“Could be, but let’s make sure before we tell the bartender,” he replied as we moved through the crowd and glanced at the napkin the warlock wrote on.
He wrote the same two words over and over again:
Ice bleeds.
Dimitri and I traded a glance.
Thathadto be it.
We turned toward the bar when a guard peeled off the wall and cut us off. “You two.Names.”
My gaze widened a fraction as Dimitri stepped into my space. He cupped my jaw and pressed his mouth to my cheek in a slow, deliberate kiss.
It set my skin onfire.
“Sally and Spunk,” he answered the guard in a bored tone. “Do you always harass members?”
“Members? Carry on.” The guard bowed his head left.
“That was good.” My magic flickered, as if responding to his proximity, and my fingers dug into his wrist.
His lashes lowered as he stared down at me. “I have a suitable partner for this mission.”
I gasped dramatically. “You think I’m suitable?”
After letting out a breath, we turned away, the sound of the crowd growing louder as we moved toward the bar.
Dimitri rapped on the bar with his knuckles and muttered, “Ice bleeds.”
The bartender blinked twice before she nodded.
The simulation shattered, and we walked out to see Jarvins and the rest of our squad waiting for us.
“Are you going to let go of my girlfriend?” Slater teased, staring at where we were still holding hands.
“Our girlfriend,” Zuko muttered with an eye roll.
“Very convincing mission,” Jarvins said dryly. He tipped his head toward our hands, beady eyes gleaming. “Too convincing?”
Heat flashed up my neck as Dimitri dropped my hand like it burned him.
I flipped my hair off my shoulder and smiled. “Fake it ’til you make it. That’s the assignment, right?”
Jarvins’s smirk said he didn’t believe me. “Pass,” he said. “Both of you.”
My palm still felt the shape of Dimitri’s in it. I snuck a glance to find him staring straight ahead, jaw tight, like nothing had happened.
Nothinghadhappened, so why the Fates did it feel like something big happened?
dimitri
. . .
We stoodinside Apex Simulator 2.0 with the metal walls and magical components glowing around us.
“Your assignment is to navigate a live terrain with simulated threats while achieving your mission’s goal. In this case, you will extract a magical artifact that is in the hostile hands of a vampire cult. You will be awarded points for stealth, control, and following through with this mission,” Professor Bloodwyne explained, his brown eyes flicking over us with a cold determination.
As exciting as this simulated mission sounded, and itdidsound exciting, I couldn’t stop thinking about Rune. Her golden eyes widening with betrayal as she realized her ex fuckingdruggedher on purpose. Only Rune would ever think someone poisoning her would be a romantic gesture. Thank the Fates that she was immune to poison, but also how trusting and ignorant was she that she trusted someone like that?
