“I do not!”
Before I have enough time to feel truly offended, Amaya is bursting into the room. She looks frazzled and quickly shuts the door behind her as if she’s running from something.
“Get dressed,” she orders, tossing my folded-up clothes that still smell like bonfire at me.
“What’s going on?” I ask, jumping out of bed.
“Damien is back.”
My heart jumps right before it plummets. “Wait, already?”
She grabs my jacket and holds it open for me to slip my arms through. “Yes, and he’s looking for Ryder.”
“But Ryder is with the Dread Woods creatures.”
“Yeah, I know that.” She drops to her knees and begins tying my boots like I’m her child. “And you know that. But Damien doesn’t. So, unless you want him to catch you walking out of Ryder’s room, I suggest you hurry it up.”
“Shit! Okay, okay. Let’s go,” I say, shaking her off. The laces can wait until after we’re outside of Grimstone.
I’m almost down the stairs lined of skulls when I step on one of my shoelaces and send myself tumbling. I’d like to say I was at least graceful about it, but I was anything but.
“Jeez, Reign! Are you okay?” Amaya ask as she loops her arm through mine to help me up. There’s concern on her face but that doesn’t stop her from laughing. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry. I know it’s not funny. Are you okay?”
“I feel like I just threw myself off of a cliff but other than that I’m good.”
Amaya snorts and I can’t help but join her, imagining what I must’ve looked like rolling down the stairs.
“You should’ve seen the way your feet—” She laughs harder playing the image back in her mind. “Flew over—” She can barely catch her breath now. “Andthen all I saw was a flurry of red hair. This must’ve been how you felt when I face-planted into the flowerbed.”
“Pretty much,” I admit, trying to pull myself together.
“What’s so funny?”
The voice I hear behind me is one I know all too well. Amaya and I immediately stop laughing when Damien walks up. Even though I knew he was back, I’m somehow still in shock seeing him. He picks me up in a tight hug and kisses me. It feels weird at first. Almost like it’s wrong, but that feeling quickly fades and I welcome the touch of his lips against mine.
“How’d it go?” Amaya asks, buying me time to collect my thoughts when he puts me back down.
“Not great. I did what I could, but the Southern Territory leaders know how King Cimmerian is and they want no part of it.”
There’s a look of defeat on his face. “That’s okay,” I reassure. “We were able to get some of the Dread Woods creatures to join us. Actually, some of them arrived this morning.”
“Ryder’s with them now,” Amaya adds.
“Perfect, I need to speak with him.”
The thought of the two of them together makes me feel nauseous. It feels like there’s a secret that everyone, but Damien knows, and I want to tell him. I want to explain to him how I’m feeling but now is not the time.
“Kane was going to head that way, too,” Amaya tells Damien. “He’s in the war room if you want to grab him to go with.”
“Cool, I’ll go get him.” He turns to me and gives me a quick kiss on the cheek. “I’ll come find you after.”
“Okay.” I offer a smile and I hate that it’s forced.
Once he’s far enough up the stairs, Amaya grabs my hand. “Nope. I can already see the guilt eating away at you.”
“I can’t help it,” I whine. “He’s completely oblivious.”
“Let him live in the bliss for a little while longer. In the meantime, you’re coming with me.”
