Page 9 of Ava’s Love of the Dragons (Of Dragons, Love, and Destiny #2)

Distractedly, she rubbed her arms. She was cold and her body was on the verge of exhaustion, but she didn't want to end up in another life-threatening situation.

So she kept scanning the undergrowth without pause.

She didn't see any glimmering pairs of eyes and didn't hear footsteps or rustling leaves.

"It's not that I don't trust you, but the last few hours have been damn intense. "

Sympathetically, he reached out his hand to her. "How about this: We sit together at the cave entrance, and as soon as you feel like it, you lie down and sleep."

That would indeed suit her, yet she shrugged questioningly. "And when will you sleep?"

He waved it off. "I can go days without sleep if I know you're safe."

She smiled. After all the hardships, it felt good to have someone with her who liked her, who was on her side, and who would help her.

"Okay, agreed. And if we both get too tired, let's just have Lilly take a shift." She turned towards the cave where the girl sat bent over a backpack, her cheeks full of food.

"Of course." Grinning, she held out a canteen to Ava. "Thirsty?"

Ava gratefully accepted and drank. Then she grabbed a chunk of bread and a piece of cheese before Lilly could devour all the provisions.

Marcus was already sitting at the cave entrance when Ava sat down next to him. She broke the piece of bread in half and offered him one half. "Hungry?"

He shook his head. "How long ago was your last meal?"

"I was lucky and came across a friendly merchant who shared his breakfast with me."

Marcus watched in fascination as she ate, as if it were an extraordinary act.

"At least someone's showing you there are good people in this country.

Besides me, of course." He grinned mischievously and let his gaze linger on her eyes for a moment longer.

Gradually, she began to feel uncomfortable.

He shouldn't get the wrong idea, so she pointed at the trees.

"If you keep staring at me the whole time, you won't notice if someone is spying on us."

"You have no idea! I grew up in the forest. I perceive all movements with all my senses."

Ava raised her eyebrows, a faint smile flitting across her lips. "Do you now?"

Grinning, he nodded, took her right hand, and interlaced his fingers with hers. "Close your eyes, and I'll teach you how."

She tried to withdraw her hand, but he held it gently. "Relax, Ava, I'm just holding your hand. At least give it a try."

"Alright, then." She closed her eyes. It would have been a lie to say she felt comfortable, but surely Rob or another enemy wouldn't use this second of inattention to attack—though that would have been the perfect moment. Nevertheless, she went along with it.

"Do you feel that gentle vibration in the air?"

She shook her head.

"Stop thinking about Rob or any dragon fighter. Stay with me in the forest mentally and listen and feel. Now try again. Do you feel the oscillation that the wind carries through the forest?"

She was about to shake her head again but hesitated. Wasn't there a barely noticeable tremor in the air? Slowly, she nodded. "I feel something. It seems like a breath, but somehow... different."

"That's a tawny owl. It's sitting about fifteen meters away in the fir tree, watching us. Now touch the ground." He guided both their hands to the earth and placed his on top. "Feel what's happening. What do you sense?"

"Your warmth."

"I'm glad, but that's not what you should be focusing on right now.

" Still, he didn't remove his hands from hers.

She was about to open her eyes—after all, he was shamelessly taking advantage of the situation to get closer to her—when suddenly she felt a barely perceptible vibration traveling through the ground.

"This is stronger than the owl, somehow powerful, but still very quiet and delicate. What is it?"

"A wolf watching us."

Ava's eyes flew open, but Marcus immediately took her hands again and caught her gaze.

"He won't come. He's looking for his pack. Listen to the oscillation, and you'll feel it getting weaker. He's moving away from us."

With her pulse still at an unhealthy high, she placed her hands on the ground again and concentrated on the vibration. As soon as she perceived it, she listened and felt until she sensed it moving away. Relieved, she released the breath she'd been holding. "You're right."

"I always am." He took her hand, kissed it, and placed it on his heart. "Can you feel this too?"

"Marcus, I can't—"

He smiled, a hint of melancholy in his eyes. "This isn't about your feelings for me. Feel my heartbeat."

She would have liked to pull away to avoid giving him false hope, but her curiosity won out, so she left her hand on his chest, covered by his right hand.

At first, she felt the steady beating of his heart, but after a few breaths, she thought she perceived something else.

Wasn't there a gentle throbbing, a pulsing, a—

"What are you two doing?" Lilly appeared at the cave entrance and squeezed between them, forcing Marcus to release her hand. "I thought you had a crush on Kilian, Ava."

Ava opened her mouth, though she didn't know what to say, but Lilly waved it off anyway.

"No use denying it. I know for a fact that you two kissed."

Ava's gaze shot to Marcus, who grimaced ruefully.

"That doesn't mean her heart can't choose someone else."

It won't, Ava wanted to say, but she was neither the type to talk about feelings nor was there any need to justify herself.

"Marcus was showing me how he senses what's going on in the forest without having to look."

Lilly's eyes widened. "That's brilliant! Teach me too!"

The woodsman grinned. "Sure, but you'll have to be quiet."

"We should be anyway." Lilly peered into the night. "Our enemies are probably not far away."

Ava feared the same, but she didn't want the little one to be scared.

She remembered the conversation between the dragon fighters she had overheard while tied to the pillar in the back room.

"Kilian is at some ball in Belmonde tonight and expects to meet Rob there.

Of course, I don't know if he'll still fly there despite my escape. "

"Right, Kilian has to keep the princess happy so she'll marry him. Though she'd be stupid not to." Lilly sighed theatrically. "He's so handsome and strong, and he's bound to the biggest dragon. Could there be a better match?"

Ava grinned while Marcus rolled his eyes. "There are other qualities men can score with, young lady."

"I'm not a young lady, you should know that by now. Rob and Kilian aren't our only problem though, Ava."

She perked up. "What do you mean?"

Lilly looked at Marcus, who was wringing his hands, searching for words. "We overheard something..." He ran his hand over his face.

The little one grew impatient with his hemming and hawing.

She turned to Ava, her gaze as frank as if they were discussing the weather.

"Elora has sent out scouts to search for you.

Apparently, her focus is no longer primarily on fighting the king.

Her top priority now is to kill the dragon guardian. There's a high bounty on your head."