“It’s been a day,” Aspen said. “And still, my heart aches from the deep longing to see your face again.” He smiled, rising from the ground below the oak tree.
I raised an eyebrow, a playful smirk tugging at my lips. “That’s all you’ve been doing, isn’t it? Sleeping, hoping I’d appear in your dreams?”
He shrugged, but something flashed in his gaze, the twilight hiding it from me. I was tempted to shift the dream to daylight, to seehim better. Instead, I shifted the color of the moon to silver and placed stars in the sky. And he dressed me back into the green dress.
“Isn’t that what every female wants to hear? That the male she adores spends every moment in slumber, hoping she’ll visit him there?”
I made my way to him, switching the dress for a pair of leggings and a loose long-sleeve. Aspen sighed, as if disappointed, then reached out, pulling me into his embrace. With his free hand, he twirled a lock of my hair between his fingers, his touch sending a shiver down my spine.
“Maybe,” I whispered. “But I’d rather have you here with me in the waking world than in the hazy blur of dreams.”
His lips brushed against mine, slow and tender. “This,” he murmured, his breath warming my skin, “feels pretty real to me.”
I pulled back just enough to meet his eyes, forcing out a half-hearted smile. “You know what I mean.”
He sighed. “I do. Have you found any way of escape?”
I stepped out of his arms and turned toward the trees. “We thought we had,” I said, my voice tinged with frustration. “Hell has Portal Lake, but it only responds to the king’s blood—just like the gates. And neither one has answered him in years.”
So, we found nothing.
Aspen’s arms encircled me from behind, pulling me close again. His finger brushed the sensitive skin beneath my breast through the thin fabric of my shirt. He lowered his lips to my neck, his breath a warm kiss against my eager skin.
“Have you found anything else?”
I stiffened.
Yes. His dead lover. I still hadn’t told him.
“What?” His tone sharpened, and he turned me, searching my face. He looked desperate. And he should be, right? He wanted me out of Hell and probably thought I’d found something small to help with that. “What else did you find?”
I hesitated. What good would it do if I told him? He wouldn’t be able to see her. Telling him would only rip open old wounds, bring him more pain.
“Sweetheart,” he prompted, lifting my chin. “Maybe I can help if you tell me.”
I swallowed hard, the words heavy on my tongue. “Have you found Michael yet?” He told me he’d help me with that too, and I’ve yet to hear of his progress.
“No.”
“You’re still looking, right?”
He stared straight at me and smiled, his eyes tightening. “Of course.”
I bit my lip. I didn’t believe him. His smile was forced, his tone higher than normal. He was hiding something. But was it about Michael… or something worse?
“I’m just having a hard time finding him, sweetheart. That’s all,” he reassured. He grabbed my hands when I remained quiet. “Really, sweetheart. I’m stuck at the moment and didn’t know how to tell you.”
“Okay.” It wasn’t like we’d be able to kill him until we rescued Aspen and… Melanie. I bowed my head. There were too many moving pieces to figure out.
“There’s someone else I need you to search for.”
He ran a finger across my bottom lip, pulling it from between my teeth and tilting my chin up. “Who?”
“Melanie. Oliver’s sister.” I steadied myself, gathering the strength to speak the words. “Lilith took her when she took you. Oliver believes she’s still alive—somewhere in the Tenebrous Kingdom.” If we were going to save her, we needed someone on the inside. “Put finding her above finding Michael,” I said, my voice a weak whisper.
After all this, I’d promised myself I’d do everything to help my mom—everything. But Michael was most likely out of our reach, while Melanie was hidden in Aspen’s kingdom. And I wouldn’t let my best friend wait another year for his sister, even if he currently hated me.
A haunted look passed over Aspen’s face, so raw and sudden it felt like he was drowning in something unseen.
