“Fine,” Alaric ground out. “But I don’t appreciate being blindsided by this plan. You’re playing it up like it’s all pretend, but I haven’t missed the heated looks Vail has sent you since returning from the temple, and I know there is something else going on with Kieran that the two of you are keeping from me. I’m tired of being kept in the dark.”
“Oh?” I cracked an eye open from my pastry-derived bliss. “Care to enlighten me as to why you’re refusing to drink blood then?”
“I’m not refusing.”
Pastry bliss officially over.
I leaned across the table and extended my arm to him, my wrist facing up. “Then have a drink.” Turquoise flashed across Alaric’s light green eyes so fast, I barely caught it. When he made no move to take my offer, I withdrew and crossed my arms. “Kieran will tell you when he’s ready. I’m not telling you his secrets, just as I wouldn’t tell him yours.”
“Fair enough.” Muscles flexed along his jawline. “And Vail?”
“Honestly . . . I don’t understand what’s going on between me and Vail. He might actually be more confusing and frustrating than you at this point.” Alaric snorted, and I gave him a tired smile. “It’ll just be easier if you ask him. Trust me.”
“Alright.” Alaric stood and straightened his midnight blue tunic. “We’ll meet you in the library in a bit.”
I nodded, my thoughts already drifting to my plans and what Roth might have discovered. It took me a minute to realize Alaric was still standing there and looking . . . nervous. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d seen Alaric look nervous. In fact, I wasn’t sure if I ever had. “Is there something else?”
“If . . .” He trailed off and swallowed. “If the offer of your . . . blood . . . is still on the table later . . .” Alaric released the buttons he’d been fidgeting with and met my eyes. “I’ll take you up on it.”
I blinked. “Really?”
“Yes,” he rushed on. “But it has to be somewhere private.”
“Damn,” I drawled. “There go my plans of straddling you in the hallway of the main tower entrance.”
“Samara,” he said warningly, and I grinned as some of the tension eased from his face.
“Whatever you need, Alaric,” I said before he could change his mind. “We can do it after the meeting if you’d like.”
He hesitated for a moment before jerking his head in agreement. “Alright.”
I watched as he practically fled from the kitchen, and then I rose and wandered over to Leora, who had returned to the large workstation and was rolling out dough in perfect rectangles. She shot me an amused glance before passing me a bowl of raspberry jelly. “Spread this in a thin layer while I roll out the next one.”
“Sure.” I set to work, spreading the thick, dark purple filling across the dough. Leora had been in charge of the kitchens of House Harker for longer than I’d been alive, and I always enjoyed coming in here. Not just to sneak treats but because there was something relaxing about helping her cook and bake things. Sometimes I’d be here for hours and we’d barely talk. I knew others did the same. There was just something calming about being in Leora’s kitchen.
“Any advice?” I asked after I’d moved on to the third rectangle of dough.
Leora smiled as she started rolling up the first piece and then sliced it into thick discs. “You really did go out of your way to get yourself a complicated assortment of lovers.”
I huffed a laugh. “Exactly how many lovers do you think I have? Because last I checked, it wasactuallyonly two.” I thought about Alaric joining me and Kieran in my study. “Two and a half.”
The older Moroi slid me a sly glance. “Trust me, it’s a solid three. He just hasn’t realized it yet.”
“We’ll see.” I scraped out the last of the filling, put the bowl aside, and started rolling up the dough. I could never get it as perfectly even as Leora, but it’d still taste fine.
“Alaric will come around.” Leora paused, and I felt her concerned gaze on me, so I glanced up from my less thanperfect rolled out dough. “It’s the Marshal and the prince who worry me.”
“Leora—” I started, but she waved her hand in the air, cutting me off.
“I know you can take care of yourself.” She patted me on the cheek. “But you always worry about everyone else, Samara. Many of us care deeply for you, my darling girl. So we’ll worry about you too.”
She went back to rolling her dough, and I did the same. When I finished, we moved on to the next round. “I can’t help but notice that wasn’t advice,” I pointed out.
Leora laughed. “That’s because I don’t have any, and I was hoping you wouldn’t notice. I think you’re fucked in more ways than one.”
“Thanks.” I shook my head ruefully because she was probably right.
My damp hairsoaked into my robe as I contemplated all the things we needed to discuss at the upcoming meeting. I’d returned to my suite to rinse off because I’d somehow managed to get flour all over me and raspberry jelly in my hair.
