“And did you share your story with him?”
“You know I can’t do that. It was hard enough getting you to guess it.”
“He seems clever. I’m sure you can lead him to the same realization I had. Oh!” Suddenly, she sat back and swung her behind me. There was only one reason she would look like that. Tormund had appeared. The heat in my cheeks flamed up a notch. Even though I doubted he’d overheard our conversation, I felt like I’d been caught red-handed. If he knew I’d been talking about him…and not in a negative way, either…he’d be absolutely bloomin’ unbearable.
But I hadn’t said anything embarrassing. All I’d admitted was that I didn’t dislike him. That was hardly a declaration of interest. And Iwasn’tinterested.
He grabbed a stool and sat beside me, the scent of leather and musk washing over me. Gods, he smelled good. I blinked and took a drag of my ale.
“Having a nice time?” he asked us.
“I always love an evening spent inside a tavern.” Lilia lifted her tankard and waved it around. Her eyes were a little glassy.She was accustomed to drinking her ale, but Balder’s brew was much stronger—eye-wateringly so at times. Hers was sweet and led to a buzzy, tipsy head. Balder’s tended to get people drunk.
Tormund palmed the table and grinned. “Me, too. I’m going to request a song from the bard. Are there any in particular you’d like to hear?”
He directed the question at me, but I was so busy staring into my empty tankard that Lilia answered for me. “Oh, there’s a great one about a mountain troll I haven’t heard in months. Ask the bard if she knows it!”
“Is it upbeat?” he asked.
“Very.”
“Good.” Tormund stood and held out a hand. He angled it just enough that I couldn’t miss it, his palm stuck over the rim of my tankard. “Would you like to dance, Astrid?”
I swallowed around the lump in my throat and braced myself. When I looked up at him, I suddenly forgot why I felt so on edge. I also couldn’t remember why I’d found him so obnoxiously irritating when we’d first met. Because the heat in his eyes now tugged me to my feet. And as I followed after him, I felt like I was seeing him for who he really was—not the sauntering, smug bastard who’d rolled in here ready to steal the win from everyone else. Tormund was a man—a demon—who’d do anything for those he loved. And for that, I could not dislike him. Not even a little bit.
In fact, I liked that about him quite a lot.
And that was when I realized I was a little bit drunk but also a lot in trouble.
I liked Tormund. And he was pulling me onto the dance floor.
15
TORMUND
It was a miracle Astrid had agreed to join me for a dance. For a moment, I thought she’d refuse. She’d barely been able to look at me, staring into her empty tankard and likely cursing my name. Before I’d shown up, she’d had a quiet, cozy life. But now, conspiracies were afoot, and dragons were stealing fake gems. It was all too much of a coincidence. At first I’d thought it was connected to her, but I’d been wrong. All this had something to do with me, and she’d likely guessed that by now.
The talon was a warning, specifically targeted at me.
Someone must have found out my secret. The brother I wanted to save wasn’t a shadow demon.
He wasn’t even my brother. He was a dragon.
I asked the bard for Lilia’s song, and the winged pixie erupted into a very vigorous, upbeat tune about mountain trolls. With Astrid’s hand in mine, I spun us across the floor. Other than Jostein and his partner, a dwarven woman short in stature and curvy in hips, we were the only two making use of the dance area.
Astrid looked up at me through thick, dark lashes that I swore looked as soft as feathers. “I should have known you liketo dance when no one else is. You seem to like showing off your skills.”
“Ah but there you’ve got me wrong.” I smiled. “When I dance, no one else exists except my partner.”
Astrid glanced away, and her face went pink. No other barbs emerged from her luscious lips, though I found myself holding my breath in anticipation, in case she’d needed a moment to think of something good. But then I remembered why I’d brought her out here. And it wasn’t to dance. Or get distracted by her lips, for fate’s sake.
I inclined my head toward Jostein as we spun past him and his wife. “They were having an intense conversation earlier, then they took to the dance floor.”
She jerked her head toward them, and a look of sudden realization crossed her face. “You want to overhear what they’re saying? That’s why you wanted to dance.”
I had the sudden urge to tell her she was wrong, but that would be a lie. One I couldn’t afford to tell based on the disappointment that flickered through her eyes. There was something between us. It was impossible to ignore now. But I couldn’t explore what could be—it would always have to be what could have been.
I had to find the Everstone, take it for myself, and return to Azraak alone. There was no other option. She and I could never be more than…whatever this was.
