25

Ayoung Lady of the Court, dressed in the most gorgeous blue taffeta gown I'd seen in my life, came to show me to my room. She had beautiful fawn-like eyes and gleaming deep-brown skin, and her black hair was in a magnificent coil atop her head, with only a few curly bits framing her sweet, round face.

"I'm Dorothea," she chirped in her soft, cheery voice as we sauntered down a long hallway with wide windows that overlooked the exuberant gardens of the Palace. "But you can call me Thea."

"I'm—"

"Nepheli, I know. The whole court has been buzzing about you all morning."

I frowned, anxious at the thought of anyone buzzing anything about me. "Why?"

Thea shrugged her delicate shoulders. "Well, you know how it is. The Starshine Princess from the South and all that…"

"I'm not a Princess. I'm a Curiosity, actually," I said a bit shyly.

Her eyes rounded on me. "Really? Oh, I've heard about Curiosity Shops. You must tell me everything. I love, love, love magic. I haven't manifested my own magic yet, but I'm working on it."

A nervous chuckle was my sole response.

Thea stole a glance at my hair. "Do you know what kind of magic you have?"

"A weaver was recently able to discern that I possess star-magic. But I haven't manifested it either," I explained.

Thea's entire face sparked up like a firework. "Great, then we can practice together. I'm usually free in the afternoons."

A sudden sense of despondency packed down my sternum as I forced myself to say, "I'm actually leaving tomorrow morning."

"You are?" she gasped, her brows bunching. "But I thought… Everyone is saying that you're engaged to Prince Apollo. They saw you two promenading this morning at the square. They say that you broke his curse and that's why he returned after all this time."

"What?" I squealed, halting mid-step. "No! We're not—He's not—He's still—"

"Heartless?" Thea wryly suggested.

I sighed. "Very much so."

"It is terrible, isn't it?" Thea asked in a confidential manner, leaning in and lowering her voice. "What happened to him, I mean."

"That witch should have never agreed to cast this curse on him," I hissed. "If someone came into my Shop drunk and heartbroken and asked me for something like that, I would have given them a glass of water and a slap across the face, not removed their heart from their body only for it to end up gods know where."

Suddenly, I was struck by two countervailing emotions: regret that I didn't say this to Apollo last night and anger for the incredible misfortune that had befallen him.

"Exactly," Thea bristled. "You know, a lot of people here say that he brought this upon himself, but I honestly don't believe he understood what he was doing at the moment. It was so out of character for him. I'm a bit younger, so I was never in his friend group, but from what I have heard, he was such a thoughtful and kindhearted person before Verena."

My chest tightened. "He still is," I whispered, feeling Thea's keen attention on me. "In his own way."

Apollo couldn't love, but he was still able to care, not with his heart but through instinct, logic and, perhaps, memory. It would be so easy for him to shut down completely and live a mindless life full of selfish pleasures and meaningless indulgences. But that was not Apollo. Apollo was honorable and unyielding in a soldierly sort of way. He was forgiving and generous to a fault. He held himself accountable for his mistakes and fought relentlessly to fix them. And to me, there was nothing more human than that.

Thea looked at me the way Mother did whenever she'd find me at five in the morning, still reading with a flickering lamp under my covers. A kind of endearing exasperation. "You like him."

"I…" I coughed. "Well…"

"I'm not judging you if that's what you're blushing about," Thea reassured, taking on a scandalous tone. "That man is absolutely scrumptious. I mean, those arms?"

"The eyes," I blurted out before I could stop myself.

"The hair."

"And have you ever noticed his hands?"

"Well, you know what they say about the size of a man's hands."

Our eyes met, and we started cackling so avidly that the poor guard at the end of the corridor startled, which only made us giggle even louder.

"Are you sure you're leaving tomorrow?" she managed to ask, wiping tears of laughter from the corners of her eyes.

"That's the plan."

"Too bad," she sighed as she linked her arm with mine. "I was really looking forward to us becoming friends."

I blinked at her. "You were?"

"Well, I am a Lady of the Court so naturally we would spend a lot of time together if you married Prince Apollo," she explained. "My best friend got married recently and moved to Kartha. Her wife is a scholar at one of the Academies there. And to tell you the truth, I've been pretty lonely ever since. The other Ladies are much older than me." She bit into her lower lip. "I was close to getting married too. It's why my parents sent me here, actually. But it didn't work out in the end."

