Page 119 of Cruel Destinies

“I ordered...” Tobias began, holding up two fingers, but the waitress was gone again.

I shrugged and dragged the shake towards me. At a look from Tobias, I said, “What?”

He scowled, but didn’t complain about my claim on the shake.

“Okay, so you have this curse, and yet you’re dating my best friend?” I asked.

“I know.” He dipped his head and raked his hands through his hair, looking much more human and forlorn than I’d ever seen him. “Trust me, I tried to stay away. But I…imprinted on her.”

I choked on the mouthful of milkshake I tried to swallow, coughing as I stared at him with wide eyes. “You what?” I gasped after I recovered.

“I imprinted,” he said. “It basically means I’m chemically bound to—”

“I know what it means,” I interrupted, unable to control the pitch of my voice in my astonishment. “Omigod, that’s why I sensed that aura around you. I should have connected the dots!”

He frowned at me, but I couldn’t decipher the look in his eyes.

I pushed the shake to the side and laced my finger on the table. “So you set up this little meeting with me—”

“To see if you could break the curse,” he finished, his face surprisingly vulnerable and chipping away the walls of my defenses. “I don’t want to hurt her, but I also literally can’t stay away from her. Breaking the curse is the only way to save us both.”

I tapped my index finger on my knuckle, appraising Tobias. He returned my stare as he grabbed the last of the fries but broke it as he dug into his burger.

I liked him. I didn’t know what it was about him, but I wanted to see him turn into a real boy. And he’d imprinted on my best friend. I didn’t know much about imprinting, but I did know it was a bond that lasted a lifetime. There was no escaping from Tobias for Arya, not unless she wanted Tobias to die, and Arya’s heart was far too kind for that, even if she had no romantic interest in him at all.

“Does she know?” I asked before he could take another bite of his burger.

He paused, lowering the burger. “No. She doesn’t know about the curse or the imprint.”

Of course, she didn’t. And I could understand why Tobias didn’t tell her. Their relationship thus far had been complicated enough. And as someone who’d been keeping her own secrets from Arya, I had no room to judge.

But he was asking me to lift a curse, one I knew nothing about. What if there was no way to break the curse? What if I did something stupid, and the curse rebounded on me? Not that I wasn’t fully capable of screwing up my love life all on my own. Still, messing with unknown—and ancient—magic could be dangerous.

But this was for Arya. I didn’t necessarily care if she rejected Tobias after he fell for her—okay, maybe I cared a little—but I definitely didn’t want her to spend her life pining for him if he couldn’t love her back. I also knew plenty about that feeling.

I sighed. “I can’t promise anything—”

“I figured. This was a dumb idea.” He set down his burger and looked out the window.

I held up a finger, giving Tobias a pointed look. “You’re the one who came to me, so let me just say this before you go climbing on that high and mighty shifter horse of yours. Witches don’t just go casting curses for the fun of it. That’ssome serious shit, and if you want me to try to remove it, you’d better treat me with a little respect.”

Tobias opened his mouth, but I held up my finger again. “Not done. I’m doing this for her more than I am for you, but that doesn’t give you the right to treat me like dog shit. And don’t go thinking I can just wave a magic wand and lift this curse. It’s going to take some time and research, and even then, I don’t know if I’ll be able to lift it. But for Arya’s sake, I’m going to do my best.”

I grabbed the milkshake and sucked on the straw until I got past the melted part and back to the thick and creamy bit.

Tobias’s jaw twitched as he regarded me. He sighed and grabbed a bite of his burger, throwing it back on his plate as if it suddenly repulsed him.

“I don’t know how much time I have left.”

I lifted a brow. “Are you, like, dying or something?”

“No. The curse. I’m... She makes me...” He shook his head. “It could activate any day now.”

“Oh,” I said with a nod. He really did have feelings for her.

“I’ve spent my whole life trying to compartmentalize my emotions because I didn’t wantthis. I’ve watched what the curse has done to my parents. I thought I’d have more time, but Arya... She’s special. I tried to stay away, but I couldn’t. And now?” He held out his empty hands.

I couldn’t help myself. My heart broke at the anguish on his face. He was clearly smitten, and it was making him miserable. I couldn’t imagine anyone was deserving of such a curse. To never even be able to hope for love. What would that do to a person?

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