Her parents had flipped when she’d shown up at their house, new boyfriend and government officials in tow. There’d been no good way to tell them the truth, so they’d come up with a believable story. She opted to give as many real details as she could, including that she’d accidentally been taken by aliens.
Of course, she’d left out the parts about being dragged to another planet, being mistaken for a princess, and all the times she’d almost died. Instead they’d spun a web of lies about being dragged down to Arizona, where she’d been interrogated—yet treated incredibly fairly—by members of the Vakar.
The two agents who’d been sent with them amazingly carried on the ruse rather convincingly. By the end of it, after all her parents’ insane questions, even Delaney herself was starting to believe she’d been in Arizona that whole time.
They’d even helped quiet the media reports so that they disappeared, the only explanation to the public being that she’d been “found.”
Of course, her parents had bought it, but Mariana was another story entirely. Not two seconds after the same agents who’d convinced her parents had left, she was jumping down Delaney’s throat to know what had really happened. They knew each other far too well, and Delaney had been forced to tell her the real story.
Ruckus had given them space during the conversation, which she was grateful for, because a third of the way in, she burst into tears. There were times over the next three hours when she would laugh, others when she’d tear up all over again, and Mariana would hold her hand and listen without judgment.
“I apologize,” Ruckus was saying to Mariana now, begrudgingly clutching the damp towel. “Won’t happen again.” He went into the other room to hang up the towel, then returned to the kitchen.
“Oh, you’re damn right it won’t,” Mariana stated, moving her hands to her hips, “cause if it does, I am never making you tamales again.”
Delaney held in a laugh when Ruckus’s face fell. “All right, guys, I think we get it.”
“Good. Now”—Mariana’s eyes sparkled with excitement—“get dressed.”
“Why?” She glanced between the two of them, frowning when he held up his hands.
“Don’t look at me.” He moved toward the fridge. “I just live here.”
He’d offered to buy them their own place—apparently being Ander paid well. Like, really well—but she’d declined. They’d been through a lot together, yet he was right about taking a denzeration first. They needed to make sure that they could be happy without all the adrenaline highs that came with being almost murdered.
So far, things were going well.
“We are having a girls’ day,” Mariana announced. “Just you and me, sista. No offense, Ruck.”
“None taken.” He smiled at Delaney over the rim of his glass of orange juice. His hair was still wet from the shower he’d taken, and while he’d thrown on a pair of light gray sweatpants, he hadn’t bothered to put on a shirt.
The ripple of his muscles in the morning light made her think of other things she’d like to do that day instead.
“Uh-uh.” Clearly noting her train of thought, Mariana tugged on her arm and moved to block her line of sight. “You did plenty of that last night.” She mock-glared over her shoulder at him. “Thanks very much, by the way. You do realize we have thin walls, right? Anyway,” she said then, looking back to Delaney, “after that, you owe me.”
She wrestled between being embarrassed and finding it oddly amusing, settling on a place in between. “All right, what did you have in mind?”
“We haven’t done anything awesome for the summer yet, and it’s already halfway over, so beach day!”
“Why can’t Ruckus come to that again?”
“Because I want to boy-watch and flirt, and there’s no way anyone is going to approach us when Commander Tall, Hot, and Lethal is with us.” Mariana looked at him a second time. “Again, no offense. You’re just way too intimidating.”
“Honestly,” he said, and settled more comfortably against the edge of the counter, giving them a better view of his chest in the process, “after that kind of description, I’m not offended at all.”
“Great.” Mariana headed toward her room. “I’m going to get ready. We leave in twenty, Delaney!” At the last second she popped her head back around the corner, narrowing her eyes at them. “That means you do not have time for another make-out session, got it?”
They both held up their hands in surrender.
“So,” Delaney asked once they were alone, moving over to settle in front of him, between his legs, “what are you planning on doing with your day?”
“Without you?” He winced. “Weep, mostly.”
Playfully, she shoved his shoulder. “I’m serious.”
“I don’t know.” He shrugged. “Maybe learn how to play the guitar?”
“Really?” Her eyes widened.
“I heard about them and I’ve been curious. Just never had the opportunity. We don’t have them on Xenith. I saw a small music shop in town the other day. I think I’ll stop by there to pick one up—maybe a couple of music books as well. Try my hand at it.”
“Literally.” She lifted onto her toes and pressed her lips against his, feeling the zings all the way down her spine at the contact. Forcing herself to pull back, she put a few feet of distance between them, and turned toward the hall herself. “Enough of that, or Mariana will kill us.”
“You forget already?” he joked. “You’re pretty hard to kill.”
* * *
DELANEY WAITED AS Mariana licked the last drip of ice cream from the side of her hand before tossing the bottom bit of cone into the trash. Above, the sun was just beginning to set, the warm glow still lighting up the busy streets. They’d decided to leave now so that they could make it home by dark and have dinner with Ruckus.
“You sure about this?” Mariana asked her as they began walking once more. They’d parked a few blocks away because the beach lot had been so crowded. Even now it was still pretty packed. “We could always grab something quick and not tell him.”
