“What did he say?” Eyden’s voice urged her on. He wouldn’t stop now. Maybe if she gave him a kernel of truth, he’d stop questioning her about things she could never say.
“He said someone close to me gave me up, that everyone can be bought. He tried to taunt me, started describing you—”
“What?” Eyden whispered, but she wasn’t paying attention to him.
“—in detail. He somehow knew about you. Someone must have been watching us, and he used it—”
“Lora—”
“—to try and trick me. He—”
“Lora, stop!” Eyden finally got her attention. She turned her eyes on him, and for the first time since she’d started rambling, Lora noticed that he was no longer upset. No, he wasgrinning.
“Why are you smiling?” she asked, her heart pounding, her mind going over everything she’d said. Was she in trouble?
Eyden’s grin widened, revealing his teeth. “Youdotrust me.”
Lora laughed even though her nerves were eating her alive. “What?How did you come to that insane conclusion?”
Eyden drew closer, trapping her with a fiery look. She felt his presence on her skin, in her treacherous heart. “Saydren told youIset you up, describedme,yet you never questioned me about it. You neveraccusedme. You never even brought it up.” His gaze was so earnest, so hopeful, it broke and mended her heart at the same time.
Didshe trust him? There was too much she could never tell him. She was on very thin ice here; she could feel the cold water threatening to swallow her whole. The magic of the contract twisted her throat, reminding her of how much she could lose if she told Eyden the truth.
“Tell me,whyis that?” Eyden continued. “If you don’t trust me, why didn’t you believe Saydren?”
“It has nothing to do with trust. It didn’t make sense, especially after you came to rescue me,” Lora said. She took a breath to steel herself for her next words. “Don’t flatter yourself into thinking it’s more than that.”
For a moment, Eyden didn’t respond. She could almost see the wheels turning behind his serious eyes.Please believe me,she thought.I can’t go against the contract. I can’t tell you even if it’s killing me.Whatever he was going to decide, whatever he was going to say next, Lora was sure it would seal their fate. He would accept she didn’t trust him, didn’t feel the same for him, and he’d move on.
Good,she thought.
Please don’t,another part of her whispered.
He opened his mouth, and Lora prepared for the heartbreak. Eyden leaned closer as if he wanted her to catch every syllable he was about to utter.
“I don’t believe you,” he whispered. Before she’d even registered his words, Eyden’s lips met hers, stunning her completely. She wasn’t prepared, her lips sealed shut, her eyes still open, yet she didn’t pull back as Eyden’s mouth heated hers, making her stomach flutter.
Then her eyes fell shut, and her lips parted on instinct. Eyden drew her bottom lip between his, kissing her in earnest yet still holding back. She moved her lips against his despite the voice in her head warning her not to, craving that warmth, that fire, as her head emptied.
Eyden drew back abruptly. Opening her eyes, her hand moved to her lips by its own command.
“Tell me the truth,” Eyden said, his gaze moving from her lips to her eyes, “please.It’s killing me.”
Lora took a step back to try and clear her head. “Don’t—”
“Don’t tell me to stop asking,” Eyden replied, gripping her arms. He was so close now. His breath on her lips made her want to close the distance between them again. “I need to know. Whatever it is, you can tell me.”
“I can’t!” she blurted. As soon as she said it, fear gripped her whole body. Shivers ran down her skin as her heart constricted. Had she gone too far? The icy feeling in her heart flared as if to warn her.
Eyden’s eyes widened. “Fuck,” he said. “You reallycan’ttell me, can you?”
Lora swallowed, her eyes darting away from him. She couldn’t conceal the panic driving straight to her very soul.
Eyden’s hands moved to her face, forcing her to look at him. “Listen, Lora. Don’t say anything to what I’m about to tell you. It’ll be all right, but I need you not to react, okay?”
Lora nodded, her head all over the place, her skin both on fire and coated in ice.
“If you get me that contract”—Lora almost moved her head, ready to deny it. Eyden’s grip tightened. The warmth of his hands chased away the cold—“if I can read it myself, you wouldn’t be telling me.”
