Aylin was cocooned in warmth before her awareness returned completely. The linen sheets and the bare skin on her back held on to the smell of smoke and pine and something darker, something that was only his. Slowly, the morning light filtered in through the high windows, causing her lashes to brush the pillow as her eyes opened.
Deep within her muscles, but mostly on her back, where she had collided with the tree, was a low, bruising ache. With as much force as the impact, the memory hit her: Valen, angry, slamming her into the tree behind her. Her spine ached from the forceful landing, and she was having trouble breathing. She was fortunate that the pain did not hit her until yesterday. Aylin began to wonder what might happen to her if she did not help Sasha.
'I would've been dead without a healer.' The thought sent shivers down her spine.
