Neither do I.
This isn't want anymore. This is something else entirely. Something that feels perilously close to?—
No. I'm not ready to name it yet.
Ten minutes later I’ve got so many gifts in my arms I can barely see where I’m going.
“Are you sure you don’t want me to hold something?” she asks.
“Definitely not.”
“Not even the candied apple?”
“I’m pretty sure it’s stuck somewhere between a dream catcher and a mink stole.”
She laughs—really laughs—and the sound makes carrying an entire market's worth of gifts completely worth it.
There it is,Nightmare whispers, finally breaking its silence.That's the sound we want to hear every day for the rest of our lives.
I’m not arguing.
By the time we return to the manor, we’re both smiling and I think that maybe, just maybe, Chelsea Thornrose is what this district needs.
Chelsea Nightshade,Nightmare corrects quietly.
She didn’t like it when I called her that before.
It’ll grow on her. Maybe.
But to me, she’s Chelsea Nightshade. She's not a Thornrose anymore.
My wife. My queen.
Perhaps she’s even mine.
But maybe more than that—she’s what I need. What I've always needed.
Even if I'm still too afraid to say it out loud.
Chelsea
I'm staring at my closet, trying to figure out what one wears to a last-minute wedding celebration thrown by an overeager cook who apparently invited my entire family without warning.
Not that I'm complaining. The day has been…perfect.
The market, the gifts, Eryx carrying everything with that tiny smile he gets when he thinks I'm not looking. The way he almost kissed me in that crowd.
My face heats just thinking about it.
I press my hands to my cheeks to calm the heat when a knock comes from my door.
“Come in!”
Nancy enters, vacuum in hand, and immediately spots Echo curled up on my bed. She stops dead. “How in the world did a shadow get in here? Let me plug in the vacuum and suck it up.”
“No, no! Don’t suck it up!”
I motion for Echo to come to me and scoop the little shadow into my arms. Nancy stares at me in horror.
