Read Online Breaker (Ondine Quartet Book 4) by Emma Raveling - Free Book Online Page B

gardinel or a prince?
    Had duty transformed me into someone I no longer recognized?
    Doubt whipped into anger. “What about you? You can’t even fulfill the one responsibility you have. You’d rather run than lead.”
    He kept his voice light, but his eyes were hard. “I don’t do well with rules, sweet iris.”
    “Bullshit. You’re afraid.”
    “Of what?”
    “Of disappointing them. Of failing and being exposed for what your mother always said you were.”
    He paled.
    I continued, relentless. “Better to run and disappoint them now rather than fail and disappoint them later, right?”
    His eyes sparked. “You don’t know —“
    “I know those chevaliers busted their asses to be inducted. They risk their lives daily and depend on you for guidance.”
    “That wasn’t my choice. You ordered me to stay, remember?”
    “Yeah.” I moved in front of him. “But you chose to be a chevalier in the first place, LeVeq.”
    He froze.
    “This doubt, this fear, is all her. Don’t let her take away what you dreamed of, what you wanted.”
    Silence fell.
    Julian leaned against the wall and rubbed his face. “Kendra, it doesn’t matter. If I don’t do it, someone else will be Head Chevalier. Christophe, Michael, Alain. I could be gone tomorrow. People leave. They die. War will continue and someone else will take my place.”
    “It does matter.”
    I couldn’t decide if I wanted to shake him, hug him, or punch him. Maybe all three.
    “That’s the difference between you and me, LeVeq. You don’t believe in anything. Anyone.”
    He made an exasperated sound. “And what do you believe in? A properly worded cause presented by the Council to control the public? In Jourdain who makes ondines dance like puppets? In Redavi who treat anyone different like shit on their designer shoes? In a war we don’t know why we’re fighting?”
    “No.” I leaned in. “I believe in you.”
    His gaze jerked to mine.
    “I believe you can be a great Head Chevalier, a great friend. I only wish you believed it, too.”
    I opened the door, pushed past him, and strode down the corridor.
    Nothing but silence followed.  
    ***
    “Come on. Show me,” Chloe said.
    I stepped out of the tiny changing area. “Have I ever told you how brilliant you are?”
    She laughed. “No, but I’ll take that compliment any day.”
    A knock came at the door. “Come in.”
    “ Sondaleur , it’s time,“ a familiar voice said.
    Jeeves and Tristan walked in and did a double-take. Their expressions would have been hysterically funny if I hadn’t already been so nervous.
    Jeeves recovered first. “I must say I thoroughly agree with Ms. Moreaux’s choice.”
    Chloe beamed.
    The corners of Tristan’s mouth twitched.
    “Are you laughing?”
    “Of course not. That looks familiar.”
    “Thought you might recognize it.”
    In a split second, his dark eyes heated and I wanted to touch him so badly it hurt.
    “Come on, Jeeves,” Chloe diplomatically took his arm. “I want the best seat in the house. I don’t want to miss a single second of this.”
    The moment the door clicked shut, Tristan’s strong arms wound around me, drawing me close for a kiss. His scent flooded me, clean and masculine, both familiar and comforting. The antechamber closed in, cocooning us until it felt as if the world had disappeared.
    I smiled against his mouth. “You’re going to get me worked up.”
    “I like you worked up.”
    Warm lips moved down my throat, brushing against my shoulder, my tattoo.  
    I shivered. “I won’t be able to walk out there.”
    He laughed softly. “You’re too beautiful not to touch.“
    “Just a little longer,” I whispered.
    “Tonight.” He rested his forehead against mine. “How are you holding up?”
    “I want this over with.”
    Being in Tristan’s arms gave me a moment to breathe. The tangle of anxiety in the pit of my stomach slowly unwound.  
    I glanced up at him. Light reflected off the amber stone of his