Page 17 of Ruling Destiny

Slowly, I turn. I mean, what choice do I have?

“Whatcha up to, Shiv?” His bright blue eyes shine on mine. His lips ease into a grin.

“N-nothing,” I stammer.Seriously. What is wrong with me? Pull it together already!

“Sure looks like nothing.” His grin grows wider. He offers his arm. “What do you say I save you from whatever this is, and you and I go grab a coffee somewhere?”

I glance longingly at the door, then back at Killian.

Left with no other choice, I flip my hood back and step toward him.

10

“Where are you taking me?” I ask, gesturing around the hall Killian is currently leading me down. “Because this is definitely not the way to the Spring room.”

“That’s because we’re not going to the Spring room,” he says.

I stop in my tracks. Killian takes an additional step, then turns to face me.

“Do you really think it’s a good idea for us to enjoy a coffee somewhere as public as that?” he asks.

He makes a good point, but still I hesitate.

“Can you at least try to trust me?” His blue eyes plead with mine. “After all, I did save your life.”

I shake my head and frown. “Not this again.”

Killian laughs.

“And, while we’re on the subject, stop calling me ‘Shiv.’” I cross my arms against my chest, wanting him to know that I’m serious.

Killian nods and starts walking again. After he takes a few steps, I rush to catch up.

“So, let me get this straight.” He turns my way, and since he’s got a good seven inches on me, he’s forced to dip his chin to meet my gaze. “I can’t call you ‘Shiv,’ and we both know ‘darling’ is out. Discovered that one the hard way. Though I have heard a few people around here call you ‘Tasha.’”

“Braxton,” I say, my voice edged with annoyance. “Braxton is the only one who calls me Tasha. Which is why it’s off-limits to you.”

“Fair enough.” He nods. “Maybe Nat, then?”

“No.” The word practically leaps off my tongue, which of course prompts him to give me an appraising once-over. Still, I won’t back down. Nat reminds me of the worst version of myself, the girl I was before I came here. The apathetic, self-sabotaging loser who was failing at pretty much every aspect of life.

“Can you help me out here?” he says. “Because I’m all out of options.”

“You can call me Natasha,” I say. “My actual name is Natasha Antoinette Clarke. See, there’s three names. You’re free to choose among them.”

Killian shakes his head. “Sorry,” he says. “I just don’t see you that way. Maybe you should make up a new name, like virtually everyone else in this place. You think your boy was always named Braxton?”

Killian glances down at me again, but I just shrug it off, not wanting to let on how much he’s surprised me.

If Braxton isn’t his real name, then what is it—and why did he change it—and why has he never told me?

“You think Elodie Blue is the name on her birth certificate?” Killian continues, drawing me away from my thoughts.

I shrug. Having already guessed that about Elodie, I say, “And who were you before you became Killian du Luce?” I narrow my gaze, realizing that, despite sharing the bond of a harrowing experience, I know virtually nothing about him.

Killian grins. “Nice try. But we’re talking aboutyou. And I gotta say, you’ll always be ‘Shiv’ to me. Sorry, friend. It just suits you.”

I breathe a frustrated sigh, but really I’m still caught on him calling me friend. I mean, I know that’s the best way to describe us, but it still strikes me as sad that we’re forced to hide that fact from everyone else.

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