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“I still hate you,” she whispered.

“I know,” he answered quietly.

“I hate that you kept this from me.” Tears stung her eyes, and she swallowed.

“I know.”

“I hate…” She trailed off.

“It still holds true, Scarlett. What I said on the horse. I can take what you need to say to me. I can handle it,” he told her softly.

She took a deep breath. “I hate that I was finally given a choice, and I had to choose between the lesser of two evils. I hate that my choices were between someone who took what they wanted from me physically andwantedto break me, or someone who pretended to care for me,” she whispered. “I hate that I could have survived every single thing that Mikale would have done to me if it had meant my family was safe, would have endured every second of it, but your pretending to care was what actually broke me. I hate that I am trained to defend myself against all kinds of attacks. That I can torture and inflict unfathomable physical pain and can endure the same, butnothingcould have prepared me for the pain that came when you broke me.”

Two tears were sliding down her cheeks as the quiet extended between them. After an entire minute had gone by, she felt him stir. He propped himself up on an elbow, looking down at her, and his golden eyes seemed to glow in the night as they connected with her own.

“I hate that you think I was pretending to care about you,” he said roughly. “I hate that tomorrow morning, when your tonic has worn off, you will likely go back to not speaking to me. I hate that when we cross that border tomorrow you will likely hate me even more.”

“Why?”

“Because I have not adequately prepared you for what you will encounter. The people you will meet.”

“The Fire Prince?”

“We will need to cross paths with his Inner Court upon our arrival, yes.”

There was another long stretch of silence as they stared at each other. Scarlett’s mind was going foggy as her tonic began to drag her under. Her eyes drifted closed.

She felt him scoot closer to her, felt his finger trace a line along her hairline and down her jaw. His breath was warm on her face, on her lips as he whispered, “I hate that you are so incredibly perfect, and I do not deserve you, but I want you anyway. I hate that the mortal prince has had you, and I have not.”

Her eyes fluttered back open, and his mouth was inches from hers. “I hate that even though I hate you, I want to kiss you. I hate that we’re not alone and that is keeping me from doing so.”

“Love,” he whispered so low she knew Fae wouldn’t even be able to hear. “If we were alone, I would make you forget about all of this. I would show you just how sorry I am. I would start with your lips, your neck. I would find my way to your breasts because I want to know how they feel in my mouth and not just my hand. My tongue would taste and explore— your mouth, your breasts, your stomach. I would finish what we started in that apartment. I would find out exactly how your body reacts to me. To my fingers touching you, being inside you.”

Heat pooled low in her belly as he whispered the words, and she fought the urge to squeeze her thighs together at the ache. “I hate that I stopped you that night in your apartment,” she breathed.

Then Sorin’s lips were on hers, and she gasped at the contact. It was a quick kiss, only a few seconds, before he pulled back and murmured onto her lips,“I hate that I lose all shred of self-control around you.”

Scarlett swallowed. “Callan—”

“I am going to be really honest here, Love. I do not give a fuck if Callan or anyone else just saw that,” Sorin whispered.

Scarlett huffed a laugh. “All right then.”

“But, now that we have confessed to so many things we hate, we really do need to sleep. Especially you.”

“I know,” Scarlett sighed. She rolled gingerly onto her uninjured side, and she felt Sorin sidle up behind her. His arm curled protectively around her hips, avoiding the wound. His other arm slid under her shoulder. He gently pulled her into the cradle of his hips and against his chest. She let her head rest back against his shoulder.

“Sleep, Scarlett,” he whispered, pressing a kiss to the top of her head.

And as she let sleep claim her, the darkness didn’t seem quite so endless.

CHAPTER 46

SCARLETT

Scarlett woke to fingers brushing gently down her cheek, and she leaned slightly into the touch. Her eyes fluttered open to find Sorin crouched before her, his cloak already around his shoulders and most of the camp packed up. Sloan, Finn, and Callan had just finished clipping their bags to their saddles. Eliza was apparently still keeping Callan from coming near her until she woke.

“Hey, Love,” Sorin said quietly, a soft smile on his lips.