Tella’s feet turned into smooth moonstone steps as the golden tower behind Legend disappeared and a new illusion took its place. A temple made of glowing white, topped in a domed roof covered in outstretched wings—the Temple of the Stars. Above it, radiant red fireworks mingled with more stars than Tella had ever seen, re-creating the moment that Legend had walked away from her, right after saving her.
Tella’s heart stopped beating altogether. She could still picture the flat way Legend had looked at her that night, and the coldness in his voice as he’d told her that he wasn’t the hero in her story. But now his eyes were brilliant as stars once again, full of bits of gold that glittered in the night. He was gazing at her the way he had in the painting on his wall, as if he never wanted to leave her, as if he adored her, as if he wanted to be her hero after all.
“Undo this illusion!” Tella said, unable to stand the sight of it—or him. He wasn’t a hero. And she’d never wanted a hero. She was the hero of her own story, and it was time to save herself from him. “Bring back the courtyard and Jacks.”
Legend’s brows slashed down, the feeling in his eyes intensifying. Once upon a time, the brilliant look in them could have convinced her that he had the ability to give her the world. But now Jacks was her world, and there wasn’t room for Legend. If she was being honest, there had never been enough room for him; he was too all-consuming.
“I know you think you want him, but he’s controlling your feelings,” Legend said, his voice growing lower and deeper with every word. “You have to fight against it.”
“You’re just jealous! You don’t want me, but you don’t want anyone else to have me.” She tried to shove against his chest, to push him away at last. “Please, stop torturing me. Just let me go.”
The edge of Legend’s mouth slowly lifted. “You’re the one holding on to me, Tella.”
“No—I—” She looked down to see her fingers gripping his frayed shirt.
Two warm hands wrapped gently around her shoulders as Legend held her in place.
Her heart beat faster. She really needed to pull away. But she couldn’t move. Her body was remembering a time when he wouldn’t get this close to her, when he wouldn’t put his hands on her. All she’d wanted was his touch, and now he was holding her as if he planned on keeping her for a very long time.
His smile grew. “I’m not jealous of Jacks. I know your feelings for him aren’t real. And you’re wrong if you think I don’t want you. I’ve wanted you for so long, and I’ll never stop wanting you.” His grip grew firmer as he pulled her even closer, until she was pressed against his chest.
Her breaths came out short, in tiny, angry gasps. But no matter how hard she tried to push him away, she still couldn’t manage to do it. When she thought of Jacks, her heartbeat calmed, but then it craved the way that Legend made it pound. Because he didn’t just own part of her heart—it belonged to him fully.
No! Tella tried to shake the thought out of her head, she tried to remember Jacks and the way he made her feel, but all she could feel right now was Legend as one of his wonderfully warm hands traced down her spine. “Do you still want to know why I walked away that night on these steps?”
No, she said, but somehow the word “Yes” came out instead.
His palms heated, and the hand on her shoulder slid to her neck and into her hair, tilting her face up, forcing her to look into his eyes. They were still glassy and dark with flecks of gold that looked like shattered stars, and she told herself she hated them.
Jacks’s eyes were beautiful; Jacks’s eyes were the ones she adored. But Legend’s eyes had captured hers, and she couldn’t stop staring into them. She told herself his eyes were just another illusion, the same as all the feelings that were threatening to take her over. She shut her eyes, but it didn’t help. It only made her more aware of Legend’s deep voice as he said, “I’m sorry I left you that night. I shouldn’t have left, I shouldn’t have hurt you. And I shouldn’t have gotten scared and run away when I