Page 20 of To Desire

“Either. Both. This time, I asked the question silently before we began.”

“What did you ask?”

Liana hesitated. She had never felt this exposed before, not in all the times she had cast the runes. She’d wanted to show him not to be afraid of Serena, of her, and so she would see this through. She picked up one of the runes that had spoken to her.

“I asked if this journey we’re on will be a fruitful one—if the risks we’re taking will lead to the answers we seek.”

Darien’s gaze flickered to the rune in her hand, a blend of ancient lines and symbols. “And what did it tell you?”

She held the rune between them, the symbol glowing faintly in the firelight. “This is the rune of the harvest,” she said, voice hushed. “It speaks of effort rewarded, but not without hardship. It means the seeds we plant on this journey will bear fruit, but only if we tend to them with care.”

“So it will be worth it. In the end.”

“Aye. Though it will be a long road, but if we’re patient . . . if we trust each other . . .” She trailed off, her words laden with unspoken meaning.

Without thinking, Darien reached for her hand, his fingers brushing the rune she held. Closing his hand over hers, capturing the rune inside it, he said, “I trust you.”

Liana met his gaze. “Then perhaps the journey has already begun to bear its fruit.”

He smiled, his hand lingering in hers as they sat in the glow of the fire, the rune between them, its promise hanging in the air. Not wanting to let her go, he did so anyway, also not wishing for her to be uncomfortable.

She looked down at the scattered runes on the bench.

“Do you see that?” she asked.

He leaned closer. One in particular glowed faintly in the firelight. “That one?”

“Aye. The rune of convergence,” she whispered. “It speaks of destiny . . . of two souls aligning for a purpose beyond themselves.”

His heart skipped a beat. “Does it tell you what that purpose is?”

Liana met his eyes. “No,” she murmured, her voice barely above a whisper. “Only that it has already begun.”