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“Do you feel anything for me?” Ravi suddenly asked.

“I…” Magda couldn’t put her feelings into words.

“It’s alright if you don’t. I just need to know.”

“It’s not that. I…I can’t let myself fall for you. Honestly, I’ve been holding back each moment we spend together.”

“Why?”

Magda confessed, “It’s because I’ve been hurting, and I don’t want to confuse this desire to ease my pain with something that could be real.”

Ravi brushed her wet hair out of her face, and circled his hand around her neck. “We won’t know if this is real unless we can acknowledge that there is something between us. Letting someone in is not a weakness. It can be your fortress, your resolve…”

“No,” Magda said, pulling away from him. “I can’t do this. I would be putting you in danger…,” she paused, “...you don’t understand.”

“I can’t be in any more danger than I was tonight.”

“Yes you can.”

“Then tell me. The truth this time.”

Magda’s heart was cracking. She didn’t want to involve Ravi any more in this mess. None of the reality of being a royal or a guardian was anything he was used to. How could she explain her life in Azurem or the assassination of her family? How could she explain her true mission in Flaustra?

But for some reason, each moment she spent with Ravi was more emotional, more intense. It was as if a fire was burning inside her, begging to be let free, and would not stop blazing until she acted upon her feelings.

She looked at him, and his alluring expression was threatening to pull her deeper. She didn’t know if it was his tall stature, toned body, or his perfect smile that had her enchanted, or if it was his charisma that had captivated her from the very beginning. Or if it was the way he made her feel safe. It didn’t matter—she desired to be in his arms.

“My family was killed,” Magda said, “and it haunts me daily. I’m afraid that the same people that killed them could be after me. That’s why I came to Flaustra, and that is the truth.”

“That’s why you want to go to the palace?”

“I want to meet with Queen Sanyal. I think she’ll be able to help me.”

“I can help you. You can stay in Flaustra, away from whoever was after you in Azurem. Now that Vex is gone…”

“The people that killed my family are not like Vex. They’re much worse.”

Ravi nodded in understanding, running his fingers through his hair. He took a deep breath, before turning his body toward Magda’s. She was reminded once again that he was standing only in his underwear, as another pang of heat radiated through her body.

He continued, “So what you’re saying is, if by continuing to associate with you, I would be putting my life directly in the line of fire?”

“Yes,” Magda answered firmly. “I’m so sorry. I’ve made a mess of everything for you. You’d be better off never having met me.”

“That’s not true,” Ravi said. He stepped strongly to her, and cupped her face in his hands. “You’ve lit a fire in me. I can’t explain it, but it’s like I wasn’t living until I met you. When I saw them, holding you down on the table and threatening to hurt you, it was like my entire life flashed before my eyes, and I wanted nothing more than to ensure you were safe. All I see with you is endless possibilities, and if I ask the earth for anything more, I know my heart would be daring into a territory where I could never turn back.”

“You don’t mean that,” Magda said. She needed him to stop saying these things right now. Already, his words had seduced her, and in another second she wouldn’t be able to stop herself.

“I do.” He put his hand under her chin, tilting it toward him. The movement forced Magda to back up, until she found the wall at her back. She stood there, looking at him, his body against hers. His other hand found her waist, pushing her further into the wall.

Magda reached up to place her hands on his bare chest, feeling the smooth skin underneath her palms. “There’s so much ahead of me that is in question and that I don’t understand. I have too many battles to fight.”

“Then I want to be the person you return to when your battles are over.”

Magda’s face softened. “No one has ever said anything like that to me. I feel like I’m dreaming.”

“I don’t want this to be a dream any more,” he said.

Magda was on edge, as if her emotions were one big knot inside of her, about to explode and finally provide her with some release. All she wanted was his mouth on hers.