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Men would likely go extinct without women to coddle them.
“Hmm,” Kitt hums. Even with my back to him, I can hear the smile in his voice when he says, “Can’t stop thinking about the girl who saved your life, huh?”
There, at the bottom of the list, lies a name I’ve thought of far more than I care to admit. It’s her.
“Oh, you didn’t need to.” That crooked grin is teasing his lips once again. “I make it my business to know all the pretty girls who save my little brother.”
It is laughable. The Psychic girl who unwittingly saved a prince she clearly couldn’t care less about is now rewarded for it by being forced into Trials that could kill her.
But right as we all got comfortable and began idle conversations about the same regurgitated topics we’ve spoken of for years, something happened. She happened. She walked in.
something tells me she’d rather go hungry tonight. And that won’t do.
“Are you going to make me spoon-feed you too, or can you handle feeding yourself?” With that, I smile at her in a way that will undoubtedly make her want to throw her beans, and a punch, at my face.
I watch as a young, redheaded guard saunters up to Paedyn with a grin. And suddenly, I’m stepping between them before I can stop myself. “I’ll take it from here.” He looks at me, confused. “Sir, I am to escort—” “I’m aware. And I’m perfectly capable of making sure she gets to her room, don’t you agree?”
And yet, he failed to mention how he’d hit her. Perhaps I’ll relieve him of one of his hands, so he never has the opportunity to lay it on a woman again.
This girl might be the death of me. Literally.
“Then why are you doing this?”
he never answered this
It’s clear that Paedyn intrigues him. But even if Kitt wasn’t going to ask Paedyn to accompany him to the ball, which I don’t doubt he will, she doesn’t want me. I like a challenge. But she’s made it abundantly clear on what she wishes us to be: competition. Enemies. And more importantly, why isn’t that what I want as well?
“Plagues, Kai, don’t scare me like that!” I blink. It’s the first time she’s called me by my name, and I realize then that I could get used to the sound of it rolling off her tongue. She seems to notice what she’s said and clears her throat before beginning to walk down the hallway.
And then she relaxes, easing into my touch. An answer to my question without uttering a word. Yes.
“That’s funny because I won’t hesitate to mess up your pretty face.” I smirk. “I knew you thought I was pretty.”
“I don’t want to fight your power—I want to fight you. Just you.” Her piercing gaze never leaves mine as she says it, even as the other Elites turn their attention toward us, finding this fight far more interesting than their training. “So, you just want me? No powers?” “Yes. I just want you,” she breathes, annoyed with me. My mouth twists into a crooked grin. “I knew you wanted me, Gray.”
One minute we’re flirting and the next we’re fighting—possibly even both at the same time. I can’t seem to figure this vicious girl out.
“Oh, darling, as long as you still think I’m pretty, I don’t give a damn what I look like.”
I see a boy who is confusing and captivating, cocky and calculating. But with every new detail I discover about him, the less I think I know. He has a soft spot only for those he loves dearly, that much is clear. But he’s built walls, guarded himself, slipped on masks, making him annoyingly difficult to decipher.
He’s leaning against the doorframe, watching me curiously as I stand in the middle of his room, though I don’t remember walking so far into it.
peak mmc behavior
Kai turns around, casually unbuttoning half his shirt and sending my eyes searching for anything to stare at other than his tanned chest and swirling tattoo. And then he’s suddenly before me, surveying me from head to toe with a slight smile that displays the deeper dimple on his right cheek. His stare is like a caress, and he takes his time. I refuse to squirm under that piercing gaze, knowing how he would love to watch me fidget.
“Are you sure you’ll be able to focus on dancing, or will I be too much of a distraction, darling?”
This would be a lot easier if he weren’t staring at me.
His voice is lower than before when he says, “You’re a vision.” “She is, isn’t she?” My heart skips a beat. The voice coming from over my shoulder is so cold I nearly shiver. Kai brushes my arm as he steps around me, facing the stunned boy still clutching me to him. “I’ll be stealing her now,” Kai says
I’m in his arms before the musicians’ finish drawing out their note. He feels too familiar. We fit together perfectly, pieces of a puzzle snapping into place. I shouldn’t let myself relax into his touch. Shouldn’t let the tension ease from my body when he holds me. But I can do nothing to stop it. Utterly and completely powerless.
“Like what you see, Gray?” he croons, knowing that will get a rise out of me. I huff, looking away from him to fight the flush that’s finding its way to my cheeks. Rough fingers glide from my back to catch my chin, gently guiding my face back to his as he mutters, “By all means, carry on. I’ll never deny myself the chance of watching you watch me.”
His smile is wicked. “Because it is far more fun to admire you when the action is mutual.”
