Page 158 of Balance

“Did you?” I wasn’t sure what to believe—when his eyes twinkled like this, he might be lying.

Come to think of it, he looked entirely different this morning. He’d always had an aura to him—the boy-next-door kind of quality. However, until this moment, I’d never realized how guarded he really was. There was a foreign air to him now, a self-assured posture and peaceful expression that I’d never really seen on him before.

Instantly, I knew.

Tu.

Miles and I might have gone to bed thinking things were over, and I’d bested him in physical battle, but Miles’s excursion was hardly at an end.

A chill shot down my spine and my pulse began to race as I pressed my hands against my chest. “Miles?”

Why now?

He moved his hand to his face, nipping his palm where I’d bit him before the corner of his mouth lifted. “You really held your own—just like old times. You’ve always enjoyed the game.”

“What?” I heard myself ask.

“You don’t remember,” he said, the grin turning into a frown. I got the distinct impression I’d disappointed him when he continued, “I thought you accepted the past.”

What was he talking about? I hated fighting.

And Tu was intimidating in his own right.

A coldness began to overtake my chest. “The p-past…?”

Miles’s brows furrowed as a blackness cloaked over his expression. “Mu.” He scowled, his deep attention moving over me in an unnerving way.

I couldn’t tell if he was answering my question or addressing me, but either way, it was becoming difficult to think. The morning light faded and the tightness in my chest intensified. The air pressed into me from all directions.

“I was talking about you and me,” he clarified in response to my unspoken question. “But your response is one I’ve wanted to address.”

“W-what are you talking about?” My laugh was a weak, breathy chuckle.

“Your obsession with trying to fix me is a projection of your own issues,” Miles said, his forehead furrowing. His intense stare was too much to handle, and I shifted my gaze to my knees. Despite having gotten the extra-thick fabric, the leggings were already becoming worn in several places—probably because of the hard use of the last few days.

Still, sometimes designer brands paid off in quality. At least this time I wasn’t half-naked on top of being stranded in the woods.

I would need to get more of these. I would fill my closet with them—

“Are you trying to pretend this isn’t happening?” Miles’s voice was impossible to ignore, and I twisted my hands in my lap. “I’m not going to give up that easily.”

I really wish he would—why did we have to talk about thisnow?

“We need to find the others…” I muttered, pushing my fists into the dirt.

It was time to leave.

“They can wait.” Miles moved to his knees in front of me, pressing my shoulders as he stopped my hasty retreat. My heart fluttered dangerously as the warmth of his touch sunk into me, seemingly chasing away the air’s sudden bite. Chocolate eyes flared swirled with gold, and Miles’s—Tu’s—determination was unshakable. “It’s not often I’m this close to the surface—and this ismyjob.”

Job…

I wassotired of this random skill delegation.

“Don’t look at me like that.” He sighed. “You helped me last night. Let me help you. You’re avoiding any discussion that can help you.”

“That’s not true,” I protested again. “I talked to Damen.”

“I have a suspicion about that, which I’ll get to in a moment,” he said. “But, regardless, you’re not allowing yourself to feel anything.”