Dream (Foolish Kingdoms Book 4) by Natalia Jaster

Author:Natalia Jaster [Jaster, Natalia]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2019-02-20T16:00:00+00:00

21

Rogue

I kept hearing him without seeing him. He was a particle of light in my periphery, his presence making the banquet hall vaster yet smaller. He was too far away and not far enough from my hands.

His whereabouts in the room became an addiction, the details adding up in my head. For instance, I knew when he darted from one pundit to another, eager to greet them, a mite too eagerly for the comfort of some. I knew when he joined Jeryn and Solstice while courtiers, scholars, and exhibitors milled around the trio. I knew that Nicu wore a chestnut coat with a pattern of diagonal seams, his cuffs flouncing from the sleeves and whispering over his knuckles. I knew that a silk lapel sprouted from beneath the furred collar, splitting to reveal a swatch of fair skin.

Skin that I’d sucked on yesterday.

And I knew he was still thinking about it, as much as I was. That hour in the potion room, when we’d lost ourselves. We’d been at it for so long that the smoke dye had burned itself off, staunched before we’d regained consciousness.

I knew that he knew where to find me, where to glance. I knew whenever his eyes fluttered my way, even while I acted like I didn’t care.

I knew that he knew better now.

A lute and pipe filled the hall, the music amplifying. I knew that it stole his attention. I knew that he listened to the king with one ear and the tunes with the other.

Trains of iris and pewter gowns mopped the floor. Mulled wine flowed like gravy. The court stuffed themselves with wedges of hazelnut pudding.

The window burrowed into the wall, its depth creating a stone seat for me to sequester myself. Tucking into the niche, I steepled one leg atop the ledge, a reed sagging from between my teeth. The smoke fondled my jaw, caressing like fingers.

Fixating on the view outside, I watched Winter go still. From the mirror image of candles on the panes, my eyes drifted to the banquet’s reflection. Again, I watched him.

He laughed at a wry comment Solstice had made. The sound filtered through all the drivel and intellectual pissing contests. His voice tickled my earlobe, so I jerked my head to get rid of the sensation.

I’d never been a student of composure. Now that he’d officially driven me crazy, there was no patching myself back together. That dam had broken, and I was done for.

An old thought lurked in my head: This wasn’t going to end well.

What were we doing? What was he getting out of this? Besides a few kisses and moans? For some, that was plenty. Not for the songbird.

Speaking of jinxes, Noel approached the group and spoke to Nicu, who smiled back tentatively. An awkwardness lingered there, their eyes not quite meeting.

Had something happened since the potion room?

I hadn’t seen Nicu since then, which meant there’d been loads of time to make things more complicated with the celestial-haired bloke. Noel would do more for him.

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