Page 104 of The Freedom You Seek

“Youareworth it.” The boy was stubborn and persistent, I had to give him that—and I could almost respect him for it.

“Bryon, please understand—”

“You may reject me now, but I won’t give up. Won’t stop trying to save you, nor attempting to win your heart. Forget the future, ignore what I’ve said about you and me. Just join Rewi and me. Please.”

I’d had enough. My patience was spent. I moved a few shadows back, then stepped out of the darkness and stalked toward the two of them.

“There you are, Jama.” I caught her eyes while I pretended that I hadn’t eavesdropped the whole time. “I thought you’d be wiser than to go to dark places while being unprotected.”

“She isn’t unprotected. She’s with me.”

I only raised an eyebrow at the boy. “I’d repeat myself if I had any hope of getting my point across, but you seem rather dim. Why don’t you remove yourself and let theadults talk? Shoo.”

“Dion! Stop acting like a bastard.”

“It’s about time for you to see that I’m not acting. I’ve never made a secret out of it.”

Nayana let out a frustrated growl, and a chuckle was rising in my throat. Sometimes, this tiny woman could be so adorable.

“We were talking, and you’ve barged into our conversation unwanted. So leave.”

The boy must have a death wish, as he not only interrupted Naya and me but also slipped into the space between the two of us while puffing his chest.

This confirmed it. The youngling longed for his death, and I was just in the mood to fulfill his desire.

“Stop it, you two.” Hissing, I grabbed Dion’s and Bryon’s forearms and tried to push both of them apart. I could just as well have attempted to move boulders.

“Jama, if I were you, I would either move or tell your puppy to leave us alone.”

Dion felt murderous and provoked, and I could tell so much from the way he stared daggers at my childhood friend. I narrowed my eyes at him, wondering if he’d been eavesdropping.

“I’m no puppy!”

My head turned to Bryon, who definitely didn’t pick up on the danger he was in. I groaned and cursed myself for defending Dion earlier. “This better be important, Dion,” I said, then turned back to Bryon in an attemptto defuse the situation. If this went on for much longer, I’d be dizzy from all the back and forth. “It’s safer for you to leave. I’ll find you later.”

At that moment, I felt Dion’s arms reaching out, tugging me toward him until my back met his front. What a massively territorial move, unbelievable! Anger started to boil in my veins—at both of the men.

“If you think I’ll leave you alone with this madman, you’re wrong, Naya.”

“If you ask nicely, I can show you exactly how mad I can be.”

“For fuck’s sake, Dion. Bryon.Stop it.” I aimed to extract myself from Dion’s arms, but they were as flexible as steel bands around me as he grumbled in displeasure at my escape attempts. “Trust me, Bryon. We’ll talk later.”

My old friend wasn’t happy at all, but he finally did the wise thing and retreated. “Come find me when you’re done.” Bryon turned around and shuffled back to the fires.

“I will,” I called after him at the same moment Dion chose to address his retreating form loud enough for him to hear. “I wouldn’t wait for her!”

Luckily, Bryon didn’t react or turn around when Dion taunted him.

I clenched my teeth, finally freeing myself from the possessive hold of the territorial bastard behind me. I spun around and glared at him. “What the fuck is wrong with you, Dion?”

“You looked like you needed saving.”

I clucked my tongue in disapproval and scowled at Dion’s smug and self-satisfied face. “I wasn’t in need of a savior—I talked to a friend!”

“Ah yes, because he totally sees you as afriend.”

“You were eavesdropping.” My hand shot out, and I jabbed my forefinger into his chest. A wince escaped my throat—it had been like pushing into metal. “You bastard!You followed us and listened!”