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“You’re mocking me.”

“Obviously.”

He wipes a hand down his face. “Saints, Fontaine. You’re going to be the death of me, you know.”

“Aw,” I tease, smiling at him like a fiend. “Come on. I know you like to play.”

He gives me a dark look. “You don’t give me much choice.”

“And you just hate it.”

I hesitate for a moment, considering him. And then I reach out, curling his loosened tie around my fist. Lonan goes stiff. His guard slams into place. But I can see the Dark flame burning in his eyes.

“What are you doing?” he asks.

This night has been a game of trust and mistrust. A hundred deceits, the two of us circling each other like a pair of wolves, both unwilling to break apart, both unwilling to take the first bite. And for just a moment, I want to be foolish. For once, I want to have the upper hand.

I have to crane my head to look him in the eye. “Playing,” I whisper. “That thing you claim to hate.”

“Vesper,” he breathes, his voice full of warning. “You don’t want to do this.”

“What am I doing?”

“Being a menace, for one.”

“You should be used to that by now.”

He huffs a laugh. “As much as you’ve put me through, I don’t think you’ll ever stop surprising me.”

Something in his words catches me. “Put you through?”

His lips form a slight grimace. “I’ve taken Van Asten’s charge to protect you very seriously. So, late night excursions to the kitchens . . .”

I shove him away from me. “You spied on me?”

He rubs his chest where I pushed him. “On orders, for your safety, yes. For what it’s worth, I tried to pay very little attention to more . . . sensitive things.”

My stomach drops. I know exactly what he’s referring to.

“That boy from our Alchemy class?”

Lonan nods.

“The one from Dueling class? I used to meet him in the library . . .”

He nods his head and closes his eyes, his expression pained.

“That boy who works in the kitchens?”

“Saints, Vesper.”

“What?”

He pinches the bridge of his nose. “Yes, I was agonizingly aware of every single one of your trysts. For years, entirely against my will, I have been forced to watch you lock lips with every worm in this school.”

“Don’t get judgy.”

“I’m not . . .” He draws a labored breath. “I’m not judging. I’m just saying I would have preferred . . .”