Page 71 of Of Curses and Courtship

Ice-cold claws rake over my mind as a reminder that I’m meant to stay away. But I can’t. It’s impossible. Even with her standing a foot from me, the proximity is a great enough comfort that I never want to move.

“I wanted to show you the beauty of our world,” I say, a half-truth. “The curse has made our land uglier than before, but there’s still beauty to be found.”

“Is this curse all you’ve ever known?”

I nod. “I was born into it. When born in such a condition, one learns to see beauty and light in the darkest places.”

“Like this one?”

“Precisely.”

“Well… thank you. This is the loveliest place I’ve seen. If you ask me, the darkness may only add to the beauty. Without it, how would we see the glow?”

I tilt my head, observing her through new eyes. “Indeed.”

She stares into the water and stays silent—a silence I find comfortable—but my curiosity grows.

“What are you looking at?” I stand beside her and peer in. “Surely it’s not too dirty for your taste.”

“No, no…” She tucks a stray curl behind her ear, and I long to wrap it around my finger. “It’s silly.”

“Tell me.” I narrow my eyes. “I enjoy silliness as much as the next fae. In fact, I have been concerned about your lack of silliness since we met. If what you have to say is so unserious, it’ll be a great relief.”

“Well…” She clasps her hands together, wiggling in place. “A Moon Fae told me I should look to the water, that it will help me hone my skills.”

I glare. “I told you that as well, did I not?”

“I suppose so, but it holds more weight coming from a Moon Fae.”

“Alas. If the weather were better, we could swim. That would surely do the trick.”

“And disturb the fae? This is their home.”

“They won’t be disturbed. They enjoy playing with us.” I bend over and dip my finger into the lake, and a tiny water pixie dances over to me, climbing onto my hand. “See?”

Ophelia fights off laughter. “Emyr! Put her down at once.”

I stand and present the pixie on the palm of my hand. She’s hardly bigger than my thumb but has more spirit than I have in my entire body, sticking out her tiny tongue and letting out a round of giggles.

“My… she is lovely.” Ophelia laughs softly.

“She is.”

The pixie floats back to the water, and I glance at Ophelia from the corner of my eye, still captured by her fascinated expression—but our bliss cannot last forever. It can’t even last long.

There’s a chill. Darkness. Nightfall. The lake grows darker, the blue water turning black. All I want is to steal more time with her, to live under her soft gaze, but that doesn’t appear to be an option.

“I suppose we should leave,” I say. “It will be cold before long.”

The glow of the butterflies illuminates her face, and Ophelia looks up at me with so much earnestness that my heart clenches.

“Can we return on another day? Perhaps when the weather is nicer, and we can swim?”

I’ll take her anywhere she wants, if she only asks, and that is a dangerous thought to have.

My lip tugs up at the corner. “Perhaps.”

We walk back along the traveled path. The woods are darker this time, and she lingers closer, her arm brushing against mine as we go.