“So many nice places to sleep,” Daphne says, her tone as awed as mine as she stares up at the enormous branches.
“We have real rooms, Daph,” Monty says with a chuckle. She huffs but follows him as he leads the way from the courtyard down the tiled walkway toward the hotel. I proceed behind them, casting a glance at William over my shoulder. My heart stutters as I find him smiling at the cherry blossoms overhead, his posture easy. When his gaze meets mine, he masks his expression.
I narrow my eyes to a glower. “You don’t have to pretend you’re not impressed. None of your fans are here to put on an act for.”
He smirks but says nothing.
“Tell me what you’re really thinking. It’s amazing, isn’t it? Even to a fae like you?”
His gaze slides back to mine. My breath hitches as he steps closer and brings his lips beside my ear without touching me. “You want to know what I’m really thinking? I’m thinking I want to prop you upon one of those balconies and bury my face between your thighs like that couple we found in the north wing.”
I halt in place, too afraid I’ll trip over my own feet. His words send a shudder through me as my imagination runs wild. My eyes flick to one of the twisting, twining balconies high overhead. I can picture myself propped upon one, William’s strong hands safely bracketing my waist while he strokes my sex with his tongue, my head thrown back in pleasure?—
“Too bad I’ll have to pick someone else.”
I shake my head, forcing my vivid imaginings to recede. Monty and Daphne have reached the hotel’s entrance, andWilliam gives me a cruel smile before following them through the door.
I clench my jaw as I rush to catch up. Damn that William. I know what he’s doing. He’s trying to tempt me into dissolving our bet. While he hasn’t outright refused any further intimate acts between us, his intentions are clear. If I won’t dissolve our bet, he’ll play the game the way we originally intended.Notwith me.
Which means all the things I’ve been craving to do with him I’ll never get to do. I may be in current possession of our free pass, but I won’t use it against his will. Especially when I understand him so well. I know he wants to win as much as I do.
But my reasons are more pressing than his.
We enter the lobby of the hotel, which is just as awe-inspiring as the exterior. The walls are composed of the same rich wood as the outer trunk, curved and decorated in elegant whorls. Chandeliers of twining, flowering branches extend from the tall ceilings. Everything from the spiral staircases to the chairs in the lobby and the reception desk at the far end appear to have grown from the floor and walls.
Monty makes a beeline for the desk, outpacing the rest of us—likely fueled by panic that we might encounter a repeat of the mishap at the hotel in Lumenas. The rest of us head toward the seating area.
“William!” An excited female voice has us pulling up short. A young woman leans forward in one of the flowering chairs, her gray eyes glittering when they land on William.
He stiffens. “Cassie?”
Cassie. Isn’t that…his sister’s name?
The woman looks nothing like William with her waif-like frame, her pale complexion, her straight silvery hair tucked in a low chignon. Her ears are round, which tells me she’s at least half human. Come to think of it, William never explained theirparentage, only that he’s her guardian. Cassie rises from her chair with the assistance of a black lacquered cane, a wide smile on her lips. She’s dressed in loose trousers that remind me of Zane’s while her top is a white blouse and gray waistcoat.
William strides toward her at once. “What are you doing here?”
She holds up a hand to keep him at bay. “Don’t even start fussing with me. I feel perfectly healthy.”
“You took the train? Alone?”
She levels a glare at him. “I’m nineteen. I know how to ride the bloody train.”
“You were supposed to stay with Mrs. Hansen until the end of the tour.”
Cassie gives an innocent shrug. “Mrs. Hansen tired of my services. I figured what better time than now to visit my dear brother on his Heartbeats Tour?”
“Cassie,” he says between his teeth, “what did you do to Mrs. Hansen?”
“I did as I was told. It’s not my fault she made me readThe Pauper and the Golden Luteout loud to her. Every day.”
He pinches the bridge of his nose. “As her paid companion, you were supposed to read whatever she insists. To sit and listen to her drivel, or read her drivel, or do whatever the hell she wants.”
“The Pauper and the Golden Luteis a cautionary tale. I hate cautionary tales.”
A smile spreads over my lips. Sounds like Cassie is a girl after my own heart.
William narrows his eyes. “What did you do toThe Pauper and the Golden Lute?”
