Asher POV
I stand at the edge of the clearing where she stepped into view, my gaze fixed on the path she took back toward town. The memory of it plays too easily—her expression, steady despite what she’d walked into, her voice pushing where most people would’ve backed down. She didn’t hesitate, didn’t flinch, and barely listened.
Leave it to me to be fated to a stubborn woman. I let out a breath.
“That girl’s going to be a problem,” Caleb mutters from behind me.
I don’t turn to face the warrior, my attention still locked on where she’d disappeared into the trees. “She’s not a problem,” I say firmly. At least, not in the way he means.
“She walked straight into a patrol discussion,” he continues. “If she starts talking—”
This time, I do face him, cutting him off. “She won’t.” There’s c
