Kindled (Book 3 The Kindred Series) Read Free

its intensity. The fact that Chris said it was directed at herself was enough to make his stomach turn. He would have much preferred that it be directed at Julian, or even him self . It broke his heart.
       His head bowed, he took a deep breath as the weight of the world seemed to rest upon his shoulders. “There has to be something that we can do,” he whispered.
       “Time,” Chris answered. “I think time is the only answer. She needs t ime to come to terms with everything, time for her to realize that she is not to blame.”
       “What if there isn’t enough time?”
   Chris bit his bottom lip nervously as he shook his head. “We’re going to have to make sure that there is.”
       Devon leaned back in his chair, folding his arms on his stomach as he glanced at Chris ag ain. He was surprised to realize that Chris was perhaps the first true friend he had ever had. It was a weird thing to realize. It was a weird thing to have . But Chris was on his side. Devon didn ’ t fool himself into thinking that Chris would choose him over Cassie, but Chris would fight for him, and he would not turn against him. It was a good thing to know. And it was something that he was exceptionally grateful for.
       “Thank you,” he said softly.
       Chris flashed him a smile. “Don’t go getting all sentimental on me you big bad vamp.” Devon chuckled softly, propping his feet up beside Chris’s. Though he would have preferred to have been in Cassie’s bed, curled up next to her, this was far better than sta nding outside in the cold . At least h e wasn’t alone here. “You know, before all this happened, I had thought that she would end up joining you.”
   Devon started in surprise, nearly toppling out of the chair as his sudden movement jolted it sharply. “What!?”
   Chris grinned at him as he shrugged absently. “I thought that she would join you in the end. I’m not a fool, I see what goes on between you two, and no matter how hard I try to keep the emotions blocked out , some things slip through. I know how hard it is for you to be around her. I know you fear you will hurt her.”
   Devon stared unblinkingly at him, unsure what to say, unable to believe what Chris was saying to him. “You don’t think I would hurt her ?”
   Chris s hook his head, messing his shaggy hair up even more . “Not at all. I think you love her more than even you realize. You wouldn’t hurt her. ”
       Devon couldn’t move as shock held him riveted. “And it wou ldn’t have bothered you if she decided to join me?”
       Chris smiled wryly at him. “Before I met you I would have destroyed her m yself , if such a thing had happened to her . E v e n though it would have killed me to do so. But now I know you, and I know that she will not be a monster. All I want is for her to be happy, and you make her happy.”
   “Not anymore,” Devon mumbled.
       Chris shrugged absently. “It will work out.”
       Devon wished that he could believe him, but he wasn’t too sure himself. “She didn’t want to join me.”
   Chris’s frown intensified. “You talked about it?”
   Devon nodded, leaning forward he clasped his hands before him, trying hard not to recall the horrified look on Cassie’s face when he had broached the subject with her . “Yes.”
       Chris started in surprise, his eyebrows dr e w sharply together. “She never mentioned it.”
       “She had made up her mind not to join me . She probably felt there was no need to mention it .”
       Chris was silent for a minute, his eyes distant as he thought over Devon’s words. “She w ill come around.”
   Devon chuckled softly as he turned to him. “Are you always this optimistic?”
       Chris grinned back at him. “No, I just know how she feels about you…”
   “Felt.”
   Chris’s eyes narrowed upon him. “No, it is how she still feels; it’s just buried beneath s elf hatred and grief right now.