“A few weeks now. And yes, I have never seen anyone else with green eyes. I’ve hardly seen that shade mentioned in any of our history books.” She shakes her head in disbelief. “It should make finding your ancestry pretty easy if that is something you want to do. One part of you, at the very least, is mage. If thatpart comes with the side that gave you green eyes, I think we’ll be able to track it. To see if you might have any living family members. Well,” she pauses, her cheeks growing red not from embarrassment but from anger, “if there are anyotherthan that asshole king.”
I want to snort at her reaction, at how her fists ball up as if she can punch my uncle right from where she lies, but I’m still caught up on the fact that she knew I was lying to her forweeks. Weeks in which time was spent dancing at a tavern and reading books and talking as if nothing was wrong at all.
“You knew all that time and didn’t bring it up? Why?”
Elora sits up fully, smoothing her flowy white top, the sleeves long and growing wider as they near her hands. “I don’t know. You only ever talked about your past if I brought it up, and even then, you were reluctant to do so if it didn’t revolve around Nox. I thought at first it was because you were kind of obsessed with him”—I can’t help but snort at that—“but I realized that there was something else going on. Something you either couldn’t or wouldn’t speak about. And maybe a part of me hoped that you might trust me enough to open up to me eventually.”
“I’m sorry it took so long.”
Elora waves off my apology, flicking her copper hair over her shoulder. “Rhea, you’ve been through enough. You don’t need to apologize to me. Just know that if there is ever anything you want to talk about, I’m here. And there are no stipulations attached to that. I’m your friend, whether you tell me every little detail or you pick and choose what truths you want me to know. As long as you know that I am someone you can come to.”
I smile at my friend—my friend—and she smiles back as if the same words are repeating in her head.
“Thoughperhapsas my friend, you could try every once and a while toaccidentallyhave us run into a certain mage king.”
“Oh my gods,” I huff, our joyful laughter helping to ease my tumultuous nerves. My magic hums within me as a light tugging sensation sends my hand to my chest and my head turning towards the door on the other side of the library.
“What is it?” Elora asks as she watches me stand.
“I think—”
“Sunshine? Are you back there?” Nox calls out right as shadows slither across the floor.
“Yes!” I shout, waiting for Elora to join me as we find our way out of the maze of books and back to her desk. The shadows instantly dissipate as if Nox has released a breath.
“I always forget he can do that,” Elora muses as she watches them become stagnant once more. “And I still think it’s bizarre that you can tell he’s near without seeing him first.”
“Isn’t it just his magical signature? His is so strong that I figured everyone could tell when he is close by.”
Elora shakes her head as Nox’s footsteps near. “Signature strengths are specific to each person, but from far away, I can’t tell if the magic I am sensing is one individual or many. I can’t name the person based on their signature alone without seeing them. Does your magic recognize his?”
“Yes.”
“Hmm,” she responds, her gaze lost in thought.
My brows furrow at her answer, but then Nox rounds the corner, and I’m taken aback by the look on his face and the way his body moves—by justhim. Small tendrils of his wavy hair hang over his forehead, the rest looking mussed as if he’s run his hand through it multiple times. His magic ripples over me the closer he gets, calling to mine until I feel it blooming right beneath my skin.
“Are you alright?” he asks when he nears, his hands gently cradling my face despite the tension that I can feel radiating off of him.
“Yes, are you?” I question, dragging my gaze over him.
“Better now.” His forehead comes to mine, his words quiet and just barely reaching my ear. “You make everything better.” He lookstired, as if the weight he’s been trying to balance since coming home is cleaving him in two.
I turn to look at Elora, an apology on my tongue, but she’s already waving her hand. “I’ll see you tomorrow?”
“Tomorrow,” I confirm, then lace my fingers with Nox’s.
He guides us into the hall and up the stairs to his room, our silence only interrupted by the sound of our steps. When he closes the door behind him and turns to lean against it, a line forms between his brows. “I came here after my walk with my father, looking for you.”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t want to be alone with my thoughts while waiting for you. So I went to see Elora.”
He nods his head, a hand diving into his hair as he holds the strands there. “I’m sorry, too. I messed up.”
“What do you mean?”
“It was your fear. I swear I couldfeelit when Borris yelled at you. It was like I had no choice; my magic forced me to bend to its will and get to you. I shouldn’t have barged into the council room. It played directly into their hands, and now they are convinced you’ve somehowtrickedme into being with you. They are officially asking my father to not recognize our courtship.”
I hold his gaze, a sinking sensation making bile churn in my stomach. “The questions they asked me… They weren’t what we practiced.”
