“You weren’t very friendly when I arrived,” I said dryly. “In fact, you seemed to relish in my discomfort. But you did take that goblet of blood from me—that was a kind gesture. For that reason alone, I wouldn’t say Ihateyou.” I mounted my horse before easing her into a trot.
“I’m a bastard,” he muttered under his breath, riding beside me. “I haven’t received much kindness in my life and… I suppose it’s made me guarded… around people I don’t know.”
I tried to hide my shock at his candidness. I hadn’t thought him capable of conversation beyond cynicism. “Louis told me about your childhood—that you and I are…similar. Perhaps we should call a truce.”
“Consider my white flag waved,” he said with a hint of a smile.
“I just need to know one thing…” I said, hesitating. This was probably a bad idea. But I couldn’t trust him until I knew.
He pursed his lips, squinting at me through his lashes. “Shoot.”
I took a deep breath. “Have you ever used your magic on me?”
His brows shot up. “Magic? Can you be more specific?”
“You know… likedarkmagic. To make me feelstrange… around you.” I was whispering for some reason. I didn’t know how to explain the effect he’d had on me during that first dinner, but it had rattled me. Beyond his cologne’s ability to give me vertigo, I felt an unsettling pull towards him, as if he was a carnivorous plant and I was a fly.
“Strange?” he asked with a half-grin. It looked as if he was trying to stifle a laugh.
I narrowed my eyes at him. “Never mind.” If he was going to mock me, then it had been a mistake to ask.
“Wait—no. I didn’t mean to upset you. I’ve never used magic on you, I promise. I’ll be the first to admit that I’m an ass, but I would nevermanipulateyou with magic—or without magic, for that matter.”
He met my gaze with a straight face. No sardonic grin. No snarky attitude. I believed him. I must've been displacing my feelings for Galen onto him that night. But that cologne of his… How could I ask him what kind of scent he wore without sounding like a lecher? I wanted to douse myself in it. It smelled likehome. It made me feel nostalgic for a place I’d never been. That made no sense, but neither did anything else in this world.
“White flag waved.” I grinned, before urging my horse into a gallop and racing ahead.
We ran for miles. It was refreshing to share company with another, without the need for words. As our horses began to tire, we slowed back down to a walk, almost to the city.
“You ride well. In a dress, nonetheless. You must ride often back home?”
My heart ached for my horse, though I knew she was being well taken care of by Deric. I ached for his sweet smile too.
“As often as I can,” I replied.
An odd feeling tugged at me—a gut impulse telling me to confide in him. And since we’d called a truce, I was going to choose to believe it was intuition… and not his magic. “Since I know one of your secrets, it seems only fair that you know one of mine. Can I trust you?”
He gave a wry grin. “Secrets are my specialty. I’m a shadow wielder, after all.” Dark ribbons of smoke began to waft around him and his horse. I watched them swirl in a hypnotizing pattern.
Shadow wielder…I was anidiot. It wasn’t his soul that was black, but hismagic. I’d been seeing shadows, not an aura. Did he not have one? I didn’t even know what the glow around faeries meant—what it even was. I’d been too afraid to ask and sound insane.
Any remaining tightness in my chest relaxed as I took a deep breath. “I’m niece to Queen Ophelia of Aurelius. I grew up like you, in a castle full of strangers. My father abandoned me when my mother died, so my aunt raised me. You aren’t the only one who has a difficult time opening up to people.”
Our gazes met and I felt like I was free falling. It was rare to be this vulnerable. His honey-brown eyes had softened. He was looking at me as if…as if he cared. But that couldn’t be true.
“I won’t tell anyone,” Raf promised. “I’d suggest you do the same. Sylvia would be threatened by what you just told me—and likely use it against you. She believes thatsheis the rightful Queen of Aurelius.”
I nodded. I wished I could tell Galen who I was, but it was too risky. If Sylvia found out… I didn’t want to think about what she’d do to Ophelia if given the chance.
“So… you don’t need blood, but you drink it. Why?” I asked.
My sudden topic change confused the Dark Prince. He stared blankly at me, before exhaling a laugh and shaking his head. “I donotdrink blood. If you’re referring to the goblet at dinner, it was just a simple magic trick. I turned the blood to dust. I’m gifted at making things disappear. I can turn myself into shadow, if I so desire. It’s convenient in a pinch.”
I’d read about each of the elements in one of the books I’d borrowed from the library, but I still had a lot to learn. I knew that shadow wielders made excellent spies. They also had the most versatility in their magic—they could turn into mist, cover themselves in darkness, or solidify their shadows and use them as a weapon.
The man before me was absolutely lethal, but I’d known that since I’d first laid eyes on him. And here I was…alone with him.“Louis tells me you’re the most powerful faerie in Nymera,” I remarked casually.
“I was—until you came along, world walker.”
