Page 41 of Forbidden Magic
“These.” He skims my left shoulder blade. “They’re similar to the ones we get when we’re young so we don’t kill anybody by accident.”
“But those…” his thumb glides down the slope of my neck. “Those are peculiar. Like a curse, written in reverse. It’s incomplete, the ink fading right there.” His hand presses into my waist. The tips of his fingers sneak an inch below the hem of my skirt right above my hipbone… before he pulls away. “They’re fading fast. Maybe you should show them to Dr. Chen.”
The shirt falls to my hips, sealing my fears and hopes in disappointment.
“No, thanks. She’ll quarantine me or something.” I clear my throat and spin around, crossing my arms around my frame to hide the disgraceful, unhooked-bra look. I can’t ask him to redo it, and I lack the confidence to do it myself. Fumbling with three little hooks in front of a Fae prince is not acceptable.
This is a nightmare.
“Did you ever go to Fairy?” He asks, returning to his seat so fast I miss most of his movement.
My eyes narrow. “Of course not.”
“Hey, you’re the one with an Ancient Fae curse written across her back.”
“There must be a simple explanation. Pembrooke bound my powers, maybe she overdid it.”
He arches a brow that both insults me from being so naive and challenges me to admit I don’t believe my own words. “Pembrooke is no Fae.”
“I’ve noticed.”
We’re still talking, great.
Why is my stomach sinking like a stone inside my belly? Why is it bad that he didn’t try to use me for sex? Why should it reflect badly on me?
Maybe he’s not as much of a womanizer as everybody implied.
Maybe he’s just not that into me… He doesn’t want to fuck an ugly mortal.
Why does it matter? I would have shoved him off anyway.
I take a deep breath and tuck my hair behind both my ears. “Thank you, I guess.”
“Wow, I’d never thought I’d hear those words coming from your mouth. You’re awfully rude, you know.”
The haze recedes. “Rude?!”
“You accuse me of bullying you and then play the ice princess, even after I caught your mistake.”
My back stiffens. “A mistake I never would have made if not for you.”
“How do you figure?” There’s clear lightness and amusement in his voice, like he’s perfectly aware of the effects his glamor has on me and would find nothing more delightful than to hear me say the words out loud.
“You called me a dirty mortal.”
“Flynn said those words, not me.”
Ugly mortal then, don’t you remember?I want to scream the words, but I can’t show him his speech from the other day still affects me. “Do you always play with semantics?”
The corners of his mouth curl up. “I’m a Fae.”
Somewhere between the witty repartees, this has started to feel like flirting. I take a deep breath. “See? You’re the one who’s been acting like a jackass.”
A mind-numbing, electric smile spreads on his lips. “Let’s agree to disagree.”
A red light blazes inside my brain.Why are you giddy? Stop feeling giddy!
But the thrill pulsating across my abdomen can’t be tamed back into reason.
