Teague closed his eyes, wrapping his free arm around her and resting his chin against her hair. Her arms shifted to his waist, hugging him and their son closer to her. Kira sighed softly.
“You didn’t just wake up because you heard Seamus,” she whispered. “There’s more bothering you.”
“Mm.” He shifted his weight slightly. “I was thinking, that’s all.”
“You should know better than that by now,” Kira murmured into his shirt. “What were you thinking about?”
“It’s too quiet,” Teague said, hating himself for admitting it. “It’s terrifyingly quiet.”
Her brows knit as she peered up at him. “What do you mean?”
“Just what I said. Think about it. We’ve been out here for how long? Nothing’s come hunting for us. The dirae that attacked Cameron and Neve on the road were chasing Cameron, not us. It doesn’t make sense when you think about how big of a target was on my back and on Phelan’s back in the city. If they’re not chasing me, who do you think they’re focused on?”
“Bloody hell,” she whispered. “Phelan. They’ll be after him if they can’t find you.” She took a shaky breath. “He’s with my cousin.”
“They’ll be fine,” Teague assured her. “They’re together, and probably with Marin. You said she was a mystic-born if you’d ever met one. I’m sure there’s talent there—more than we can predict.”
“Maybe,” his wife agreed, her voice quiet. Her arms tightened again before she let go, moving toward the fireplace and kneeling near the hearth. The flames reflected off her pale face as she stared into the fire. Teague’s throat tightened.
“I didn’t mean to scare you,” he said.
“You didn’t,” she lied, drawing one knee up to her chest. “Honestly, I was thinking it was too quiet, but I didn’t want to say anything—as if saying something would somehow jinx us and something awful would show up. I was kind of enjoying the quiet, truth be known.”
So was I. He settled on the floor next to her, shifting Seamus so the infant’s head rested against his shoulder. “Maybe they’re gone. The threats, I mean.”
“You don’t believe that,” Kira said softly.
“It’s a nice lie.”
“Yeah. Yeah, it is.”
She sighed and leaned against him again. They sat there together, staring into the fire, for a long, long time.
