AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I bet he’s a beast in bed.
She blinked the wayward rumination away, her cheeks burning. Then his next words registered.
“I can’t imagine. Also, don’t discredit yourself.”
Pearl raised a brow. “Are you crediting me then?”
“I give credit where it’s due.”
It was meant to tease, but Henry’s face and words only held seriousness. Her heart sparked to life at the compliment, something that he wouldn’t give out freely if he didn’t mean it. Not a lot of people praised her for her potions, and it felt nice to get one from the least expected party…no, the most judgmental party.
Not liking where her trail of thoughts was going, Pearl grimaced and got back to work, taking out one last potion in her bag. It was in a larger bottle with a shower nozzle at the end, which she used to sprinkle as she made her way around the room. She aggressively shook the last drops when she got near him, then decided better of it and gently stroked the bottle instead.
“Nice and easy,” she crooned, uncaring that she was deliberately trying to get him to react in the basest manner, if only to ruffle his infuriatingly unshaken state. “To get every last drop out.”
Of course, this was Henry, and not a single reaction came out of him. He tilted his head.
“What’s that potion for?”
She bit back a sigh, torn between disappointment and relief. Then she got down to business.
“The layered traps. Just one potion is needed to set them in place. The moment I spread it, it memorized the magic found here and will let me know when another source comes.”
“Are you going to see the next step from there?”
“Yes.”
“Will it take a while?”
“It depends. As I said, I’m planning on more potions to cover other areas. More detection. More traps. If it’s too complicated for your liking—”
“It’s fine. Carry on.”
And that was that. She waited for the argument and was stumped when he didn’t open one.
“Right. I will carry on.”
“Same time tomorrow?”
“It might take time for me to create the other potions,” she said carefully. “I can provide a timeline.”
“That sounds great.”
“Good. I will keep in touch.”
Get out. Before this peaceful moment breaks.
Instinct told her it was bound to, especially in the wake of all their explosive encounters so far. She watched his features take on a thoughtful look.
“About last night—”
Oh, no. Get out. Just get out.
“There’s no need to talk about it—”
“Oh, she’s here.”
The interruption was a much-needed reprieve, but the reprieve was short-lived when she realized who the voice belonged to. Gunther strutted into the throne room dressed to perfection, eyes scanning it before taking her in. She took him in, too, the all-white outfit a contrast to Henry’s standard black, and further emphasizing how different they were: night and day, darkness and light. Harsh and soft, but Gunther’s softness made something inside her shudder. She countered it with her practiced lazy approach.
