Page 153 of Children of Blood and Bone

I look past him to the dancing divîners, catching sight of the young boy I danced with in the crowd. Salim spins himself in so many circles he tumbles into the grass.

Inan drops his hand from my cheek and interlaces his fingers with mine; his warmth spreads over me like a soft blanket as he pulls me into his arms. “I know we’re meant to work together.” He lowers his voice to a whisper. “I think… we’re meant to be together.”

His words make my head spin. His words or the alcohol. But through the haze I know he’s right. This is the one thing that can keep everyone safe. The one decision that can end this endless fight.

“Okay.”

Inan searches me with his eyes. Hope hums around him like the faint drumbeats in the air.

“Really?”

I nod. “We’ll have to convince Tzain and Amari, but if you’re serious—”

“Zél, I’ve never been more serious about anything in my life.”

“My family will have to come to Lagos, too.”

“I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

“And you still have to rebuild Ilorin—”

“It’ll be the first thing the Grounders and Tiders do!”

Before I can make another objection, Inan wraps his arms around me and spins. His smile stretches so wide it’s impossible for me not to smile back. I laugh as he sets me down, though it takes a moment for the world to stop turning.

“We probably shouldn’t decide the fate of Orïsha while spinning around in some forest.”

He mumbles in agreement, slowly sliding his hands up my sides and back up to my face. “We probably shouldn’t do this, either.”

“Inan—”

Before I can explain that we can’t, that Tzain’s ax is freshly sharpened and only a few tents away, Inan presses his lips to mine and everything fades. His kiss is tender yet forceful, gently pushing into me. And his lips… soft.

Softer than I knew lips could be.

They light every cell in my body, sending a warmth down my back. When he finally pulls away, my heart is beating so fast it feels like I’ve just finished a fight. Inan’s slow to open his eyes as a delicious smile spreads across his face.

“Sorry…” He runs his thumb over my bottom lip. “Do you want to go back in?”

Yes.

I know what I should do. What I probably need to do. But now that I’ve had a taste, every restraint in me breaks.

Inan’s eyes widen as I grab his head and force his lips back onto mine.

Restraint can wait for tomorrow.

Tonight I want him.

CHAPTER SIXTY

AMARI

IGIGGLE LIKEI haven’t in years as Tzain spins me round and round. He bends to lift me again but stops, leaving me on the ground. The smile that stretched from ear to ear drops alongside his sweat. I follow his line of sight just in time to see Inan grab Zélie’s face, embracing her with a kiss.

Skies!

A gasp slips from my lips. I sensed that something kindled between them; I just didn’t know it would ignite so soon. But observing the way Inan kisses Zélie now, more questions brew. The tender way he holds her, the way his hands roam,pullingher into him—

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