It looked like he’d created his own shimmering galaxy. He set the glass on the railing beside him and inclined his head. “If you’re going to continue lurking in my bedchamber, you might as well drink this. It’ll help you sleep.”
I thought about returning to my room, but curiosity got the better of me. I moved across the balcony and examined the glass without touching it. “It won’t make me jump over the railing and dive into the snow, will it?”
Instead of answering, Wrath swiped the glass away and drank deeply. He handed it back and looked at me. Challenge lit his dark gaze.
I briefly fantasized about shoving him over the railing into the snowbank below, but I imagined he’d bring me with him and something about our bodies falling together made my heart race. Not because I feared the fall or getting hurt; I knew Wrath would maneuver us so he’d hit the ground. It was where I’d land that caused the uptick in my pulse.
I settled on sipping the starlike liquid. It was… delicious.
“Well?” he asked. “What do you think?”
“I love it.”
“I thought you might.” His voice turned quiet, contemplative. As if he hadn’t meant to speak aloud or admit that. I wished I possessed a tiny bit of his ability to sense emotions. I was curious to know what he was feeling, why he sounded resigned.
I took another small sip and focused on the flavors. Something spicy, like fresh ginger. A bit of citrus, similar to lime. And there was a deep richness that blended the two perfectly. Not rum, but something close. I finished the rest of my glass and contemplated pouring more.
Wrath grinned. “Demonberry wine is one of the two finer offerings of this realm.”
I picked up the bottle and shook it a little. The liquid glimmered like stardust. It was one of the most magnificent things I’d ever seen. “What makes it look like the night sky?”
“Those are demonberry seeds. They’re small enough to look like bubbles. Or stars.”
I topped off my glass and leaned against the railing. I was a little chilly, but I was far from cold. Maybe it was the wine heating me from the inside. From here I could clearly see the fiery lake that separated this stretch of territory from the ornate castle in the far distance. A bridge connected the two swaths of land, dark waters churning like a bubbling cauldron below.
For a second, I considered telling Wrath about the magic I summoned. I nodded toward the castle instead. “Which royal House is that?”
Wrath followed my gaze. “Pride’s.”
I took another sip of my drink. Demonberries fizzled on my tongue. It was suddenly so quiet I could hear the slight crackle as the bubbles popped in the glass. “Have you heard from him yet?”
“No.”
“Does he know I’m here?”
“He does.”
I sighed. I sincerely hoped Pride would get over his namesake sin soon enough and send his cursed invitation. I wanted to solve the full truth of my sister’s murder and return to my family before I was old and gray. Or before they were old and gray. I’d likely not age much while here. That thought pierced the armor I’d erected around my heart, so I pushed it away.
We stood in companionable silence, each lost to our own thoughts while sipping our drinks. Wrath moved a little, his arm nearly touching mine, and I thought about how comfortable this was. Being here. With him. My enemy. Well, not quite.
The lines of who we were and how I felt about us were blurring. I had no idea if it was simply because he was familiar, and I was desperate to clutch at anything even remotely comfortable while here. Or if the sins and illusions were doing their hardest to confuse the matter. When we kissed earlier he’d felt nothing like an adversary.
As much as I wanted to receive Pride’s invitation, I’d grown somewhat fond of spending time with Wrath. I even looked forward to verbally sparring with him. Seeing his nostrils flare with frustration was becoming oddly endearing. The thought should have disturbed me, especially after the incident at dinner. But it didn’t.
I wasn’t sure what it said about me, about the entity I was becoming, but there was a deep sense of primeval desire that sparked when Wrath took that blade to Makaden, defending me.
For a little while, it seemed like we were partners again. I didn’t think I’d miss our time together in Palermo, and wasn’t sure what it meant that I did. I felt his attention shift to me.
“What’s the second offering?” I asked, meeting his gaze. He was closer than I expected, his attention briefly falling to my mouth as if it intrigued and beguiled him. My heart kicked up its beat. Wrath drew his brows together and shook his head, seeming to recall I’d asked a question. Whatever realization he’d just had had thoroughly entranced him. “You said the wine was only the first. What’s the second-best thing about this realm?”