Page 54 of Stolen Magic

And for that moment, it was enough.

“Thank you,” I murmured. “For coming when you did, for lying to the king, for trusting me…even when I’m not sure I deserve it.”

“I don’t know what you’re carrying, but we’re not meant to bear our burdens alone. After all, we’re partners now.” He offered a sweet, sincere smile that nestled into my chest, enfolding my heart with its tenderness. Once I would have feared this feeling, but now I finally allowed myself to bask in it.

I hadn’t meant to reach for his hand, and didn’t even realize I had until my fingers were curled around his. His skin was warm, solid,real. His thumb stroked gently over mine, slow and sure. We stood hand in hand beneath the paling stars, two broken souls finding something whole in each other’s presence. The sun rose gradually beyond the distant hills, and for once I let myself believe it might be rising for me, too.

When the time eventually came for us to part, he walked me back to my room. At the corridor leading to my chambers, we paused. He didn’t say goodnight or offer any formal farewell, he simply looked at me as though memorizing who I was in this moment—the girl no longer hiding behind masks.

Just before turning to go, he reached out with the gentlest touch and tucked a loose strand of hair behind my ear. It was a simple gesture, almost delicate, but with the way his fingers lingered just a heartbeat too long, the tenderness in his eyes like he was trying not to fall…all made it feel like something more, an emotion I still wasn’t ready to name.

And then he was gone.

I stood in the quiet hallway long after his footsteps faded, my hand slowly rising to where he had touched me. And for the first time in a long while, I didn’t feel like I was slipping back into the person I used to be—I felt like someone new, someone who just maybe might be worth caring for.

CHAPTER 19

Myst crouched on the windowsill, tail curled tightly around her paws. Her silver fur still shimmered faintly, the last, misty traces of the spell she had cast to prevent Callan and me from kissing. Her eyes glowed faintly, narrowed in sharp disapproval as she watched me fasten the pendant Callan had carved for me back around my neck.

“So,” she said coolly. “It appears you’ve decided to keep playing house with the prince.”

I didn’t answer right away. My fingers lingered over the wooden charm, letting its warmth settle against my skin.

Myst leapt down from the sill with a graceful flick of her tail. “You might think trusting in his honor will somehow lead to salvation instead of ruin, but in truth you’ve lost sight of your purpose—you’ve forgotten why we came here.”

“I haven’t forgotten,” I said softly.

“Then why are you risking everything for the enemy? The more you linger in this illusion, the deeper you will fall for him, and the more dangerous this foolish game becomes. We came here to reclaim what was stolen, not to offer your heart to the very people who took it.”

My hand tightened around my pendant, the carved fleur-de-lis imprinting its shape. “He’s not like them.”

Myst’s ears flattened. “He’s his father’s son.”

“He isnothis father.” I snapped. “Callan is no more responsible for his father’s cruelty than I am for the wonders my mother’s magical talent once created. He has shown me nothing but kindness. He treats me not like a pawn, but like someone worth seeing.”

My voice wavered, and only by voicing these words out loud did I fully understand how much this gesture had meant to me.

“That's what makes him so dangerous.” Myst’s tone had lowered, no longer reprimanding but still cautious. Her warning might have once seduced me, but I could no longer be swayed by the darkness I’d succumbed to for so long.

“No.” I turned to face her fully, holding her glowing gaze without fear. “Trust and compassion are not what are dangerous, but the prison of grudges I’ve built from the ruins of my past. I’ve let grief and vengeance guide me for so long I’d forgotten part of me was still capable of joy. I’ve spent so long pretending, lying, and hiding, even from myself. But when I’m with him, I forget to be sad or afraid, and instead remember who I used to be—and the woman I might have become if I’d chosen a different path the day I lost everything.”

Myst’s silver eyes were unreadable.

I looked down at the faint seal still glowing within my clenched palm, then out toward the gardens beyond the glass. The moment spent with Callan beneath the gazebo hadn’t changed me so much as it had simply revealed a truth I’d hidden even from myself. The rain had washed away more than my disguise—it had illuminated what I could no longer deny: he had seen me and had still chosen to stay.

I pressed a hand over the place where the pendant rested just above my heart. “I’m in love with him. And I will no longer let you sabotage what’s become the most important part of my life.”

A long silence passed, yet though she clearly still disapproved, for once Myst didn’t argue but simply watched me, the quiet weight of her gaze lingering like a shadow I no longer feared.

Now that I had spoken the truth aloud, I wanted to embark on the new path my realization had opened to me. I departed to seek out the object of my newfound affection.

The corridors were quiet, the hush of morning broken only by the distant clatter of guards changing shifts and the occasional echo of courtly footsteps. I moved quickly, the soft rustle of my skirts barely audible as I rounded the corner near the council chamber where Callan had said he’d spend the morning in meetings.

I hadn’t meant to wander this far; I only wanted to find him. After everything that had passed between us the night before—the rain, the confession, his acceptance—I couldn’t bear to spend another moment apart. I needed to see his face again, to bask in the warmth of the fragile connection we’d forged. I didn’t know what I would say, I just needed to be near him.

But as I neared the chamber doors, raised voices caused me to still, my hand half poised to knock. “…do not lie to me, Callan.” The king’s voice rang sharp and cold, slicing through the thick wood chamber door.

Heart hammering, I pressed my back against the stone wall as I strained to listen.

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