She folds her hands in her lap. “That’s an interesting proposition.Friendstypically don’t kiss.”
I shift closer to her, my hands pressing into the soft grass. “If I’m expected to bed you in a week and a half, then we might as well kiss first.”
Owena’s eyes narrow, but her cheeks flush pink under the afternoon sun. “I’ll take that deal.” She leans in, bringing her lips to my ear. “But I believe I’ll win,” she whispers, her citrus scent washing over me.
“What makes you so sure?”
“Because you. Smell. Terrible.” She pulls away with a smug grin stretching across her face.
Heat burns up my neck. “What?” I sniff my armpit. “I bathed this morning!”
Owena shrugs, then gathers her skirt. “I should be going.”
No—I can’t let her leave with the upper hand like that. I need something to bring her back, some way to get her to lower her defenses.
An idea pops into my mind.
“Wait. Before you go… does speckled long leaf grow here?”
Owena’s eyes widen. “Your mother would not approve.”
“What else is new?”
She scrunches her face in thought, then speaks slowly. “I may be able to get some.”
“I would be eternally grateful.” My tension loosens at the glimmer of some form of escape.
And with luck, Owena’s lips will, too.
Chapter 25
Ellie
Ihurry to my feet as Reid’s and Emlyn’s horses slow to a stop before reaching our campfire. Even in the dusk light, it’s clear who they are.Why is Taran acting like they’re a threat?
Emlyn’s horse tosses its head as he dismounts, his feet hitting the ground. “Ancients, Taran. Lower your bow.”
Taran remains still, his arrow trained on Reid, frozen wide-eyed on his saddle. “You weren’t supposed to bring any other mortals.”
Emlyn marches directly to him and angles the bow to the ground. “No, but mine is Caeo’s best friend, and can actually remember what’s going on. He’ll be useful.”
I rush to Reid’s side as he stumbles off his horse, giving him a hand for balance. “I never thought I’d be this happy to see you,” I admit, breathless.
“Thanks?” He brushes his hands against his pants. “Are you alright?”
“I am.” I glance over at the fae, arguing in hushed tones. “Taran explained everything to me.”
Reid winces as we step away, and I quickly catch him up on all that’s happened. It’s borderline offensive how relieved he is that I know about my curse; he can’t get into it without me forgetting what he says, but I get the gist. It was apparently the true source of his misery these last few weeks.
He tells me how he got Emlyn to talk, then told Alexis what happened—hopefully, she’ll cover our disappearance. After that, it was well past midnight, so they stayed at Emlyn’s, accidentally oversleeping. Then Emlyn had to teach Reid to ride, delaying them even more.
I get the distinct impression he’s purposely skipping many of the details. Coupled with his less-than-subtle glances at Emlyn, I can’t help but wonder how things stand between them. Does he even know himself?
But all that quickly leaves my mind when he pulls a bundle of my things out of his pack, courtesy of Alexis. Fresh clothes, soap, my hairbrush, and some ties for my hair. I practically leap with joy as I snatch them from his hands, then flee into the woods, incanting some water so I can clean myself up.
It’s dark when I return, feeling significantly refreshed, and the three of them have finished squabbling and sit quietly around the crackling fire. Taran’s returned to poking it with a stick, with Emlyn sprawled out on the opposite side. The four of us sit awkwardly in its flickering glow—two humans and two fae—until Emlyn finally offers to take the first watch while the rest of us sleep. Which, at least for me, means I pretend to sleep while my mind questions every decision I’ve made and my body screams against the hard ground. Exhaustion eventually overtakes me.
Deep within the shadows, I wander through a gray fog, broken by specks of blue sky. A voice echoes from somewhere within:I’ll find you.
