heart. Whatever I do, will always be with your interests foremost in my mind.”
Son of a bitch! thought Will. I knew it.
“As you wish,” said Selene, and it was apparent her conversation had ended. Will pulled the door back and hurried to his bed. When she entered, he kept his eyes tightly closed.
He heard light footsteps cross the room, and she stopped beside his pallet again. A soft rustling sound suggested she was doing something else, but she hadn’t moved on. Then something tickled his face. Will opened his eyes and found her face just inches above his own. Her hair had given her away.
“What are you doing?” he asked calmly, though he already knew. Making certain I was still asleep before she crawled back into bed.
Selene jumped, nearly falling back into the fire. He caught her hand and pulled her back, watching her face all the while. Her eyes darted to one side as she tried to find a reasonable excuse. She came to a decision and answered, “This,” and then she closed her eyes and leaned in, pressing her lips to his.
Her action filled him with fury, for he knew it was a lie. She’d do anything to fool me. Was a kiss the limit? Who knew how far she would go to gain his trust? For a split second, he was tempted to find out, but instead he gently pushed her away. Remembering Tailtiu, he said the first thing that came to mind. “I didn’t give you permission to do that.”
She flinched as though she had been slapped.
“If you were fae, I could demand an unbound favor for something like that,” he added.
Selene was already climbing onto her cot. She rolled over and put her back toward him. “Is that how they work? What does an unbound favor entail?”
“Anything,” said Will coldly. “I could even demand your life.”
“Is that what you want?”
“Give me back my six clima,” said Will suddenly.
Selene sat up violently, throwing back her blankets. He heard her bare feet slapping the wood floor as she stomped across the room to rummage through her things. She found her coin purse and extracted the coins, and he heard them scatter across the floor as she threw them in his direction. “There,” she said venomously. “Was it worth it?”
“You tell me,” he snapped. “You think your kiss is worth six silver?”
He heard her moving again, but he didn’t open his eyes. She lay back down, and the floor began to grow cold beneath him. “Asshole,” she muttered. “I hope you freeze to death.”
Will got up, gathering his blankets, and moved to the other room. Maybe the goddamn cat will come looking for his rent and eat her, he thought ruefully.
***
He rose early, since his sleep had been restless after their argument, and by the time his family began emerging from the bedroom, breakfast was nearly ready.
“Where’s Selene?” asked Sammy.
“Outside,” said Will, before muttering under his breath, “probably trying to warm up her cold, dead heart.”
His cousin went to find her, and soon they were all crowded around the little table. Sammy made noises of appreciation as she enjoyed the food, but Erisa and Johnathan had already noticed the chill in the air. They exchanged meaningful glances. “Told you it was a bad idea,” said his uncle around a mouthful of food.
“Shut up, Johnathan,” said Will’s mother.
“Are you fighting?” asked Sammy innocently.
“No,” Will said immediately.
His cousin pointed at Erisa and her father. “I meant them.” Then she leaned closer to Will, squinting her eyes. “Something’s fishy about you.”
Erisa bent in her chair and retrieved something from the floor. “What’s this?”
“Oh,” said Will. “I dropped my coin purse yesterday.”
“You need to be more careful with your money, William,” his mother chided.
“Don’t worry, Erisa. He never forgets what he’s owed,” said Selene, her voice thick with sarcasm.
“Well, that’s good to hear,” said his uncle. “What do you have planned for today?”
“We should start scouting, I would imagine,” said Selene, filling her voice with false enthusiasm.
“Not in the daylight,” said Will. “We’ll go tonight.”
“You can’t be planning to go through the Glenwood at night,” said his uncle.
Selene agreed. “If we create a magical light, it will give us away when we get close to the village. At least during the day we can—”
He cut her off, “I can see in the dark.” Will got to his feet and headed for the door. “I hear really well too,” he said over his shoulder.
“Where are you going?” asked his mother.
“To kill some time.