Page 115 of Somnium

“Plus,” she added, a smirk twisting her lips. “Do you really think she’d get a ride from Kai by choice?”

Elias huffed a laugh, surprised at the way his tension began to ease. He returned her smirk and bobbed his head to the side. “Fair point.”

Floorboards creaked as the other two approached, and when Elias turned, his eyes instantly met Cadi’s. A thickness coated his throat at the hesitation he saw still in her stare, but beneath it, a hint of what he almost let himself believe was happiness reflected back at him.

The urge to close the distance and reach for her nearly broke him, but he couldn’t rush this. He wouldn’t. So he pinned his arms at his sides and managed a steady smile. The answering curve of her lips lifted a small piece of the pressure that had been bearing down on him for the past week.

He could have sworn the air around him grew colder when Cadi pulled her eyes from his, her smile growing as she stepped forward to pull Sera into a tight hug. The message was clear, though no words had been spoken: she was happy to see him, but they weren’t quite there yet.

The two women fell into effortless conversation as they drifted deeper into the shop, leaving Elias and Kai alone. A heavy silence hung between the two men, with Elias holding Kai’s stare, and Kai looking at Elias with the patience of someone who had an eternity to figure things out.

Elias knew the god’s actions had been purely assistive, and he was grateful that Kai had been able to help watch out for Cadi when he couldn’t. Sera was right; they were on the same side, and petty jealousy stood to serve no one. Plus, he had the distinct feeling that challenging a deity to a dick measuring contest probably wouldn’t go the way he wanted it to. So instead, he dipped his chin in a quiet gesture of thanks. The corner of Kai’s mouth twitched, almost as if he could see the logic that had just played out in Elias’s mind before he mirrored the motion to give an answering nod.

The door to the backroom swung open with a dull thump as Mona flitted in. Any tension dissolved in an instant when the faerie surged forward to plant a kiss against Kai’s cheek, a move which he deftly avoided by swerving his entire body out of her path. Elias had to turn away to cover his involuntary snort.

“Everything’s ready in the back,” Mona drawled, completely unfazed by the rejection. “All that’s left is for y’all to pick a ring that suits you.”

Cadi stepped forward, crossing in front of Elias as she moved toward the cases on the left side of the shop. He pulled in a deep breath through his nose. The familiar scent of jasmine that lingered in her wake coated his mind in a heady buzz, and he let his eyes follow her, drawn in by the smooth motion of her body as she walked away.

An elbow caught his ribs, and he turned to find Kai smirking at him before he tossed his chin toward the display cases on the opposite side of the room. With a quick glance at the others, Elias confirmed that everyone had indeed witnessed his gawking. He cleared his throat and quickly moved to examine the collection of rings.

Bending over the glass, he studied each tray. He’d expected to walk over, point to something, and be done with it, but instead, the sheer number of options threatened to make him go cross-eyed.

Silver, gold, big, small, braided, solid. By the time he reached the end of the case, a dull throb had started behind his eyes.

He sighed and pressed his fingers to his temples as he stood up. Turning to look over his shoulder, he saw that Cadi was still curled over her own display, leaning in so close that her nose nearly touched the glass as a single finger tapped out a rhythm only she could hear.

A tender smile captured his mouth as he watched her. Gods, she was beautiful. Even from across the room, she somehow managed to steal the air from his lungs without even trying. The pull to go to her and share in this search nearly won out. Though, this was a far cry from any time he had ever dared to entertain the idea of picking out rings with her, and he wasn’t about to risk driving her further away. So instead, he squared his shoulders, turned back to the glimmering case in front of him, and stared down at a complete loss as its contents mocked his inability to just pick a damn ring.

“Find anything?”

Elias jumped, his head snapping up to find Cadi staring at him. He hadn’t even heard her approach, but now, there she was, close enough for him to feel her warmth against his skin as she waited patiently for him to remember how to speak.

“No,” he said, gesturing to the case. “Who would have thought picking out a piece of jewelry would be so hard?”

“Most women,” she replied with a soft laugh. Her teeth tugged at her bottom lip as she studied him. The simple motion sparked a sting of longing; it was another habit of hers that he’d missed more than he realized.

She looked over her shoulder to the case where she had just been, and a slow, almost conspiratorial smile crept over her face as her gaze flicked back to him. Elias could tell she was planning something.

“And here I thought I was the indecisive one,” she said, “come on.”

Without waiting for his response, she moved back toward the other side of the shop. Elias chuckled, unable to stop the grin that worked its way free as he followed her. He could feel the stares of everyone around him as they watched them both with electric curiosity.

The small line between Cadi’s brows deepened as her eyes swept the display, her fingers brushing lightly across the glass almost as if she were cataloging every ring she saw, looking for something specific that was just out of reach. Then, her features relaxed, and her eyes darted to him once before she straightened and waved to Mona.

“Could we look at that one?” Cadi asked, pointing to a tray of gold signet rings near the center.

“Of course, sugar,” Mona replied as she slipped the key into the lock to remove the black velvet pad and place it gently in front of them.

Cadi lifted one of the rings and held it out to him. Elias took it between his fingers, something about the simplicity of its elegant design calling to him. The band was cast in rich matte gold, and it tapered softly from a wide top to a narrow underside. It felt balanced, comfortable.

Right.

The cool metal glided smoothly over his skin as he slipped it onto the ring finger of his right hand. When he looked back to Cadi, he found a glimmer of hopeful curiosity shining in her eyes.

“It’s perfect,” he said, and for a moment he wasn’t entirely sure he was still talking about the ring.

She beamed, and a faint laugh tumbled free before her gaze lowered to her own hands, where a delicate glimmer caught the light.