My heart skips a beat at his admission. He wouldn’t say that if he knew how much of a coward I truly am.
Something about the sincerity in his gaze pierces my heart. Why is he so kind to me? My heart can hardly take it.
“I appreciate you, Kai.” A beat of silence passes between us. “Are you feeling any better now? I took you up here to watch the sunrise in the clouds. I noticed you’ve been a bit down lately, so I hoped it might help.”
He grins, then gives my nose a tender kiss. “I’mmuchbetter now, and I can only attribute a fraction of that to the sunrise, baby.”
“Why do you insist on still calling me ‘baby’?”
“Does being called ‘baby’ actually bother you? I can stop.”
Yes, because I want this to be real.
“I just find it confusing.”
“Well, don’t overthink it. The word practically rolls off my tongue when it comes to you. It’s as simple as that.”
I finally roll off him, resting beside him and leaning my head against his chest, drawing a breath. “Okay.”
With his arm still wrapped around my waist, he bends his head down, his lips brushing against my temple.
My hand reaches for his, grasping it and fiddling with the ring on his finger.
The key to his escape and my demise.
I fiddle with it, then do something wildly unexpected. My mind is no better than mush around this man.
I bring his pointer finger up to my lips and kiss it softly, pressing my lips against it for several seconds.
A sharp intake of breath sounds beside me. “Cleo. What are you doing?”
I wiggle the ring off his finger and hold it for a moment, then tilt my head up to gaze at him. “You deserve some time away from the nightmares.”
An unreadable expression crosses his face. “Damn, you aren’t going soft on me, are you?”
He smirks as I roll my eyes and scoff. “Never.”
“Sure, okay. Whatever you say.” His eyes beam even brighter than before, then darken. “Are you sure you won’t get in trouble?”
“I’m certain that you deserve freedom to visit the land below just one more time—especially when Eloras is haunting you. I’m tired of your half smiles and lack of obnoxious jokes. Go down there and do whatever you need to do to reset. Promise me you’ll come back, then we’ll take it from there. Got it?”
I slip the solid golden ring into the pocket of his joggers, clasping it shut.
His gaze sobers, then he runs his fingers through my hair tenderly. The seconds tick by slowly before he nods. “Okay, Cleo.”
We both stand, then he embraces me in a tight, warm hug. His scent of amber washes over me, soothing me.
I realize this is the first time we’ve ever held each other like this.
I’d be fooling myself if I said it wasn’t nice.
He leans away, peering into my eyes again. “I meant what I said. You’re devastatingly beautiful in every way.”
Uninvited heat rises to my cheeks and butterflies flutter in my stomach upon hearing those words again. Instead of denying his words, I simply smile softly.
“I’ll see you soon,” I say evenly, subtly biting my lip.
“See you later.”
