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He dropped his head, shaking the smile off his face as he flipped the pillow in his hands. I got the impression he wasn’t telling me everything, and it made me uneasy.
“Do you remember any of these nightmares?”
I shrugged. “No, not really. Most of the time, I’m trying to save my mother. Or I’m the reason she dies or some combination of the above.” I wiped my hands along my sheets. “Honestly, it’s more of a lingering feeling, like, I’m…” I shook my head, huffing a laugh. “It’s stupid.”
Talon rose from the seat and lay next to me, running his thumb along my jaw, his eyes searching mine. What I would’ve given to have met him at a different time—one where it’d be possible for whatever this feeling was to flourish instead of being snuffed out. We wouldn’t be accepted on either side of the river, not together. It was an unfortunate reminder that I couldn’t and shouldn’t feel this way. How he got past my defenses and found that soft part inside my chest was beyond me.
I hated it.
I loved it.
“Don’t put your feelings down like that, firefly.” He gently gripped my chin. “Tell me.”
I sighed as he released me. “I don’t know, I feelrotten. Like I’m this bottomless pit of darkness. Like I suck the light of everyone around me.”
Talon appeared lost in thought as he absently traced his fingertips along my collarbone, a slight frown on his lips. “You’re not rotten. I know for a fact since you’ve come into my life, you’ve brought nothing but light. A lot of irritation, but light.”
I rolled my eyes, biting back a smile—hating yet loving how easily he made me laugh. “You’re such an ass, you know that?”
“So, I’ve been told.” He cupped my face, his smile slowly fading as his expression turned serious. Eyes searching mine before he spoke. “They’re only dreams, firefly. Don’t read into them, okay?”
I nodded. It was what I’d told myself enough times.
His focus flicked to my lips before he let his hand fall from my cheek. “Why don’t you try to take your mind off it and finish that drawing?”
“Or you can stay?” I blurted, surprising myself. Butterflies swarmed my stomach at the thought. Usually, I could keep those intrusive thoughts under control. Yet, it seemed, as my fondness for him grew, that was getting harder and harder to rein in. “You could help me with one of those puzzles? Or we could play cards?” The words felt immature as they spilled from my mouth, but all I knew was that I didn’t want him to leave. It was as if his presence alone kept the bad things lurking inside me at bay. “If you don’t have somewhere else to be, that is.”
He frowned and stood from the bed—for a second. I thought he would say no, and my chest constricted with embarrassment. I opened my mouth, ready to backpedal, when he turned around, revealing a smile that threatened to rip me in half.
“I suppose since you asked nicely.” Talon winked. “But don’t think that adorable pouty face will do you any favors. I play to win, firefly. Always.”
Twenty-Nine
“What! That’s not fair! You’re totally making these rules up as you go.” I laughed, splaying my cards out in front of me for Talon to see. “I’ve played this game a hundred times. I know for a fact, an ace of spades is worth more than the queen of hearts.”
An impish grin tugged at the corner of his mouth. “Not in Faerway, firefly. I hate to break it to you, but humans have butchered this game over the centuries. You’re the one playing it backward.”
“Or maybe you’re just a sore loser. Have you considered that?” I leaned back in the chair, stretching my arms above my head.
The sun had begun its descent, dripping a pink and orange watercolor mosaic onto the world below that painted the chamber walls a golden hue. A few hours and five games later, I learned how to spot his tells. The way he smiled when he lied. How the corner of his right eye twitched when he was deep in thought. My favorite, however, was the way his jaw feathered when I outwitted him.
Stars, how badly I wanted to lick those corded muscles while I threaded my fingers through his soft hair. I shifted in my seat, licking my lips with the thoughts.
“Except, that’s impossible. I never lose, firefly.” He winked. “You should know better than that by now.”
“You just hate being told no.”
“Same thing.” He waved a hand. “One more game before we call it a night?” His tone was hopeful, and it matched my heart.
I nodded, our gazes lingering on each other a beat longer than normal before he looked away with a smile.
His fingers riffled the cards into a bridge, shuffling and cutting the deck with ease before he dealt them out with one hand.
I swallowed hard as he swiftly flicked the cards from the deck, imagining all the different things his nimble fingers were capable of doing.
Talon noticed me watching—more like drooling—and winked again, turning the skin on my neck into a blazing inferno.
Despite the eye roll that followed, the truth of the matter was I loved this. Being with him. It was the most relaxed I’d felt in weeks. The most I’d laughed.
