If she didn’t break Shadow’s hold on his mind, there was no future at all.
She kept her hood up as she and Zimsy spent the morning in Crystalmore. It felt wrong to be shopping while across the Black Deep, Mal was drowning. Abraxas was. . .surviving. Each time her mind drifted back to her cousin, her stomach twisted. She wanted so badly to jump to him, to tell him everything would be fine, that she and Reeve had a plan.
But with his silver tongue, Maeve knew he wouldn’t be able to lie to Mal, and so communicating with Abraxas was not an option.
The shame rolling in her belly for enjoying her time with Zimsy, doing frivolous things that made her happy, pulled tight and turned warm as she watched Zimsy enjoy sampling desserts from an Elven baker.
The resolution was coming no matter what she did, but it was not coming that day. And so she set aside her guilt and allowed herself to enjoy the day with her best friend.
When she returned to the Celestian Palace, she headed straight for Reeve. She hurried up the stairs of his wing, bags in hand, prepared to tell him just how amazed she was by the city.
She barreled through the open doors without invitation and halted when her eyes met his. They were warm and inviting, swirling with dark violet fire where he reclined in his chair, legs up on the table, and a drink of amber liquid in his large hand.
“Hello, Maeve,” he hummed, his head tilting to the side.
“Zimsy and I went to the city,” she replied, holding up her bags. “I found the loveliest tea shop off the main park square.”
“Sereneteas?”
Maeve smiled softly. “Yes. They carry Earth brands. My favorite brand at that.”
Reeve’s smile grew. “I know.”
“What are the chances? Isn’t that so strange?”
Reeve crinkled his nose. “Not really.”
Maeve’s shoulders dropped as she understood the victorious look on his face. “You did that?”
Reeve didn’t answer.
She pressed again, her voice soft. “You asked them to import Earl Grey?”
“Asked is a little demeaning, Maeve, I am their High Lord after all.”
Maeve scoffed, a casual and appreciative laugh. “But you couldn’t possibly have known I would go tothattea shop.”
“That is correct.”
A silent moment fell between them as Maeve understood—
“You made sure every tea shop in the entire city, that massive city, carried Earl Grey?”
Reeve’s smile faded, but his eyes remained glowing. “That seems like a waste of my time.”
Maeve nodded. “Indeed.” She swallowed hard.
The kindness of his action did not go unnoticed by her. The intimacy of it, of even knowing that was her favorite in the first place. . .
Reeve watched the forced breaths that rose and fell in her chest. His smile faded, dropping his triumphant expression into a hungry one. He raised his glass to his lips as he sipped the amber liquid, his eyes never leaving hers. “What else did you do?”
“I bought a book. And a dress.”
“Tell me about them,” he said.
Maeve crossed the room towards him, setting her velvet bags on the table carelessly. Reeve stood and stepped towards her in a gracefully fluid move.
She stopped. “The book is calledCrystalmore in Silk. It’s about fashion and style through different ages of Aterna.” She knew she was rambling as he stepped closer to her. “The storekeeper recommended it to me based on my outfit.”