Kai’s large frame hovers over me, his hand cradling the back of my head so my skull didn’t crack on the hard marble when he threw us to the ground. He’s shielding my body from the debris and knives flying around the room. I regain my hearing slowly,
“Kai, I’m not leaving.” He flattens me fully against the wall, boxing me in with his arms on either side of my head. His eyes are wild, like smoke smoldering from a blazing fire. “Then don’t think I won’t throw you over my damn shoulder and carry you out of here myself. Is that what you want?”
Then he calls over his shoulder. “Do me a favor, darling?” “And what’s that?” “Promise me you’ll stay alive long enough to stab me in the back?” I laugh loudly. “That’s been my goal all along, Prince.”
“Paedyn! Hey, Pae, look at me.” Rough hands are gripping the sides of my face, forcing my eyes to flutter open.
“Hey, hey, hey.” Calloused hands are pushing the damp hair off my forehead while words are muttered close to my face. “Pae, stay with me.” His voice is stern despite the panic lacing each word.
I’m smiling up at him now, grinning like an idiot. I can’t stop. Delusional. I’m completely and undeniably delusional.
“Remind me to make you smile like that again, when you aren’t dying, and I have all the time in the world to memorize it.”
She would have died alone. She’s so damn stubborn that she would choose to fight me until she collapsed rather than let me see her injured. The image of her crumpling to the ground sends a chill through me, icing over my burning rage. You would think I’d be numb to witnessing hurt by now, watching Death claim another victim. But when she crumpled, something inside me cracked. The sight of her so weak, so vulnerable, so unlike herself, was enough to shatter a piece of the soul I’d forgotten I had.
She pushes my hand away, refusing to drink any more until she gets some answers. Stubborn, little thing.
I felt like I needed to say it. Felt like I needed to admit that to her, to myself. What I do—what I’ve done—has had a purpose, a reason. I’m still a monster, just not the kind that loves the hateful things they do.
“I suppose you have him to thank for my violent tendencies.” I glance up and grin before saying warily, “And your mother…? Do I have her to thank for any of your wonderful qualities?”
“Just a little more, Pae,” I breathe. She shudders and I don’t miss the movement. Whether because of the pain or because I finally said her name, I’m not sure. I’m reminded of when she hit the ground. When I was feral, frantic, and I was suddenly aware that I hadn’t said her name to her since we met. And in that moment, I realized that I’d wanted to say it—wanted her to hear it from my lips. Realized that if she died, I would never again get to look into those blue eyes and utter those two syllables that have been a constant in my mind.
So I said her name, again and again. I finally let myself do it. Let that last piece of attachment to her lock into place. Just saying her name felt intimate, personal, somehow. And now I forever want her name on my lips and rolling off my tongue until I’m drunk on the taste and sound of it. What the hell is wrong with me?
Her gaze tells me that there’s no escaping the question this time, though I’m not even sure I have an answer for her or myself. All I know is that I have this urge to protect her, be with her, tease her, touch her.
I smile at her, taking in every detail of her face beneath mine. I open my mouth to say something witty and wildly inappropriate when a twig snaps to my left. A Sight watches
I can only imagine what Father will make of this—of us. Of me helping, saving, enjoying being with the girl from the slums. Wouldn’t be the first time I’ve disappointed him, and it certainly won’t be the last.
Then I catch her shiver slightly in the brisk, night breeze. Well that just won’t do. I kneel beside her, scooping her into my arms before pulling her off the ground
The truth of that thought hits me like a blow to the gut. I have nothing to offer her. I am wrong, so wrong for her. She is too brave, too bold, too bloody good for me. Maybe I could be a better man. Maybe I could be more like Kitt with his heart on his sleeve and happiness on display.
But ever since she discovered I was a prince and declared us enemies, I’ve played along, not wanting to be outdone. And it’s fun. It’s a distraction for the both of us, the toying and teasing with one another. But now? If I am to be her enemy, I want it to be because she loathes herself for wanting me.
“So, what’s the plan?” I ask, gesturing between the two of us. “The plan for…?” He tilts his head slightly to the side, peering at me, playing with me. He knows exactly what I mean. “For us.” “Us. I like the sound of that, don’t you?” I roll my eyes, ignoring him. “What do we do now?” “That is a very loaded question, Gray.” I blink. He didn’t say my first name. And for some maddening reason, I wish he had.
“Why didn’t you take my band? And why not try to take it now that I’m healed?” Amusement tilts up the corner of his mouth as he pushes off the tree branch and strides toward me. “That’s another loaded question.” That right dimple deepens. “First of all, you’re not completely healed. Second, why would I pass up the opportunity to work together? You know we make a great team. And third,” he crouches down in front of me so we are eye to eye as he continues, “it’s cute that you said I could try to take your band from you.”
“Fate is a funny, fickle thing, offering you no choice in how you live.”
