I did manage to fall asleep eventually, but my dreams were not kind. Daemons surrounded me, their eyes glowing red as they clawed at my back and legs. I couldn’t feel any pain, but blood poured out of me in bright red swirls, as if I were in zero gravity. My voice was muted, although I was screaming. I was kicking and punching, but they kept coming.

My nightmare only got worse, and I saw Heron beyond the sea of daemons killing me. He was running toward me, desperately reaching out and calling out my name—but I couldn’t hear him either. Everything was muted. And as much as he ran, Heron wasn’t getting any closer. The physics of my subconscious had rallied against me.

I gasped and opened my eyes, surrounded by quiet darkness. My sight adjusted to the obscurity, and I could make out the contours of the windows and furniture in my room. I’m in my room… at the inn…

Warmth enveloped me, a pair of strong arms holding me tight beneath the covers. Heat expanded through my chest as I caught his scent—a plethora of spices and musk, combined with a faint whiff of citrus from whatever soap he’d used earlier. Heron was in my bed, spooning me in a soft embrace, and I… I didn’t want to be anywhere else.

“I fell off the couch a couple of times,” he whispered, his hot breath tickling my ear. “I figured the bed would be more comfortable.”

I didn’t say anything. My words were stuck in my throat, anyway. Well, I could tell him to go back to his room if he wanted to sleep in a bed and not on my sofa, but that seemed cruel. He’d come to me for comfort and company. Besides, I was ridiculously comfortable just as I was.

His frame outweighed mine, and every curve of my body seemed to fit perfectly against his, as if someone had sculpted us as two pieces of a whole. I belonged in his arms, and every atom in me happened to agree.

What are we going to do about this? What am I going to do?

I still needed to tell him about how I felt, given my earlier failed attempt. He still needed to know that I was starting to see well beyond our physical attraction, that I was having trouble seeing him as just a friend.

I’ll try again tomorrow… Maybe.

There were two ways in which this was going to go. Option one: Heron would tell me he felt the same way, and that meant we could maybe explore this chemistry between us and see what we could make of it. That was my best-case scenario, and it still scared the hell out of me, because I’d never been in love with anyone before and I didn’t understand the depths to which we could go.

Option two wasn’t good. Option two had Heron telling me he wasn’t interested in a serious relationship, but that we could always take advantage of our physical attraction and “have some fun”. I’d heard him say that to other females back on Calliope—I knew his lines all too well. He’d tried some on me already, after all. That was my worst-case scenario, in which my feelings were one-sided and I was bound to come across as a fool, after I’d pushed him away for being a superficial philanderer.

Oh, man, I’m in for quite the ride, no matter what he says…

Of course, there was a third option, in which I could keep my mouth shut and just ignore everything between us. But who was I kidding? With every minute spent in Heron’s presence, it became more and more difficult for me to just hold it in.

I’ll revisit this tomorrow, with a clear, rested head.

For the time being, I figured I was better off just letting it go. Just for the night, while I was still gradually melting in his arms, while he kept me close enough for his heartbeat to echo in my chest. His breathing was even, his face hidden in my hair.

He moved in his sleep, and his lips found the back of my neck. My entire body bucked, my eyes nearly popping out of their orbits, and my skin tingled all over. He didn’t do anything, but his lips settled against my neck, and that generated thousands of tiny explosions through every fiber of my body.

Oh, who the hell am I kidding?

I am falling so hard and so fast, I can’t even keep up with my own body anymore…

There was plenty to love about Heron, though. Beneath his boyish charm and playful smirk, he carried years of experience, of rough living and scars of war. He was strong and determined, and downright ruthless when those he cared for were in danger. His sense of duty was out of this world—Heron knew how to obey orders but was perfectly capable of challenging them, if they interfered with his ethical code, his desire to improve the world around him.

I had a feeling that, deep down, Heron wanted to love and be loved—more than anything. It was why our unintended Pyrope had had such an impact on him. He’d thought about it. Maybe he’d even dreamed about the day he’d meet his soulmate and taste her blood on his lips.

I closed my eyes, trying to put myself back to sleep. It would take a while. His hard body against mine and his sleepy lips on my skin were making it very difficult for me to fully relax.

So I drifted for a while, simply enjoying the moment.

Simply enjoying Heron’s arms around me.