Call of Water (Madame Tan's Freakshow #1) - Marina Simcoe Page 0,85

was the whole point of this. Just like he’d said, we had our lives ahead of us to live however we pleased.

“I love it, Zeph. I really do.” I smiled, reaching for him.

“Good.” He placed a quick kiss on my lips then rushed out of the room again.

Before I fully realized what was happening, he returned with a tray in his hands.

“Breakfast,” he announced proudly, placing the tray in my lap.

“When did you get it all done?” I grabbed the cup with coffee, needing some caffeine in my system to kick my brain into gear.

“I made a quick trip to the city while you slept.”

“What? How?”

“Vasil let me borrow his car. I drove to Kingstown first thing in the morning, bought some clothes, got a haircut, stopped by a grocery store on the way back.”

How long was I asleep, anyway?

And who was Vasil?

Then I remembered that it was the name of the owner of the hotel and our landlord. Apparently, Zeph had not only managed to meet him while I was sleeping, but he’d also charmed Vasil into letting him use his car.

“Well, I’m glad you’ve figured out your way around here,” I laughed. “Maybe you can show me some places.” I grabbed the deliciously sticky pastry from the plate on the tray, then froze with my hand half-way up to my mouth. “Cinnamon bun?” I stared at it, then moved my gaze to Zeph, afraid to hope.

“Your favorite breakfast food.” He grinned wider. “For special occasions.”

I drew in some air sharply, covering my mouth with my other hand. “You remembered?”

He sat on the bed next to me.

“Everything, Ivy. I finally remembered every single thing.”

“Oh God, this is so good, Zeph.” I breathed with relief.

“I remember the first time we met.” He leaned in, kissing my face. “The first time we danced. Our first kiss. The very first time I touched you.” He kept kissing my nose, my cheeks, my temple. “Now, I have the memories of two first kisses,” he chuckled. “And I’m not even sure which one was better.”

“Two is better than none.” I caught his next kiss on my lips. “Do you also remember how you were taken?”

“Yes. I did get the day off from Lero, and I was really looking forward seeing you again.” He took a bite of the cinnamon bun I still held in my hand.

“You were?”

“Mhm.” He nodded. “I was going to make you dinner at my place. The bracks took me the night before. A few hours after I walked you to the Metro station. They put a bag over my head, filled with womora smoke and something else that knocked me out.”

“Oh, Zeph...” My chest tightened painfully as I listen to him.

“It’s all in the past now, Ivy.” He shook it off, reaching for another bite of my cinnamon bun. “There was also a girl...”

“A girl?”

He rubbed his forehead.

“Yes. A waitress told me a girl wanted to speak to me. I thought it was you. I remember seeing a flash of pink-and-blue hair before they took me.”

“Did you see her face?”

“No. Nothing else but the hair.”

“A hired chick in a wig was all it took.” Trez’s bragging came to mind.

“The bracks saw me with you the night before,” I told Zeph. “They obviously didn’t get a good enough look at me to remember my face. But the bright hair I had back then would be hard to miss. In the menagerie, I overheard Trez talking about hiring a girl in a wig.”

“That was what ruined me,” he said with a teasing smile, obviously not at all as upset by his memories as I was. “My fascination with your hair led me to my demise.”

“You liked me, and they exploited it.”

Zeph’s expression grew serious.

“I’ll definitely be more careful from now on.” He wrapped his arm around my shoulders and leaned back against the headboard with me. “You know, Ivy, there was something good about me not remembering you when we met the second time.”

“What?” I asked, a little confused.

“I had quite a different opinion about you back in Paris.”

“In what way?”

“I liked you, very much. The night we spent together was more than just fun for me. I wanted to spend more time with you. But I was fully intending to let you go by the end of your trip.”

“Because humans are weak creatures?” I guessed, remembering him telling me about Lero’s lessons. “Unsuitable to be Fae partners?”

“Right.” He kissed my hair. “I’m glad I got the second chance to get to