Page 55 of Beneath the Flames
“What is it?”
“You…Do that again,” I said.
Realizing there was no immediate danger, he looked back at me, his brows lowering.“Do what?”
“That’s the first time you’ve laughed or smiled.”I watched him closely, waiting for either one to happen again, but his lips only turned down into a frown.
It somehow deepened even further.“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he snapped, and stalked forward.His reaction caught me off guard.Why was he so irritated?
“Wait,” I called and shuffled quicker so I could get in front of him, stopping him with a palm on his chest.There were too many layers of clothing between us to feel any warmth from him, but I didn’t miss the way his muscles tensed beneath my touch.Surprise lit a fire in my stomach when he didn’t move away.
“Don’t you want to get out of this cold?”he asked, trying to change the subject, redirect me to the task ahead.
“Yes,” I said, as if it was obvious.“But first I want to see you smile again.”I wasn’t completely sure why I was pushing him for this.Maybe it was the danger we were in, and needing a moment to lighten the mood, or proving to myself that he wasn’t the terrible person he claimed to be.
Or, even more dangerously, maybe I just wanted to see him smile because I…liked it.
Rhydian shook his head, loose hair falling into his face and whipping in the wind.“You’re insane.”
I looked in his gold-ringed eyes, trying to understand him.“Why don’t you smile?Or laugh?”They weren’t really important questions in the grand scheme of things, but suddenly they felt like the most important things in the world.
Rhydian’s eyes widened, and he gestured around him.“In case you haven’t noticed, there’s not much to laugh or smile about these days.In case you forgot, my land is dying—and so am I.”
“Maybe that’s all the more reason to do it.Why would you waste your last days mad and miserable if there was another option?”
“And who’s going to make me smile?”he bit back, his hackles rising.“You?”
I hadn’t meant to offend him.Only help him.I took a step back, trying not to feel hurt by the ire in his voice.“I could try.”My eyes inexplicably burned, and I turned to continue walking before he could see the traitorous tears welling, before they could spill onto my frozen cheeks.Why were his words affecting me like this?I hated him.It shouldn’t have hurt so much.And yet it did.
Rhydian waited several heartbeats before following after me, taking only a few strides to catch up.He said nothing, but I could feel the tension radiating in the air between us.
“It’s beautiful, you know.”The words slipped from my lips before I could stop them.I wished I could rake them back into my mouth.
“What is?”
“Your smile.”
If there was ever a combination of words to completely disarm Rhydian and set his face alight in shock, it was those.
And thenhestumbled.
I bit my lip to hold back my own smile.Had no one ever given him a compliment before?The mighty Prince of Eroth actuallystumbledbecause I said I liked his smile?
Rhydian tried to play it off like nothing had happened, but there was a distinct pink tint coloring his cheeks, and I was pretty certain it wasn’t from the cold.
He didn’t say anything in response, but that was okay.He didn’t have to.I had gotten under his skin, and I was certain the sight of his smile and the rough, deep rumble of his laugh were going to haunt me the rest of my likely short life.
I found myself wanting to find ways to coax them out again.But that was foolish.I had a job to do.If the curse was broken, then maybe he’d have more reason to smile.But why did it suddenly matter so much?I shouldn’t want to make him do anything but send me home.
And yet…he was dying.His days were quite literally numbered, and nobody knew how long he would continue to draw breath, how long his heart would keep beating.Or how long Eroth would continue to stand.
Nico’s blue eyes flashed through my mind.He was so young.Even if Rhydian wasn’t a good guy, Nico didn’t deserve to share his fate.
This situation was bleak enough.I had to find little silver linings, right?That was the only way to survive.The beauty in Rhydian’s smile was simply one of them.
My resolve mustered at the thought, and a brief surge of energy filled my limbs.The cold relented for a short while as I picked up the pace, Rhydian easily staying next to me.I found myself wishing I could sense his feelings for once, to get inside his head and know what he was thinking.
Had anyone ever told him he had a beautiful smile before?Or had he always been a cold, grumpy Fae?
