Sure, I ogled him. Stared at him like a starstruck fool. He’s so pretty to look at, despite the coat of grime and the constant glare.
It means nothing. It’s an eternal trap set for women, set by their minds, thinking they can take a man who has proven nasty and turn him around, save him from himself, make him see the error of his ways and transform him into a perfect partner.
Because we women are always looking for a partner. A person to share our experiences with. And men… men call to us. So we gather every little sweet word and gesture, cherishing them in our hearts, choosing to ignore the wealth of meanness directed toward us.
“Hurry up,” he says, glancing at me over his shoulder. “Or the monsters will get you.”
I rush after him, furious that he has the upper hand and has no qualms about using it. Furious that for a moment he made me believe I had been wrong about him, but I hadn’t, and I should trust my instincts.
Asshole.
CHAPTER THIRTY
NOT HIMSELF
ADELINE
“Where have you two been?” Ardruna is pacing on the top steps outside the library, long canines bared. “Talton says a hydra attacked you? A hydra? We haven’t seen one in years. This girl is so unlucky.”
“Thanks,” I say drily, dragging my sorry ass up the stairs after Roane. “Appreciate the sentiment.”
Talton flies over us to land on Ardruna’s back. “Why the long faces? Did you two have a fight?”
I scowl. “That’s none of?—”
“No.” Roane marches past the lioness and through the open door of the building. “Where are the clothes you found, Tal?”
“At the nest.” The raven takes off, flying after him, vanishing in the dark interior. “I can’t believe I missed you fighting a hydra. All my feathers are aflutter. Was it dangerous?”
“What do you think?” I call after him.
I can’t hear Roane’s reply.
“Everything okay?” Ardruna is looking at me, and I realize I’ve stopped, the egg held tightly in my arms. “What’s that?”
“A griffin egg.”
“And why do you have one in your possession, pray tell?”
“I stole it.”
“Of course you have. Is that why Roane is in a mood?”
“First of all, I’m a thief. Stealing is what I do. And second, he’s always in a mood, don’t tell me you haven’t noticed.”
Except when he wasn’t… When he was nice, protective, growly and sexy, but that didn’t last, did it? That in itself is a hazard bell tolling, and I should take heed.
Only I’m stuck here with him. This is so frustrating, and the frustration is a thin veneer hiding my fear.
“Come inside, girl,” Ardruna says, poking me in the side with her muzzle. “Eat something, rest. See if the clothes Talton found fit you.”
“And then what?” I ask, angry because I’m suddenly close to tears. “Learn how to throw knives and use a sword? Find a nice cave to live in until I die here?”
“Calm yourself. One step at a time.”
“Easy for her to say,” Olm says, startling me. “This is her world. She probably hasn’t known anything else. For her, it might be perfectly fine for you to be stuck here.”
“Olm, did you…?” I swallow thickly. “Did you know? That we’d get trapped here? Is that why you didn’t want to come?”
