Ryder’s mouth parts but he doesn’t immediately answer. The warmth of his palm skims down the inside of my wrist, just across the dark lines of the Hopeless symbol, as his body dominates over mine. He seems to be thinking through his words carefully.
“Yes, whoisViola, Ryder?” Daxdyn taunts him with a mischievous smile that even the gods would be envious of.
At the tone of his voice my eyes narrow, my head tilting back to consider the silence Ryder’s clinging to.
“Well,” another long pause cuts through his words.
As I stare up at him, my chest pressing against his, his breath fanning over my lips, a woman appears from thin air. Her features blur before turning into a solid form.
My steps falter away from her, stumbling against the pure white fog.
“Iam Viola.” White teeth reveal a wide and astoundingly beautiful smile. Emerald eyes shine down on me. Every single inch of her is smooth perfection.
Her gaze dances between Ryder and myself, her attention finally settling curiously on the prince.
“Ryder, how are you?” The spark in her eyes shifts all over his body, skimming against his muscle tone and the uneasy look in his eyes.
You know that tension that fires through a room when two people who have had sex meet again? That tension is blazing this fucking realm to the ground.
She’s enjoying the teetering awkwardness Ryder’s trying to hide. She looks like a hungry cat toying with the carcass of a mouse.
“Who’s your friend, Ryder?” The smile on her lips grows.
His palm pushes down my hand, his fingers interlocking with mine.
“This is Zakara Storm.” A gentle pause has me hanging on his words. “My girlfriend.” A weird feeling floods my heart. It consumes me with a strange and unexpected happiness. “Kara, this is Viola, keeper of the past, seer of the realms, speaker of the gods.”
Fucker of my boyfriend.
The pettiness is pushed down deep inside me as I offer her a kind smile.
Is there a realm somewhere—anywhere—that isn’t filled with women Ryder has screwed?
My annoyed thoughts are cut off when she asks the real question that’s needed here.
“I haven’t seen you in a while. What do you need now, fae?” A teasing smirk fills her pretty features and she begins to look around at the endless army behind me.
“A violent war is coming to the mortal realm and soon to ours.” Ryder’s deep tone vibrates through the empty space in a strange way.
“Yes. Yes, it is.” Her voice is soft and calm.
The aloof sound of her words, the carelessness of it, sets me on edge.
We’re talking about the annihilation of an entire realm and this keeper-speaker can’t seem to focus on a thing we’re saying.
“We want the gods’ help,” I blurt out, tilting my head into her view, drawing her attention back to the very real issue at hand.
The curious look in her eyes dances over my features, taking in every detail of my face.
“No.” A playful smile accompanies her reply.
“No?”
“The gods do not intervene with petty mortal problems.”
Petty?
Petty?
