The roar of the falls filled the air, reminding Stone of how much power and energy nature held. Even in its finest hour, Taelgonoth had never felt like this. “It is,” he replied. “We don’t have anything like this back home.”
“My mother often told me stories of Mura, and I know the names of all the places though I’ve never been here until now,” she relayed the information to him.
“Why not?” asked Stone. “Is your homeland that far away?”
“Nay,” she answered. “Actually, Lornoon is an island right across the channel leading from the Masked Sea. It can be reached from the west side of this island.”
“I would like to see Lornoon someday. I’m sure it is as beautiful as this.”
“Why do you say that?”
“Because,” he answered, getting lost in the way her face lit up and she seemed to glow when she was around nature. “It has to be a special place since someone as lovely of you has lived there for so long.”
“She looked over to him and smiled shyly. “You are too kind, Stone. Thank you for making me feel special. No one has ever made me feel this way before.”
“Persimmon, I don’t understand. Why did your mother shelter you in the abbey your whole life? And why doesn’t your father seem to accept you? It makes no sense at all to me.”
“I wish I knew the answer.” She wiped a stray tear from her cheek. “I felt so alone and unloved my whole life, until I came to Mura. I just wish I had traveled here long before now.” When she reached up to wipe away another tear, he used his hand to do it for her.
Persimmon looked up into Stone’s eyes, feeling as if they belonged together. She longed for the intimacy of his touch. Just feeling him wipe away her tear gave her so much hope that because of him, her life could be so much better. His fingers gently glided across her cheek, sending a delicious shudder through her. Then he cradled her chin in his palm and his eyes settled on her lips. Before she knew what happened, he’d leaned closer and kissed her. Persimmon didn’t stop him, because this was what she’d been waiting for. She liked it. The softness of his lips against hers was surprising. For such a hardened man who hunted other men for a living, he had a true gentle nature about him. Persimmon’s eyes closed as the kiss lingered and then their lips slowly parted.
“Mmm, that was nice,” she said, feeling safe and happy being with Stone. With him by her side she no longer feared anything.
“You are an amazing woman, Persimmon. Any man would be lucky to call you his.” He kissed her again, and she reached up and put her hands on his shoulders. And when he slowly pulled away, their eyes remained interlocked. She felt as if somehow they were joined together as one.
“I saw that coming,” she admitted.
“What?” He chuckled. “How could you? You weren’t even looking into your crystal ball.”
“Nay, I wasn’t. But yesterday I had a vision and we were kissing.”
“Really. I guess there will be no surprises being around you.” He stroked her cheek again, and she leaned into his touch.
Suddenly, they heard the noise of thundering hoofbeats rumbling the ground. The sound came from the direction of King Sethor’s castle.
“Oh, no. They’ve found us.” Persimmon jumped up, spinning around, looking for their captors to appear. “I’m not sure my magic is strong enough to be able to hold off an entire army.”
“You won’t have to. Come with me.” He held out his hand and she willingly took it. But when he started walking toward the water, she became confused and stopped.
“What are you doing?” she asked. “We are going to the wrong way. We have to get back to Kasculbough, not go for a swim at a time like this.”
“We are returning to the castle, but first, we need to hide. We cannot outrun them on foot when they are atop horses. If they don’t see us, Sethor and the others will ride right past us. It is our only chance to not get caught.” He entered the water and pulled her along with him.
“Stone, I still don’t understand what we’re doing. I can’t hold my breath under the water until they’re all gone.”
“And neither will you have to. Now, just trust me. Please.”
“All right,” she said, releasing a deep breath and nodding. “I do trust you.” She flashed him a quick smile.
“Good. This way, then,” he instructed, swimming toward the waterfall. Now, she understood.
“I’m coming,” she told him. “I’m right behind you, Stone.”
They made it to the other side of the small lake and had just climbed up the rocks and slipped behind the waterfall when King Sethor and his army of men rode up. They stopped for a moment, looking around.
“They must have gone this way,” said Sethor. “Where in the world are they? Look everywhere.”
“They’re probably hiding,” said Rancor.
“Then check behind every tree and bush. Hurry!” commanded Sethor.
Shaking from being wet and cold, Stone wrapped his arms around her. They were safe and protected behind the falling water, standing in a small cave in the rocks.
“Don’t make a sound,” he whispered directly into her ear, following his words with a small kiss.
She was afraid to even breathe, thinking somehow it would alert Sethor and his men to their presence. They were searching the area, but thankfully none of them had thought to look behind the waterfall.
“We are wasting too much time,” called out Sethor. “They must be up ahead. Let’s go.”
In a puff of dust, the men atop their horses charged toward Kasculbough, leaving them and their hiding place undetected.
“It worked,” she said as soon as she was sure they had all left. She was so cold that she couldn’t stop her body from shaking or her teeth from chattering together. “They didn’t see us. You are a life saver, Stone.”
“Just a little trick I picked up in my profession.”
“So, can we go now?”
“Not yet. And when we do, we’re still going to have to be careful. We don’t want them to spot us on their return trip to Macada Castle.”
