“You’re a female; you should be protected and cherished. Not out seeking vengeance,” he exclaimed.
“Sir, no offense, but I’ve taken down plenty of Fae in my lifetime. I’m only twenty one, but I assure you that I can handle myself, and your son can tell you as much. I was top of my class, and I’m damn good with a blade made of iron. I want this, and, while I am sympathetic to your world’s plight, I can’t agree to settle down or anything else until I at least try to take out the person who murdered my parents. I owe them my very life. They saved me, Kier, and I can’t just walk away without at least trying to kill the one responsible for their deaths.”
His blue eyes were thoughtful, and with a nod he agreed to discuss it with Adam. With the promise made that he would think about it, I left the room silently and with a heavy heart.
~~~~~~~~*
I went to the room by myself, but it didn’t take long for Adam to show up. He walked in and lifted his hands as if in a helpless gesture. “Hi,” he smiled uncomfortably.
“Hi,” I replied, wishing I had something else to say. It was strange between us now, when it shouldn’t be. I wasn’t sure it would ever go back to normal again, ever. I missed my friend; I missed his jokes and wisecracks. I didn’t want this to drive a wedge between us, and this awkwardness was spiraling out of control.
He exhaled on a deep sigh before he started talking. “Syn, we should talk.”
“It’s fine, Adam,” I answered, wondering if he felt as weird as I did with this tension between us.
“We need to talk. There’s a lot going on, and I know it's happening pretty fast for both of us.”
I snorted and met his green eyes. “That's putting it mildly.” I rolled my eyes at him as he laughed.
“Larissa would know what to say if she was here.” He hesitated, scratching his head carelessly.
“If she was here, Adam, we would be having a very different conversation,” I muttered back at him.
He smiled sadly and nodded. “I know you don’t want this, but, Syn, I’ve seen the infants and children they speak of, and they are dying, and if we can save them…”
“Adam, stop. Just stop, please. I know as well as you do, that this ends with me going with you. I need to finish something, though. I need to find the one who killed my parents before I can commit to anything. Give me that much. You, of all people, know how important this is to me. I have to try. I’ll become your wife, but I’m not sure where this will put us as friends. I don’t love you like that.”
“You want to kill the man who is currently hot for your head?” he asked sitting on the edge of the bed with a sarcastic smile on his lips.
I scooted over and made room for him next to me and turned onto my side. He smiled and curled up beside me, reaching for my hand. It felt natural, and, yet, lying next to Adam was so different from lying down with Ryder. I felt no lust, no heat, and zero attraction. Adam was gorgeous; he was the stuff that many young girls’ dreams were made of. He just wasn’t mine.
“I do. I want him gone. I want to be the one who kills him, as well as the others who killed my parents and ruined my life. If we can prove that Dresden sent him and his friends, then he will need to answer for what they did too. I don’t care if that asshole is a king, either. If he is guilty of any part of it, I want him dead as well. Ryder hasn’t made any progress, so it’s my turn to try. Alden agreed to help me, and we have a plan.”
Adam grinned knowingly. “And then you will come with us?”
“You know this won’t work between us, right?” I asked, watching his face as it fell.
“We might not be in love, but I love you enough for this to work. I feel a connection that’s hard to ignore when I’m with you. You may not love me—hell, this might not be love I’m feeling either—but if we can save our people—the people of both worlds, I’m willing to forgo love and do it.”
“You could live without what you had with Larissa?” I asked, resting my head on his shoulder and looking up at his beautiful face. “We shouldn’t have to live without it. Who knows if this will even work? Ristan couldn’t even see my future until this week. Now he’s seeing us having kids, and, what will our kids think? This is just insane!”
“Everything we have ever done together has worked out, Syn. I know we can do this too,” he whispered, nuzzling my hair as he smelled it.