Reeve’s eyes were sparkling like stars in the blue light. “If I’d known you were so eager to get your hands on me again—”
“Finish that sentence,” Viri threatened, her cheeks still too warm, “and I’ll throw you back in with the lake monster.”
“I’m not the one who stripped my clothes off without a second thought,” Reeve said, his humor impossible to miss. “If I didn’t know any better—”
“You do,” Viri ground out. “Now shut up and let me look at your head. You clearly have brain damage.”
He chuckled, which she not only heard butfelt, since her palms were still pressed to his bare abdomen. She hastily removed them, avoiding his too-amused gaze as she rose up on her knees and took his face in her hands, inspecting the bloody gash at his temple.
“How are you even conscious right now?” she murmured, brushing his dripping hair away from the grisly wound.
“You think I’d miss a moment of this?” His brows rose with disbelief. “I’d sooner throwmyselfback in with the lake monster.”
Viri bit down on a smile and got to work, cleaning the cut as best as she could with her wet sleeve, then slathering salve over it. The magical ointment started working almost instantly, sealing the wound until it was little more than an angry red line.
“There, all better,” she said, releasing his face and shifting away—only to be halted when Reeve’s hand landed on her waist, keeping her close.
There was no humor in his expression now, his features solemn, even awed, as he said, “You saved my life.”
Viri swallowed at the look in his eyes. “You would have done the same for me.” Her gaze dropped to the scratch on his side where the grimblade had pierced him. “Youdiddo the same for me.” She glanced away and said, softly, “I never thanked you forthat.”
His finger touched beneath her chin, tipping her face backtoward his as he said, just as quietly, “You never need to thank me for that.”
Viri swallowed again, holding his serious eyes as she whispered, “Then you never need to thank me, either.”
He stilled, his gaze searching hers, and her heart began to quicken at the thought of what he might see. But as if he could read the fear that was suddenly overwhelming her, the intensity vanished from his features, replaced by quirking lips and amused eyes. “We’re agreed, then,” he said lightly, dropping his hands. “We’ll both be ungrateful assholes.”
A startled laugh left Viri, and she grabbed on to his offer of levity like a lifeline. “That’s nothing new to you—the asshole part, I mean.”
Reeve clutched at his chest. “Hey, I’m injured here. Show some compassion.” He tapped his temple, which was now almost completely healed. “You didn’t even kiss it better. Some bedside manner you have.”
Viri grinned and shook her head. “Nice try. But you’ve had all the kisses you’re getting from me.”
He smirked. “That sounds like a challenge.”
“Not a challenge—a promise.”
A low laugh. “You shouldn’t make promises you can’t keep, Little Shadow.”
Before she could respond—not that she knewhow—Reeve stood up and rotated his shoulder, wonder touching his features as he said, “For someone with no proper training, Wynter sure knows her stuff.”
“She’s amazing,” Viri agreed, grateful to move on from any and all talk of kissing. “There’s a lot of trial and error, though. With heavy emphasis on the error.”
“The best way to learn is by failing,” Reeve said sagely.
“Say thatafteryou’ve been the test dummy on some of her illegal magical experiments,” Viri muttered.
“Speaking of experiments…” Reeve offered his hand to Viri and pulled her up beside him, the pebbles shifting under their weight. “I haven’t tried this before, so bear with me.”
Viri didn’t have a chance to ask what he was talking about before she felt the tingle of ellixen, followed by an odd but not unpleasant sensation, like warm liquid dripping from the top of her head downward. When it passed, she was completely dry again, from her hair all the way to her toes. Moments later, Reeve was the same.
“That’s better,” he said, rebuttoning his shirt over his now barely bruised torso.
“You mentioned before that there’s a cost to using magic,” Viri prompted, marveling at her newly dry state. There wasn’t a hint of dampness left, not even in her cloak pockets.
“Think of it like a muscle,” Reeve said. “The more you use it, the stronger it becomes. But by the same rules, use too much and it gets tired—or worse.”
“Burnout,” Viri said, her stomach pitching.
