Page 16 of A Tribute of Fire

But I had never seen him at court before. I knew I would have remembered him.

My body’s reaction to him was the same as if I were about to fight. My heart raced, my skin tingled in anticipation, my blood pumped hard through my body, my breathing became difficult to manage.

It was hard to keep a clear head.

This must have been the attraction that Quynh had spoken of—this spark, this longing, the desire to be closer to him.

What would it be like to be kissed by a man like him?

He did not seem to be affected in the same way. He wasn’t even looking at me, while I drank in every detail about him. His gaze was pointed at the tree’s branches and he skirted along the trunk, running his fingers over the bark.

“I had heard of this tree and wanted to see it for myself. The last tree in Locris, left as a reminder of all that was lost.” He paused andthen shifted his gaze back to me, causing my heart to beat even more rapidly. “It doesn’t bear fruit?”

“No,” I said, relieved that I had regained my voice.

“Another admonishment from the goddess.”

It was unusual to hear someone speak about her so casually. As if there were no question that she was real and not something to be brushed under a rug and ignored.

He said, “And it is why the women of Locris all have long hair. Because it is the only thing that grows here.”

Was he asking me or telling me? I couldn’t be certain. All my senses were clouded, confused.

“Is this your first time at court?” I asked, pleased that I was able to form an entire sentence and that my voice didn’t shake.

He leaned against the tree trunk, as if he expected me to come closer to him. He crossed his arms against his chest. “It is. I had supposed it would be grander. More impressive. It’s a bit sad, honestly.”

While I probably shouldn’t have felt personally insulted by his slight, I was. I said with a twinge of disgust, “You’re an elitist.”

He grinned at me, as if my reaction delighted him. “I generally think I’m better than most people, yes.”

His words were ruining him for me. I should leave before he made things even worse. “As entertaining and enlightening as our chat has been, I have other duties to see to.”

“What happened to your face?” he asked, gesturing with his hand.

A bruise must have appeared. I swallowed back a groan. How was I going to explain that to my mother? I wanted to press my hand against my cheek but I was still holding my dagger and the tray. “I stopped a man from harming a maid.”

“Why would you do that?” he asked, incredulous.

“Why would I stop a man from physically hurting someone smaller and weaker?” I asked, just as incredulous.

“Yes, you could have been seriously hurt. It seems foolish.”

My spine tightened and I stood taller. “Should I have waited for someone else to arrive to save her?”

“Yes,” he said, as if that were obvious.

“I put a stop to it.” With my face, but that seemed like an unnecessary detail at the moment. “I saved her and I’m more than capable of saving myself.”

“Are you?”

What was he getting at? “Yes.”

“And what do you plan on saving yourself from?”

“At the moment? This conversation.”

“Don’t go.”

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