Page 42 of The Other Side of the Mirror

When I nodded, he deliberately raised his hand again, running the backs of his fingers against my cheek. When I didn’t pull away, his thumb slowly traced my lower lip, his eyes fixed on me as if mesmerized. My skin tingled at the contact. I couldn’t have moved if I tried.

Aviel’s hand moved to the nape of my neck as his eyes searched mine. “All I ask is that you give this a chance and let us get to know each other. Then, perhaps, the binding of our souls will cause a ripple effect in the magic of the land. Or at least that’s what my advisors are hoping will happen.”

I was struggling to digest all this, but I nodded again. He gave me a pleased look before dropping his hand.

“One more question.”

“I doubt that.” He gave me a knowing smile, and I couldn’t help my sheepish grin.

“Why are you referred to as the crown prince? Wouldn’t you be High King?”

“I swore to the realm that I would wait for your return before going through the Choosing,” Aviel said to my surprise. “I’ve been waiting a long time for you, Evangeline. We all have.”

He reached out his hand. I paused infinitesimally before taking it.

“You can call me Eva.”

Aviel repeated my name as if seeing how it felt on his lips. They curved up in a polished smile. Then he pulled me forward with a small tug.

“Come. Let me show you to your rooms.”

He placed our joined hands in the crook of his elbow like he didn’t want to let me go now that he had finally found me. Then led me back inside the glistening walls of my new home.

Chapter19

Eva

Istared out at the forest from high above, watching the rain come down. It fell through the shimmering mist that hovered above the treetops before disappearing from view. I had found this little nook in a library near my rooms almost immediately after Aviel led me to them. He had promised he would see me for dinner after I had a chance to settle in, telling me to get some rest after my long journey from the mortal realm. But I couldn’t stay put andnotexplore, no matter how extravagant my lodgings. Especially after I had seen the rows of books through the library’s open doorway as we passed it on the way to my rooms.

Aviel had also mentioned offhandedly that the closed doors in the center of my bedroom led directly to his chambers. I couldn’t help but stare at them after he left. Those doors had loomed in my periphery as I unpacked the few items I brought with me before fleeing to the library.

Besides, the cushioned window seat looking high over the forest below had practically begged for me to curl up and read while providing me a glorious perch amongst the clouds. The library was its own kind of magic, books and manuscripts surrounding me on every shelf, stacked high to the ceiling on glossy white bookshelves. It would have been a travesty not to climb the attached rolling ladders.

Books had always been there for me—an escape when I needed it the most. It had felt like home to walk through the towering stacks, breathing in the musty smell of old paper and leather bindings. I hadn’t been able to help but run my fingers along their spines until I found a volume on Agadot’s history to peruse. Perhaps I would even find a mention of that bronze castle somewhere within its pages.

My finger paused on a passage about theanimabond and its effect on royal alliances before I snapped the book shut. I could admit, at least to myself, how much it scared me that after spending so long guarding my heart, I had somehow gone from utter emotional unavailability to believing in soulmates. I felt my face flush at the thought of Aviel’s thumb tracing my lip earlier, though his finger suddenly turned into Bash’s hungry mouth, parting my lips with his tongue. I nearly groaned aloud as heat flooded my cheeks before I blinked the memory away.

Despite the chill, I tipped a window open, but the scent of the rain-soaked woods brought me straight back to Bash. And suddenly, all I could think about was the slump of his shoulders when he turned to leave.

My pointer finger was on my palm before I could second guess the impulse, but it froze there, unsure of what to say. I started writing before I could let myself think too hard about it.

Hi. Testing to see if this really works or if you just wanted spontaneous matching tattoos.

The words appeared as though I was writing in the iridescent ink that covered my right hand—shrinking to fit my palm, before disappearing entirely. It was easier to write than I thought it would be, each word flowing from my finger before I finished the curve of their first letter like the magic was reading my thoughts. The quill on my palm had faded to a muted shimmer after Bash left, but it glowed with the same strength of when I received it now that it was in use.

I held my breath, waiting for him to respond. Then, there was a warm tingle on my left palm, and his words appeared above my scar all at once. The lanky scrawl was so unmistakably him that my breath caught.

And here I thought I was being crafty about my true intentions. I should have known you would see right through me.

There was a flutter in my chest, and I could almost hear his husky voice in my head—the smile in it. I pictured the look that would be on his face and realized that, somewhere along our journey, I had memorized its striking contours, along with each subtle line of his countenance.

There’s no need to miss him, I told myself sternly.

The churning in my stomach didn’t abate in the least.

Did you make it back home okay? All of you?

The second part may have been an afterthought, but at least the message sent all at once. His response was quick, like he had been staring at his palm with the same bated breath as I was.

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