He wasn’t scowling, for once, and that certainly helped. Astride his knoggelvi and donning clean, leather armor once more, Damien did not look as fearsome as when he had been irate with her in the tower or even when she first saw him in the alley of Aszath Koth. He held a small book open against the neck of his mount, reading, and then glanced up every so often to stare out at the way ahead. He was too lost in thought to look over at her, but if he had, the heat in her face would be easy enough to explain away with the warmth of the day.
It may have been the sunshine breaking through the pines or the softness to his features as he thought, but when Amma looked at him then, she didn’t see any hint of infernal anything, even with those eyes that were strikingly violet in the light.
And after seeing him with the alchemist and the hag, she knew he was capable of being quite different. Dare she think even warm? Amma twisted up her lips—no, that may have been a thought too far, but Mudryth had spoken of him fondly, and Anomalous clearly adored him, so she reasoned Damien was capable of baseline amicability, and that was accessible to Amma, it justhadto be, especially if she wanted to live. Not to mention, she was really getting tired of being cranky and mad all the time.
“What a nice day.”
Damien did not look up from his book.
“I’m so glad I don’t stink anymore.” Amma stretched her arms over her head. “I’m not used to smelling like that.”
This made his eyes flick up, if not at her, but then right back down.
“I didn’t even know Icouldsmell so bad, actually.”
He turned a page. “Impressive bathhouse at the thieves’ guild, is there?”
Amma sucked in a quiet breath. No, there probably wasn’t, not that she would know. “Oh, I’ve had to rough it a lot, of course, I just mean that was really bad. Reminded me of a time I fell off a horse into a pile of manure, which I guess was sort of lucky because it’s a long way down off a horse’s back, but I couldn’t get the smell out of my hair for weeks. My mother was so angry, maybe the angriest I’ve ever seen her because I was supposed to meet—” Amma cut herself off, and that was what actually interested Damien, of course. He looked over, a thin, dark brow rising. She swallowed. “Someone sort of important. I can’t really remember who. Anyway, what are you reading?”
Damien’s intense stare brought all the color back into her face, betraying her attempt to will it away. “A book,” he finally said, and turned back down to it.
She leaned toward him over the gap between the knoggelvi. “What kind of book?”
“An interesting one,” he said, completely disinterestedly.
“I mean, what’s it about?”
His brow furrowed. “Things.”
“Like, is there some treasure to be found or a curse to be broken or—”
“Nothing like that.”
“Oh, okay, then…” She gave him a few moments to elaborate, wind whistling overhead in the spruces. He didn’t. “So, is it about interestingpeople? Maybe a chosen one or a prince or—oh! Is it a love story? It’s a love story, isn’t it?”
“No,” he scoffed, finally looking away from the pages to glare at her. She wasn’t surprised, but she was amused by his irritated reaction. “This isn’t fiction, this is research. Research you’re interrupting.”
“That doesn’t sound interesting,” she said, a challenge she hoped he would take up.
“I assure you, it is.” He turned another page.
“I don’t possibly see how without any dragons or sword fights andespeciallywithout any romance.”
“These pages are full of the arcane,” he said, shaking the book. “And just because it doesn’t feature two idiots who trick themselves into believing the other cares for them just so they can see one another naked, doesn’t make it any less interesting.”
“Okay, that’s not what happens in a love story—well, that’s notallthat happens—but if you insist that book is interesting, maybe you could read it out loud?”
“Why would I do that?”
She threw her hands up and rocked her head back. “Because I’m bored!”
“I’m not here to entertain you,” he growled, “and you wouldn’t understand it anyway.”
Amma gasped and then pouted. “Just because I like stories that end happily doesn’t mean I’m stupid, Damien.”
“I know you’re not stupid,” he grumbled back. “If you were, things would be immensely easier for me, but you are unfortunatelyverydifficult. I simply mean you aren’t a mage. Unless you’re lying to me about that too?” At this, Damien finally closed the book and gave her his full attention.
Stuck under his waiting gaze, she drummed her fingers on the back of the knoggelvi and tipped her head, playing at being, as he would put it, easy. “What, uh…what do you mean?”
