Page 28

He arched a brow, daring her to argue. “I’ll give you this vial—if you agree to be done with our final project. It’s been finished for weeks, and frankly, I don’t want to keep working on it.”

That snapped her out of her tears. “We are nowhere close to being done!”

“It doesn’t seem like you want this antidote very much,” he said, twirling the vial between his fingers. “Come on, Wilder. Don’t make this harder than it needs to be.”

She bit her lip, considering. “So, this purification smoke is why I keep thinking and saying insane things?”

He smirked. “Purification smoke prohibits your ability to lie and not just to others—also to yourself. It forces an honesty that can be,” He paused, giving her a knowing look. “uncomfortable. Especially since you were directly exposed to it and have no experience navigating its effects.”

He let that sink in before he softened his voice, adding, “So if you’re around other demonkind, you’ll probably continue to have difficulty lying.”

She glanced at him sidelong.

“This is yours,” he said carefully. “Just promise to be done with our stupid assignment. I don’t understand why we’re still debating this.”

She eyed him suspiciously. “Is that vial going to make me speak in rhymes for a week?”

He groaned. “That was one time and I was thirteen! You can’t still be holding that against me.”

“Will it make me grow insanely long hair from every joint?”

“That was entirely your fault—you should have guarded your tea better.”

“Or cough bubbles uncontrollably, leaving me unable to eat or drink for the rest of the day?”

“Okay, yes.” He winced. “I am sorry for that one. But again—we were kids and I haven’t pranked you in many years!”

She gave him a long, appraising look before sighing. “Alright. But we finish the potions we already committed to making.”

“How many are there?”

“Five?” She scrunched her nose then added, “But after we figure out potency levels with the first one, the rest will be a breeze!”

“Absolutely not.” He crossed his arms. “One.”

“Three,” she countered.

“You’re unbearable.” Oleander pinched the bridge of his nose. “I’ll be leaving with this antidote, then.”

“You absolute maggot. Fine!” She snatched the vial from his hand. “On my brain, on my bones, on my beating heart and soul, I vow to be done with our project after one potion of my own choosing.”

She drank the vial in one long pull, then with a glare, tossed it back to Oleander. He couldn't help the self-satisfied smirk that tugged at his lips as he tucked the empty vial in his pocket. “Was that so hard?”

She didn’t respond, instead she turned briskly to leave. Only, he didn’t want her to leave just yet. So he resorted to an aggressively loud clearing of his throat, a tactic that managed to both grate on her nerves and bring her frantic departure to a stop. “My dear Wilder, are you really about to leave before the party’s even started? I’ve got a lovely spot where we can view it, up at the top of the manor—far from the crowds.”

She considered him over her shoulder, then surprisingly her entire body relaxed. “Alright, fine. That’s honestly not the worst idea if you promise to behave. It’d probably be smart to sit for a while before I try travelling home again.”

A quiet melancholy clung to her, and the sight of it cut him to the core. He curled his hands into fists to keep from reaching for her. Only it was like trying to hold boiling water in glass, the words shattered out of him. “Do you… do you need a hug? When I found you, you were—”

She made a disgusted sound. “Yes, I remember very well what I was doing!”

There was a deliberateness to the way she avoided looking at him—at how she brushed the wrinkles from her clothes. Then, soft as a breeze she said, “Alright, yes. I actually would like a hug.”

He stepped forward and wrapped her in his arms. She melted into his embrace, and he surrendered to the truth he'd been trying so hard to ignore. She smelled divine, and the warmth of her body eased a tension he hadn't realised he'd been carrying. Her wild curls tickled his face and he smiled into her hair, tightening his hold on her ever so slightly.

“I’d take one from literally anyone at the moment, so don’t let this go to your head. I’ve just had a rotten day is all.”

“I’ll keep that in mind,” he said with a laugh.