"I'm sorry to hear that, Thea," I said, understanding her position more than words could express.

I'd been absolutely devastated after my breakup with Ryker, and oftentimes I had questioned my decision out of sheer curiosity, a gnawing what-if. It was impossible not to wallow in the vague tenderness of faded memories, lovelier now than what they had been, as all things of the past were. In retrospect, the more irretrievable something was, the lovelier it got.

"Oh, believe me, it's for the best," Thea chirped. "I'm only twenty-one. I want to find myself first. Learn about magic. Maybe travel a little, make some friends. Boys can wait." She glanced at me. "What about you, Miss Curiosity from the South?"

"Same as you," I admitted. "Besides my Shop, I don't have much else in Elora."

She nodded. "It's hard to form friendships as an adult, isn't it?"

"It's the worst," I groaned. "I get all panicky and in my head every time I have to talk to someone I don't know. And then I go home and overanalyze every little interaction until I never want to leave my house again. If overthinking was unlawful, I would spend the rest of my life in prison."

Thea chuckled as she tipped her chin. "Come on, we're here." She stepped forward and put her hands on the twin golden doorknobs to our left, looking very excited as she announced, "The Sunset Quarters."

I followed her inside the apartment, wide-eyed and open-mouthed in wonder. A gorgeous annular foyer led to a massive bedchamber with walls dressed in pink-and-orange damasks bordered with wide gold stripes. And the ceiling? Oh, the ceiling was the hour before dusk, when the sky was blushing, all grand sweeps of vermillion, orange, and violet.

Thea cast an equally dreamy gaze at the room. "Isn't it gorgeous? As exquisite as the Queen's. Prince Apollo requested this bedchamber for you specifically."

My brows shot straight to my hairline. "He did?"

She narrowed her dark eyes at me in comical suspicion. "Are you sure there's nothing going on between you two?"

Nervously, I nodded and picked up the first book I spotted on the round cherrywood table at the entrance of the room, just to make myself appear busy. I was flicking through the pages when my eyes fell on a rather… interesting choice of words. I shut it at once and turned it over. The cover boasted a drawing of a half-naked man on a white horse, titled The Rogue Lord Verlion.

"Thea! This book is filthy!"

She hooked a hand on her hip, grinning knowingly. "Filthy good, that's what it is. Eloise loves this series, you'll find copies everywhere around the Palace."

I burst into laughter. "I think I'll like it here. Very, very much so."

Someone brought us tea, sandwiches, and cake, and we ended up sprawled over the plush duvet on the bed, talking, giggling, and plotting our futures. And for a little while, life was perfect.

◆◆◆

I was drifting off to sleep the way I sometimes did on my days off work when the late afternoons unfolded sweet and lethargic after a big meal or a busy morning of doing house chores.

There was a wide window next to the four-poster bed, and the sun blazed through and fell over me like a blanket, so hot and full I could almost touch it. And just as I was about to slip into blissful mindlessness, a curt knock came on the door. Grudgingly, as I forced my eyes open, I noticed the white lace gloves on my nightstand, over-bright under a strip of sunlight. It was probably Thea, I realized, returning to retrieve them.

"Come on in," I permitted, stifling a yawn into my pillow. I turned on my back and closed my eyes again, half-listening to the soft footsteps thudding on the carpet.

"You forgot your gloves, huh?" I murmured, resting my hands on my stomach.

"These aren't really my style, I'm afraid," Apollo's deep rasp sounded.

My eyes tore open, and my head veered to find Apollo leaning against the windowsill, his strong silhouette backlit and ethereal in his all-white attire. White informal trousers and white linen shirt, sleeves rolled up and collar fully open. Skin everywhere.

Suddenly, I was wide awake.

"Are you trying to scare me to death?" I growled, springing off the bed.

"You said to come in," he countered coolly as he strolled to the vanity to take the long silk robe that was folded over the upholstered chair.

He sauntered back and handed it to me, his eyes elsewhere. I glanced down at the frilly corset Thea had made me try on over my nightdress since she'd assured me that my gown for tonight would absolutely require it, and I felt my cheeks redden.

Of course, he'd seen me in less that day at the inn, and for goodness' sake, he'd had his fingers inside me only the night before. But I supposed things were different now that we knew just how good each other's bodies felt. I could pretend all I wanted that nothing happened between us last night, but I would never be untouched by him again.

