embrace felt strong and warm, a shelter I had known for years, but tonight something felt different. His hold was more desperate than protective, and the rise and fall of his breath against my shoulder carried a tension I could not ignore. When he finally pulled back, his hands lingered on my waist while he studied my face as if the world depended on what he found there.
“Zara,” he said softly, “you are shaking.”
I had not even realized it. My body trembled with a mixture of fear, exhaustion, and something deeper that I could not put into words. I nodded and stepped back, but Orion followed with a careful touch to my cheek.
“Sit,” he whispered.
I lowered myself onto the edge of the bed. Orion sat beside me, close enough that our knees touched. His warmth seeped into me and brought a flutter of comfort, a reminder of all the years we had known each other, of the way he had always been there, quietly steady and quietly mine. He took my hand gently and pressed it between his palms.
“I am not letting Ezra get anywhere near you again,” he said firmly. “I will stand in front of you every time he shows up. I will fight him if I must.”
His voice cracked slightly on the last words, and for the first time tonight, the fear in his heart matched the fear in mine.
I turned my hand in his and traced my fingers slowly across his knuckles. It was a small gesture, but the touch made his breath catch. Something inside me warmed. Orion was not only my protector. He was someone I cared about deeply, someone who knew every part of my life. And for a moment I wanted everything to disappear except him.
“Thank you,” I whispered.
He leaned closer, his gaze dropping briefly to my lips before returning to my eyes. It was a look I knew well. A look he used to hide but no longer tried to. A look that said he wanted more than protection. He wanted me.
My heart pounded with a sudden rush of emotion. I felt drawn to him, pulled by the years of connection we shared, pulled by the warmth he always offered without asking anything in return. Then he reached up and brushed his fingers through my hair, slow and tender, sending a soft warmth through my entire body.
“You are everything to me,” he murmured. “I know things are confusing right now. I know Ezra has made this worse. But you and I are real. What we have is real.”
I swallowed thickly and whispered back, “I do feel something for you. I always have.”
He closed his eyes briefly in relief, as if he had been holding his breath. Then he leaned in, slowly, giving me time to retreat if I wanted to. But I did not move. I stayed still as his lips brushed mine in the lightest, sweetest kiss. Gentle. Safe. Familiar.
But the moment his lips touched mine, an unexpected spark of guilt flashed across my chest. Not because I did not want him. But because the moment was not quiet inside me. Ezra’s presence lingered somewhere deep under my skin like a shadow, whispering reminders I did not want to hear.
Orion pulled back just enough to look into my eyes. “Tell me if you want me to stop.”
I shook my head quickly. “I do not want you to stop.”
He kissed me again, deeper this time, his hand moving to the back of my neck. His lips were warm, his touch confident but careful. For a moment the world melted away. The panic. The fear. The confusion. Everything softened into something sweet and grounding.
I leaned into him and felt his breath catch against my mouth. His arms wrapped around my waist as if he wanted to pull me closer, protect me, claim me. I felt myself melt into the moment. This was what safety should feel like. This was what my heart had expected to want. This was what I believed love should feel like.
But as the kiss deepened, something inside me twisted again. Not bad. Not wrong. Just confusing. Something inside me responded to Orion’s touch, yet another, quieter part of me pulled away from it without my permission. A part that remembered Ezra’s eyes. Ezra’s presence. Ezra’s voice saying my name in the forest.
I broke the kiss and leaned my forehead against Orion’s shoulder, breathing hard. Orion stroked my hair gently.
“What is it,” he asked quietly.
I could not lie to him. Not tonight. “I feel torn,” I whispered.
He stiffened slightly. “Between what and what.”
I shook my head. “I do not know. That kiss should have felt simple. But it did not. Something in me keeps pulling somewhere else, even though I do not want it to.”
Orion’s expression clouded with pain, but he hid it behind a calm mask faster than I expected. He took my hand and held it against his heart.
“You are mine,” he said in a soft, aching voice. “You are meant to be with me. We have always known this.”
I nodded slowly. “I know.”
“But you do not feel sure,” he said.
The words felt like knives. “I am trying to. I want to.”
A tense silence filled the room before he spoke again. “I will not force anything. But I am not stepping aside. I will not let Ezra confuse you. Whatever strange pull you feel, we will break it. We will find a way.”
Before I could answer, Lola knocked softly and pushed the door open. “Sorry to interrupt, but we need to talk. Something happened at the border.”
Orion stood instantly, his posture tightening. “What happened.”
“The guards say he left behind a mark,” Lola said. “A symbol carved into one of the trees. They said it is a message directed at Zara.”
My stomach dropped. “A message.”
Lola nodded. “And you need to see it.”
Orion turned sharply toward her. “She is not going anywhere near that border. Not tonight. Not while he is prowling around.”
Lola stepped inside and closed the door. “You need to hear what the symbol is before you decide.”
I stood, unable to wait another second. “What is it.”
Lola hesitated before speaking. “It is a claim sign.”
My blood ran cold. “A claim sign.”
She nodded. “Not a binding one. Not something official. But something that means interest. Intent. Focus.”
Orion’s anger surged instantly. His voice dropped into a dangerous tone. “He marked her location.”
Lola nodded again. “Yes. He marked the place where he looked up at her window.”
My knees weakened and I sat back on the bed. “Why. Why would he do that.”
Orion began pacing like a caged storm. “He is provoking me. He is trying to force a reaction.”
Lola shook her head. “No. This is not about provoking you. This is about her.”
The room grew painfully quiet.
Lola continued, softer now. “Ezra is drawn to Zara. He is focused on her. And he is leaving signs to show it. Not to us. To her.”
My breath caught. “What am I supposed to do with that.”
Orion stopped pacing and stood in front of me. “Ignore him. Ignore everything he does. Ignore every sign he leaves. He cannot claim you unless you let him.”
“I would never let him,” I said quickly. “I do not want him.”
Orion’s shoulders relaxed slightly. He took my face in both hands, his thumbs brushing my cheeks gently. “Then you stay with me. Every day. Every night. Until this ends. I will keep you safe.”
Before I could answer, the same faint sensation from earlier wrapped itself around the back of my neck. A soft warmth. A pull. A quiet whisper of attention.
Ezra was near again.
Not close enough to see. Not close enough to hear. But close enough that my instincts reacted to him instantly.
I closed my eyes in frustration. “He is near. Again.”
Orion cursed under his breath and pulled me into his arms protectively. “He will not take you. He will not win this.”
Lola backed toward the door. “We need the elders. We need answers. Something is not normal here.”
Orion held me tighter. His chest rose and fell quickly. “Do not worry,” he whispered into my hair. “I love you. He cannot take something that already belongs.”
My heart clenched. His words were warm and real. But the moment he said them, Ezra’s presence pulsed again, like a whisper in the dark.
Something in me responded before I could stop it.
Something I did not want.
Something I feared more than anything.