Page 24 of A Filling of Fables and Firelight

Which means, he realized with a sinking feeling, that I need to make sure she wins the contest. Does she even want to? She’s been avoiding everything but the weekly challenges. On the other hand, her presence here would imply that she’s at least comfortable with the possibility of winning, despite her initial opinion of me. That seems to have changed, but is it enough? I don’t think my heart could handle it now if it were anyone else.

But then again…what happens if she does win and then discovers the truth?

“Kamaran?”

He blinked, belatedly registering that she had asked him a question. “What?”

She shook her head and smiled, unaware of the storm of emotions swirling in his chest. “I asked if you were ready for the rest of the story.”

Chapter Thirteen

RANA

The mixture of hope and bewilderment on Kamaran’s face was enough to make her laugh.

He reached for another piece of Adhavian Delight. “How did you know I was going to ask?”

“I might have heard that you were looking for me, and since we both know my sparkling personality isn’t what draws people, I could only assume you wanted the rest of the story.”

Kamaran frowned. “I like your personality.”

“Well, you’re one of the few.” Rana picked up the spool of gold thread and unwound a length to replenish her needle. “But do you want the story or not?”

“I do,” he answered quickly. “But I thought you said there wasn’t any more—that some princes are just lizards.”

“I did. But all lizards shed their scales, and the best stories are the ones with character growth.”

He nodded, trying adorably not to look too eager. “Do you have more knots for me to untangle?”

Rana looked at him for a long moment. Despite the shift in conversation, she could still see the shadows of grief and exhaustion behind his eyes—shadows that, now that she knew they were there, made the seemingly endless supply of charming smiles and the breezy, sometimes irresponsible attitude all the more confusing.

It takes a lot of practice to hide emotions that effectively, which means that he’s been doing this a lot longer than just the month and a half since his father died. What has he been hiding behind his masks?

The tired set of his shoulders solidified her decision. “No. You have something much more important to do with your hands this evening.”

“Oh?”

She straightened, searching the room for a lump of golden fur. “Zade.”

The fox lifted his head from a pile of pillows in the corner. He stood and stretched, yawning and spreading out his tiny front toes as he did. With a quick shake, he trotted over to Rana. She scratched behind his oversized ears. “Kamaran needs snuggles.”

“What?”

Before he could protest, Zade leaped onto Kamaran’s lap, turned three times in a circle, and plopped down. Kamaran held his hands at his sides, as if unsure what to do with them.

Rana laughed at his befuddled expression. “You’re supposed to pet him.”

“What?” he repeated, looking at her with wide eyes.

“It’s the price of his love. He’ll bite your knees if you don’t.”

Kamaran’s hands immediately dropped and began stroking Zade’s thick, soft fur. “That doesn’t seem much like love.”

“What can I say? He puts the ‘fennec’ in finicky.” She swiped another piece of Adhavian Delight and settled back into her seat. “Now we’re ready. Where was it we left off?”

“The woman with the golden ball turned the prince into a lizard.”

“Right.” Rana began stitching again, using the familiar motion to help gather her thoughts. “Prince Kamden, surprised to still be alive but not yet fully comprehending his new form, scurried down the path in an attempt to escape. The woman nabbed him by the tail to stop him and scooped him off the ground. She held him out in front of her, ignoring his flailing, scratching legs.