Page 107 of A Court Bright and Broken

His prominent forehead was smooth now, the strong lines of his cheekbones and jaw gilded by the light of the moon. Stellon’s mouth was slightly parted, revealing the white gleam of his upper teeth from between his full lips.

Looking at them, I couldn’t help but think of the kiss we’d shared. It was hard to believe my first kiss had been with an actual prince—an Elven one at that.

But in spite of his ridiculous attractiveness and his royal status, we were the same in many ways. Our feelings were the same. At least it had seemed that way while we’d been kissing—the firstandsecond time.

He’d seemed every bit as affected by it as I was. Had he thought about it as much as I had?

A dream must have disturbed him because he jolted in his sleep and made a noise. I hurriedly flipped onto my other side in case the nightmare woke him, scolding myself for the indulgence of staring so long.

Stellon was like the fine goods in the markets that I’d admired and even picked up from time to time but always put back because I couldn’t afford them.

There was no point in getting carried away by his looks—or any of his other appeals.

I was human. He was Elven.

And he was about to marry a wealthy, refined, and no doubt beautiful, Elven woman. Eventhinkingof him in that way was foolishness.

It couldn’t be helped that I ended up dreaming about him all night long.

When I woke the next morning, Stellon was already awake.

He sat propped up against the headboard, a sketchpad in one hand and a charcoal pencil gripped in the other, drawing as he looked at me.

When he saw my eyelids flutter open, he smiled.

“Good morning, Firebug. Sleep well?”

His voice sounded rougher than usual. Deeper.

The sound of it set off the same kind of tremors in my stomach I’d felt lying beside him last night.

“Yes,” I whispered, feeling embarrassed. “And you?”

“Like a rock. I feel like myself again.”

“What are you drawing?” I asked.

Nowhelooked embarrassed. “You. I hope that doesn’t bother you. You just looked so…”

His words trailed off, and his cheeks colored. “I’ve never had the opportunity to draw someone at rest before.”

Really? I’d have bet our new garden that Stellon had woken up with scores of women in the past, and I knew how much he loved to draw people.

“Can I see it?”

He bit his lip, looking apprehensive, but turned the pad of paper to me so I could see his work.

“Wow. You’re so good.” My heart fluttered as I examined the image.

Stellon had portrayed me as much more beautiful than I actually was. Artistic license at work, I supposed.

“I’m sorry if you don’t find it flattering,” he said. “I enjoy drawing, but I’m not skilled enough to fully capture your beauty.”

Now it was my turn to blush.

“No, I… I’m flattered. May I see the others?”

I reached for the pad, and after a moment of hesitation, he let it go. I pushed up to one elbow, setting the collection of his work in front of me on the bed so I could leaf through it.

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