“Eve?”
My shoulders shook on anothersob.
“Is she here?” This time, there was nothing groggy about Celeste’s voice. It was all steel edges andalarm.
I sat up and wiped my cheeks on my forearm. “How are you so wise and I’m sostupid?”
“You’re not stupid, and I’m definitelynotwise. I mean, have you seen my wings? I have that whole plucked bird look going for me . . . But more importantly, what did Eve donow?”
“She told me to pickJarod.”
Celeste slanted hereyebrows.
“She told me to pick him because she knew I would fail,” I added in a splinteredvoice.
“I still don’tunderstand.”
“She tried to reform him, Celeste.” I crimped my pillow with my fingers. “Eve knew it would be an impossible mission. That’s why she told me to take himon.”
Celeste’s eyebrowsjumped.
“I lost three feathers, and I haven’t even signed off from him.” My wings would eventually heal, but my heart . . . I wasn’t sure it could ever heal from herduplicity.
Celeste didn’t say anything, but I could tell thoughts were swirling behind those keen eyes ofhers.
I relaxed my fingers on the pillow and hung my head, my orange hair curtaining off my face. “I should’ve listened toyou.”
“Leigh?”
“Yeah?”
“I’m not going to let youfail.”
I jerked my head up and fixed her with my swolleneyes.
“First things first, you’re going to make me a promise. You’re not going to sign off just yet,deal?”
I swallowed. “But,Celeste—”
“Deal?” she repeated, toneinflexible.
I loosed another ragged breath. “Jarod brings out the worst in me. I lost two more feathers forlying!”
“About what thistime?”
I grimaced. “About wine tastingawful.”
“You tastedwine?”
“He mademe.”
She scrunched her nose. “Hemadeyou?”
“He told me that he’d leave and never allow me near him again if I didn’t sample the bottle he served withdinner.”
“Hold up . . . you had dinner withhim?”
I walked Celeste through my strange evening, not leaving out a single detail. I told her about Jarod’s exhibitionist tendencies—or whatever trying to make me uncomfortable in his bedroom had been—his odd flirtatiousness and even odder phone call and invitation after I’d left. And then I explained how I’d found out about Eve’sbetrayal.