I slipped into the robe, and Apollo finally returned his eyes to me.

I smiled wittily. "Look at you being a gentleman for once."

"Let's just say you're lucky you can't read my thoughts right now," he rasped and walked back to the window. He rested his hip against the sill and cast a distracted gaze outside. His hair was a little damp from a bath he must have taken earlier, and his black locks were curling on his forehead. I cursed myself for not brushing my fingers through his hair last night when I had the chance. Now, the urge was devastating to me.

I cleared my throat. "Would you like some tea? They brought it up earlier. It's quite good. Well, not as good as mine—"

"Of course, Miss Curiosity's tea is better," Apollo taunted.

I raised my chin. "I'll have you know I make a mean cup of tea."

Apollo smirked. "Oh, tea is never mean. It is always polite. Like you, Little Butterfly."

I sighed in resignation. "Did you want something, or did you just come here to mock me?"

To my bemusement, his smile waned. He leaned further back against the windowsill and started unrolling and rolling again one of his shirtsleeves, looking truly nervous. "Yes… I wanted… I…" he paused, cursed under his breath, and tried again, "I just wanted to see if you settled in. Do you have everything you need? Is everything to your liking? Besides the overly polite tea."

"Are you serious?" I chuckled. "Look at this place. I feel like I'm dreaming."

He nodded, his throat bobbing. "Good. Good."

I frowned at him. "Apollo, are you okay? You seem a bit… nervous."

He met my eyes. "I was thinking that you should stay for a few more days."

Gradually, I realized the words, the meaning, the tone.

I'd been imagining our separation all day long in a pathetic, self-pitying manner. I'd pictured Apollo sending me off in the same indifferent, slapdash way he'd barged into my life. Take care, darling. And don't forget to have fun every now and then. The idea of becoming some distant memory of his, just another story in a life dazzlingly full of them while he would forever be my greatest adventure, hurt me more than it should. More than it was wise.

"Stay?" I echoed, numb with hope.

"To see the city, I mean. And the Palace. We have a library here that you will probably need a lifetime to go through. Not that you should stay here for the rest of your life. Unless you want to stay—"

I couldn't help it. I laughed. Hysterically almost.

"Will you stop that?" he growled.

"I'm sorry," I snorted with laughter. "I've just never seen you this distressed before."

He came and seized my face in his hand. It happened fast, impetuously. One moment I was wiping the corners of my eyes, and the other he was holding me, his long fingers on the hollows of my cheeks, stealing my breath. "Keep it up, and I will—"

"What?" I heaved, not finding it so funny anymore. "What will you do to me?"

His eyes drifted upward. "And she wonders why I call her dangerous." He withdrew his hand from my face and put some distance between us. "Will you just think about it?"

"I will," I promised.

He nodded, and as he turned to leave, his eyes fell upon my nightstand and sparkled just to taunt me. "Lord Verlion, huh?"

I groaned. "Please, don't mock me."

Apollo pursed his lips, trying not to laugh. "No, I like this one."

"You do?" I deadpanned.

"It has a nice epigraph, too," he claimed as he went to pick it up and read aloud, "The day humans will stop writing and reading about love is the day humans will no longer be human." He considered for a moment, and his handsome profile was no longer bright with amusement but dark with something like melancholy. "If love is really so defining to us, what do you suppose that makes me?"

"Apollo…" I whispered, my throat constricting and my insides twisting. "The broken parts of you do not make you any less human. You must know that."

He didn't acknowledge my words. He merely brushed them off and headed for the door, looking as insouciant as ever. "See you at the ball, darling?"

I sighed at the ceiling, resigning. "Will I have to watch you flirt with every woman who isn't related to you all night long?"

He turned, hands in his pockets, head cocked to the side, and a smile that could make goddesses swoon. "What if I promise to only flirt with the ones who have silver hair, blue eyes, and hate my guts?"

I threw him a look of facetious defiance. "What if they don't want you to flirt with them?"

"Then I'll behave," he said.

"Just like that?" I teased.

He bore into me, serious now. "For you, Nepheli, anything."

For absolutely no good reason at all, my knees went weak. In fact, every single muscle, organ, and joint in my body went weak for this man. But I was too proud to let him know that, so I braced myself, put a wry smile on my face, and tried to make light of the situation. "I bet you a whole gold mark that you won't even recognize me in that ballroom tonight."

Apollo smirked. "Darling, I would recognize you anywhere."