Page 191 of Elven Crown

Maxwell’s eyes narrowed for a fraction of a second before his perpetual scowl covered it back up again. “That elf endangerseverything and everyone around him. He’s immature, he’s reckless, and he doesn’t give a shit about following orders.

“Come to think of it…” He paused to look her up and down, then tilted his head. “He reminds me very much of you.”

She scoffed. “Okay, well let’s not lump all elves together in the same pile, shall we?”

“Why not,? he asked, completely deadpan.

“Why not? Because it doesn’t work that way. We’re not all the same, and that’s an unfair assumption. I’ve earned a little more credit than that by now, don’t you think?”

“So youdoagree with me about him.”

“Yes. Of course I agree with you.. You practically took the words out of my mouth, Hannigan. Everything you said about him is absolutely true—”

“Then why do you insist on giving him one chance after another no matter how many times he fails to live up to expectations?” he snarled.

Rebecca tried to roll her eyes—to stay calm and act casual and in control.

But it felt like every time the shifter’s voice intensified, every time those luminous silver eyes of his flashed, the dark, shivering pull between them, the energy of his presence and his closeness tingling across her skin like a ripple of electricity, made it impossible.

Great.

Now she had to focus on calming her breath too, because even that was quickening out of control.

“I wouldn’t say he’s failing to live up toexpectations…”

“Fine, then.” Maxwell grunted. “What wouldyoucall it?”

“I see it more as not having stepped into his full potential. Yet.”

The shifter’s next snarl as he spun away from her in an aggravated circle only made the tingling worse.

Rebecca was glad he’d turned away, but only because the sensation had made her shiver.

She was trying to have a real conversation with him. Why did that stupid tingle have to get in the way of it?

“I thought you were better than this,” Maxwell hissed as he whirled to face her again.

It took a surprising amount of effort to recollect herself before he looked at her again—to hide that shudder of uninvited longing, that tingling pull, that recognition between them begging her, luring her ever closer before he could pick up on it.

Now she had to act like everything was fine. Like all of this was normal.

Except his words.

“Hold on a second,” she argued. “Don’t make this about me. We’re talking about you and Blackmoon.I’mnot the one who tried to start a fistfight right after we already battled a couple dozen…whoever the hell these guys were. And won. This is aboutyou and him.”

“Fine,” Maxwell snapped, looming closer. “I’ll keep it about him. Blackmoon doesn’t belong here. He obviously has no respect for Shade. He never did. That was perfectly clear from the beginning. She never should have allowed him on this mission tonight, and somehow, despite everything he’s done to prove me right, you still insisted on bringing him along.

“So now I need to know what it is about him that makes you forget every valid reason to stick him back in a holding room until he realizes he has no other option. What doyousee that I don’t?”

She couldn’t give him an answer to that. Not at any detailed level the way he wanted.

But as they stood there backstage, staring at each other, this unknownthingflared between them again, and she still didn’t understand it.

Even as it scrambled her thoughts and made her want to be physically closer while her rational mind screamed at her to run and get out while she still could.

Rebecca couldn’t bring herself to lie to him. Not fully. Not all the way.

Like a physical block inside her mind incapacitating her ability to deceive.

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