A Baron of Bonds (Conduit of Light #2)

14. Saelyn

Chapter 14

Saelyn

I was fifteen and worried I was in love.

Thevin lay next to me in a field of gold, his eyes closed to the summer sun, his light lashes long and pale. I studied his face and a look of disgust crossed mine.

Why did my heart beat quicker noticing the light splatter of freckles across his nose, and why did I assume his full lips must be soft, just like his hands and golden curls?

I wanted to gag, but actually, I didn’t. That’s what worried me.

I scoffed and fell back into the tall grass, angry with myself for getting worked up over a boy and Thevin no less.

“What should we do today, Pip?”

I rolled my eyes in irritation. He insisted on the nickname he had given me in our gangly youth, short for pipsqueak. I had been all lanky limbs and bony legs when we were younger, but I was filling out quite nicely in my opinion.

My face was beginning to shape into something of a woman and my breasts and hips were not far behind.

“Don’t call me that. I’m not a pipsqueak anymore, if you haven’t noticed.”

He sat up and squinted down at me. His eyes were a piercing ice blue and my cheeks reddened at his gaze. He looked me up and down and grinned. “You know, I think you might be right. When did that happen?”

I threw grass at him like we did as children and he laughed, grabbing my hand before I could throw more. His smile lit his face, producing the one dimple on his left cheek that had my heart skipping a beat. He paused and tilted his head slightly as he looked at me, and I wanted to sink into the ground and live there forever and ever.

He cleared his throat. “Come on. Let’s race the lumens and go explore. It’s a beautiful day and we cannot waste it.”

I smiled and took his hand to stand up, brushing the dirt from my backside before reaching up to run my hand through his curls to remove the grass.

He shook his head like a lumen, bits flying around us, and I laughed, ignoring my name being called on the summer wind.