The reflection of the man he used to be fills the glass. My ghost stands there, his luminous skin pulled tight over his aristocratic bones, his platinum curls arranged just shy of careless over his pointy ears. His jaw is sculpted into a soft line, almost kind, but with an edge.
The kind I’d gladly cut myself on.
Faint veins trace bluish lines along his knuckles, but his fingers are otherwise smooth and unmarked—almost too clean. Hands that know exactly where to press, how long to linger, how to draw a woman closer and keep her captive.
A beauty that disarms before it strikes.
I meet his blue stare head-on. The color is otherworldly, deeper than the purest mountain lake in the peak of summer, the teal hues interspersed with pieces of a powdery sky.
The reflected image of us standing stock-still in a mix of shock and admiration echoes a hundred times over on each side, and I screw my eyes shut not to see any more.
“Open your eyes,” he says huskily.
My bottom lip trembles. “I’d rather not.”
A simple glimpse of him wrecked me. He’s Fae, alright, and untouchable in more ways than I knew.
“Don’t marry him,” he murmurs, and the words sound more like a command than a plea. “I can’t bear the thought of you belonging to another man. Break it off and come home with me.”
My eyes snap open as the lights above our heads blink in and out of view. No matter if I came to the same conclusion on my own, I won’t let him make the choice for me, or be the reason I walk away from my old life.
“If I cancel the wedding, it won’t be for you. You’re an arse with no sense of personal space and a skewed perception of reality.”
The insult coaxes a joyful grin from him, and my heartbeat spikes. Dark One, be kind, his smile could topple empires.
A white, fancy button-down shirt molds his body, perfectly fitted to highlight his large shoulders. The sleeves are rolled up to his elbows, and swirling clouds are sewn into the collar.
Was he wearing that when he died? I never imagined we would take our clothes with us in death, though I’m relieved not to seeallof him. I would spontaneously combust.
His hand ghosts along my chin, tipping my head to the side. It’s clear in the reflection, yet intangible in the real world. “You know I’m right.”
He doesn’t look at himself, not once. His eyes stay fixed on me.
A golden halo lights his skin from within, the phenomenon slightly more pronounced around his head. He’s so fucking beautiful. I thought seeing him would lure me off my path, but it’s the opposite. Dead or not, he’s obviously not for me. There’s no world in which the two of us fit. Him, this bright angelic presence, magnetic charisma, and perfect physique.
Me, a mortal with tepid powers, my neck peppered in freckles, and dark circles under my eyes. Normal. Boring.
The man in the glass is everything but.
He grazes my collarbone, and though he isn’t made of flesh, I feel him. His bite of power smears my skin like warm oil. The debilitating heat from this morning flares back to life, crawlingbeneath my dermis. Tingling. Alive. It doesn’t hurt. I’m too full for pain, too hot, too ardent.
A swirl of fire snakes out to meet his hands.
“Careful. I can’t control it,” I warn.
My ghost doesn’t retreat. He leans closer, as if the flames are an invitation instead of a warning. “I love to play with fire.”
He pulls me tight against him, and the pressure of his touch leaves deep grooves in the silk cinched around my waist. His breath skims the back of my neck, and the fire inside me answers, piercing through the fabric in a sudden, hungry flare.
The wedding dress gives way with a soft sizzle.
I watch, mesmerized, as the damage spreads. Lace sizzles into ash. Tulle blisters and melts, shrinking away in iridescent threads. With every breath I take, the dress retreats, baring glimpses of the witch I’ve tried so hard to keep hidden.
The reflection splinters behind the flames, each shard of mirror catching a different angle—my freckled shoulder, the taut line of my waist, the soft skin above my hips.
I can’t look away.
“I want to tear what’s left of that dress off you,” he growls.
