But almost immediately, she remembered.
There was one person who never looked at her like that. Not even in her first life.
She glanced sideways at Soren riding silently beside her, alert but lost in his own thoughts. Him. He'd never looked at her with fear or hatred. Curiosity, yes. Like the way one watched fire without touching it. Just simply admiring. Attraction, certainly. Respect and challenge and something warmer that she was terrified to name. But never fear.
She could feel exhaustion clinging to him like second skin, see it in the slight slump of shoulders he thought he was hiding. Once again she felt lost on how to help him.
Usually he'd just do whatever he wanted... pull her close, kiss her all over, lick, bite, whatever made her breathless, demand attention... and she'd let him. But now she didn't know how to reach him first, how to offer comfort he might not want.
