“Yeah.” He grinned, his gaze scorching through her. A tendril of hair had come loose from her clip, and he tucked it behind her ear. His eyes were so brown, the color so specific she felt she had never seen it before anywhere else, as if the shade had been created solely for him and him alone.
Her cheeks felt like they were burning, and his eyes lowered, as if he could tell. His lips twitched. Gently, he brushed the top of her cheek with his thumb.
“So how about you get cleaned up and thenwego out for hot chocolate,” he said.
She blinked, taken aback. “Like... a date?” As soon as the words were out, she cringed.
Why was this all so embarrassing?
He grinned. “Exactly.”
Chapter 24
Luke hadn’t been surprised when he’d gone to the bookshop’s door to find his annoying brother and the entire Din clan, but it had certainly made him feel more stressed.
Farhan must have told them Luke was at the bookshop with Emmeline and, where one Din sister went, the other two usually followed. Them being “in town” was no coincidence. He could sniff out a Din sister plot from a mile away; they had come to spy on him and Emmeline.
“I can’t believe it’s finally happening!” Liliana, the youngest sister, squealed.
“Only tookforever,” Jiya, the middle sister, added.
“I’m so happy for you, Luke,” Hira, the eldest sister, said with a fond smile.
“Finally,” Basim agreed, and Farhan grinned.
It was the stuff of nightmares. They were all acting as if he’d proposed to Emmeline and she’d said yes, not that they had simply agreed to stop fighting. The girls had wanted to come in and chat with Emmeline, and he’d had to physically bar them from entering.
“Will you guys shut up?” he hissed, hoping Emmeline couldn’t hear.
“You’re being no fun,” Lilliana pouted. “You finally get a girl, and now you won’t even let us interrogate her? You guys harass every guy I’ve ever been interested in!”
“Every guy you’re into deserved to be harassed,” Basim said with a scowl. Lillie matched his scowl with one of her own.
“You guys never let me live anything down,” she snapped.
“Yeah, and do you ever learn?” Jiya asked with a snort. Lillie geared up to respond when Hira held up her hands.
“Bas, bas, we cannot get into this right now,” Hira said, ever the peacemaker. “You guys are derailing the focus, which is Luke and—”
Emmeline had chosen that moment to enter, and he had gone into full panic mode. Any second now, one of them would say something stupid and embarrass him. Then, Lillie invited Emmeline out with them all, and he had to intervene before the situation got out of hand.
All’s well that ended well—he had finally gathered the courage to ask her out himself, and she’d said yes. He had meant what he’d said: he didn’t want to share. Not before he’d even had enough of her to himself. Even the barest brush of her lips against his had felt as magical as somehow traversing realms to enter the world of his favorite book, and he was keen to pick up where they had left off.
After packing up at the bookshop, they both went home and agreed to meet up again in the evening.
Today, he wouldn’t be late. Which was why he was already down by the lake.
Sharptooth had dropped him off, and he was waiting for her ten minutes before she was meant to come. The sun had set about an hour ago, and the sky was a deep shade of navy blue, studded with stars that sparkled bright.
There was a layer of snow over his surroundings, and every storefront was covered with string lights and wreaths and ornaments. The entire town looked like it belonged on a postcard. It was the perfect romantic background to their first date, and he was keen to spend the evening with Emmeline.
Nerves skittered through him as he waited. He’d planned out a route that would hit all the best spots; now, he just hoped she would like it all. His hand tightened around the bouquet of roses he was holding. They were red, and even though he felt she would like them, he worried if they were the right choice.
Then, he heard the flapping of wings, and moments later, Torch landed behind him. His heartbeat quickened. He turned as Emmeline dismounted, and he was struck again by how beautiful she was.
She had always been stunning, but she seemed even more so now, as if only he could see the full breadth of her beauty. There was a new quality to her, some light that was coming from within as she walked towards him. Her face shone like the full moon.
“Hi,” he said, smiling.
