She tilted her head, looking up at him. The corners of her mouth curved into a beautiful, lazy smile.
And then?—
“Shit.” She bolted upright, raking a hand down her face, her head darting from side to side as if she was trying to make sense of where she was.
Where they were, together.
Her shoulders slumped when her gaze collidedwith the window, taking in the cool light seeping in from the crack in his curtains. “Shit,” she said again.
Cedric pushed himself up onto one elbow, swallowing the lump in his throat. “Hey, it’s all right. We still have some time.”
But she was already swinging her legs over the edge of the bed, the back of her head a mess of tangled periwinkle hair, her wings folded tightly against her back.
The space between them already felt cold.
“I need to go,” she said.
“You don’t have to.” He reached for her hand.
She let him take it. Hold it. If only for a moment.
“I’m supposed to meet the others at first light.” She gestured to the cool dawn light seeping in from Cedric’s window. “First light has nearly come.”
He sat up, scooting backward until his shoulders hit the headboard of his bed, watching her dart across the room to retrieve the boots she’d haphazardly kicked off before they fell asleep. “Elle?—”
“Don’t.” The word wasn’t said in anger, but it still cut across Cedric’s ears like the sharpest blade. “Let’s not ruin this by talking.”
“You aren’t even going to say goodbye?”
She didn’t reply.
He sucked in a breath as shadows swarmed around her feet. “Admit you lied before,” he said, voice low. “Admit that this issomething.”
She paused, boots in hand. Turning her head to glance back at him, some unnamed emotion flashed across her beautiful face. “Of course it is, dummy. That’s the problem.”
And then she was gone.
29
PARTING BLOWS
ELYRIA
Pale dawn lightwas just beginning to trickle through the palace windows as Elyria stepped out of the shadows and back into her bedroom. Dropping her boots on the plush carpet, Elyria padded over to her bed and perched on the edge of her mattress before loosing a heavy breath.
Sid, in a rare show of cooperation, had indeed stayed put. The shadowcat was still dozing on her bed, a ball of black smoke curled up next to her pillow. Elyria reached out to pet her, fingers twining with the shadows pooling around the cat, trying not to think too hard about why her fingers still trembled.
She couldn’t keep thinking about last night. Couldn’t get distracted by the memory of the way Cedric’s arms had felt around her.By the warmth of his body caging hers, and how perfectly she’d fit against him. How he’d stroked her hair. The rise and fall of his chest under her cheek.
She couldn’t think about how safe he’d felt. So much so that the last thing she remembered before drifting off to sleep was the shimmer of release as her wings sprang free—unbound, unmasked.
No, Elyria couldn’t afford to think about any of that. She had a mission here. By the fucking stars, she was a fully grown fae with an important purpose—one she wasfinallygoing to be able to act on. She wasn’t some lovesick adolescent who couldn’t keep her eye on the larger issues at play.
And yet . . .
“You aren’t even going to say goodbye?”
Glorious idiot.
