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I long for a drink, my throat now feeling like sandpaper. “I’m ready.” This is more than a way to impress a man. This is belonging. This is a symbol of leaving Avren behind and taking my new role—though it scares the crap out of me—as one of the two saviors by the horns.

He lifts a hand to my shoulder, slipping the material of my dress to the side. “I thought it might look lovely right here.” Leaning down, he kisses the bare skin of my shoulder, causing a rush of heat to pool in my gut.

“Come, come.” Reviva opens the door wider, letting us cross the threshold.

I’m hit with the pungent smells of herbs, reminiscent of Ben’s cottage. In the city, the aromas of chlorine, bleach, and the occasional perfume were everyday. In the wilderness, I’ve become accustomed to campfires, moss, and the earthy smells of the life cycle. The fresh smells make me want to curl up by the fire in Reviva’s hearth and fall asleep.

She leads me to a chair at the table in her kitchen. Brightly colored cards lie scattered over the wooden surface, along with mismatched teacups stained with many uses. “Are you sure you don’t want a reading, dear?” Her bony fingers clasp my shoulder. “I sense your fear.”

Do you think the tattoo needle might have something to do with it?

“No, I’m fine,” I lie. Dancing in the square sounds like a much better time. “Let’s get this over with.”

Bastian crouches beside me, gathering my hands into his. His blue eyes assess me as tiny wrinkles form between his brows. “I thought you wanted this.”

Yes. I want to belong somewhere. I love Levi and Grayson. Bastian and Evie are growing on me. If I need to get a tattoo to prove I belong, then I will do it. I don’t know if I want the title of the savior from the prophecy. In fact, I’m pretty sure I don’t.

I rest my forehead against his, desperate to find his scent hidden in the pungent incense. “Can we add a fifth circle?”

He lets out a stifled laugh. “I always thought the four-circle thing was stupid. It seems more complete with five—stronger, more resilient.”

I tilt my chin slightly to take his lips in a soft kiss. “Then let’s do this.”

Turning around, I sit backward in the chair, resting my arms on it. Bastian slips my dress partway down my arm to reveal my bare shoulder. I shudder slightly as he traces the area with his fingernail to show Reviva where to place it. He knows what his touch does to me.

A cold, wet cloth swipes over my shoulder. Reviva dries it, then hobbles over to the other side of the room. She comes back with a brown leather pouch, unrolling it on the table to reveal her tools.

I grip the back of the chair tighter as she touches her pen to my skin. I fight back the tears as she traces the first circle.

“Talk to me.” Bastian sits on the floor, watching my face. “I’m here if you need something to punch or to dig your fingernails into.”

All I want to do is scream obscenities at him. Tonight was supposed to be special. I wore this dress for him—one that Evie said he would love. It feels as if this woman might burn a hole straight through my skin to my bone, and I’ll be in no shape to return to the dance. Why did I agree to this? I close my eyes. “I’m… fine… Bastian.”

Reviva continues to assault my skin, thinking nothing of my pain. “The last time we met, you drew the lovers’ card.”

“Yes.” He averts his eyes from mine to look at his fortuneteller. “What of it?”

“And this is what the universe brought you?” Reviva’s pen seems to dig deeper into my shoulder. “A weakling from Avren? Took you for the warrior-woman type.”

I tense, ready to defend myself.

“The universe has tethered me to her. I can’t help myself.” Bastian still won’t look at me. “It’s as if she’s a drug I can’t get enough of.”

“I’m right here,” I grumble, hurt by his words. “The least you can do is say why you like me.”

His eyes dart to mine as I’m held captive in the hands of the tattoo artist. “You don’t back down. You strive to accomplish things that seem impossible to others. You’re headstrong, not willing to let others define who you are because of your upbringing. You’re a good friend to Levi. Others disregard him because he’s deaf.” He grabs at the scruff of his neck, dipping his head slightly. “And you’re a damn good kisser.”

I stare at him through the slats of the chair, no longer regarding the pain of Reviva’s needle. “Then, if the magnetic connection disappeared, you’d still like me?”

He threads his fingers through mine, giving me all kinds of feels. “I don’t need an unnatural bond to like you, Mari. You’ve reeled me in by just being you.”

Reviva sets the needle on the table. She picks up a square of cloth and rubs balm from a porcelain bowl on my skin. The coolness of the salve, along with Bastian’s words, calms my soul.

“My turn,” he says, jumping up and brushing the dirt from the floor from his pants.

“Are you getting one?”

He already has multiple runes decorating his skin.