“Talkative, whoever they are. In all this chatter you’ve been hearing, has anyone mentioned the Still Blue? Has my brother Sable told you where it is?”
“The land of sunshine and butterflies?” she said, sitting back again. “Don’t tell me you’re looking for it too. It’s a fool’s hope.”
“Are you calling me a fool, Kirra?”
She smiled. It was the first time he’d called her by name. Because she noticed, he did too. “A hopeful fool.”
Perry smirked. “The worst kind.” He was starting to wonder if everything she said would streak him. “You don’t think the Still Blue exists? Don’t you have any desire to live?”
“I am living,” she said. “I won’t be chased by the sky.”
They fell silent, watching each other. Her scent bristled with excitement. She didn’t look away, and he realized he couldn’t either.
“You’re in a vulnerable position,” she said, finally. “There’s nothing wrong with accepting a little help.”
Help. That word again. He was done. He couldn’t hear it one more time. “I’ll consider the offer,” he said, standing. “Is there anything else?”
Kirra blinked up at him. “Do you want there to be?” Her meaning couldn’t have been any clearer.
Perry went to the door and opened it, letting in the night air. “Good night, Kirra.”
She rose to her feet and walked over. Stopping less than a foot in front of him, she stared into his eyes as she inhaled.
Perry’s stomach clenched. She’d stirred his pulse, something he hadn’t felt in weeks. She’d know, but there was nothing he could do to hide it.
“Sleep well, Peregrine of the Tides,” she said, and then slipped out into the darkness.
26
ARIA
What are you doing here, Liv?” Aria asked, stepping into her room. She couldn’t keep the anger from her voice.
Liv rose from the bed. “I was looking for Roar. He wasn’t in his room.” The Greek dress looked rumpled now, falling off her shoulder, and she’d taken her hair down, but she looked stronger and more at ease than she had during dinner.
Aria crossed her arms. A lamp flickered by the bedside, lighting the chilly, cramped room. “He’s not here. As you can clearly see.”
“Just give him a message for me—”
“I’m not telling him anything for you.”
Liv smirked. “Exactly who are you?”
“A friend of Roar’s and Perry’s.” Aria bit the inside of her lip as soon as the words left her mouth. Friend felt like such a weak way to describe herself. She was much more than that—to both of them.
A smile spread across Liv’s face. “Ahh … you’re a friend of Perry’s. I should’ve guessed. You look like someone my brother would be friends with.”
“Time for you to leave.”
Liv gave a small laugh, making no move to go. “Does that surprise you? You can’t really think you’re the only girl who’s fallen for him.”
Aria felt her face heat with anger. “I know I’m the only girl he’s rendered to.”
Liv went perfectly still. Then she stepped close, her eyes boring into Aria. The welt from earlier disappeared against the redness of her cheeks. “I will kill you if you hurt him,” she said, her voice calm, unemotional. It wasn’t a threat. It was information. A consequence.
“I was thinking that same thing earlier.”
“You don’t know anything,” Liv said. “Tell Roar he has to leave. Right away. Before the wedding. He can’t stay here.”
“How can you act like he’s an inconvenience?” Aria spat, thinking of all the nights she’d spent talking with Roar about Liv. Hearing how wonderful she was. This girl was horrible. Selfish. Rude. “You ran off! You left him! He’s been looking for you for a year.”
Liv waved a hand, gesturing around the room. “Do you think I chose this? Do you think I want to be here? My brother sold me! Vale took away everything I wanted.” She glanced at the door, staring at it like she was deciding something, and then stepped closer. “You want to know what I’ve done for the past year? I worked every day at forgetting Roar. I shut out every smile, every kiss, every stupid, perfect thing he ever said to make me laugh. I buried all of it. It took me a year to stop thinking about him. A year to stop missing him enough to come here and face Sable.
“Roar is ruining everything by being here,” Liv continued. “I’m not strong enough. How can I forget him when he’s right in front of me? How can I marry Sable if all I’m thinking about is Roar?”
Tears brimmed in Liv’s eyes, and she breathed raggedly. Aria didn’t want to feel sympathy for her. Not when she’d hurt Roar as much as she had. “He’s here to bring you back, Liv. There has to be a way you can come back to the Tides.”
“Go back?” Liv said with a thin laugh. “Perry can’t repay the dowry. And I can’t run away from this any longer. I know what it’s like out there. I know the Tides need help, and Sable can give it. He’ll keep helping if we marry. How can I walk away from that? How can I leave if it means my family could starve—or die?”
Aria shook her head. She didn’t know. She let out a breath and sat on the bed as a sudden wave of exhaustion swept over her. Aether flashed through the small window, making the room flicker softly with blue light.
Liv’s problem felt uncomfortably familiar. Aria had been so focused on finding the Still Blue for Hess and on getting Talon back that she hadn’t let herself think about what would happen afterward. Would there ever be a way she and Perry could be together? The Tides had rejected her, and Reverie wasn’t even an option. Everyone, and everything, was against them.