Page 220 of Elemental Becoming

I nod.

“That’s the word.” My voice is quieter now.“Heavy.”

I release his hand and lean forward, folding my arms along the edge of the bed before resting my chin on them.

“I’m glad you stopped by, Thalor,” he says, his voice gentler now. “Made time for me.”

I snort and swat his good arm. “As if I wouldn’t.”

He grins. “Yeah, but you’re the Spiritborn now. I figured yourdays were packed with council meetings and world-saving.”

I roll my eyes. “Not quite. Or at least not yet.”

“And yet,” he goes on, with a mock sigh, “you still found time for the ones who knew you before the title.”

“I had the title when I met you at the outpost,” I reply, drawing outthe titleas though it should arrive with trumpets and fanfare.

Kieran snorts. “Sure. But now you’re also withtheWarlord, so . . . things hit a little different.”

A familiar pressure brushes against my chest. Subtle. Unmistakable.

The bond tightens.

I look up and there he is.

The Warlord.

His hand settles against the back of my neck, and my skin prickles with heat and recognition. A familiar spark of desire flickers through me before I can stop it.

I rub my arms and force myself to focus. I’m in an infirmary after a deadly attack and this is neither the time nor the place.

“How are you feeling, Kieran?” he asks, voice even.

Kieran flinches with pain as he tries to sit straighter.

“Alive and properly scolded by the healers, my lord,” he says, offering a wry half-smile. “Apparently, I’m not allowed to fight dark magics with sarcasm alone.”

The respect in his tone is genuine, but the mischief remains.

“I’ll be on my feet as soon as they let me.”

The smile touches Thane’s mouth.

“That’s good,” he says quietly. “We need you whole.”

Then his expression sobers.

“Thank you. For what you did for Amara.”

His hand slides higher into my hair, fingers threading gently through the loose waves.

“You saved her life. And I won’t forget it.”

Kieran nods once, the movement slight.

“Thank you, sir. Would do it again.” He glances at me, quick and brief. “Especially for the Spiritborn.”

Something shifts in Thane’s expression so quickly I almost miss it. The silence that follows feels strangely weighted.