Scholar of Magic (Art of the Adept #3) - Michael G. Manning Page 0,219

She shook her head. “That’s a stupid question. Besides, you chose Selene, right?”

He sighed. “No, I decided she was already safe, so I chose you, but unfortunately he was thinking the same way, so he freed Selene to spite me.”

Laina smiled. “That’s good. Now she can come back.”

“You’re still trapped—” he began, but then her words replayed themselves in his mind. Now she can come back. A surge of happiness ran through him with that realization. “Shouldn’t you be more worried about yourself?”

“I’m too young to worry about something that’s going to happen decades from now. Besides, I’ll figure out a way to stop him before then,” she said confidently.

He wasn’t sure he believed her bravado, but it felt necessary, so he didn’t argue. Instead he asked, “Why did you come to my house that night?”

“To find Selene.”

“But why?”

She gave him an odd look. “Can I trust you?”

“Really? After everything we’ve been—”

“Relax, I’m joking. I had two reasons. One was business. Someone I trusted stole a large amount of money from the donations to our charity. I didn’t want to make it public, or accuse the man openly, since he’s well known in lofty circles. I hoped that Selene, as a princess, could apply quiet pressure and force him to admit his wrongdoing, or at least return the money while avoiding a national scandal.”

“What was the other reason?”

“I was mad. I’ve been mad since she married you, then she disappeared without even giving me an explanation.”

Will frowned. “It was unusual, but she probably thought you’d understand that she fell in love. It’s not the most unbelievable thing in the world, after all.”

“But we had been friends most of my life. It was too sudden. It felt like a betrayal. I was closer to her. If it had been anyone…” She stopped there, her cheeks coloring. “Forget it.”

A few days prior and he would never have understood, but after spending time in her body, with her soul, the knowledge leapt out at him. “You were in love with her.”

The look on Laina’s face was one of pure panic. “Absolutely not.”

“You were jealous.”

“Will you stop?” There was a thundercloud brewing beneath her lowered brows, with red cheeks on the horizons.

“It’s all right,” he said calmly. “I was jealous of you too.”

That made her pause. “How so?”

“Your family,” he said simply. “It’s the same thing really. Being jealous of someone else’s love. Well, except yours involves kissing and naughty bits, while I was only jealous in a more innocent fashi—hey!” A pillow had struck him in the face.

Laina still held the weapon in her hand, and she was ready to use it again. Will stared at her then slowly puckered his lips. “Oh, Selene…!” Whop! He hopped away as she began beating him steadily with the pillow.

That pillow gave up after several heavy blows, and down feathers exploded across the room. Not deterred at all, Laina grabbed a larger cushion and resumed the chase while he laughed and ran across the bed to escape her. “By the way,” he hooted, “did you know that this bed is the very first place where we…” He stopped and waggled his eyebrows suggestively.

Laina shrieked and threw her pillow at his head. “You’re dead. You’re absolutely dead!” But she was beginning to laugh even as she yelled at him. It was a sort of hysterical release, a confession, a battle, followed by understanding—all facilitated through the medium of pillows.

Will ducked, continuing to taunt her, when the door opened and Tiny caught the pillow with his face. It slid off, then dropped to the floor, while the big man stared at them with an odd expression.

Will and Laina both stopped, red-faced and panting, as they tried to adopt a more somber demeanor. He glanced at his sister and saw a sliver of fear in her eyes, but he shook his head. I wouldn’t tell anyone. “She wouldn’t wake up,” he lied to his friend.

“And you wouldn’t leave me alone, so I had to defend myself,”