“Look, twenty-five years is a long time to be stuck with the same people, even for fae,” Dayton says. “You can’t blame me for having a little fun while I’m there.”
That’s what Farron had said too. Just fun. But I don’t think he meant it. Dayton drags me across the bar while I scowl at him. “I don’t think Farron thinks what you two have is a little fun. I think he’s in lo—”
“Enough.” Dayton swirls, and suddenly there’s a cool cup of water in my hands. “Drink.”
I do, begrudgingly. Damn, even the water here tastes good, hydrating and smooth down my throat. As I’m silently sipping away at my drink, a few more people come over to Dayton, slapping him on the shoulder, proclaiming how they miss him.
The group buys drinks, but this time Dayton doesn’t share with me. He chugs them down as if he wants them out of his sight.
People in the Summer Realm like him. No talks of rebellions here like the vizier warned Keldarion about.Probably because Dayton’s not an icy cretin of a frost world.
Suddenly, there’s a firm arm around my shoulders as Dayton pulls me close. “How are you feeling?”
“More normal.” With one cup of water, my head is clearer. “There’s a lot of fae here. Which has me thinking we should practice.”
“Practice?”
“Finding your mate!”
Dayton groans and tilts his head back. “Have I thwarted myself by sobering you up?”
“Come on, we’re in the Summer Realm. Maybe your mate is local.”
“Rosalina, my love, this is supposed to be a night forfun.”
I pull him deep into the throng of dancers, moving dreamily over the lily pond. The closer to all the other fae, the better. “Just try, please.”
“Okay, but then you have to do what I want.”
“Fine, fine.” Dayton twirls me around as we sway to the music. “W-what are you doing?”
“We’re dancing,” he says, then leans down, his mouth to my ear. “I’m not going to stand in the middle of the room and shout, ‘Hey-o! Looking for a mate!’ I’ll have a hundred fae on me before my next breath.”
“Fair.” The only reason I’m game for dancing is because I still have all that fae wine sloshing in my system. Everyone on the dance floor looks at us. And while I don’t know how many of them can tell I’m human, I’m sure they’re all wondering who this girl is dancing with the Summer Prince.
But it’s more intimate than dancing. Dayton presses me close to his chest while we sway back and forth. Cold water splashes on my ankles as we move over the lily pond.
“All right, blossom,” Dayton says lowly, “tell me how this works.”
“You need to start by being relaxed and open.”
“The wine has already done that. Next?”
“You’ll want to close your eyes and feel for something unlike anything you’ve felt before. Like a sparkle. A match being lit inside.”
“Where exactly?”
“Most people feel it here.” I place my hand over his heart, fingers slipping between the open laces of his shirt. His skin is warm as sunlight.
He stops dancing, and we’re still over the water. The other couples sway around us. He closes his eyes and tilts his head back, the muscles in his neck tensing. “Describe what I’m supposed to feel.”
“Warmth, like sun-baked sand.” I keep my fingers over his heart, feeling it beat faster. “Perhaps an electric shock or the constricting of your heart.”
A rumble sounds in his chest, and he groans lowly. “I think I feel something.”
My heart sinks and I tremble. “Okay, good. Good. Try to pinpoint where the feeling is coming from.” I try to sift through all the information I learned in my research. “Once the feeling begins, some fae describe it like a string tugging them toward their mate.”
“Hmm.” Dayton scrunches up his brow. “I don’t feel it in my chest though.”