“How did he survive such a wound?” Mother asked. “Nor nearly died from the tiniest scratch from a blood coral.”

Talin glanced at me, and I nodded for him to continue. “When my brother imprisoned your daughter, he discovered the healing properties in her blood. He injured her, repeatedly, to gather her blood so that he could study it. Eventually he realized that by...consuming her blood, he could also heal himself.”

“Consuming it?” Zadie’s voice was as thin as seagrass. I hadn’t told her that detail, only that Ceren had found a way to heal himself with my blood. It had seemed too awful to say the rest out loud.

Mother’s voice was eerily flat when she spoke. “He drank her blood.”

Talin nodded. “Yes.”

I closed my eyes, but the silence that filled the room was so thick I was finally forced to look around. When I did, I saw that my mother’s face was streaked with tears.

When I had been injured as a child, and when Zadie’s legs had been scarred, Mother had wailed and moaned loud enough for the entire village to hear. I was accustomed to her histrionics, yet this silent display of grief was far more difficult to witness.

Talin took her hand and waited patiently while she collected herself. “I wanted to give you time to process all this before the rest of the villagers hear, but I think I should speak with Governor Kristos and the elders right away.”

Mother glanced out the window just as the first drops of rain began to fall. “I understand your concern, but I’m afraid Kristos has joined the men on the fishing trip.”

I turned to stare at her. Given the tension in the village, it seemed like a particularly dangerous time for Kristos to leave.

“He was criticized for his economic decisions,” Mother explained to me. “He felt he needed to do more to contribute.” She returned her attention to Talin and bowed her head. “I know our home is small, but we would be honored to have you stay with us tonight, Your Highness.”

“What about Grig and Osius?” I asked, my eyes returning to the window, where the rain was already falling heavily. “They’ve never spent a night at sea before.”

“They’ll be all right,” Talin said after a thoughtful moment. “Grig only gets mildly seasick.”

* * *

At dinner, Talin managed to consume several bowls of watery fish stew and seemed to genuinely enjoy it. Mother had gone to bed early, claiming a headache, though I had a feeling she was still trying to process what Talin had told her. Zadie washed the dishes as I prepared a pallet for him in the living area of our house.

“I’m sorry it’s not much,” I said as I led him to our balcony, where I shook out one of our few blankets. The rain had eased, but every now and then the clouds lit up with distant lightning. “We’ve never had a guest spend the night before.”

Talin leaned against the balustrade. “I’m honored to be the first.”

“I still can’t believe you’re here,” I said, folding the blanket over my arm. The light from the house spilled out onto the balcony, bathing Talin in its warm glow. A part of me didn’t want to go to sleep tonight, because I was afraid I’d wake to find this had all been a dream.

Talin held out his hand, and I joined him at the railing, pressing into his warmth. “I don’t know how we’ll explain this to the governor,” I said softly. “Not after I was so sure...”

He placed his hand on top of mine. “I hoped when I saw you again it would be to tell you that Varenia was free. Instead I’ve made your lives far worse.”

“You haven’t. If I’d never gone to Ilara in Zadie’s place...” I trailed off, taking a ragged breath. “If I’d never met you—”

“Don’t you dare finish that thought.” He put a hand on my shoulder and turned me to face him. “Meeting you was the only good thing to happen to me since I found out my mother was still alive. And every moment I’ve spent with you after has been better than the one before. Even right now, when I have no idea what we’re going to do, all I can think about is how badly I want to kiss you.”

I blushed at his frankness. “Then why don’t you?”

“Your mother is right inside the house, for one thing.”

I stood on tiptoe until my lips were close to his ear. “My mother doesn’t have to know.”

Talin turned his face before I had lowered myself back down, his mouth finding mine instantly, stealing my breath. His hands moved from my shoulders into my hair, tipping my head farther back. I dropped the blanket and felt his lips curl in a smile against mine.

Just a few hours ago, I had wondered if I would ever see Talin again, and now he was here, holding me. For a moment, I let myself forget the horrible news that had brought him to Varenia and said a silent thank-you to the universe for giving us this time together.

We were so focused on each other that I almost didn’t hear the tiny voice calling my name.

Talin and I froze, still intertwined.

“I only wanted to let you know that I’ve decided to sleep on the pallet,” Zadie called softly from just inside the house. “It’s too cold in our room,” she added. “Um, good night.”

A moment later, I let out a very unromantic snort of laughter, a mixture of embarrassment and relief. For the first time since we’d met, we could be together without fear or judgment. The only thing we risked hurting tonight was my mother’s sense of propriety.

“Have I ever told you how much I like your sister?” Talin murmured. He picked me up and stumbled backward into my room until his knees buckled against the mattress and he landed with a heavy thud.

“Careful,” I hissed. “We don’t have your fancy feather mattresses here, you know.”

Talin glanced behind him. “You don’t have our fancy doors, either.”

“Mmm. Pity, then, that you’re so ticklish.”

“You wouldn’t dare,” he said, inching away from me toward the edge of the bed.

I arched an eyebrow and flexed my fingers. “Wouldn’t I?”

I leaped atop him, quickly discovering the places he was most ticklish and then doing my best to avoid them, in order not to wake my mother with his laughter.

“This isn’t fair,” he said through gritted teeth. “You’re not ticklish.”

I finally relented, letting him catch his breath for a few minutes while I disappeared behind the curtain and changed into a shift. When I returned, he had removed his boots and unlaced the top of his tunic, exposing a few inches of his smooth bronzed chest.

We both looked at the tiny bed at the same time. A furious blush bloomed in my cheeks.