I parted my lips in surprise and asked, “A kiss? That’s it?”
“Yes,” Drustan confirmed as his eyes danced all over my face. “One that doesn’t end with an injury this time.” Audrey scoffed, shaking her head at him.
“From me?” I stepped around her to face him, pointing to my chest, just for good measure.
“Only you.” Drustan jutted his chin toward me once. Audrey was still shaking her head. I gaped and glanced at Hush, who lookedveryannoyed at her prince.
I turned back to him. “A single kiss? From me? And you’ll help us stop your father and take his place?”
“Would you like this deal in writing?” Drustan asked with a chuckle.
“Kind of, yeah.”
“We don’t have time for that,” Hush groaned, before jutting a thumb over her shoulder. “Audrey, you must speak to Queen Ada immediately.” Hush pointed at me. “If you deny such a simple ask and Drustan refuses to take the throne, I swear on all that is balanced in this godforsaken realm?—”
I lifted my hands to cut her off. “I got it.”
“No.” Audrey shook her head, clasping her fingers with mine. “I’m taking Van with me, and we’re going to Queen Ada. Drustan can find anyone else to toy with, in the meantime.”
Drustan lifted a shoulder, grinning at Audrey. “Then find someone else to lead the sirens into a peaceful living after myfather’s death.” Audrey grumbled, stomping her foot. Drustan smiled down at me, fully pleased with himself.
“I hope you realize that this isn’t a win for you,” I told him. “Exploiting me for a kiss isn’t nearly as impressive as actually convincing me to kiss you of my own free will.”
“I’m willing to admit defeat,” Drustan sighed.
Something flickered in his eyes with his words.
“Are you sure it’s safe for Van to travel with you?” Hush asked Audrey. “You can protect yourself, as long as your hands are free,” she explained, making Audrey drop her hold on my hand. “But Van can’t.” Audrey bit her lip, acknowledging the truth of Hush’s words.
“I could stay with Hush,” I suggested. Drustan’s lips pulled down in the corners, disliking that idea. “You can go to Queen Ada and the Kings and Queens of the nereids faster without lugging me around, I’m sure.”
“I’ll protect her,” Hush promised Audrey.
“What about him?” Audrey glared at Drustan, who pointed to himself in jest.
“I’ll protect her,” Hush repeated, stepping between Drustan and me, just as Audrey was. “But you need to hurry, Audrey. Please.” Hush’s tone turned pleading, and that’s when Audrey’s empathy cracked through her harsh exterior. “We need to return to hiding, before more of Ilia’s guard finds us, and more lives are carelessly lost.” This lit a match under Audrey, who pulled me in for a firm hug. I landed against her with anoofbefore wrapping my arms around her.
“I’ll be safe, but she’s right,” I murmured against Audrey’s shoulder. “You need to go.”
When Audrey pulled back, her look made my stomach churn. She looked miserable and angry with me. Not enough to make me think she hated me, but enough for me to know that something needed to be addressed between us. She studied mewith her gaze like she couldn’t trust me, before saying, “I’ll be back. Please be safe.”
“I will,” I promised her.
With a grumble and without acknowledging Drustan’s presence, Audrey sprinted toward the trees. A whoosh sounded, and her body was gone. Lyskifted away.
Then I turned to look up at Drustan. There was vulnerability in his gaze before he threw his unaffected mask back into place. It caught me off guard, because I had never seen—or even considered—Drustan to be someone capable of feeling vulnerability at all.
“If I kiss you, that does not mean that I want to be your mate,” I whispered to him.
Drustan’s gaze poured into mine, his arms across his torso dropped as he expanded his chest on an inhale. “I am painfully aware of that fact.” Warmth burned in my chest, a confirmation I didn’t want to accept, yet. He was being genuine. Not the obnoxiously confident man he usually was. Hush grumbled something and stomped off into the woods, giving Drustan and me privacy. It was the first time I had been alone with him since our date. Since he broke into my bedroom.
“I’ll agree to your terms,” I murmured. Drustan blinked and grinned, though clearly startled at how quickly I agreed. I had to force myself not to stare at the beauty of his smile for too long.
I stepped toward him. His breath caught on my approach. I was convinced at this point that Drustan really did view me as some sort of magical soul mate. So much so that he was affected by my mere presence. Men could fake attraction just as well as women, but watching his face and body language as I stepped closer and closer, I knew deep in my gut that Drustan was both excited and nervous about something as simple as akiss.
Why else would he rip out the throat of a man who slapped me?
Drustan’s hands reached out for me, and I allowed him to rest his large palms on my waist as I pressed mine on his chest. Slowly, slowly, I slid my hands up his body, teasing the firm muscles of his chest and shoulders, anchoring myself around his neck. His delicious scent enveloped me, and I inhaled a deep lungful of it with no regrets.
