“I left,” I said hoarsely. “Or, at least, I tried to.”
“Why?” Kaden sounded genuinely curious — as if I was some riddle he couldn’t work out.
“That’s none of your business.”
“On the contrary, us working togethermakesit my business.”
An incredulous laugh slipped out of me. “We aren’t working together.”
“Not according to you. We’re conspiring, remember?”
“Conspiring to do what?”
He shrugged. “Free your friend. Get rid of Silas. Flush his hunters out of the Quarter.”
“So this is just about getting rid of Silas.”
“I didn’t say that.”
“Then whatisit about?” I snapped.
Kaden’s eyes grew stormy. “That’s my business.”
I slumped back against the booth with a huff and crossed my arms over my chest. “I’m not working with a faerie.”
“Why not?” he asked. He sounded genuinely offended. “I saved your life — not once, but twice. What reason do you have not to trust me?”
“Being fae is reason enough.”
“That’s a little closed-minded, don’t you think?”
“Maybe.”
Kaden sighed. “Doesn’t it get tiring, assuming everyone in the Quarter is out to get you?”
“It’s kept me alive so far.” I shot him a dark smile. “Plus, they usually are.”
“My, what a lovely outlook. It must get lonely being you.”
I stiffened. I knew he’d meant it as a teasing comment, but it felt like a dagger between the ribs. I looked away, not wanting him to see that he’d struck a nerve, but thankfully the waitress appeared with our food.
Plates the size of hubcaps filled the table, piled witheggs, bacon, sausage, pancakes, and biscuits drenched in gravy. She set a plate of fries and another platter of bacon in front of me, along with a giant chocolate shake topped with whipped cream and a cherry.
My stomach gave a loud growl. The last thing I’d eaten was the cereal at Imogen’s, and that felt like a lifetime ago. I grabbed a fistful of French fries and began to wolf down my food, not caring that I looked like a ravenous monster.
We ate in companionable silence, Kaden offering me one of his biscuits slathered in gravy, one gigantic pancake, and a greasy sausage link. Soon I’d devoured all of my own food plus a good portion of his.
“You eat a lot for such a small person,” he observed.
I reached over with my fork to spear his last sausage link. “You talk a lot for someone who says so little.”
Kaden threw back his head with a bark of laughter. The sound was startling after spending so much time alone in Imogen’s apartment. It made the corners of his eyes crinkle in a way that was almost human, and my stomach did a nervous little flop.
“Gods,” he said, shaking his head. “I’m going to enjoy this.”
“I still don’t understand what you get out of it,” I said.
“Is it not enough that I wish to free an innocent witch out of the goodness of my heart?”
