Heart Song (Forbidden Mates, #3)

by Heather Guerre

Rakhnar listened in silence. He squeezed her hand now and then as she spoke, bolstering her, reminding her that he was with her. When she finished her story, both of them were quiet, digesting her words. “You…” Rakhnar paused, seeming to consider his words carefully. “You’re very brave,” he said finally. “And clever. And resilient. But you should not have had to be this brave, and clever, and resilient. I wish life had been kinder to you.” Theyma’s eyes immediately welled with tears. Whenever she was at her lowest, when the demands of the world felt like they would crush her, she reminded herself that she was a survivor, and that she’d get through it, just like she’d gotten through every other bad time before that. But there was always a little part of her—a childish, weak part that she resented—that desperately wished she didn’t have to be a survivor. That she could just live a quiet life where she made music and nobody had any control over her. That she could just be happy without having to suffer for it. Hearing somebody else wish the same for her completely undid her. She swiped at her cheeks, trying not to let Rakhnar know she was crying. But then she breathed out the tiniest little gasping sob, and those Ljark super-ears detected it instantly. “Theyma?” Rakhnar stopped, turning to her. Even with eyes closed, his hands found her face unerringly. His thumbs swept across her cheeks. Feeling the moisture there, his face crumpled into an expression of sorrow. “No, no, nal...