Ruckus had called about an hour ago to tell them he’d decided to cook dinner. He was good at many things; unfortunately, so far, cooking wasn’t one of them. He still had a hard time figuring out what all the different ingredients were. Last week he’d made cookies but had mistaken the salt for sugar.
“No.” She sighed. “Let’s just give him another shot.”
“Fine.” Mariana adjusted the straps of her ruby-red bikini. “But you’re trying it first.”
“Deal.”
They were both wearing jean shorts and their string bikini tops. Their shirts were stuffed into the tote bags on their arms, along with their towels. After a day of lounging in the sand—Mariana shamelessly checking out guys—they were both relaxed and at ease.
“I really needed this,” Mariana said, bumping shoulders with her lightly. “Time with my girl.”
“I’m sorry I’ve been spending so much time with Ruckus.” With him sharing her room, it was kind of hard not to.
“That’s not what I meant,” she assured her. “I just missed you, that’s all. And, well, normal.”
“Trust me,” Delaney said, and laughed. “I know what missing normal is like. I’m glad we did this, and that you like Ruckus, wet towels and all.”
She’d initially tried to slap him after hearing he was the one who’d taken Delaney in the first place, but she’d eventually calmed down and given him a chance. Friends like her were next to impossible to find, the kind who stood by you no matter what, who understood crazy things happened, accepted that, and chose to ride the crazy with you.
“I don’t know what I’d do without you.”
“Well,” Mariana said, “I know what I’d do without you, having experienced it recently, and that’s totally freak out. So,” she said, and sobered some then, “don’t disappear on me again, okay?”
“Okay.” Delaney linked their arms together.
They were o
nly a block away from the car now, the beach-going crowd having thinned slightly, only to be replaced with the nighttime partiers. Most of the shops were still open, so it wasn’t a big surprise, and Delaney absently scanned the people as they passed. Neither of them was in much of a hurry to get back for Ruckus’s cooking, sadly. And it was nice enjoying the weather.
They turned the corner and had just started down the block when a man across the street caught her attention. He wasn’t looking at her, and was dressed casually in a pair of blue jeans and a black T-shirt; nothing about him really stood out. Except for the fact that he was at least six-three and had blond hair.
Shaking her head, Delaney mentally scolded herself. She was about to let Mariana in on her crazy new irrational distrust of blond men when another man stepped out of a shop only twenty or so feet from them.
This time her breath caught in her throat, and her stomach twisted painfully. It took all her strength not to stop dead in her tracks. In the middle of the crowded walkway, that would draw way too much attention, not to mention her friend wasn’t known for being quiet. Mariana had the kind of voice that carried.
For a split second she tried to convince herself that she was hallucinating, that her paranoia was getting to her and making her see things that weren’t there. There was no denying it though; he was very real.
Trystan was here. And they were headed straight for him.
Completely unaware, Mariana continued to lead them down the street, intent on getting to the car. She was people watching as well, and when her gaze landed on Trystan, she stared a little too long before a girl’s sharp laughter to the right caught her attention and thankfully held it.
Delaney wasn’t sure what she’d do if her friend tried to flirt with him. She thought about reaching out to Ruckus telepathically, but that would only freak him out as well, and he was too far away to do anything anyway. Besides, it wasn’t like the Zane was here looking for her.
And even if he was, he had no idea what she looked like, anyway. With a slightly relieved breath, she realized that was true. He’d never seen her real face, and now that the effects of the device had been removed, he certainly wouldn’t mistake her for Olena. She was in the clear; all she had to do was walk past him like he was merely another stranger on the street.
She could do that. Hell, she’d pretended to be an alien princess for weeks and he’d bought that. Mostly.
He was dressed just as casually as the first guy she’d seen, blending right in. The only difference was he’d chosen a navy T-shirt, a dead giveaway for someone who knew Kint colors. It was strange seeing him in casual clothing from her world, especially when the way he wore them made them seem just as dignified as the traditional uniform he usually wore.
She counted the steps it took to reach him, keeping her gaze straight ahead when he suddenly turned and began striding in their direction. From the corner of her eye, it didn’t appear as if he was looking at her, and when they finally reached each other, he walked by without a single glance in her direction.
The breath she’d been holding slowly slipped past her lips, and she resisted the urge to check over her shoulder just to be sure. Instead she kept walking, keeping her pace even and her body relaxed.
Still, she couldn’t help but panic over why he was here. On her planet. In her state.
When the car finally came into view, it was all she could do not to run toward it, throw herself inside, and lock the doors. Because that wouldn’t be suspicious at all. Tugging the keys out of her bag, she clenched them tightly in her hand, the jagged metal biting into the flesh of her palm almost unnoticeably.
“Oh crap.” Mariana stopped abruptly with less than five feet between them and the car. “I forgot to grab shampoo.”
“What?” It took Delaney a moment to process her friend’s words through the rushing of blood in her ears.
