The Jewel of Turmish - Mel Odom [131]
Haarn joined her, sitting on the other side of the basket.
Druz chose a dark purple plum and bit into it with her clean white teeth. She wrapped her arms around her knees and looked out at the sea.
"So the world is much bigger than you thought," she said. "Does it scare you?"
"No." Haarn chewed on a piece of cheese and swallowed. "It just means the threat of civilization is much larger than Td thought."
With the danger of Borran Kiosk passed, the divisions between the druids and the citizens of Alaghфn started to become apparent again. Haarn had heard some of the brewing arguments about where the trees would be harvested to replace the burned buildings.
"They will rebuild here, you know," Druz said.
"I know."
"So where will you go?"
"Home," Haarn answered without hesitation. "There is still a lot of work I must do in the lands Silvanus and the Elder Circle have entrusted to me. I will want to check on Stonefur's cubs and make sure they're doing all right."
They ate in silence for a time as ship's bells rang over the harbor.
"Do you think," Druz asked in a quiet voice, "youll ever come back this way?" "Perhaps," Haarn said.
"If you do," Druz said, "and if I'm available, I'd like to show you more of this city, and perhaps even Suzail. Suzail puts this place to shame."
She looked at him and fell silent.
Prompted by a desire he didn't yet fully understand but was willing to explore, Haarn leaned across the food basket and took her face in his hand. He kissed her, just a tender caress of his hps against hers, and he used his power to heal the cuts on her face. When he pulled back from her, some of the pain and fatigue had dropped from her eyes.
"Well," she said in a husky voice. Her face flushed even beneath the layer of soot. "That was unexpected."
The feeling that swept through Haarn was unexpected as well. It started in his stomach and went throughout his body.
Tes," he agreed, "it was."
He took a plum from the basket and tossed it over the side, calling out to Broadfoot.
"Should you ever find yourself in the wilderness again," he said, "I would like to see you."
She looked at him, hugging her knees. "We're from two different worlds, Haarn. This could be hard."
"Nothing worth doing," Haarn said, "is ever easy."
She leaned in to kiss him, bearing him down to the sun-warmed wooden shingles, and he didn't resist.
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Table of Contents
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
CHAPTER ELEVEN
CHAPTER TWELVE
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
CHAPTER NINETEEN
CHAPTER TWENTY
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
EPILOGUE