Page 133 of Cherish

“I happen to agree.” He smiles. “And if we don’t, then you won’t have to worry about her poisoning any of us. She’ll be so happy to have her daughters reunited and whole that she won’t have time to poison anyone.”

I study him for a second. “I’m going to choose to believe you.”

“Because you know I’m right.”

“Because I’m dirty and exhausted, and all I really want right now is a shower and a bed. Tomorrow is going to have to take care of itself.”

Hudson gives me a rueful grin. “Nice to know you trust me.”

“I do trust you,” I tell him as I head into the bathroom. “It’s her I don’t trust.”

Thirty minutes later, I’m sitting on the bed eating one of my emergency packets of cherry Pop-Tarts while Hudson finishes up his shower. As I eat, I can’t help going over everything that just happened with the Shadow Queen.

I know I told Hudson earlier that I was afraid of the Shadow Queen poisoning us, but the truth is, I know he’s right. She’s skeptical of our deal—skeptical of what we can do—but she’s also desperate to believe that we might be able to do everything we say we can. Which means she isn’t going to try to hurt us unless we end up failing.

I can’t believe it, but I think we’ve got more than a good chance of saving Mekhi and making it out of this bargain with all of us alive.

Is it going to be easy? No. But do I think it’s impossible? Absolutely not. And right now, that’s all that matters.

“What are you grinning about?” Hudson asks as he walks out of the bathroom, a towel wrapped low around his hips and another one draped over his shoulders. “When I went into the bathroom, you were afraid of being murdered in your sleep. Now you look like you’re ready to take on the world.”

“It’s the power of the Pop-Tart,” I answer, popping the last bite into my mouth.

“So that’s your superpower?” He lifts a brow. “Pop-Tarts?”

“You’re my superpower. They’re just really, really good.”

Hudson freezes in the middle of drying his hair, and when he looks at me, I realize the amusement is gone from his eyes. In its place is…his heart. And it’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.

So beautiful that it makes me forget my misgivings about the Vampire Court and everything he’s not telling me, at least for a little longer.

“Hey,” I say, climbing out of bed to go to him. “You good?”

“I’m really good,” he answers, pulling me close and lowering his forehead to mine. “You know we’re going to be okay, right?”

I don’t know if he’s talking about the quest we’re about to set out on or if he’s talking about something more—something that has to do with him and me and the weight of the Courts, and the worlds, we carry on our shoulders. In the end, I decide he’s talking about both.

“We’re going to be more than okay,” I tell him with a grin. “We’re going to find that Bittersweet Tree and save the day. That’s all there is to it.”

“Exactly.” He grins. “I mean, how hard could it be? It’s atree.”

“Oh my God!” I shriek as his words sink in. “Hudson! You just jinxed us!”

He looks insulted. “I most certainly did not.”

“You totally did!” I reply. “You have to take it back.”

“Take what back?” Now he just looks mystified. “I didn’tdoanything.”

“You asked, ‘How hard could it be?’ That’s basically begging the universe to make sure that everything goes wrong.”

He makes a “whatever” noise deep in his throat. “No, it’s not.”

“It totally is!” I give one of the dismissive sniffs he’s so good at. “You’re tempting fate.”

“That’s ridiculous, Grace.” His accent gets more pronounced with each syllable, a surefire sign that he’s getting more agitated.

“It’s not ridiculous. You’ve got to take it back.”

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