Mariana was already pulling away, eyes locked on the store they’d just passed. The one right next to the one Trystan had been in.
“Forget it. You can borrow mine.” Delaney reached for her, but Mariana was moving too quickly and had already turned. She wanted to call her back, but irrational fear kept her from doing so. Mariana was tiny but fast, and with her already halfway to the store, she’d have to raise her voice to be heard.
Not that Mariana had a problem with that, for she waved a hand without glancing around and called, “Be back in a sec!”
The parking lot they’d chosen was smaller than the one at the beach and only had about a dozen other cars in it now. Still holding tightly to her keys, she moved over to the driver’s side, slipping the car key into the lock. She’d wait in the car and hopefully realize she was overreacting by the time Mariana came back.
Her phone went off in her back pocket, and she nearly jumped out of her skin. Yanking it out, she heaved a sigh of relief when she saw it was Ruckus calling. Hitting answer, she brought the device up to her ear and twisted the key to open the door.
“Hey,” she said breathlessly, “we’re heading back in a minute.”
“You sound funny,” Ruckus said, concern in his voice. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing,” she told him. “We can talk about it when I get home. What are you making, anyway?”
“Delaney … something’s happened. Pettus got ahold of me. They know who was leading the Tars.”
She paused. “Who?”
“Brightan. When Trystan said he hadn’t tried to kill you those other times, he was telling the truth. He’d only discovered Brightan’s betrayal that night we left.”
“That’s why he shot him.”
“And saved your life,” Ruckus confirmed, “yes.”
“How did Pettus figure this out?” she asked.
“Trystan admitted it.” He paused, continuing before she could feel any sort of relief. “Delaney, the Basileus is dead.”
The fear returned tenfold, and she wished more than anything that they were together. She’d been trying to keep the fact that Trystan was here from him so that he wouldn’t worry, but now … If Magnus was dead, who’d killed him?
“Ru—” She reached for the handle then glanced at the window. Her reflection wasn’t the only one staring back at her. Before she could react, the tall blond image in the glass moved.
She was vaguely aware of Ruckus’s voice calling through the phone as it dropped from her hand and hit the gravel. The sharp sting in her neck lasted only a heartbeat, and then the world fizzled out and everything went dark.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
I WAS VERY tempted to just write, “Thanks, everyone I know!” in this section, partly for fear that I’d forget someone, but mostly because acknowledgments are hard. That being said, if I did end up forgetting you, I am so sorry! It’s just, there are a lot of people and if I listed every single one of you this would end up longer than the actual book!
First and foremost, I’d like to thank everyone over at Swoon Reads. All of you are amazing, and I will forever be honored that you believed in my book enough to let me be a part of the Swoon Reads family. Holly, thank you for all of the work you’ve done, and all of the amazing notes and suggestions you’ve given. This book is a million times better now because of you. Also, the little notes you left about Trystan (Team Trystan, huh?) always helped alleviate some of the stress during the editing process, which I really appreciated, more than you know! Thank you, Emily, for really making me feel welcome to the team by emailing with me about our mutual love for Luke Mitchell. And of course, thanks to Liz D. for this epic cover!
To all of the other spectacular Swoon authors, thank you for being so supportive and welcoming, as well!
Thanks to my parents, for making books such a huge part of my life from the very beginning. You guys have always been very supportive of my crazy dream, and your belief in me means the world. Mom, you’re the best. Thank you for letting me ramble on about potential plots and characters, and for always seeing something within that jumbled nonsense. Dad, thank you for passing on
your love of reading (even if you did name me after a character who dies). To my siblings, Kim and Daniel, thanks for understanding every time I pretended to listen to you tell me something, even when I was clearly typing away and not hearing a word.
To my best friends, Josie and Jon. Josie, you are always the first person I want to share something new with. Thank you for your support, and your feedback, and for thinking every new book I write is the best book I’ve ever written. Thanks for your honesty when certain things don’t seem to work, and for standing by me during those low periods (which everyone who writes knows about) where suddenly I start believing I am the worst writer on the entire planet. Just a heads up though, you’re still going to have to read my stuff even once I’m old and senile and none of it makes any sense. So ha! Jon, thanks for all the coffee, and for being the only person brave enough to pull me away from my computer when I’ve been writing for hours on end. I love you guys.
Thank you to all of my professors at Johnson State College, and my classmates for helping me grow and improve as a writer. Kat, Whitney, Stephanie, Ben, thanks for not completely tearing me down during workshops! And to my teachers from high school (Ms. Hinkle, you are the best!). Thanks to Mrs. DeToro for story time in the fifth grade, which was how/when I realized I wanted to be an author.
Thanks to Matt and Lisa, two people who aren’t here to see it finally happen, but whose unwavering belief that I could make it helped me believe it, too.
And finally, thank you to everyone who has ever read one my books before, and everyone who is reading this now. The only reason any of this is even remotely possible is because of all the feedback—good and bad—readers have given me over the years, and I truly appreciate each and every one of you.
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