Page 56 of Mountains of Mist and Magic

“She's special?” Grayden guessed.

“Yes. And I don't want to mess it up. We even spent the night together, but I didn't touch her. I thought she would understand that me not...seducing her meant that she was special. But apparently not. To make matters worse, I think she overheard a conversation between Sion and me and misunderstood.”

Grayden sat on a wicker chair placed by one of the hedges, enjoying the slight breeze that wafted through the garden. “Have you told her how you feel?”

“I thought I had. I thought she understood.”

“If you don't want to lose her, you're going to have to try again. Get her alone and tell her how you feel. Have you told her you love her?”

Phillippe kicked at the dust on the ground, creating a small floating cloud. “No.”

“Do you? Love her?”

“I think I do.”

Grayden sighed. “You're going to have to do better than that. If you tell her you think you might love her, you might as well be digging your own grave.”

“Why does it have to be so complicated?”

“I don't know, Brother. But sadly, it is.”

“I guess I need to talk to her.”

“That would be my next move.”

Grayden, sensing that the real purpose of their meeting was over, got up from the chair and started to walk back towards the courtyard.

“Oh, by the way. She said something odd.” Phillippe hurried to catch up with Grayden.

“Esmeralda?”

“Yeah. She said that Triston and Julietta...were an item.”

“Triston? And Julietta?” Grayden couldn't imagine an odder pairing.

“Yes, I found it strange too.”

“Perhaps she was mistaken.”

“Can you talk to him?” Phillippe asked. “Should we even stick our nose in it?”

“Absolutely not. But...that doesn't mean we can't find out.” Grayden said, raising an eyebrow.

“How?”

“Simple. I'll mention it to Renya. She'll get to the bottom of it.”

Phillippe laughed. “Well played, Brother.”

By the time Grayden returned to their room, Renya was already behind the desk, studying a large, dusty book. Her hair was pulled back into a messy braid, and she had a smudge of ink on her cheek. It took her a few seconds to look up as he entered the room.

“Oh, hey.”

“I've never understood this 'hay' greeting of yours,” he said, circling the desk and standing behind her.

“What would you prefer?” she said, tilting her head to look back at him.

“A kiss.”

---