Page 21 of Of Curses and Beauty

The witch was right. She was beautiful.

Chapter 17

Alaine

Alainesatup,instantlyalert. “What is it? Has something happened?” She cast around for any hint of danger but she saw no one other than Daric, knife drawn as he stood above her. Old habits had her flinching away before she could remember herself, remember who was with her. She trusted Daric enough to know he wouldn’t hurt her. She didn’t know how that trust had been built in so short a time, but she didn’t question it.

Daric’s eyes darted away from her and he rubbed a hand down the back of his neck. “The witch was just here.”

“What?” she screeched, jumping to her feet. “Why didn’t you wake me? What did she want?” Her emotions were bouncing from shock to anger to relief that he was okay. That last one brought her back to shock, unsure when had she begun to care about his well-being.

“I think she had you spelled. She cut off all the sound in the room.”

She sensed there was more he wasn’t telling her as he shifted from side to side. His eyes continued to look anywhere but at her and a growing sense of dread took root in her gut.

“Well?” She waved her arms, drawing his attention back. His eyes searched her face and immediately flicked away. Reflexively, she brought her hand to her face, probing fingers searching for any new flaws the witch may have inflicted. When her search came up empty, she reached out to Daric, taking his hand in hers and squeezing firmly. “Talk to me. What did she want?”

He shook his head mutely and her frustration rose. She gripped his hand tighter, causing him to wince. “What did she do, Daric?” Her voice rose in pitch with her panic and he seemed to finally realize what keeping her in the dark was doing to her.

“She only came to play. We’re her entertainment.” He spat the last word like it left a foul taste in his mouth. “Nothing happened. Well…” He winced again, but this time it wasn’t from her grip. His eyes met hers, finally holding her imploring gaze. “Almost nothing happened.”

“What is that supposed to mean?” Rather than alleviate her fears, his cryptic answers only magnified them. She released his hand, stepping away to catch her breath. It was so hard to breathe around Daric, but she didn’t have the time to analyze that reaction either. This night was full of unexpected revelations.

She rubbed damp palms down the front of her skirt, catching sight of her frenzied face in the looking glass above the mantel, and stopped cold.

Her face.

Herface.

She gasped, mimicking the sound Daric had made when she’d awoken. Tentatively, she traced the contours of her face, wondering how she failed to notice the difference when she’d felt it earlier. She whirled and found Daric watching her with barely veiled concern.

“You can see me. The real me, I mean. My real face.”

He only nodded, seeming at a loss for words.

She wasn’t sure how she felt about him seeing her. It had been a relief of sorts to hide behind the face that wasn’t her own. She’d felt no attachment to it and thus harbored no resentment at its criticism. But with it gone came all her old fears, the expectation that she owed the world her beauty and it owed her nothing in return; the subsequent need to prove she was more than her outward appearance, that the sum of her parts included her mind, her heart, and her soul.

Alaine turned to face Daric fully, lifting her chin to meet his eyes as defiance blazed from her own. “And?” she asked. “What do you see?”

It took Daric a moment to answer and she worried she’d pushed him past his comfort. They might have shared an intimate few days together, but before those days, they were strangers.

His focus shifted from her eyes and she felt the brush of his gaze as it roamed her features. It didn’t burn as Baxter’s had. Rather, it was a caress, light as a feather, gently stroking her face.

His eyes returned to hers and she saw no hint of the possessiveness she often found in the eyes of men. In fact, he looked at her as he always had, without judgment or pity. It warmed her to see no change in him.

“I see the same young woman who accepted a terrible fate with grace, who lit up with the discovery of a library, whose kindness and stubbornness brought a smile to a face I wasn’t sure capable of the feat.” He stepped closer, invading her space, but she welcomed the closeness, inhaling his scent of pine and wood smoke. “Youarebeautiful. It is impossible not to see it. But your face is only a reflection of the woman I know within.”

Alaine glowed from the inside out. She’d been complimented before, but this was different. Daricsawher, beyond the pretty picture her features painted. Her cheeks hurt from the joy that pulled up the corners of her mouth, but it was worth it to see the same smile mirrored on Daric’s face. As one, they fell into each other, wrapping themselves in a comforting embrace that felt as natural as falling asleep.

Is this what it feels like to fall in love?Alaine thought, immediately striking the thought from her mind. People didn’t fall in love after only knowing each other for three days. Stepping away, her smile transformed into something shy and tentative as Daric’s hands lingered at her elbows.

“I should probably go to bed,” she said.

“Right. Sure.” His voice was more gravelly than usual and he cleared his throat as his hands fell to his sides.

Her instincts roared at her to step back into his arms, already missing their warmth and steadiness. She fought the desire, for the sake of her hopeless heart, if nothing else.

Her feet pointed in her intended direction, but she couldn’t make them move. It was almost like she wanted to live in this night forever, not that she needed to add another aspect to this curse.

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