Not until I met Reyla.
“When I was young, I used to sneak away from the castle.”
Her lips quirked up. “You told me. You’d board the ship we traveled on from Lydel and pretend you were a pirate.”
“Itold you?”
Her smile faltered, and her brow tightened. “Yes, you. I… It sounds strange, but in my mind you’re one. Broken in two but still the same person.”
“We’re truly not.”
“You are. You’ll never convince me otherwise.”
And for that, I loved her even more, because I did worry. Not only about dying, though I’d face it with my head high and a feral gleam in my eyes. I worried I wouldn’t remember moments like this when she was freely touching me, kissing me, not as theperson I was now. I would do anything to be with her, to remember it all. But even if we did what no one else ever had, these memories could be stolen from me like everything else.
“Merrick is the good in us both, while I’m the viper that should be shoved into a closet somewhere and bricked over.”
I wasn’t sure this part of me—us—deserved to go on even if Reyla broke the curse.
“That’s not true. Neither of you is better than the other.” She cupped my face and tilted it, making me look at her. “When I break this curse, you arenotgoing to slip away. Do you hear me? I will find you.You, Lorant, because you are equally worthy.”
“Seek me, and I will stretch my hand out to you.”
“Make sure you do.”
She said it so pertly, my laugh burst out. It felt amazing. I felt lighter and freer than I ever had before.
“Now tell me your story,” she said sternly. “No more thinking you aren’t enough.”
This woman saw through any wall I lifted, and that gutted me.
And healed me.
“Alright, Wildfire,” I drawled, dragging up some of the energy that made me Lorant. “I’ll tell you my story. Sometimes, for fun, I'd run into the woods and pretend I was a hunter or someone on a grand adventure.”
“But not this day.”
“No. Not this day. On this day, I was angry with Erisandra.”
“I can see why anyone would be.”
I snorted. Me, snorting with laughter, all because of this woman I cherished above all others, even myself. “She made a judgment while sitting on the throne, and I didn't like it. When I confronted her, she chastised me, told me I was a child and when I was king, I could make these decisions for myself. Until then, I was to respect her right to do it instead. I ran from the room and keptgoing, not stopping until I reached my suite, where I packed a bag. I hurried to the kitchen and stole a loaf of bread and a packet of butter. I was determined to show her that she shouldn't dismiss me.”
“She already had.”
I dipped my head in acknowledgment. “I ran away, using magic to unlock the door in the wall near the woods.”
“Even then, you could command magic like that?”
“You forget how good at this I am.” I bit back my smile, watching her.
“I haven’t forgotten how arrogant you are.”
There she was.
My grin rose. I couldn’t hold it back. But it fell when I restarted my story. “As dusk settled across the land, I crept through the woods well beyond the wall. I quickly saw that the woods never looked darker than when the daylight slips away. But I was mad, so I kept going, running as fast as possible, because I could already hear shouts behind me. While she may act as if she dislikes me on occasion, I was the king, and a king must remain present at all times to do his duty.”
“Her words, I assume.”
