Page 44 of Magic of Sins

“But you kissed her.”

The look Caden gives me makes it clear how naive he thinks my statement is.

“I’m a sin mage, love,” he purrs. “I kiss who I want, when I want. But shouldn’t you be worrying about something other than my love life? You just lost the ground under your feet.”

I did. And not for the first time in the last few days.

“I feel a bit faint sometimes.” I wave it off, trying to look as unconcerned as possible. “I’m sure it’s just because I haven’t eaten today.”

I wish I could believe the lie myself. There’s something wrong with me. And Caden seems to know what it is.

“Sit down.” He points to the armchair Sasha was sitting in a few minutes before.

“I don’t plan on staying,” I say.

Something tells me I don’t want to hear what Caden has to say, but his gaze brooks no further argument. Sighing, I settle in the tan armchair. I can still feel the heat of the kiss, as if it were my lips that had been on Caden’s. I suppress the impulse to touch them. This isn’t normal. I shouldn’t feel like this.

Caden paces up and down the room. Apparently, he doesn’t quite know how or where to start. His silence is making me nervous. Even though I fear his next words, I just need him to start talking again.

“Caden?” I ask timidly.

“You need a glass of water,” he decides and disappears into an adjacent room.

His behavior doesn’t exactly help me relax. I pluck at my lip. How much worse could it get than me having to hide in the palace because sin mages are out to get me?

Caden comes back and hands me a glass of water. He squats down in front of me, looking serious. I don’t want to look at him, but somehow our gazes get entangled.

“You felt what was going on between Sasha and me, just as you felt the sin with the dancing couple at the palace.”

It’s not a question, it’s a statement. I take a big gulp of my water, but my mouth still feels dry.

“It doesn’t mean anything.”

Denial, thy name is Kaya!

“It means you’re different.”

“I’m not,” I retort harshly.

Different is bad. Different means standing out, and in Virtue, that kind of thing never ends well.

“It means you’re like me,” Caden says quietly, not taking his eyes off mine.

Like him.

The words squeeze all the air out of my lungs. I give a stifled gasp. The glass slips from my hand and shatters on the wooden floorboards, water spilling everywhere. Neither Caden nor I pay it any mind. We look at each other, and time seems to stand still. In his eyes, I see a truth I can’t—won’t—grasp.

Like him.

“What are you saying?”

My voice is a hoarse croak, the words so soft I’m not sure he heard them.

Then Caden voices what I’ve suspected but didn’t want to admit to myself. And it’s like the rug is pulled out from under me.

“You are a sin mage, Kaya.”

Chapter Thirteen

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