“So…are we going to talk or sit in silence?” I asked.
“We could eat,” he suggested.
I liked that plan. Digging in, I ate my first spoonful. Just as creamy as always. It tasted like someone had mashed up summer and chilled it. It reminded me of swimming at the lake, hiking up in the mountains, and climbing up a new rock face. It reminded me of the Fourth of July, lying on a picnic blanket and looking up at the fireworks. It reminded me of the smell of sunscreen on my face and the feel of Ryan’s hand in mine as we leaped together into the water. “You broke my heart, you know.”
“I know.”
All the cold from the ice cream felt as if it had pierced right through me.
“I had to, Sky. My family…” He swallowed, and I saw his throat bob. His eyes flickered left and right, as if he were checking to see if anyone was listening. I’d already checked—no one was close enough to hear us. The nearest occupied table was three away, and it featured a screaming, out-too-late toddler who had somehow smeared ice cream on her eyebrows and in her ear.
“Did they threaten you? Say you’d be grounded? Say you’d be disinherited? Say they’d sell your car, burn your clothes, trash your computer? What did they threaten you with that was worth doing what you did?”
He shook his head. “It was my father, not both of them, and he didn’t threaten me, Sky. He threatenedyou.Your house. The rest of your family’s gold. Sky, he said he’d take everything from you. He’d make the council…Anyway, he was very, very mad.”
That…I hadn’t expected. I blinked at him. “So, you broke my heart toprotectme?”
“Yes!”
“That’s stupid. My family can protect ourselves.” Of course, we hadn’t protected ourselves against losing half our wealth or from losing our rank. We hadn’t protected Mom, or Dad’s seat on the council. “And anyway…you could have told me before now!”
“Dad ordered me not to even talk to you.” He glanced around again, looking as furtive as it was possible to look. He’d make a lousy spy. He might as well have a neon sign that said “Suspicious.” He was lucky that only humans were here, though that wasn’t a surprise. We’d picked this place because most wyverns don’t like cold foods—we could be alone here. “Only reason I can be here tonight is he’s in Paris for a business meeting. He’ll be back tomorrow.”
His ice cream was dripping down the side of his cup. I sneaked my spoon over and caught a drip before it splattered on the table. “If your parents were so mad at my mom for trying to steal this jewel, why do you think it’s a good idea for me to try?”
“Because you’ll succeed! And then you’ll have all the leverage you need to convince the council to restore your wealth, your rank, your everything.” He reached across the table as if to take my hand and then stopped. He glanced again in all directions, as if expecting ninjas to burst out and attack. “And if my father can’t threaten you anymore…then we can get back together. If you want to. If you can forgive me.”
The cold in my heart melted. But he didn’t deserve instant forgiveness—he could have told me this sooner, spared me from feeling like my entire past, present, and future were shattering. “That’s a lot of ifs.”
“I know it will work. You’ll have what your mother didn’t have.”
My mom was brilliant, beautiful, and amazing. I’d always been her lesser shadow, soaking up her sunlight. How could I do what she couldn’t? “And what’s that?”
“Me.” He smiled, his little lopsided smile that made my heart lurch. “I’ll be on the inside. I know our security systems. I can get you past the cameras….Well, we’ll have to figure out the rest, but we can work it out, you and me, together. Your skill. My knowledge. I know we can do this,Sky.”
Yes, we could. Slowly, I smiled.
He smiled back, and I fell in love all over again.
CLIMBING BACK IN THROUGHmy window, I landed lightly on the carpet. Music still crooned through the room. The sound of video games still permeated the wall. Only change was that my brother Charles sat on my bed, waiting for me.
“Hi,” I said.
“Hi, Sky.”
“You’re in my room,” I said. “In the dark. Listening to love songs.”
“Yes. And you were…?”
I pointed to my desk. “At Gabriela’s. I left a note.”
“I called Gabriela’s, and her brother said you weren’t there anymore.”
“Her brother is annoying. Also he was in his room the whole time. He doesn’t know when I came and left.” If Gabriela was going to cover for me, we’d have to figure out how to handle her little brother. A bribe? Blackmail? You could plan for the behavior of people you knew, those you could predict. I hadn’t planned for her brother. Next time I would.
“He said you climbed out the window. Why don’t you ever use the door, Sky? That’s why we have doors. For going into and out of buildings. Windows are for light and air. You should try doors sometimes.”
“What do you want, Charles?”
