Page 74 of A Song of Shadow and Starlight

"And?" I barely manage to get that one-word question out.

"I don't hate you. Not even a little bit."

I'm scared to find out, but I need to know. "Did I say anything else?" I force myself to meet his gaze.Stars! He's so gorgeous, it's unfair.

By the curious look in his eyes, I definitely said something else, but whatever it was, he keeps it to himself. Shaking his head, he smiles and says, "No."

He's lying to spare me further embarrassment. I should be irritated by him withholding information, but for once, I welcome the dishonesty. I'm not sure how much humiliation I can endure this morning.

"I should go," I motion with my head to my door across the hall and he nods.

I close his bedroom door and let loose the breath that has been lodged in my chest. I rub my forehead as I walk from his door to mine. I just spent the entire night wrapped in Atlas Harland's arms. What am I doing? How am I going to face him later? We still have two days before we dock in Tronovia and this ship isn't big enough to avoid bumping into him.

Thankfully, no one saw us together, so I won't have to hear about it from the others. But still, I don't know what compelled me to stay the entire night. However, when I think about it, that's the first good night's rest I've gotten since being kidnapped. Well, if I'm being honest, it's the best night's sleep I've gotten in years. What is this Tronovian doing to me?

I swing my room door open and see Eris sitting on her bed, dressed for the day, with a knowing smile snaked across her face. "Well, good morning," she coos. "Looks like someone -"

I raise a hand to silence her before she can even finish that sentence. "It's not what it looks like."

Her smile widens, if that's even possible. "Oh? Because it looks like you spent the night with Atlas."

"Alright, it's exactly what it looks like," I admit sheepishly, "but it's not in the way you're thinking."

"So, you didn't sleep in his bed, cuddled in his arms, all night long?" She puts her chin in her hands and leans forward so her elbows are rooted to her knees.

I close my eyes and breathe through my nose to calm down. "Which one of you saw us together?"

"Nyx." She grins. "He went in after drinks to crash but found you two together. He slipped out and spent the night in here."

"And where is he now?"

"He and Finn went to the dining room for breakfast. I was just about to join them. If you're hungry, you can join us."

I slip out of my nightgown and start putting my traveling clothes on. I used to change in front of Eris all the time in Midori, when I knew her as Selene, so I'm not uncomfortable doing so now. She tosses me my shirt and I slip my arms in, about to pull it over my head but stop midway when she says, "He's not a bad guy, you know."

"Who?"

"Atlas." Her blue eyes meet mine. "He comes across as broody and tough, but it's because he cares deeply."

I slip my shirt on. "I'm a mission to him, Eris. Deliver the kidnapped princess to his king. He doesn't care about me."

Eris shoots to her feet, a scowl mars her features. "Please tell me you don't actually believe that."

"I don't know what to believe anymore." I sit down on my bed to lace up my boots. "I don't know what's going to happen to me once we dock in Tronovia. What if your king has me imprisoned? Tortured? Executed? What if my parents don't negotiate for my release? What if Bastian…?" I don't even want to think about Bastian and what he might be capable of.

"Atlas nearly tore Bava apart looking for you when you went missing."

"What?" My heart quakes in my chest and I slowly sit down on my mattress. That's not what I expected her to say.

"He called in all of his favors with his informants and even paid the river cruiser to wait to leave until we found you."

I'm not sure what to do with that information. To hear that Atlas Harland readily cashed in all his favors to get me back from the Necropolis has me wanting to throw my arms around him and thank him. But it also makes me feel as if I owe him, and I don't like that feeling.

"At first, we thought you'd been taken by Soul Eaters. I've never seen Atlas so unhinged. Even his brothers were concerned he'd do something brash and endanger himself." I meet her gaze as she sits across from me, and it feels like she's looking directly into my soul. "So don't think for one second that Atlas doesn't care about what happens to you."

I will always find you, Princess.

You will always have protection.

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