Free Fateful Magic (The Star-Crossed Series Book 8) by Rachel Higginson Page A

had Talbott . It took my fear of being captured, imprisoned and
tortured and refuted it. I wouldn’t be kidnapped again because Talbott would protect me. And if worse came to worst, then
he would save me. No matter what happened, Talbott would always save me.
    He would
stand up for me. He would champion for me. He would fight for me, just like
he’d done all this time.
    Well, if
he still cared about me…
    After a
little while longer, Talbott pulled the car over to
the side of the road. He paused for a second with two hands on the steering
wheel before shooting me a sideways look. Then he exhaled a long breath and
climbed out of the car.
    He rushed
around the front so I waited patiently for him to open the door. He seemed
grateful that I’d let him do that, which seemed a little silly to me. But I
wasn’t going to fight chivalry.
    He took
my hand again, slipping it into his without permission. But then again, I
didn’t pull away so that was probably all the permission he needed.
    A trail
wound away from the road and into the thick autumn trees. I hadn’t even noticed
it until he started walking us along it.
    The crisp
breeze rustled the dying leaves and the air smelled like smoke and fall. I
closed my eyes and tipped my face to the sun when it shone through the thick
canopy of branches overhead.
    “You’re
so beautiful,” Talbott murmured.
    His,
voice as much as his words, startled me. I’d gotten used to our silence and the
peace of the afternoon. And… and I really hadn’t expected him to lead with
that.
    “Thank
you.” I didn’t know if I’d made any sound though. My heart hammered in my
throat.
    “Can we
talk now?” he asked almost shyly.
    I nodded,
still not able to speak actual words. He stopped on the trail and turned to
face me. He reached for my other hand and held them between us as if he were
afraid I would float away.
    Or run
away.
    “Lilly
I-”
    “Did you
get my note?” I squeaked.
    He took a
slow breath and then nodded. His eyes were so filled with emotion I didn’t understand
they glistened black in the soft light. I felt like if he spoke now I wouldn’t
be able to hear him over the pounding of my own heart.
    “Yes,” he
said. “I got your note. You told me thank you for all that I’d done for you.”
    He
sounded a little put off by that, so I tried to reassure him. “And I meant it. Talbott , thank you for everything you’ve ever done for me.”
    He took a
step into me, bringing us a mere two inches apart. “I don’t want your
gratitude, Lilly.”
    “You
don’t?”
    “Gratitude
is impersonal. It’s given out of duty and obligation. I don’t want your
obligation.”
    “Not
always!”
    He
growled at me. Such a typical Talbott response! I
opened my mouth to say more, but he cut me off with more words I hadn’t
expected. “I want your feeling, Lilly. I want you to feel something stronger
than duty, stronger than a platonic sense of propriety. I want more than that.
I want everything more than that. I want… I want…”
    In a
breathy whisper, I asked, “What, Talbott ? What do you
want from me?”
    “I have
been falling in love with you since the moment I set eyes on you. It’s as
though, the second you set foot in my life, my purpose, my reason for living
shifted. I was born for one, very specific reason and yet within seconds you
changed my whole existence. I want to do the same for you. I want to be the
reason you live, the reason you fight. I want you to fall for me as hard and
eternally as I fell for you. I know that I have treated you poorly in the past,
but Lilly I will do whatever it takes for you to forgive me. And I want you to
know that no one will ever hurt you again. Never. I
will never let anything harm you or touch you. I want to protect you from
everything Lilly. I want to save you like you saved me.”
    “Saved
you?” His words were a whirlwind inside my chest, spinning my heart into an
unbelievable place. How could someone so perfect care for me? Want