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heated.
    We’d never
talked about it, but I strongly suspected Talon was completely aware of my
reaction to him, and it was a little embarrassing. I was still very unsure of
myself where he was concerned.
    Jace threw
his other arm around my shoulder and said, “All right—so are we on for tomorrow
night? Dinner, dancing and bonfires?”
    Leah rolled
her eyes at him.
    I answered,
clearly amused. “Yes to dinner and bonfires, but where does dancing come into
the picture?”
    Jace seemed wounded,
“You mean to tell me you can sit by the bonfire and do nothing? For centuries,
my people have danced around bonfires to celebrate life.”
    Leah was extremely
curious at this point, and I knew her next tactic would be to start grilling
him about his past. They hadn’t offered information on their histories so far,
and I didn’t want to pry. Normally, I would be just as curious, but something
stopped me from asking too many questions.
    I made a
decision and quickly stepped in. “Okay, Jace. You got it. I will save the first
lap around the bonfire for you. Who cares what anyone else thinks, right? Leah
says it’s time that I start letting myself be happy. It begins now.” I winked
at him, while Leah beamed at me like a proud parent.
    Talon gently gathered me into
his colossal arms and placed a soft kiss on the top of my head. “I’m glad to
hear that. It’s time for you to be happy.”
    I was
speechless. He had never shown that kind of tenderness before. He was always
very polite and chivalrous, but tender is not a word I would have ever thought
to use to describe him. Jace, too, was clearly shocked – he stood perfectly
still with his mouth hanging open.
    Leah grabbed
me by the hand and dragged me toward the bathroom. “Caiti, let’s go do one last
makeup check before the bell.”
    I shot a
glance at Talon and Jace and shrugged one shoulder.
    Jace waved
us off. “No worries, we will wait for you here.”
    ***
    He spun to
look at Talon. “What was that all about? You’re always strictly business . You’re the one always reminding me of my duty and
the seriousness of its nature.”
    Talon scratched
his chin before letting his hands drop to his sides. “I didn’t expect any of
this. Jace, everything about her speaks to me. Her eyes are the green of the
Highlands and her hair is the red-gold of a newly minted copper coin. There is
definitely strength under her fragile exterior, but she built a wall around
herself to keep people from getting close. Does that sound like someone else
you know?”
    What was he
going to do? This was never supposed to have been part of the deal.
    Jace choked
back a gasp. “By ah-ah-ha'-ya !   By the gods! You’re speaking in colors.
Talon, do you think she is the one? Is she a true light?”
    Talon glanced back over his shoulder in the direction of where
Caiti and Leah had headed.
    “I can’t say for sure. All I know is I would lay down my
life for this girl and it has nothing to do with duty”. For once, he found
himself unsure of his own emotions.
    Jace shook his head ruefully. “Funny enough, I seem to have
the same problem. I have always enjoyed just existing, but Leah makes life so
much more. You do realize, though, that the longer we stay with them out in the
open, the more danger we pose of exposing what they are?”
    Talon sighed. “Yes, and I cannot allow that to happen.
We’ll figure something out. I’m not ready to give up the fight just yet.” But
what exactly was he fighting for ?
    ***
    “See? I told you I couldn’t see anything,” Leah said as we examined
our reflections in the mirror.
    She was right. I couldn’t find any dark circles either. I really
had done a pretty good job of covering them up. How in
the heck did Talon know I was having trouble sleeping?
    “It’s just my luck to find someone who is too observant.” I
grimaced. “Now, I’m going to be paranoid that he’s going to notice every single
blemish, every hair out of place.”
    Leah sniffed.