Page 105 of A Kingdom of Fire and Fury
She laughed. “Of course not. You could murder him, and I'd tell Luther Aurelia did it.”
Warmth blossomed in my chest. “I just don’t know which side of him is the real him. If I trust him and he betrays me, I’d feel so fucking stupid. I hate that I’m attracted to that asshole. So much can go wrong if I let myself fall. Sometimes I wonder if he even cares for me or if it’s an act to make me fall in line.” Nimue paused for the briefest of seconds. I immediately noticed it and sat up. “What do you know?”
Nimue immediately crumpled. “Kieran was the reason you got to see your sister that first night. I didn’t know you back then, so I wasn’t going to risk my neck. Kieran pulled all the strings, and he promised me I wouldn’t get caught.”
My ears rang. All this time… he helped me from the very beginning. Even when he spat venom at me, he helped me.And for no reward.Holy shit. It was him, not Nimue, who let me see my sister. “Thatfuckingsnake.” I jumped to my feet.
Just before I left the room, Nimue called after me, “Let me know if I need to hide the body.”
I stormed into Kieran’s room where he lounged on his bed, shirtless, with a book in his hand. His hair was still slightly damp, and beads of water trailed down his collarbones. For a moment, I stood frozen as I watched it cascade down his pecs and to his abs. Heat coiled in my body.
Godsdammit, Selena, focus.
I slammed the door shut behind me and glared at him. “You’re such a liar.”
Kieran arched a brow. “Of course, I am. Is there anything else you wanted to say?”
My jaw clenched. “You…” Red dotted my vision. I didn’t know what I wanted to say. All I knew was that I wanted to yell at him.
Kieran set his book on his bedstand and sauntered over to me. “Why don’t we go to Rafferty Tower? I doubt you want Aurelia gossiping to Luther.”
I panted, some of the red spots fading from my vision, and Umara’s growls no longer echoing in my mind. “Fine. Put on a shirt first though.”
He smirked. “Are you sure?”
“Do it before I hit you.”
“As if you could.” But he grabbed a shirt from his wardrobe with a smile.
I waited impatiently and held out my arm. “You’re not getting out of this.”
“Wouldn’t dream of it,” he murmured. Icy shadows washed over us, and we reappeared in the center of Rafferty Tower. As soon as we landed, I yanked my hand from his and folded my arms. Kieran watched me with bemused eyes. “Just what caused you to scream at me, little thief? What happened to beingfriends?”
Gods, his tone made my blood pressure skyrocket. “Nimue told me.”
If I hadn’t been searching his gaze, I would’ve missed the minute shift in his brows. “And just what did she tell you?” He said it so casually, carefree and mocking.
Is this him being defensive? Is he trying to piss me off so I forget all reason?“She said it wasn’t her who let me see Clara, but you.”
His shoulders relaxed, and his gray eyes met mine. “And?”
I wanted to throw something at him. He was doing this on purpose—creating this distance. “You hated me back then, so why? Why would you do that? And why did you keep it a secret?” If he’d told me, I would’ve overlookedsomeof his attitude.
Kieran flexed his jaw and leaned against the wall. “Your sister was innocent. We had no idea if you’d survive the bonding flight. I wanted her to get to say goodbye just in case.”
“Why didn’t you say anything?”
“It didn’t matter.”
My nostrils flared. “Of course it does. Kieran—”
“This doesn’t change anything.”
“By the gods, it does. You helped me, and you covered it up.” I thought my feelings were one-sided, but him doing this proved he wasn’t a total calculating jerk. He could’ve told me at any time and endeared me to him, but he didn’t.
“I didn’t cover it up.”
“Stop lying. Stop bullshitting. You’re driving me crazy. Kieran, why did you—”
