Finger by finger, he worked his hand free of my shirt just to reach up and touch his lower lip. "I like girls," he muttered.
"Me too." I had to choke back a laugh. "And you're cute, Torian, but - "
"Tor," he said, flicking his eyes up to meet mine again. "My friends call me that."
"You said I couldn't."
"That was then." An almost confused smile flickered across his face. "I'm still a monster,Keir."
I just shrugged that off. "A certain girl I know reminded me that merely makes you fae. Kinda the only thing that matters, right?"
"A fae monster," he said, "is still a monster."
I nodded, making it clear I'd heard him. "Yeah, and also a person. I keep telling you, we're on the same side."
"Which side is that?"
I lifted my hand to caress his cheek. My thumb trailed over those perfect cheekbones of his. "I should probably say Aspen's, but I'm starting to think it's really Rain's side."
"Yeah," he breathed, dropping his head just to press it into my chest. "That's the right side." And then his shoulders trembled. "Keir? Don't let me break."
"You got this," I assured him.
"But that's the thing." He pulled in a deep breath. "I don't. I really fucking don't, but someone has to."
"Thenwe'vegot this," I said. "And if kissing me helps, feel free to do it all you want."
He swallowed so hard I heard him, then pulled back so he could see me again. "She doesn't know about the scars."
"Aspen?"
He shook his head. "Rain."
"Tell her when you're ready." And I let him go. "Tor, should we talk about this?"
His lips curled at the shortened version of his name, but he shook his head. "No. I'm fine, Keir. I just needed to get out of my own head for a moment."
"Ok." I stepped back. "So you know, I expected you to hit me."
"Yeah, I did too."
I turned for my room, deciding I needed to rethink everything. Torian Hunt was not a kid. He also wasn't a monster. He might be a weapon, but I was pretty sure I'd just seen a side of him no one else ever had. Maybe not even his sister. The real question was what I should do with all of this.
For now, I decided, I'd do nothing. And yet, the taste of him lingered on my tongue.
Chapter Fifty-Seven
KEIR
Ichecked on both Rain and Aspen by text. The girls tormented me, each one texting me even though they were sitting side by side. It made me smile. They were cute, and everything about their relationship made me happy. Knowing that Aspen wasn't upset by the day's events helped even more.
The one thing I didn't think about was that kiss. I pushed it out of my mind, reminding myself Torian wasn't into guys. It meant nothing. He'd merely been frustrated and without any other way to vent. Besides, kissing hurt a lot less than the punch I'd expected, so I'd take it.
But when my alarm went off the next morning, my mind jumped right to that mess. Specifically to the scars on Torian's back. He was just akid! Well, when he'd been given those marks, he had been. For an adult to do that to achild? Even a wildling one?
I couldn't wrap my mind around it, and if anything, it made me more convinced the Mad Queen had gone completely insane. Fae didnotharm children. They were a treasure. We had so few of them that each and every one should be pampered and adored - not left with scars crisscrossing their backs!
I also knew Torian wouldn't want my sympathy, so I didn't give him any. Finding a clean uniform, I may have put a little extra effort into my hair, and then left for my first class of the day. This was the only downside of Silver Oaks. Unlike a normal university, our class schedule was strict andstructured. Just like high school, we had classes from eight in the morning until at least two every afternoon. Often later.
