Nearly dusk, twelve hours later…
Danielle stood on the battlements watching the last of the sun's glorious presence begin to slip beneath the clouds. The clan would awake any minute now.
She was nervous, she couldn't deny it. In the three weeks she'd been here, they'd never fought, there'd never been a reason. Though she was sure tonight would change all that. They'd grown close, so close that they'd developed a relationship without ever talking about what would happen if anything threatened to come between them.
Stone skin began to crack, and she moved quickly to Brooklyn's left side, where she knew he wouldn't see her at first. He would look towards the doorway, as he had many nights, expecting to find her there and waiting. Tonight though, she had to catch him off guard, she had to make her actions count. She had to be in control or everything she'd set her heart and mind to during the day would be for nothing.
Within a couple of seconds her extended family all roared to life, stretching and brushing away the discarded skin. Brooklyn's attention moved to the doorway, as she had predicted, and his shoulders slumped. The sight was enough to cause her heart to ack. "Brook?" He inhaled quickly, not quite a gasp, but he was shaken all the same as he turned to find her there. They're eyes met and Danielle's heart broke, he looked defeated already. "We need to talk."
Nodding sadly, he offered her his hand, pulling her onto the wall, lifting her into his arms. Without a word, Brooklyn leapt and glided them down into the courtyard, his arms tightening for a brief moment as his feet touched the ground. Once settled, he released her, though he could not quite meet her gaze again. "Hope this is okay, I'm just not feeling it tonight."
Danielle nodded. She couldn't help but feel the way he'd closed himself off from her. "I know David told you something last night."
Brooklyn sighed, shaking his head. "You don't have to explain Danni, I get it, really." She watched him turn and take steps back towards the castle. His hand raised dismissively in the air. "Congratulations, we should head in."
Angry now, she stomped after him, grabbing his left arm. "Are you kidding me?! That's all you have to say?"
He stopped on a dime, his shoulders stiff, though he would not face her. "Seems like you had it all worked out from what I'd seen."
Frowning she moved in front of him. "I had what worked out?!" His gaze finally met her own, though they weren't the gentle eyes she had known all this time. "I've spent the entire day trying to figure out what I wanted so how could you possibly have known?"
He growled, his gaze burning white for a moment. "Fox told us about the offer."
Danielle shook her head, amazed that their situation could have gotten so out of control this quickly. "It's a promotion, one that would fast track my career if I chose to go back! Doesn't mean that I have!"
"Isn't it everything you've worked for? Wouldn't you be a fool not too?"
'A fool?' That hurt but she didn't want to lose this argument. "Yes, it's everything I've worked for. As far as being a fool if I let it pass…" She sighed, allowing her eyes to leave his and her own shoulders slumped. "…I don't know, maybe, I thought I knew..."
This seemed to catch him off guard and his expression softened. "I saw the kiss Dani."
A tear escaped her, rolling down her left check as she met his gaze. "He kissed me."
He nodded, as he gently cupped her elbows in his hands, she could feel him tremble. "And then you kissed him back, can you honestly say you felt nothing from it?"
More tears fell as she saw that all the anger had left him. There was a sadness now, and it enveloped her. "We'd been together so long…I really don't know why I let him get that close, but it didn't change how I fell about him."
In a shift motion, he pulled her towards him, his arms wrapping around her shoulders. Crushed against him, Danni inhaled the scent she come to know, the one that lulled her to sleep. The leather of his skin combined with the stone he'd so recently shed combined to create something almost woodsy in nature. It was nearly enough to bring her peace until his next words were spoken.
"You should take the job."
Stunned, she pulled way, backing his hold and stared at him. "What?! Why?"
He tried to smile, though it came uneasily, and he finally settled on a frown. "You deserve to follow your dreams, to accomplish things you've worked hard for." She couldn't believe what he was saying, and for the first time in years, someone had managed to leave her speechless. He cupped her arms again and continued. "You deserve someone that can love you the way it's intended."
In that instant, his intentions were clear. 'He's pushing me away.' "But I thought. Don't you want me here?"
'It's all I want.' He's frown deepened. "We both have to look towards the future, yours is that folder. I'm going to ask Goliath for a trip to Avalon, or to invite the Avalon clan here. It's time Lex and I found mates and we start a rookery of our own."
With that declaration, he'd stunned her into silence, there was nothing more to say. Wiping her tears, she nodded and stepped away, turning her back to him.
He watched her return to the castle, his heart breaking into uncountable pieces. 'This is what she needs, it'll make her happy.'
It took him a moment to follow her, knowing their lives would never be the same.