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Opening his lashes, he grinned at me as he untangled our hands. “You know what else,” he said. “You were right.”
“About what?” My brow furrowed as I watched him look up at the sky, making out his profile perfectly in the moonlight, from the curve in his cheekbones to the swoop of his eyelashes, and every hair growing along his jaw. It was so striking and familiar to me, I just wanted to reach out and trace my fingers over his lines, wishing I could memorize this moment so that it’d always be fresh and distinct in my mind.
Rolling onto his side to face me, he looped an arm comfortably over my hip and sent me a smile that I felt straight to my toes. “You said to me that it didn’t matter what world or dimension you traveled to; men would do anything for sex. Well, I’m finally agreeing with you. I would do anything for this.” His gaze focused on mine. “I’d do anything for you.”
Well, that was handy. Because right now, I felt as if I’d do anything for him.
Reaching up, he drew a lock of hair out of my face so he could see my eyes better. “Would it be too tacky of me to thank you for waking me from a deep sleep and giving me the best night of my life?”
I blushed and bit my lip before answering, “Would it be too pompous of me to say you’re welcome?”
He grinned. “Not at all. Own it, empress.”
Then he kissed me, once on the mouth, then my cheek, behind my ear. His fingers ran down the opposite side of my neck until he met the base and encountered the necklace I wore. It’d been hiding under my chemise until I’d stripped bare, but he must not have noticed it after that.
“What’s this?” He tugged at the strap until the end reached his hand and he was holding an amber-colored jewel in his palm. When it glowed in the moonlight, he lifted his face slowly to look at me. “Is this what I think it is?”
“Yeah. That’s the amulet,” I confirmed.
He swallowed thickly. “The same amulet that can keep you on Earth permanently and send a Replacement back here in your stead?”
“The very one,” I whispered, easily taking it from his hand so I could hold it up to the light for both of us to study.
He laid his head beside mine so he could look up at it with me. “I had no idea that’s what they looked like. It’s smaller than I thought it’d be.” His finger came up to trace one pointed tip.
When he drew his hand away, a small white two-inch scar marring the inside of his forearm caught my attention. Dropping the amulet back to my chest, I caught his arm and frowned. “Where did you get this?”
Indigo smiled sadly as he looked at the old wound. “That would be a gift from your dear cousin Qualmer.”
I lifted my face in surprise. “You’ve fought Qualmer? In the flesh? When did you even meet him?”
His lips curled with amusement. “Meet is kind of a strong word, but sure, we crossed paths once. When the tenth reaping started, your family knew High Cliff would retaliate, so to stave off the news of their reaping reaching the king too quickly, they sent someone to the home of the current High Cliff emissaries living in Lowden—which were my parents—to take them out. That someone was Qualmer. Or maybe he volunteered. I don’t know. But just my mom and I were there when he arrived.”
Hissing out a breath, I ran my finger over the old wound, trying to soak up some of the pain from his memories. He covered my hand, then took my fingers and brought them to his mouth to kiss them in gratitude.
“There was this knock on the door. Loud and urgent. Mom answered it, and this bedraggled boy—only a teenager—surged inside, covered in blood and soot. He’d just lost an eye, so of course, Mom pulled him into a comforting hug, ready to assist him however she could.”
“Good God,” I uttered, already knowing where this was headed.
“He pulled out a knife and murdered her then, stabbing her in the back before I even realized what had happened.” Indigo shook his head and swallowed thickly. “When he turned to me next…” He sighed. “I don’t know. I was only eight. I fought him off as best as I could. But he still got a few good licks in. Here’s another.”
He showed me a white scar high on his rib cage.
“And another.” This one ran along the outside of his thigh.
I touched both of them, smoothing my fingers gently across the old, healed wounds. “How did you get away?”
“My father returned,” he said. “Qualmer saw him as a bigger threat, so he turned his attention to my dad and managed to kill him too. Others showed up then to assist us, and your cousin got away, jumping out a window and escaping.”
“I’m so sorry,” I said, hating that it was my family who had caused him so much heartache.
“Not your fault,” he assured me, combing his fingers through my mass of hair. “Nothing anyone in your house has ever done has been your fault. Okay?”
I nodded, even though a part of me couldn’t fully believe that. The Graykeys were my blood. My people. And they’d caused a lot of destruction. It was hard to separate myself from that kind of darkness, and yet being here with Indigo, like this, I think I did feel a little cleaner.
Maybe enough time with him would convince me to completely believe him one day.
When his gaze dropped to my amulet again, a million thoughts swirled through his eyes. I swore he wanted to say something, so I softly asked, “What?”
