Page 180 of Devoured

I arch a brow. “I can still tell when you’re lying, Calix. It’s fine if you hate it—”

“It’s beautiful,” he amends quickly. “You look beautiful, Vanessa.”

The words steal my breath, and my hands tremble. How can so much time have passed, but it still feels like no time at all? I’m five years older, wiser, but seeing him here… My tongue is tied. My pulse races and blood roars in my ears.

All while he seems unaffected. Calm, cool, and collected. “Let me guess. You got a letter too?”

It takes a moment for me to make my tongue work again. “Y-yes. Did he… Did you—”

“Arielle gave it to me a couple of months before I left the castle. She told me to wait to read it, but I think he knew I wouldn’t.” Calix rolls his eyes, but he smiles. He is smiling as if he’s happy, carefree, different. No—not different. Grown. Calix must be twenty-three or twenty-four now. He must have lived so much life in half a decade. “She wrote to me recently and reminded me of Sin’s request. Actually, she demanded I follow his instructions and come here. Said she’d pitch a fit if I refused.”

For some reason, this twists in my stomach. “You stayed in touch with Arielle?” As soon as I say it, I feel stupid. I feel seventeen and ridiculous. Of course he stayed in touch with her. He bit her. She will always be part of his life. And she needed someone there for her in those early days. She’s lucky to have Calix. “I mean, I’m glad. That you two stayed in touch. She’s been controlling her powers really well, and she seems to fit in nicely at Castle Lee. Aside from her and Evie arguing, but Evie argues with everyone. Arielle is actually the only person she seems to listen to. Queen Evelyn, I mean,” I correct quickly—and then I realize I’ve been rambling and my skin flushes an even darker red. “S-sorry. I’m going to stop talking now.”

His lips twitch as if he’s laughing at me. Or maybe he just finds humor in my complete inability to have a normal conversation with him. But it’s been so long. I can’t even believe we’re here. On the same beach at the same time. But of course we are. Sin sent that letter.

“You’re not staying in a bungalow?” Calix asks.

I shake my head. “No. I—um—I came with Evie and Portia. Queen—”

“Queen Evelyn and Queen Portia. Yes, I’m aware,” he says, definitely laughing at me now.

I swat a lock of hair from my face. “Right. I wasn’t bragging. I was just… I mean… I…” God. I couldn’t sound more like an idiot if I tried. I stop talking, pursing my lips so I can inhale deeply. Then I try again. “I didn’t expect to see you here. Or… ever, I guess. You vanished.”

His arms loosen, and he scratches the back of his neck. His bicep flexes, and I do not in any way whatsoever stare at it. At him. “I joined a lesser pack under Duquesa Balam’s jurisdiction, actually. The Realm of Superiority is bigger there, and she’s always looking for Generals and Soldiers to patrol it. All things considered, it’s a cushy job.”

“You live here?”

“I live about ten hours north, but yeah.” He chuckles, the sound low and deep and dark. “I live here.”

“Cool.” I twirl a curl around my index finger. Only, I twirl it too tight and start to cut off circulation, so I have to untie it and smooth it out. “Very cool.”

His white shirt—loose, unbuttoned, revealing a matching white cotton undershirt beneath—opens in the breeze. A chain hangs from his neck. A gilded medallion of two snakes devouring a rose. God. I can’t believe he’s here. I can’t believe Sin has trapped us together.

One last prank from the golden prince.

I want to hate him for it, but I can’t.

Years ago, I would have left. I would’ve told Calix that he could be alone, and I would have fled out of fear. But I curl my toes in the black sand, and I ignore the brutal sun on my back. I ignore the clouds looming above us. Who knows if I’ll ever run into him again? And if this is our last moment together, I’m going to appreciate it.

So I ask, “Do you want to go for a walk up the beach?” And I hold my breath as I wait for his answer.

He studies my face, my gaze, as we listen to the waves crash for several excruciating seconds. Finally, he says, “Yeah, let’s go for a walk, Hart.”

We traipse along the edge of the low tide for what feels like hours. Calix admits what I’ve always guessed—that a bit of Sin’s soul went into him when he almost became king. He can’t be a Lone Wolf anymore either, and his General abilities have sharpened into something even deadlier. Though he works for Duquesa Balam now, he lives on his own. He vacations outside the continent often. And the way he talks about travel makes him light up. It makes him even more infuriatingly handsome.

“What was your favorite trip?” I ask, avoiding a ridge in the sand and stumbling into his side.

He catches me easily, just as he always did before.

His hand splays wide on my lower back for a second. It brands me through the thin fabric of my tank top, but his touch vanishes just as fast as it appeared. “I don’t know. I still think the jungles of Guatemala are my personal favorite. The rainforest in Peru was cool, but there were too many animals disturbed by my presence. The canals of Venice were awesome, but the tourists.” He glances at me with a look that says I should automatically agree with him. So I do. “But my girlfriend and I climbed Mount Everest a couple of years ago, and the view was just… otherworldly. So I guess that was my favorite. It felt like I was on top of the whole world.”

I should probably think about that view. I should probably not get stuck on that other word. I especially shouldn’t want to punt myself into the sea because of it. “Girlfriend?” Too high-pitched. Awkward. I clear my throat and try again. “That’s romantic. A nice… lovely hike.”

“Not really.” He grimaces as a fresh spray of wave dampens his shirt. “It was a shitty hike. But it was a stunning view.”

I flick a droplet of water from my arm. “Makes sense. I never liked running when I was doing it. Only afterward.”

He glances at me. A quick, heated look that I almost miss. “Did you ever play volleyball again?”