Page 37 of Prince of the Northwest Forest
Daryl’s eyebrows draw together, and he bites his lip the moment he sees me. “What’s going on? And why are you eating frozen toothpaste?” he asks, walking over to the refrigerator and taking out a beer. He appears to consider offering me one, then shakes his head slightly, making a face.
I may be all in my feels, but even I’m aware that beer and ice cream don’t mix. “What?” I squint at him. “What are you talking about?”
He gestures at my bowl of ice cream, then uses an opener to pop the top on the beer. “You’re voluntarily eating icy mouthwash.”
I huff. “It’s very normal to like mint chip ice cream.”
“No. It’s weird.” Daryl joins me on the couch, setting the beer on the coffee table. He scrubs his face. “So, why are you eating ice cream? And is it related to your SOS call?”
“Kalle’s getting married,” I blurt.
He gasps and jerks his head back. “Kalle, as in the prince who is gonna storm your sheets someday?”
I attempt a glare, but it’s half-hearted. I nod once, my head feeling extremely heavy. “Kalle’s been ordered by the king and queen to marry some princess. His brother was supposed to marry her, but apparently he ran away or got kidnapped or something, and threats are increasing that there’s going to be a volcanic eruption, so”—I throw up my hands—“Kalle gets to be the sacrificial prince. Or maybe it’s the sacrificialprice.”
Daryl sits for a moment, sipping his beer and processing all that I’ve said. “Well, that sucks,” he finally says.
I glare at him for real this time. “Yeah, no shit.”
“You wouldn’t be acting this way if you didn’t have feelings for him. I know I teased you about it before, but it sounds like you really have a crush.”
I sniffle and take another bite of ice cream. “Idefinitelyhave more than a crush on Kalle. Had one? I don’t know. It’s a mess. Even if he weren’t getting married, I don’t even think he’s into guys. Still, I’m going to miss him. We get along well. It’s easy to talk with him.”
“It’s easy to talk with me, too. Plus, I’m easy on the eyes.”
I grin at him and nudge him with my shoulder. “It is. And yes, you’re plenty hot. But we both know we don’t like each other that way.”
“Agreed.” He swallows another sip of his beer. “Why don’t you think he’s into guys?”
“He told me he wasn’t.”
Daryl presses his lips together. “It sounds like you’re questioning that.”
“Maybe I was reading too much into some of the looks that he gave me, but I swear he was going to kiss me the night he haddinner here. Of course, it’s possible I thought that because I’m not straight, and that’s my bias. Wishful thinking and all that.”
Daryl’s heard this spiel from me before. “You think hardly anyone on the planet is completely straight.”
“Yep. If people really consider it, I think almost no one is straight. But like I said, that’s my bias. It’s not exactly scientific.”
“We don’t need science for this. And you also don’t need to hide your feelings. It’s okay to be bummed that your crush is getting married.”
“I’m very bummed. It feels like my crush crash-landed before it even took off, which makes zero sense.”
“It makes plenty of sense to me,” Daryl says.
“I’m not even used to feelingfeelings.”
“Tell me all about it.”
So I do. I walk Daryl through every quirk of Kalle’s, from how he talks to animals, to his anger at learning the fae stole from me, to how I introduced him to David Bowie.
When I’m finished, I take a deep breath. “Figures I’d go from being into selfish, thieving losers to the most selfless man alive.”
Daryl smiles sympathetically. “At least he was one of the good guys.”
“Yeah. Thanks for listening.”
“Did it help?”
