By all rights, I should be terrified out of my mind, but it’s not knives slicing at the inside of my stomach. It’s…butterflies?
I spin to the mirror, mostly to give myself something to do. I chose a deep-green dress tonight. It sets off my pale skin and red hair and, without any makeup to cover them up, my freckles are on full display. I press my fingers lightly to the bridge of my nose. They were a feature I loved and then grew to hate, worn down by Ethan’s constant criticism. He thought they looked childish.
With a huff, I drop my hands. “I don’t give a fuck what he thinks. He doesn’t matter and he’s not here. I am, and I love them.” Even as I say the words, part of me wants to hunch my shoulders and look around to make sure no one heard. I force them away from my ears and lift my chin. “I love them.”
I will reclaim everything he tried to take from me. No matter how long it takes.
A soft knock on the door has my heart leaping into my throat. I hurry to open it and look up into Sol’s dark eyes. He looks splendid, wearing some soft-looking pants that I think might actually be called breeches and a vest embroidered with bright thread. The vest catches my interest, and I lean forward without thinking. “What are these?” They’re plants, but not ones I recognize. Then again, why would I? Even if they were plants in my world, I’m hardly someone who knows them on sight.
“Ah.” He holds still as I run my fingers along the raised stitches. “It was a gift from my mother. They’re some of the herbs and flowers sacred to our goddess.”
“I see. Oh, I recognize this one! Hyacinth.” I realize I’m still stroking him and drop my hand. My skin heats. “Sorry, I keep overstepping with you. I promise I’m not normally this rude.”
He catches my hand in his and brings it up to press against his vest again. “If I didn’t like it, I’d tell you. Never apologize for touching me, Briar. Never.”
A thrill goes through me, even as I tell myself I’m being foolish. I’ve known Sol less than a week. Surely I’m not taking him at face value. The contract is the only reason I lightly drag my fingers tips over the embroidery before dropping my hands. “It’s very beautiful.”
“Thank you.” He turns and, after a moment, reaches for my hand. “You look beautiful, too.”
It’s strange to walk down the hall with my hand clasped in Sol’s much larger one. Maybe it should make me worried about being infantilized, but really I just feel safe. I think my instincts must have finally tapped out for good.
He guides me in a new direction when we reach the ground floor, heading away from the entrance and the library and back toward an arching doorway that leads into the garden. Or park. Or whatever it is.
The sun has long since set, and I’m delighted to see that the lights I could view from the bedroom window are actually flowers that glow faintly in the darkness in a variety of colors. “Oh wow.”
“They’re safe to touch.”
I shoot him a grateful look and slip my hand from his so I can bend down and drag my finger over the petals of a pink one. It feels like any other flower I’ve touched, velvety and cool from the night air. I rub my fingers together, half expecting the glow to be present against my skin, but it’s not. “I’m sure your world has its dangers, but so far, I’ve only found delights.”
“It does have its dangers, yes.” He reclaims my hand, and we resume walking down the rock path. “But I intend to keep you surrounded by delights.”
I shoot a look at him, wondering if I imagined the insinuation in that last sentence. The lights play along his scales, making him look even more otherworldly than normal but in a really lovely way. “I’m sorry about earlier.”
“So am I.” He squeezes my hand. “I was trying to scare you, and I shouldn’t have.”
I’m suddenly thankful for the low light to hopefully hide my blush and the heat that rolls through me at the memory of what I did after I fled his presence. “I, ah, wasn’t scared.”
His tongue flicks out in a quick movement that I instantly recognize. I’ve seen the same thing with snakes in documentaries. Sol’s hand flexes around mine. “I know.”
Can he… Can he taste my desire? Or, wait, that doesn’t make any sense. If he’s like the reptiles of my world, then he’s scenting it. That might actually be worse. My blush makes me light-headed. “Um, what?”
“I went to apologize immediately afterward.” He doesn’t look at me. “No matter what else is true, you’re safe here, Briar, and I didn’t want you to feel like you weren’t. Especially not from me.”