*Rhys*
I was in bed but unable to sleep.
Visions of fire still plagued me, blocking a peaceful night's rest, but there was something else keeping me awake now. The racing of my heart and my rapid breathing were much the same as when I had my nightmares.
But this wasn't a nightmare.
She had refused. I heard it with my own ears as Saoirse refused her father's demand to prepare to leave with Conall.
I had a weak moment and kissed her, and it was bliss. Yet I had avoided her since, unable to deal with the conversation that she couldn't be with me and that it wouldn't work. Even the thought of the conversation sent a shiver down my spine.
Combined with the stress of excavating the portal stones, I was on high alert. While I knew I should have been more worried about the portal and the new dragon shifter that had threatened me, my mind stayed on Saoirse.
This new declaration had given me hope.
