She nodded, satisfied with my answer, but her smile fell as she examined me. I’d recovered from the effects of the poisoned wine, but I knew she saw the way my eyes were shadowed by rings of exhaustion.
“Did you ever find out who drugged you?”
“No,” I lied, once again grateful for the fact that no one else shared my strange ability to detect deceit. “Honestly, I was lucky Casimir was there. He got me out before anything… happened.” It was mostly true, if you didn’t count my scuffle with Zhara. And my sudden collapse onto the dining room floor.
“And do you…” Gwen gulped. “Do you trust him? Casimir, I mean.”
My heart dropped into my stomach.Why would she ask me that?To buy myself some time, I moved to the wardrobe to hang up the dress. The truth was, I didn’t know if I could trust him. Unconsciously, I scratched at the brand concealed beneath my jeans. “I think so,” I said finally.
Gwen nodded, but her eyes were still brimming with questions as she examined the note attached to the package the dress had come in. “Did anything happen between you two at the party?”
I kept my expression carefully neutral as I replied, “Nothing of note.”
A big fat lie, but by now, I was in far too deep to start telling the truth.
“And he’s… nice to you?” she pried.
Nice? Was the Darkseer nice to me? Itwasnice when he’d brewed me an antidote to the poisoned wine and hovered over me until I recovered. But was itniceof him to magically tattoo his name on my thigh as part of our bargain and without my prior knowledge? Was itniceorgentlemanlywhen he’d glamoured an elderly librarian to get out of trouble for smoking? He certainly wasn’tniceto August. Rather, he was quite open in his disdain for my ex’s foolishness in involving himself with the Order.
I think Sinclair never deserved you, he’d once told me.
Casimir’s moral code was dubious at best. He’d broken Monty Prescott’s hand after he’d dared to lay it on me without my consent. Likely, he’d have done worse if he could’ve gotten away with it. I wondered, had Casimir killed other Daemons?
A louder voice in my mind shouted over all the others.Monty had deserved it. He deserved worse for the things he’d said to me that night.
But Casimir had also flirted and charmed his way into Bryce’s mind to find out where her family hid their precious heirlooms. He’d stolen her family’s heirloom necklace to protect me from glamours. He’d done all of that for me, even if I’d never asked him to.
Maybe I haven’t corrupted you thoroughly enough.
And then, there were the other things he had done to me. My face flushed at the recollection of his lips on mine, of his fingers tracing along my hips while we stood on the veranda. No, kissing him had not beennice; it had been calamitous. The taste of him, of his tongue, had obliterated every other sensation. His touch was a corrosive, all-consuming toxin that had me unraveling at the edges. I recalled the look in his eyes, that predatory, possessive gleam when they fell on my thigh, on the proof of our bargain. Ontohisname.
He’d done all of these things without shame or remorse.
No, Casimir wasn’tnice. I didn’t know if there was a word for what he was. Intoxicating, maybe. Violent.Sweet.
Gwen’s look of dismay grew the longer I remained silent.
I cleared my throat. “He’s—notnice, exactly.”
Gwen’s gaze narrowed in suspicion. “Then why is he apologizing? The note said the gift was a peace offering.”
I swallowed.Gods, did Gwen always have to be so perceptive?
“Well, he kind of flew off the handle when Monty tried it on with me at the party,” I admitted. His attacking Montyhadbeen a show of poor behavior, after all.
“He didwhat?” Gwen gasped at this piece of juiciest gossip. “Tell me everything.” I recounted the incident in all its gory detail.
Gwen’s jaw hung open in awe and disbelief. “I can’t believe he broke Monty’s finger to defend your honor. It’s so—” She struggled for the right word.
“Toxic?” I offered.
Gwen huffed a laugh, shaking her head. “Sohot!”
“Gwen!” I scolded. “Don’t encourage him! Whatever happened to hating toxic masculinity?”
I lobbed a pillow at her, which only made her fall into a fit of giggles.
Frowning, I asked her, “What if I told you he hunted down Monty the other day and finished what he started?”