Page 166 of Enchanted Heir
I wrinkled my nose. “That would be the hardest to remove from him.”
“Short of chopping off a finger, yes,” Owen agreed.
I gave my head a shake as I looked around the forest. Today was another ball. It’d already been two weeks since the Solstice ball. And so much had happened since then. Things with Krew and I were at a great place. I had spent so long in Keir’s Assemblage fighting with him or fightingforhim, that it felt entirely different being at this place with Krew. We were happy, deliriously happy, we both just knew it could only last so long.
And though Krew was happy while with me, I sometimes caught him staring out the windows, looking as tormented and reticent as ever. My handsome, miserable prince. He was struggling. He didn’t say it, but he didn’t have to. I just knew. Everything we had learned from the journals just confirmed what Krew and Keir had to do, but also had ruined all the plans they had set years ago. Now we were fumbling around in the dark, looking for some shiny new plan.
“Stop with all the sighing,” Owen demanded. “Your pissy mood is rubbing off on me.”
I nudged him with my elbow like he always did to me. “Sorry. I just know Krew is struggling, and I don’t know how to help him.”
“You’ve already helped him more than you know,” Owen offered quietly. “He used to be so... unemotional. It was like he shut down everything in order to focus on his ultimate goal. I wouldn’t ever say he was cold, but he was definitely letting people get only so close.”
I could relate to that. “And then I started sleeping in his wing?” I asked on a laugh.
“Yep,” Owen smirked. “Upended that carefully crafted distance he had going.”
After Owen warmed the food, we headed over to the spot where we had put the sample of blood from Hatcher. I had almost given up on it. I checked every single day. And nothing. But again, maybe the cold was to blame.
I brushed the snow away with my gloves at the spot.
“You know what I think you need to improve your mood?” Owen asked as he began walking over to where I crouched on the ground.
“This ought to be good,” I said more to myself than him and sent him a squint.
“Cinnamon oat cookies!” Owen gestured.
I snorted and brushed more snow away. “You would suggest that.”
Owen stopped where he was walking and cocked his head at me. “When was the last time you baked anything?”
I didn’t honestly know the answer to that. Between training with him and the journals, that was really all I had been doing. “A while.”
“So let’s get you a kitchen,” Owen offered.
“I can’t toda—” My sentence and smartassery both died on the spot.
“Because of ball preparations with Silvia. I get it. But I just meant soon. Maybe tomorrow?”
What he said did not even register. “Owen. Get over here.”
He was there in a flash, standing over me.
“Tell me you see it too.”
There in the snow, were two small strands of grass growing. The smallest and thinnest most beautiful blades of grass I had ever seen.
“I see it.” After a moment he added, “Please don’t pass out on me. You’re going pale.”
I felt arms around me just before Owen hoisted me up to standing.
“Breathe, dammit.”
I never took my eyes off the grass. “It worked. I can’t believe it worked.”
“Of course it worked. Hatcher told us it likely would.”
I shook my head and kept looking at the grass. “But now it is undeniable. I can have magic. I can have magic and I can still help the forest. I can do both, Owen.” I spun toward him, hope burning in my chest. “I can do both?”
