Wildling

Chapter 11

Ares ^

~~~Ember's POV~~~

My eyes widened slightly seeing that Jaxson was awake and watching me with an unreadable expression on his face. I stayed still not sure what to do.

He shifted more onto his side so that he was leaning on his arm hovering over me slightly. He raised his left arm and cupped my face, wiping the traitor tear the had fallen.

"What made you cry, Em?" My heart stuttered at the nickname he had slipped out.

I glanced away from him, staring at the ceiling. I shook my head slightly.

"Bad memories." My voice a faint whisper. Jaxson didn't say anything, just laced his fingers with mine and gave them a slight squeeze. His touch bringing me a comfort I was so desperately needing.

He shifted more on his back and wrapped his right arm around my shoulders pulling me to his chest. His left hand still entwining our fingers. He lightly rubbed my shoulder as my eyes gradually began to close.

The morning sunlight hit my face waking me up. I groaned a bit and felt Jaxson shuffling behind me. He still held me, and it was only then that I realized I had had no nightmares while lying in his arms.

"We should get ready to head to town." I shifted myself to sit up not missing Jaxson's frown as I pulled myself from his arms.

We ate breakfast in a pleasant silence, stealing glances from each other. Jaxson waited for me outside while I got ready. I decided to just wear my leather jacket with my bow and quiver slung over my shoulder. At least this way I didn't look quite so...homicidal. I slid a knife into each boot and slid two more beneath the leather pad on my quiver.

The walk to town was uneventful. We chatted with each other and joked around. It was a nice change of pace for me. I'm used to being alone living day by day drowning in memories. I don't think I've laughed this much in my life. Jaxson has a great sense of humor and is entirely too cocky but for some reason it suits him.

I would see a little smirk grace his lips every time he made me laugh. Like it was now his obligation to make me happy and my laugh was his prize. His eyes seemed to light up whenever he heard it. When we neared town, we split off in separate directions, Jaxon to go find his things and me to buy things I needed.

About two hours later we met back at the outskirts of town by the edge of the forest. I could see Jaxon leaning against a tree talking on his cell phone. He was still dressed in shorts but had a black tee and sneakers on. He seemed frustrated and began to pace while he talked. Every so often he would rake his fingers through his hair, a nervous habit.

"Yeah man. I know. I don't know how long it will take. Sure man. Yeah, it's about a two hour walk out of town near the mountain. I hope so, I don't know what I'll do if she doesn't." I caught the last snippet of his conversation as I walked closer. His eyes suddenly snapped up to mine when he heard me approach. A small smile graced his luscious lips.

"I got to go Sean. I'll check in every so often." He ended the call and closed the small distance between us.

"Are you ready to head back?" His head tilted as he looked down at me in question. He grabbed his large duffel bag from the ground and slung it over his shoulder.

I hefted my own satchel over my shoulder. "Yeah, let's go. We need to get back before dark. There are wolves in these woods." I smirked a little as Jaxson faltered in his steps.

"Wolves?" He glanced around nervously.

"Yeah. They aren't tame like Accalia but they are in the same bloodline as her." Jaxson's stiff posture relaxed as we continue to walk back to the cabin.