Free Rite of Exile: The Silent Tempest, Book 1 by E. J. Godwin Page B

was nothing demure or submissive about the Grand Loremaster of Ada. So it was no surprise when she tried to pull away at first. Then she relaxed and melted into him, and all his fears and sorrows vanished in the softness of her lips, the warm press of her body.
    She withdrew a little, her arms still around his shoulders. “Caleb Stenger! If this is another serving of revenge, it’s definitely not a cold one.”
    He laughed. “No last names, remember?”
    “Caleb,” she corrected with a nod.
    After a silent, candid exchange, he released her. He faced the city lights again, intensely aware of her gaze upon him, feeling like a fool for caving in to his guilt.
    “This place seems too good to be true,” he murmured, as if to himself. “Free of pressures, free of wars.”
    “I’m not sure what you mean by pressures ,” she said. “But we certainly have had our wars. Those murals should have convinced you of that.”
    “I know. But you still use the same weapons you did a thousand years ago. You aren’t always looking for better ways to kill.”
    She leaned her back against the rail again. “I love Ada, too, Caleb. But that’s not why I kissed you.”
    He drew a deep breath. There seemed no end to her ability to disarm him. “But aren’t you a part of this world?” he said. “Here everything is new to me, and there’s so much to discover.” He hesitated, then forged ahead. “The only thing that could make me happier is if you went with me.”
    Her lips parted a little in surprise. Caleb waited in breathless suspense. Suddenly, a tiny, pale light floated across the balcony, winked out for a moment, and as Telai watched it repeated its performance until it lost itself in the dark canopy of leaves.
    His words spilled out in a torrent. “I know this is a bit presumptuous. There’s no rush, I’m willing to wait for such an important deci—”
    “Caleb,” she interrupted, “I’m honored. I mean that. But I can’t walk away from my obligations, even if I wanted to.”
    He guessed another reason for her answer, but it took none of the sting away. “I suppose it is unfair of me to expect anything else right now. But there’s one thing you can count on—I’ll never be like Tenlar. I’ll never consider love a second choice. I spent too many weeks and months away from Karla to make that mistake again.”
    She paled, as if struck by arrows instead of words. Caleb waited, desperate for a ray of hope, every beat of his heart a test of endurance. But it did not last. Like a battle-weary soldier at any reminder of war, the growing pain in her face was more than he could bear.
    “Telai,” he whispered, and held her in his arms.
    She offered no resistance. There was no thought of romance, or passion, only acceptance of the simplest gift of all, comfort. It was a dream so blissful that time itself was his greatest enemy. For like any dream it came to an end, and she turned her back again, as if unwilling to look upon the raw honesty that had finally matched her own.
    He tried to think of something to say, but missed his chance. “I had Eké prepare another room,” she said, “in case you’re too tired to return to the inn.”
    Caleb’s heart sank. “ I’d best get Warren back. I’m not that tired, anyway.”
    She nodded. “I’ll have Yoté send for a carriage.”
    He stepped forward and rested his hands on her shoulders. “Thank you for a wonderful evening, Telai. And thank you for listening.”
    He could see part of her face now, and the city lights gleamed off the trace of a tear, evidence of an old struggle Caleb realized went far deeper than any memory of lost love. Whether it was fear, or duty, or some other dark secret, was beyond his ability. Yet there was a message—one he felt he should be able to read.
    He struggled to say something more, unable to bear the thought of leaving her this way. But the wait itself became unbearable, for both of them. Telai shrugged his hands away and walked quickly