Ruthless Beauty

Chapter 8: Soren

Thalia and Jeremiah were arguing again but Soren wasn't listening. All he could think about was Iris, her body was smooth and soft. Her eyes were mesmerizing and all he could see when he closed his eyes. She became a distraction, one that had to stop. With the ball only a few days away, he needed to be focused on protecting the King. He had been ignoring her the past few weeks and he definitely hated it. He learned through Thalia that Iris had many unique likes and dislikes. For instance, she liked the outdoors and sword fighting but hated heavy drinking, she never picked up a glass of alcohol unless it was out of respect for the host. He also learned that Iris was getting angry with him, she didn't think she did anything wrong and it hurt her that he was ignoring her. "What are they fighting about now?" Soren looked up and into the green eyes of Iris.

"I don't know, I've learned to ignore their bickering." Iris sat on the chair next to Soren.

"Yes, you're very skilled when it comes to ignoring people." Soren flinched at her words and looked up at her. She wasn't looking at him but down at a book, she didn't seem to really read it but it was a distraction.

"Iris..." Soren started but the library door swung open, pulling everyone's attention towards the man in the doorway. He was coated in mud due to the constant rain, he had brown hair, brown eyes, he looked older, maybe in his early fifties, and he had a sword at his hip.

"Theorin!" Iris stood from her seat and engulfed the man in a hug. The man hugged her back, but picked her up and spun her around. Soren started to not like this man named Theorin. Once her feet were on the ground the woman from when Soren first met Iris stepped in.

"Of course, you hug him and not me." Iris chuckled at Trishelle and wrapped her in a hug.

"I've missed you both, so much." Iris smiled as Thalia cleared her throat. "Oh, yes, this is my uncle Theorin and my aunt Trishelle." Soren knew that Theorin was her mentor, the assassin.

"It's nice to meet both of you, will you be staying for the ball?" Thalia asked as Trishelle smiled.

"Yes, Iris has told us about it." Trishelle linked arms with Thalia as they walked to sit down. Iris whispered something in Theorin's ear as they excused themselves. Soren clenched his fists and jaw as Jeremiah laid a hand on his shoulder.

"Calm yourself, brother. You're actually starting to act like you like her." Jeremiah sat and Soren sighed, he knew he was starting to like her. And that could be very bad in his line of work.

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"Iris," Soren walked up to her as she turned from talking to Arabella. There was a hint of understanding in Arabella's eyes as she excused herself to leave.

"Yes, Soren." Iris stated straightening her spin.

"I need to talk to you," he put a hand at the small of her back and led her to an abandoned corridor. Iris stepped away from him and stared at him, her facial expression numb but he could tell what she was feeling by her eyes. He ran a hand through his hair, he didn't know what to say. He had so much to tell her but nothing came out.

"Good talk, Soren." Iris turned to leave but he grabbed her wrist pulling her to him.

"I'm sorry," he whispered, his lips mere inches away from hers.

"For what?" She whispered back, her eyes never leaving his.

"I didn't... I didn't mean to hurt you. You're a distraction, a distraction that could not let me do my job correctly." Iris inhaled sharply, he looked down at her soft lips then back up into her eyes. "I've been ignoring you because you're too tempting."

"Soren," she whispered but he shook his head. Her back hit a wall and he liked how she felt against him.

"I don't want to hurt you, Iris. But even if I ignore you, I still think about you." Soren tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear and ran his thumb over her lips. "What's your favorite color?"

"What?" Iris chuckled and he smiled, he liked he could make her laugh.

"What's your favorite color?" He whispered kissing behind her ear.

"Blue," she moaned as he brought his lips to hers. She wrapped her arms around his neck and moaned loud in his mouth. He wrapped his hands around her waist and he couldn't imagine not kissing her again.

"If ignoring you doesn't work, I'll just have to do the exact opposite." He smiled down at her and she returned it.

"Sounds like a good plan to me." She said kissing him again.