He chanced the barest, infinitesimal flick of his tongue.
“Ah, fuck.” Her hand speared through his hair. “I love when you’re insufferable. I love when you’re a rogue and you’re annoying and I love how you pretend like you’re the hottest thing in any given room.” She yanked and, even though he was now more than strong enough to remain unmoved, where she summoned, he would go. “I loveallof you. But if you don’t fucking touch me I’m going to hurt you.”
He was gentlemen enough not to deny a lady when asked so politely.
This time he went slower, taking his time until Miranda shuddered around him, body once again blooming in that perfect yellow. The bed, which was beyond repair before, was now little more than scrap.
“We should move to the next room,” Devin breathed into her skin, bracing his arms to lean over her. His body didn’t seem totire, ready to go another round when not even he possessed such stamina in normal circumstances.
Forget violence or world domination, this potion could save every marriage in Unity in a single night.
“We should also get some sleep,” she murmured, fingers tracing patterns on his bicep.
“You may have to insist on it, because I feel like I could do this for weeks.”
“That’s the potion talking.”
“I suppose.” Devin rolled next to her, testing to see if he could find a way to relax when he had never felt stronger, like his muscles were begging to be used. “Gideon better hope none of those fae got a taste for it. And that he confiscated it all. This stuff…I can see it becoming a problem. If I didn’t possess such tremendous willpower and strength of character enough to resist addiction, I’d want more.”
She tensed, then craned her head so she could meet his eyes. “You definitely don’t have any of those traits, so now I’m concerned.”
“Mira, you’re my only addiction at the moment, and one is plenty. And since I have no intention of fighting this particular vice, you’ve no need to worry.”
She sighed, but settled back down into the twisted knot of sheets.
“Ever?” She whispered.
“Miranda, I love you.” He moved so that he could reach her face with his hands, holding her cheek. “If you’re going to doubt it, then we’re going to have to get married all the sooner.”
Her eyes went wide. “What?”
“Miranda, I can’t have you thinking that you’ll ever be rid of me, not by any choice of mine. The way I see it, the best way to silence your doubts is to make it official. The sooner the better.”
He knew the argument was coming, but her eyes were smiling, her lips were fighting a grin. “But…I…did we even officially decide?”
He kissed her. “Will you marry me, Miranda Wilde?”
She paused, for several seconds.
He may have once doubted at her hesitation, found ways to twist her silence intohisfailure. But he didn’t doubt. He knew her well enough to know that, when it came to emotions, she was not nearly as quick on her feet as she was with a sword.
When she nodded, he wasn’t surprised.
And the rest could wait. Her parents, her sister, the fallout of the most beloved Alderman in Unity dying in his home. None of that mattered now.
Whatdidmatter was finding an intact bed, letting Miranda get some rest, and praying that this potion lasted until morning.
Epilogue
Theexplosionwasasurprise. Miranda crouched to retrieve her sword, staying low and out of sight. The building was destroyed. Whatever remained intact during the fight had been reduced to splinters. The larger debris provided cover, and Miranda peeked around what remained of a table. Devin met her eyes across the battlefield—a small tavern in the Fells now unrecognizable. The only clue to its origins was a mountain of broken glass where bottles had been stored.
The Day Fae in the center of the room continued to spit fire; the unrestricted blaze must have caused one of the barrels to ignite. Miranda’s gaze returned to Devin.
“What’s the plan?” he mouthed, giving the barest slant to an eyebrow.
Miranda surveyed the choices, returning a scrunched look to convey, “Do we have any devices left?”
He searched around him, then held up a fae contraption devised by Gideon’s sister, Seraphina. Over the years, as the Watchmen looked to create a specialized task force to deal withthe influx of Divinity in the population, they’d developed a few tricks. Miranda couldn’t recall whatever fancy name Sera had given the device, but this one was designed to subdue Day Fae. Some mix of moonstone and night lily? Didn’t matter. What mattered was that if used correctly, the device would knock the target out cold.
