"Let's go. You've had your time to play. Now, we work." Fiona snagged Roscoe by his collar and dragged him in her wake.
His head twisted to take one last look at Brisa and the cards.
She waved happily.
Jason rolled his eyes. "At least I'm not the only one she upsets."
Caden stopped beside Eva and frowned after them. "Something I should know?"
Eva looked up at him. "So many things, but in this case you're better off leaving it alone unless you want a few new gray hairs."
Rather than look put off, Caden seemed intrigued. "Oh? Sounds interesting."
He would say that, but then he was never the type to shy away from difficult situations.
Rather than expand, Eva nodded at the Trateri. "That was quite the speech you gave."
Some might even call it impressive.
"I only said what needed saying. The Trateri have always been at their best when they've been stuck between a rock and a hard place. They'll weather this storm as long as they remember that."
Eva didn't think it was so simple.
"You took the issue of the Kyren and made them secondary. After what you said, no one is going to think twice about the fact they're not present in this," Eva said quietly.
The Kyren's abandonment at a pivotal point could have prejudiced the Trateri against all mythologicals.
Eva wouldn't have even been able to blame them for such thinking. It was hard to swallow the Kyren's absence right as they were under threat.
Caden's words helped mitigate the situation, making it clear such thinking was flawed and leaving the door open later should the Kyren ever choose to retract their decision.
Eva couldn't shake the sense he'd done it in part for her.
It would be so easy not to care about the Kyren's reasons or to dismiss the fact the Trateri had broken the rules first.
Caden hadn't done that. He'd gone out of his way to smooth over any issues in favor of a possible future cooperation.
Eva loved him for it. Warmth filled her chest.
"Sometimes you amaze me," Eva told Caden.
One side of his mouth curled in a lazy smile. "It's not much."
Eva lifted a hand, cupping the back of his neck as she pressed her forehead against his. "No, it's everything."
His nose nuzzled hers as they stood in a rare moment of peace, simply holding each other.
It was a respite right before the cusp of battle. A brief span of time when her heart felt synced to his. As if she'd lived an entire life just for this second with him.
Then the moment passed, and the world intruded as the Trateri started mounting their horses.
Eva was the first to draw back, her arms dropping from his shoulders. "Is Fallon aware his faithful shadow is so good at politics?"
Caden held very still. Something in his posture made Eva's senses go alert. A wild possessiveness burned in his eyes.
As if he'd like nothing more than to snatch her back.
Her expression softened as she let love shine in her gaze.
