Page 55 of Ties of Deception

Patience was gone just like that? “But what happened?”

Charity shrugged. “How should I know?” Although the malicious look in her eyes showed me she already did. She leaned in close. “If you wish to save yourself some embarrassment, go home now. You have nothing to gain here. This competition is between me and Constance. Anyone else is collateral.” She grinned, then strode away, her form quickly swallowed by the layers of billowing curtains.

I released a long breath, trying to still my heart. What had she done to sabotage Patience? And was she planning to do the same with me? Or was this an empty threat to make me worry over nothing and lose confidence? Either way, I wasn’t backing down.

I turned to walk back toward my rooms, wondering if Flavia would be able to get any more information. The servants were always gossiping and were always present when the prince formally met with a Grace.

I walked down the corridor, my mood even lower than before, despite my determination. The stress of the last few weeks was getting to me. I rubbed my forehead. If I couldn’t get my emotions in check soon, somebody might notice I wasn’t Blessing everything I passed, and then I’d be in trouble—worse trouble if I lost control and broke something. The empress would have me gone in a heartbeat. I straightened my back and tried to walk with more self-assurance.

A long, heavy velvet curtain to my right rustled, and a hand reached out and grabbed my arm. I managed half a scream before I was yanked behind the fabric and a hand clamped over my mouth.

I was about to knee my attacker between the legs when he stepped back in the sudden gloom, his finger on his lips—Ethen. “It’s me, it’s just me.”

I panted to catch my breath. “You scared the life out of me.”

He grinned with an apologetic tilt to his eyes. “I’m sorry. I was trying to be romantic.”

“How is grabbing me and pulling me behind a curtain romantic?” Even as I said the words, he stepped forward again. There was little space between the curtain and the wall and he took up most of it. A large fern in a planter behind him shielded us from any light peeping from the other side.

“Well, I missed you. Being close to you and ignoring you is hard. I could tell you didn’t enjoy it yesterday either.”

I folded my arms. “Do you have to act quite so cold?”

He grimaced. “I do. They can’t suspect a thing, especially after the incident on the balcony where you cracked the palace.” He tapped me on the nose. “I also have to make up for your terrible acting.”

My mouth fell open in indignation. “I’m not that bad.”

He grinned and pushed a strand of hair behind my ear, his fingers whispering over my skin. “When I left, you practically glared at me. And you certainly weren’t Blessing anything.”

I looked down, deflated. He was right. I could easily ruin our whole facade if I continued to let myself feel like this. “I’m sorry. I’ll manage my feelings better next time.”

He shook his head, his grin just as wide. “It was actually quite reassuring to see how much it bothered you when I ignored you.”

I opened my mouth and then closed it again, annoyed at the observation but unable to deny it or think of a witty retort.

His smile softened. “You have always been somebody who feels deeply, Purity, and that isn’t a bad thing. You are a woman of action, honesty, and empathy. The life of a Grace was never going to suit you. This is not where you belong. And you are doing a great job at helping me find out what is going on here. I’m grateful.”

I took a deep breath. “Still. I won’t glare at you next time.”

He stepped even closer and hooked a finger under my chin, lifting my face to meet his eyes. His expression was serious. “Just remember, what I show out there isn’t real. This is real, even if I can only remind you behind drawn curtains. I’m devoted to nobody and nothing as much as I am to you.”

My lips parted as his words stole the oxygen in my lungs. I couldn’t look away from his eyes, my body completely frozen. He leaned forward, placing his hands on the wall to either side of my head, caging me in—his lips stopped half an inch from mine as if waiting for permission. My heart was thudding hard enough to bruise my ribcage. “I want you to be sure, Purity.”

Everything about him overwhelmed me, and yet I still wanted more. I tilted my chin forward and our lips brushed. The contact was brief and tingling, but a surge of sensation crashed through my whole body. I was suddenly acutely aware of every part of me and every part of him. I lifted my hands to his broad shoulders, then his neck, amazed that I was doing this. I was the one courting the fearsome and handsome god of death when anyone else would be running in the opposite direction. But he was…everything. Intoxicating. And I couldn’t deny how attracted I was to him.

His eyes didn’t leave mine as I pushed one hand into the thick, cool strands of his hair and pulled his head back down, wanting to kiss him again. This time our lips met hard enough to push me back against the wall. He came closer, his hands moving up the wall until they were above my head and he was leaning on his elbows, reducing the space around us—between us. My chest tightened with strange yet pleasant sensations at the sweetness of a kiss I never wanted to end.

But he broke away and stepped back. I almost pulled him back to me, but he caught my hands and instead brought them to his lips, placing a tender kiss on each finger. I stared at him, entranced by the gentleness that cut such a contrast to his obvious strength.

Then I saw the fern behind him and gasped. The large fern had died, but dozens of new ferns had risen in its place, crowding out the dead leaves with healthy shoots, far too many to fit in the planter. As I studied it more closely, I noticed that some of the new ones had withered too as tiny new offspring crowded their base. Whole life cycles of life and death had occurred when we kissed.

He followed my attention. “Hmm, I think life and death were pretty evenly matched here.”

I stared at it a moment longer. “Your powers of death…are they controlled by emotion like mine? It just seems strange that things would die when you’re happy. Depressing really. Anything you took joy in would die.”

He chuckled, but the sound was only half there. “No. My powers of death are constant. Everything in the world is slowly dying all the time.”

I grimaced. “That’s hardly less depressing.”

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