Chapter 21
“I CAN’T BELIEVE you said that! Was he mad?
” I whispered as we stepped back into the darkness.
A drop of yellow goo splashed across my sleeve.
Soren had a few splashes of orange and red across his back as well.
I stared at them, still too scared to look back and see how Caius had handled the rejection.
“Who cares?” Soren replied, pulling me into his arms. When we spun onto the dance floor, I could’ve sworn he held me closer. In the dark, his wings vanished just like they did under too much light, as if even the memory of them could only exist in the in-between.
“You probably should.” I breathed out as he twirled me around in an unexpected move, then swung me back again.
His face bent down, inches from mine, and he gave me a rare smile. It was almost enough to make me forget and smile back. “When I paid for help earlier, I also requested a distraction.”
Raised voices came from the short hallway behind us.
We spun to find Caius yelling at that cat-eyed fae.
As the drama drew the eyes of nearby fae, Soren artfully guided us through slow steps that made us drift farther away. He pulled me in, pressing his cheek to mine.
I closed my eyes.
He smelled like a blend of warm earth and cedar, reminding me of where he came from, but he led me with a confidence that made me feel safe.
Focus. I knew better than to trust that feeling anymore. Gathering my emotions, I aimed for a mask as unreadable as his and pulled back. “We should keep looking.”
“As soon as they lead him away.” Soren tipped his head in the prince's direction, and I understood. We didn’t need Caius following us.
I sighed. Though I could technically ignore him and begin searching, if I was honest, I didn’t want to look through these rooms full of strange fae alone. I’d already seen at least five or six different tunnels in just this portion of Cosmo’s burrow. I wouldn’t even know where to begin.
I peeked at Caius. He was still arguing with the fae, and others had joined them.
Soren took my hand unexpectedly and spun me out, only to pull me back in.
I landed on his solid chest.
It broke my melancholy with a shock, like falling into cold water on a hot day. It was too intimate. I needed to remind myself of the truth.
“If I’d failed earlier, you wouldn’t have brought me here?” I’d meant it as a statement, but somehow, it’d turned into a question.