Page 83 of Moonmarked

I turned around, lips stretching into a smile, to find both men looking at me from the middle of the clearing. I showed them the piece of rock and I felt so damn proud it was ridiculous.

“I won,” I said, though I wouldn’t have if it wasn’t for Rune.

Either way, they both started to clap their hands and smile at me—and Rune looked damn proud of me, too.

twenty-seven

It wassilly to feel sogiddyfor winning a round of a fae game, but I’d lie if I said my mood didn’t improve a little.

Or maybe it was just Rune.

His shoulders weren’t as rigid as in the beginning, and he was smiling that half smile at Lyall more, and even replying to his comments when he teased him, too.

But we walked for a few minutes only, down the clearing and through large oak trees that made me consider that this playground might be endless—and then Round Three began.

We heard the water coursing at first, and I imagined something small—like a pool or spring or something.

Instead, we found ourselves at the edge of a river at least thirty feet wide, the dark water coursing down it so fast like it was angry. Like it was furious for whatever reason.

“I haven’t played this one before,” Lyall said, looking ahead at the trees on the other side, not smiling for the moment as he stood there between Rune and me.

“What do you mean? Do the games change?” I asked.

“Of course. You rarely play the same one twice,” Lyall said. “This playground was built by the best illusion weavers in our realm, and its magic is still unparalleled four hundred years later.”

Well, fuck.“That’s a lot.” To think that this had been here, indeed, forfourcenturies made me feel so small. And the idea that it changed, that every time you played the games were different?

Yeah, I was definitely a believer that this place had no end.

“It is. I’ve heard of this game, though. It’s…atrickyone.”

I turned to find that Rune was looking at him, too. “Tricky?” he asked.

Lyall actually flinched. “This river slips into your mind when the game begins and tries to play with it. It finds the deepest desires inside you, and puts them within your reach,” he said. “Our job? We have torejectit.”

I shook my head, looking at the dark water of the river with a new light now. “I don’t think I want to play this game,” I muttered.

Lyall smiled a little as he looked at me. “Too late now. The playground chose it for us. May the best of us win.” And he gave me a wink.

“But how…”

The question died on my tongue when suddenly the surface of the river began to turn white.

The color of it didn’t change, though. But the water was slowing down, and mist was curling on the surface, becoming thicker and thicker, rising up toward the sky slowly as we watched.

Lyall moved first, started to walk along the edge ofthe river, and passed right in front of me. He gave me a smile when he did, though you could tell that he was distracted. You could tell that he was really into this game—excitedto be playing it.

Rune was coming toward me, too, walking along the edge, those beautiful,intenseeyes on me. It was the first time since we met that morning that he gave me his full attention, allowed me to see his true thoughts, his desire so perfectly described in all the shades of blue and silver. My knees grew weak at the idea of leaning closer, touching him, kissing his lips. Of course, I did no such thing, but the way he devoured me with his eyes left me breathless all the same.

Then he continued down the river, just behind Lyall, watching the growing mist over the surface of the water that stood as still as if it were a lake now.

Lake.Like that lake surrounded by mountains where we were together for the first time.

God, I was so turned on it wasn’t even funny, and to force my body to calm down, I started walking along the other side of the river to put some distance between me and the men.

Thefae.

Better yet—theprinces.

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