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How could Asher not see that humans had grossly overextended themselves? All other creatures were suffering for it, not just my own people.

He loves them, just as you love your kind.

I couldn’t fault Asher for caring too much.

I spared him another glance. Grim, as usual. I suppressed a smile when I took in that body of his hunched over the steering wheel, his head dipped to avoid bumping the ceiling. The small car made him look comically large.

He caught sight of my smile. “What?”

I shook my head and played with a strand of my hair. “Nothing.”

“Whenever you smile, I worry.”

Asher wasn’t looking at my smile like it worried him. He was looking at it as though vividly remembering the last time his lips were on mine.

My grin dropped away as my thoughts moved in the same direction. His large stature hadn’t been comical then. No, I’d distinctly enjoyed the way he enveloped me when we kissed.

“So... have you ever been serious with anyone?” he asked out of nowhere, clearing his throat a little.

I tilted my head at him.

“Ever had a boyfriend?” he clarified.

“Of course—many.” Was this some sort of wily human question?

“Many?” he raised his eyebrows.

“What is that look?” I said.

He tore his gaze away from me to watch the road. “I’m just surprised is all.”

Asher was acting weird. This whole conversation was weird.

I continued to stare after him. “Doesn’t everybody have boy friends?” I said.

Now it was his turn to look quizzical. His eyes widened and his mouth parted as a thought hit him. He huffed out a laugh, rubbing his jaw with his hand as he shook his head. I pretended the gesture didn’t make my pulse race.

“No, not like that, Lana,” he said, his voice gravelly.

My brows pulled together. “Then like what?”

“A boyfriend is someone you’re romantic with... a lover.”

He had my full attention. “A lover?” I felt my face heat.

Now I remembered the terms.Girlfriendandboyfriend. The words always confused me because Infernari didn’t really have an equivalent. We had betrotheds and courtships and mates. The human equivalents never quite worked out right in my mind.

“What do you mean, romantic?”

“Dates, kisses, sex.”

I swallowed, my cheeks flaming. Asher knew all about those things, and I knew nothing, save for what he showed me. For the first time in my life I felt...inexperienced.

I couldn’t look at him when I answered, “We don’t—no, I’ve never been courted.”

I saw concern—and curiosity—pass across his expression. “Why not?”

I lifted a shoulder. “Dating is something humans do. Infernari don’t think of romantic relationships the same way.”