She pauses and sits back on her haunches. “He’s in the recreation room,” she says, pointing a paw toward the farthest room.
My gaze narrows on the pair of double doors and the light glowing beneath them. Hope sparks in my chest. “Is he alone?”
“No, he’s?—”
I rush to the doors and throw them open, not caring about what I might walk in on.
Two sets of eyes lock on me at once, and two bodies go still.
But it isn’t William and Aubrey.
It’s William and Monty. Playing billiards with easy grins.
Their expressions slip in their surprise at my sudden intrusion, but Monty recovers first. He takes a long drag of his cigarillo, eying me with a knowing smirk, then places his cue on a rack. “I can guess whom you’re here to see, and it isn’t me.”
Daphne reaches us just then. “What’s going on?” she whispers to Monty as he picks her up and carries her back the way she came. “I was just about to get a bottle of cherry blossom cordial.”
“I’ll pour you a drink in the kitchen.” Monty closes the doors behind us, leaving me alone with William.
My frantic mood begins to calm, and I take in the room with fresh eyes. It boasts the same rich woods as the other rooms in the hotel, the same sprouting chandeliers and elegant furniture. Aside from the billiards table, there are several card tables, a tea table, and a floral-printed couch. The room is vast enough to host a large party, but there isn’t anyone else here. Just William.
The more my anxiety cools, the stronger my suspicion grows. I hug the book to my chest as if it can shield me against any possible pain he might inflict. “Was this another trick? Like with Zane?”
With a weary sigh, he sets his cue on the billiards table and braces his hands on the table’s ledge. His eyes are downcast. “Not a trick.”
“Then where is she?”
Silence. Then, “I couldn’t do it.”
“Why not?”
Finally, he lifts his gaze to mine. “Why do you think?”
I hug the book tighter, then cross the room toward him. When I reach the billiards table, I drop the book on its surface. There’s nothing to shield my heart now. “Why can’t you just say it?”
His jaw tightens before he answers, voice tight. “Because it’s terrifying.”
“Why? Because I’m human?”
He nods. “And I don’t know what to do with this. With whatever we are. I don’t know where it goes from here or if I’m enough. If I’m brave enough.”
The tightness in my chest softens. Unravels. I tap my finger on the book. “When did you write this?”
He doesn’t ask me to clarify. He knows I found his hidden message. “After the elevator. I knew you didn’t get rid of the book. I saw it in your pocket after our Winter Court signing.”
I fold my arms. “You rifled through my things just to get a secret message to me?”
His lips curl with a mischievous grin. He holds my eyes without shame. “Yes.”
My first instinct is to wipe that smug look off his face and chastise him for digging through my bag. But I don’t feel my usual ire. I didn’t come here to argue. “Is it true? What you wrote?”
“Yes.”
“You haven’t changed your mind?”
His expression softens. “Why would I change my mind?”
I hug my arms tight to my chest, another protective shield, before I forcibly drop them to my side. “Because I’m stubborn,” I say, voice trembling. “And we’re supposed to be rivals. And I didn’t give you a reason not to go with Aubrey.”
