Total pages in book: 241
Estimated words: 229266 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1146(@200wpm)___ 917(@250wpm)___ 764(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 229266 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1146(@200wpm)___ 917(@250wpm)___ 764(@300wpm)
“Sorry.”
He smiled then as he walked to where I stood. “You don’t sound remotely sorry.”
I grinned at him.
“Do me a favor,” Kieran said, looking down at me. “Protect your Prince, Poppy.”
I didn’t see Casteel for the rest of the day.
After saying goodbye to Alastir, I returned to the room while he left to go and speak with the people of Spessa’s End. I’d started to ask to go with him, but upon remembering the townspeople’s reactions the night before, I realized I would only be a distraction. The kind that could prove deadly to the people of Spessa’s End if they were busy staring at me instead of listening to Casteel.
I’d expected him to return, not so much to finish our conversation since there were far more important things going on, but because he needed to sleep.
But the morning gave way to the afternoon, and Casteel still didn’t show. I didn’t stay in the room. I prepared.
Luckily, Vonetta had been near when I stepped out into the courtyard, and she was willing to indulge me in a training session. Handling a sword or a bow wasn’t a technique you forgot, but it was one that could become rusty with neglect.
Plus, she was a wolven, faster and stronger than a mortal, and fighting her would be a lot like fighting a knight. I needed the practice.
We drew a bit of a crowd, but Casteel was still with the people. According to Vonetta, he was helping to determine who could fight.
When I saw Casteel again, it was when Delano brought me to the small room off the dining room where dinner was spent discussing strategies. The fact that Casteel had thought to include me in the meeting didn’t go unnoticed by me or by anyone else in the room.
By the time night arrived, and I’d returned to the bedchamber, Casteel still hadn’t. I spent several hours nervously pacing and thinking about things—about everything that had happened before Casteel entered my life, and everything that had happened since. I thought about my gift—how it was changing, how I glowed like moonlight. And I thought about all that Casteel had said and what had been left unsaid.
I thought about how I was so damn tired of pretending.
At some point, after walking myself ragged, I finally fell asleep, dressed just in case the Ascended showed. I wasn’t even sure what woke me, but when I opened my eyes, the grayish light of dawn crept into the room, and Casteel was in the bed beside me, propped up against a mountain of pillows. His long legs stretched out in front of him, crossed at the ankles, feet bare. His hands were loose in his lap. He was awake, looking at me.
“Are you watching me sleep?”
“Not now. I was a few minutes ago,” he admitted, one side of his lips curving up. “Now, I’m talking to you.”
“That’s creepy,” I murmured. “The watching me while I sleep part.”
“Possibly.”
“You have no shame.” I rolled onto my back.
He smiled faintly at that, but it didn’t reach his eyes—eyes that were tired.
“Have you slept at all?”
“Not yet.”
The mess that was my hair toppled over my shoulders as I sat up. “I know you’re this insanely powerful elemental, but you need to rest.”
That half-grin appeared, the dimple in his right cheek peeking. “Are you worried about me, Princess?”
I started to tell him no. To deny that I was because that was what I’d always done. It was the easiest—and the safest—but I was tired.
Of lying.
Of pretending.
That was something else I’d thought about as I stood on the Rise overnight after preparing myself for the inevitable. I thought about my future. Who I used to be, who I was becoming, and who I wanted to be. And it was strange how revelations felt like they happened all of a sudden, but in reality, it took many small, almost indiscernible moments over the course of weeks, months, and years. Bottom line, I knew I didn’t want to be someone who hid anymore, whether behind a veil, to others, or to myself.
Just like I’d said at dinner, I hadn’t changed because of Casteel. I’d been in the process long before he came into my life, but he was a catalyst. Just like all those times I’d snuck out to explore, the books I’d been forbidden yet read, and when I smiled at the Duke, knowing I’d be punished later. Vikter’s death was also a turning point.
“I am,” I told him. “I am worried about you.”
Casteel stared at me, and I didn’t need to read him to know that my answer had shocked him.
“They’re going to come. The Ascended could be here by tonight. You need to sleep. To be rested.” I paused. “And maybe stop staring at me.”
“I…” He blinked, and then his body relaxed once more. “I will rest. We both will. But I need…we need to finish our conversation. It can’t wait.” His gaze returned to mine. “Not any longer.”