Page 29 of A Lie so Pretty and Poisonous

My body responded without hesitation, melding my mouth into his. His lips were firm and directed mine how to answer him. His tongue slipped into my mouth, and he pulled me closer. Gabriel withdrew his lips from mine and took a small step back. His mouth curled wolfishly at the corners. “Mm. So responsive. Beautiful.” His voice was deep, and the treble of it made my hair stand on end.

I swayed on my feet, eyes heavy, mouth agape. As far as kisses went, it was not unpleasant. As far as decisions went, it was a bad one.

What are you doing, Rory? Holy. Shit.

“I will see you upon my return. Goodnight.” He pressed his lips one last time to my hand and stepped away, striding down the hall until the darkness surrounded him.

All at once, my senses came crashing back to me, and the shock of what happened, what I let happen, was replaced with guilt. I shouldn’t have done that. I should have asked him to slow down again, but the urge to put my mouth on his was overwhelming. In his absence, I only wanted to get out of the stupid pink dress I was uncomfortably crammed into and forget how reckless I was acting. I hurried down the hall and into the shared bedroom. Cora had already changed into her nightgown and was lying in bed waiting for me.

“Well, today was different,” she giggled.

I laughed. “Yes, sweet girl. It was indeed!”

I unfastened my dress and let it pool at my feet, Gabriel’s mint smell still lingering on the garment. I slid my own nightgown on and jumped on the bed next to Cora, causing both of us to giggle. We lay on our sides facing each other.

“Did you have a nice day? Was everyone good to you?”

“Yes! Percie is fun! He is a talented artist. Tomorrow, he wants me to join him for schooling and activities, if that’s alright.”

“Of course!” I exclaimed.

“Sellen is snobby. She barely talked to me, but I don’t care. Percie is my age anyway, so I would rather play with him. Is it true that they do not have a lot of children here?”

“So, it seems. It is sad, isn’t it?” I frowned.

Cora tipped her head. “But why don’t they?”

“I don’t know, sweetheart. They don’t seem to know either.”

We flipped to our backs after I dimmed the lamp light to a gentle glow. Gabriel’s assignment taking him away from the castle was a double-edged sword. It would give me some distance from him, so I would stop falling all over myself for not only a man but a seraph at that. Conversely, that meant I had to have Darragh follow me around, who was not only incredibly dangerous but unpredictable and moody. Normally, I wouldn’t let someone’s bias shape my opinion toward another, but I had nothing to go on other than Gabriel’s word. Truly, the only seraph I could put an ounce of hesitant trust in right now. I needed to keep my wits about me in both of their presence, so I didn’t make any more mistakes. Grace usually only extended so far, and next time, I might not be granted such leniency.

Knock, knock, knock

The dream was already fading. A forest, stalking wolves, pink ribbons binding my wrists. The pieces unraveled so quickly that I was unable to reach the meaning.

Knock, knock, knock

“Mom, I think Anya is here,” Cora whispered and pulled the blanket off her, leaping out of bed like a deer.

I sighed. How does she do that?

I dragged my body to the edge of the bed and sat up, reorienting myself with how my limbs worked. One foot and the next until I made it out of the bedroom.

Anya stood in the doorway. “Good morning. I did not mean to wake you, but you are scheduled to meet with the scholars this morning, and I thought you might want some breakfast before leaving.”

I wiped the crust from the corners of my eyes. “Yes, thank you. I didn’t mean to sleep so long.”

Anya shrugged. “Sometimes our bodies need more rest than usual. You have had an eventful few days. Give yourself some grace.”

I nodded. “You’re right, and thank you. I want you to know how much we appreciate you.”

She tipped her head and gave a genuine smile.

Cora skipped over to the food cart Anya brought with her and popped a berry into her mouth. “Hi, Anya! I am excited to go to school today.”

“Hello, sweet youngling! Shall I help you dress for the occasion? I brought you a lovely blue dress today.” Anya held up a beautiful cornflower blue dress with embroidered silver knot patterns along the hem of the skirt.

Cora put it against her and twirled around. “Yes, please. Did you know that Prince Percie and I are friends? I think we may do some more art today.”