Page 82 of Fool Me Twice

Roma watches Ez’s face as she works through the incantation, fascinated. Even after all these weeks, she’s neverreally had the opportunity to appreciate Ez in her element, always too preoccupied by her own spellcasting to take much notice.

Now, though, she memorizes all the little details: the way Ez dips her head the slightest bit when she’s concentrating, the way her posture unconsciously straightens, the way her lips form perfectly around every syllable‍?—

The way she becomes wholly consumed by her task, driven and focused in a way that almost takes Roma’s breath away.

As Ez’s spell winds to a close, Roma feels a smooth coolness settle over her skin, like water washing away the sweat and dirt from a long day. “There,” Ez says, glancing up to meet Roma’s eyes. “One twelve-hour deactivation of your Sanctum enchantments, starting now.”

Roma swallows hard. “How do we know it worked?”

For a long moment, Ez is quiet.

And then, purposefully, she raises her hand from its spot by Roma’s collarbone, brushing the backs of her fingers over Roma’s cheek.

Roma’s breath catches. Ez’s touch is gentle but deliberate, her knuckles sliding over Roma’s skin and lighting Roma’s nerves on fire in every place they touch‍?—

“Yeah,” Ez says matter-of-factly, not lowering her hand. “Yeah, it worked.”

Roma feels like her very soul is shivering with the warmth of Ez’s skin. Carefully, she reaches up to wrap her hand around Ez’s bare wrist, feeling Ez’s pulse‍—slow like a demon’s, but a touch faster than Roma expected‍—underneath her fingers.

And Roma can touch Ez now. Roma cantouchEz now, can touch her without burning her, can touch her without hurting her. She has twelve hours where she’s not a Sanctum hunter, not an enemy to demons everywhere, not a soldier for a cause that she doesn’t even think she still believes in‍?—

For the next twelve hours, Roma is just a human. Just a human who, somewhere along the line, started falling for the demon she was supposed to be betraying.

“Good,” she whispers, and she fits her palm against Ez’s cheek, leans forward, and kisses her.

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Roma’s lips are so soft.

It’s the first and only coherent thought that Ez’s brain can process right now. Roma’s lips are soft and insistent, and her hand is firm and solid against Ez’s cheek, and it’s just sonormal.

No corrosion burns. No ulterior motives.

Just a simple kiss in the fading light of sunset. Ez closes her eyes and frames Roma’s face with her palms, pressing back against her, trying to memorize the warmth of her skin, the shape of her mouth‍?—

All the little details she could only imagine when Roma’s enchantments were active. All the little details she didn’twantto imagine, because imagining them would make it so much worse when she could never have them.

But they’re kissing now. They’re kissing near the shore of a beautiful lake at sunset, the colors of the sky bathing them in an otherworldly glow, and maybe‍?—

And maybe Ez reallycanhave this. Reluctantly, she pulls away. “Well,” she says hoarsely. “That was unexpected.”

Something indecipherable flashes across Roma’s face. “I’m sorry,” she stammers, jerking back. “I‍—I shouldn’t have done that. I‍?—‍”

“No, youabsolutelyshould’ve done that,” Ez says emphatically, and she leans forward to kiss her again, just to underline her point. “It was‍—it was just unexpected. I didn’t think‍?—‍‍”

Roma is still talking, her words jumbling together with Ez’s. “‍—‍wasn’t thinking straight‍?—‍”

“‍—‍never thought it would be possible‍?—‍”

“‍—‍but with the enchantments gone‍?—‍”

“‍—‍thinking about doing that a lot lately, but‍?—‍”

“‍—‍wanted to do that for a while now, and‍—wait,” Roma cuts in, holding up her hands to stop their tangled explanations. “Did you just‍—did you just say that you’ve been thinking about kissing me lately?”

Ez’s heart flutters. “Um. Yes. Did you just say that you’ve wanted to kiss me for a while?”

“Yes,” Roma says slowly. “I did.”

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