“Good.” Placing one hand on the small of my back, he guided me out to the gravel road. Our feet crunched over loose rocks, and his fingers warmed the skin beneath my blouse. Butterflies took flight in my belly. He’d never touched me like this before. It’d always been with an air of reluctance. Even when he’d cupped my hand in the tent, it’d only been to inspect the poison. But this was different. Deliberate. I didn’t want it to end.
After a beat, he removed his hand.
A low hollowness skated around the space where his touch had been. “I’ll start gathering information on beasts tomorrow.” Lamplight had been dimmed to amplify the beauty of the night, and millions of stars crowded the heavens. We veered off the beaten path toward the sands.
Noc nodded. “All right. I’ll get Ozias and Calem to give you more information.”
“Thank you.” There was enough space between us to fit another person, and rational thought warred with desire as I eyed his swaying hand. As if reading my thoughts, he hid it in his pants pocket.
The backdrop of ocean waves kept my nerves at bay. Noc gazed at the deep-blue water crashing beside us. Seashells and glittering pebbles glistened in the moonlight. The beach was relatively empty, save a few bonfires with couples huddled together, cotton blankets with geometric designs draped about their shoulders.
“Actually…I should be the one thanking you.”
I stopped, sand giving beneath my feet. “Me? Why?”
“For Ozias. And Kost should thank you for his beast, though I don’t think he will, so I’ll do it for him.”
Slowly, I started walking again. “What did he end up naming the Poi, anyway?”
Noc’s lips quirked. “Felicks. He agonized over it, too. He didn’t know what name you had been referring to, so for the rest of the ride, he was a bit of a wreck. Funny as hell.”
“Guess I’m good for laughs. One more thing you can thank me for.”
“What else are you good at?”
I snorted. “That’s an odd question.”
He shrugged, and our elbows brushed. “I’m curious.”
“Still trying to figure this puzzle out?” That certainly made two of us. I inched closer. “I don’t have the worst singing voice around.”
“Really?” He pulled his hands out of his pockets.
“A lot of Charmers can sing. Or play an instrument—something musical. We’re trained in a lot of different things that could help us potentially tame a beast.” Sand gave beneath my foot, and I unintentionally swayed closer. My pinkie grazed the back of his hand. He didn’t flinch.
“What do you do for fun?”
I chewed on my lip. “Not a lot.”
Tilting his head to the side, he pinned me with his gaze. “How come?”
For a moment, I paused and simply stared out over the endless expanse of ocean. There were more stars than waves, and their collective light dwarfed that of the moon. We were a world away from Hireath. A world away from Midnight Jester and black-market dealings and scrambling for bits. Out here, with Noc’s hand so close to mine, I could almost forget. I could almost pretend that I had the luxury to simplybe.
“I’m on the run. I don’t have a lot of time for leisurely activities. What about you? What do you do for fun?”
“Not a lot.” His smile was surprisingly soft. Full of understanding. As if he knew what it meant to fight for just a sliver of peace. He probably did.
“That’s not true. You read. What else do you do? I imagine you get into plenty of shenanigans with Calem and Oz.”
“Oz?”
I waved him off. “Ozias. Don’t avoid the question. You’re surrounded by friends and family. I bet you’re always having fun.”
His shoulders stiffened, and his gaze drifted out over the waters. “Not as much as you’d think.”
I could practicallyseethe frost gathering in his aura. Feel the building cold that defied the warm humidity of the beach. My pulse quickened. I didn’t want him to retreat when I’d finally brought him close.
“I can also play the harp.”
