Page 171 of Blood of the Fairest

I start to exhale in relief.

But then, as if he's leaving a mirage, Eris steps through the glass into this world.

42

Eris

Perhaps I should have brought more wine from Reinhilde's lair.

Will two bottles be enough? Verena must be horribly thirsty by this point, so perhaps it's not. I suppose if she drinks all of it, I can fetch more. It's far swifter to travel long distances through the mirror realm, though it may steal another hour or two of our moonlit time together.

Truthfully, I hope she doesn't drink much wine.

I'd rather she take her fill from me.

The thought of Verena feeding from me has me unbelievably distracted as I step through the glass into the queen's guest quarters.

A soft gasp makes me look up quickly, and I have to remind myself not to drop the glass bottles.

Because holy Crones, Verena and I are in the same room.

At last.

I'm so overwhelmed with nervous anticipation that I cannot draw a full breath—but I realize she's pressed back against the wall, her eyes wide with shock and…lingering fear.

Damn it.

I never wanted to make her feel unsafe, even for a moment.

I intended to finish setting everything up and return to the reflection of her mask to speak with her well before she reached this room. I had no idea she would return so early from the masquerade.

Swiftly, I set the wine bottles on the table.

"It's all right, Fairest. You're all right. Forgive me for catching you off guard."

"Eris, you—what—how—" Verena begins, her words jumbling together. She blinks at the mirror I just stepped through as if she's catching up from the initial scare. "Holy shit, you found your body? Where? When did⁠—"

"I didn't," I clarify, drinking in the candlelit vision before me.

I'm certain she doesn't realize just how many of the stares directed towards her tonight were laced with lust. Before the full moon began its ascent, allowing me to leave the mirror realm, I caught the heated stares of men lingering on her far too many times for my liking.

It's only natural that they're curious about the Veiled Queen. Everyone knows the rumors of her beauty, and there are even more rumors about her tastes in men—from Favored to the affairs Reinhilde had in the past.

Still, I was tempted to ask Wulf to break into the masquerade and carry Verena away from the endless gazes caressing her flawless beauty.

But that would likely have ended in his demise, and the Huntsman is far too useful to lose.

Verena must be aware she's distracted me, for her impatience is tinged with amusement.

"If you didn't find your body, how the hell did you just stroll out of the mirror realm?"

"I'm not sure about the how," I admit, trying to focus despite the way my heart is still reacting viscerally to finally being in the same space as her. "For as long as I've existed, I could become corporeal and leave the mirror realm only during full moons. Once per month, for several hours, until the moon reaches a certain decline."

Verena removes her gleaming mask and takes a few steps away from the wall toward me. I'm distracted all over again by the full effect of her beautiful face.

"Why didn't you tell me?"

I move closer, drawn like a wight to a lost traveler. I'm aching to touch her, but she deserves an answer.