"What madness possessed you to do this?"
"The mythologicals are all here," Eva said.
"And?"
"And I think they can navigate it. Reece was never going to make it in time, but I knew I could."
"You hope they'll come for you," he stated flatly.
That was exactly what she hoped.
His sigh held an edge of weariness. "You have a lot of faith in them. More than they deserve."
Eva couldn't argue. Ajari was an uncertain ally at best. Depending on his mood, he was as likely to turn on them as help. Sebastian was playing at a game she didn't understand, she was sure. He'd been able to talk to her this entire time, yet hadn't. Why? And who knew what the fire fox's motivations were. She certainly didn't.
She'd chosen to put her faith in them anyway. They'd soon see if that faith was misplaced.
"Why did you follow me?" she asked instead. She wanted to hit him for being so stupid.
She'd chosen this, but she'd never intended to bring him with her. A risk that was fine for her was less so, for him.
"Don't say it was because I'm your job," she bit out. "No job is worth your life, especially not me."
She wasn't Fallon. She wasn't the man he'd spent his life in service of. He could have kept going. No one would have thought less of him.
"You don't have a good view of yourself," he said, realization in his tone.
Eva glared. She didn't need his pity. "I know what I'm worth, but it's not the cost of your life."
"I wouldn't be too sure of that," he declared.
He yanked her toward him. It was move with him, or fall. His arms closed around her, his lips touching hers as they branded her with the force of his soul.
The danger of the situation fed into the kiss, heightening it. Parts of Eva tingled, attuning themselves to him. Then it was over, and he drew back.
"You know nothing." He pressed his forehead against hers. "Your life is more important than a hundred others."
Eva didn't know what to say. The kiss the other night could be attributed to heightened emotions and the danger of the situation. Same here, if not for that first kiss or what he’d just said.
She tried not to get her hopes up. He could still consider her a duty and was using this to keep her in line.
The fox landed on the top of the wagon, yipping as its tails writhed around it.
"Look at that—it seems I'm right after all," Eva said, grateful for the distraction as she drew back. Her eyes flitted to Caden and away before returning like they were drawn.
He gave her a sidelong look that did nothing to dull the dark, carnal edge in his gaze, one he'd carefully concealed from her until now. Good thing, too. If he'd stared at her like that at the beginning of the journey, she would have climbed on Sebastian's back and let him carry her off much sooner.
"We're not out of the mist yet."
"It's progress," she insisted stubbornly.
Sometimes that's all you could ask for; all you could hold onto as the dark closed around and tried to suck your will from you.
"Optimist."
"Pessimist."
"Then we're a matched pair," he said softly.
