Any Way the Wind Blows (Simon Snow, #3)

by Rainbow Rowell

“So what? Lamb wasn’t even interested in me in that way.” He really wasn’t. Simon stops pacing to roll his eyes at me. His tail is still lashing from side to side. “He was trying to mentor me,” I say. “He could see I was clueless.” Simon huffs. “He could see that you’re hot.” I huff, too. “Well, I was actually there, and I didn’t get that vibe from him.” “You didn’t get that vibe from me either, Baz. You’ve got no vibe . . . check.” Simon starts pacing again. His tail swings towards my face, and I snatch it. He spins around, grabbing his tail at the base. “Hey!” I don’t let go. In fact, I give it a deliberate tug. “Fuck,” he spits out. “You know that’s attached to my spinal cord.” “Then you better come here,” I say, coiling his tail once around my wrist and tugging again. He narrows his blue eyes and steps towards me slowly, like he’s doing it on his own time. I draw my fist back to my shoulder, steadily pulling him closer, until he’s kneeling between my legs, resting back on his heels. He’s taller than me like this. I hook my free arm around his waist and sit up straight, so I can knock my forehead against his. “Do you want me to take you out for ice cream? Is that what this is about?” He cuts his eyes away. “I don’t need ice cream.” “That’s not what I asked . . .” I squeeze his tail. I’m holding the very end, near the spade. It doesn’t seem to hurt him, so I do it again, rubbing it between my thumb and forefinger. It’s warmer than you’d expect—maybe dragons are warm-bloo...