Page 14 of Twisted Gift

Letting loose a heavy sigh, I say, “I can do this without him.” I fight the urge to drop my gaze to my feet. “Besides, I don’t knowhowto talk to him anymore. Not after leaving him like that.”

He shakes his head slowly. “Well, you know you’re going to have to. If you want to deal with the whole fae war situation we’ve got going on, a meeting of the leaders is inevitable.”

I groan. “Yeah, well, not yet.” Guilt over the severity of the fae fights and disappearances weighs heavy, but I’m not sure how to handle the situation yet.

He nudges my shoulder. “I wouldn’t plan on waiting too long, gorgeous.”

He’s right. I can’t allow my personal feelings to cloud my vision. The fae war needs to be dealt with. Sooner rather than later. If that means working with Tristan to come to a new agreement that protects both sides, then I’ll have to put aside my own pain and do what needs to be done.

“Now, listen to me very carefully.” He pins me with a deep stare. “You can’t survive on food alone, Aurora. You have to know that by now. You need to feed.”

I stay silent.

“You can feel it, can’t you? Your body shutting down?”

Squeezing my eyes shut, I nod reluctantly. “I’m exhausted all the time. My head won’t stop spinning, and the idea of eating makes my stomach sick.” It’s a damn shame, too; I love eating.

“That sounds about right,” he muses, and I open my eyes to look at him. “What was your big idea? How were you planning on making it through this transition?”

I say nothing. I don’t have a response because I don’t have a plan.

His eyes narrow a bit. “Unless you weren’t planning on making it through at all.”

I scowl. “I wasn’t going to off myself, jackass.”

His brow arches. “Then what? Did you think you could magically survive without feeding? That maybe you were so damn special that you could continue to live as a human regardless of the fact you’re not one?”

My pulse spikes. “Fuck you,” I snap. “How is this supposed to help me?”

“Consider it a reality check. I can’t help you if you don’t want to be helped.”

Crossing my arms over my chest, I let his words sink in. I don’t want to die. This new life isn’t something I would’ve chosen for myself, but it’s because of me that I’m forced to live with it. In this case, I’m my own worst enemy.

“I want help,” I say in a quiet voice.

He reaches over and pats my leg. “Glad to hear I’m not wasting my precious time.” The easy arrogance is back. It makes me smile a bit.

“So, you’re going to teach me how to feed, how to deal with crowds of people, and prevent their emotions from suffocating me? Because I don’t think I can handle that happening again.”

“Please, once I’m done with you, you’ll be the picture of a perfect fae leader.”

I roll my eyes. “You’re not grooming me for a throne, Nikolai,” I mutter. “You’re teaching me how to survive.” The former is something I’d like to grow into with time, to help the light and dark fae move past the war, but the latter is more important right now. I’m in no position to help others without helping myself first.

He gasps mockingly. “What’s the point of surviving if you’re not living?”

“Like you’re some expert?”

Darkness clouds the bright green of his eyes, and I wish I hadn’t spoken. His lips turn down, and a soft sigh escapes his lips. “Aurora, I’ve done a lot of living in my life, but like you, I’ve done a lot of surviving. I’m sure it will surprise you to know that I wasn’t always this awesome.” He exhales on a laugh, shaking his head. “I think that’s a story for another time.”

5

After spending last night chatting with Nikolai, I have a pleasant sense of optimism. I’m going to figure out how to live with what I am. It’s not going to be easy, but nothing about the last ten months of my life has been.

I’m sitting at the kitchen counter, sipping my coffee, and scrolling through my phone, when someone knocks on my door. Allison is at her parents’ house, so I slide off the stool, still in my pajamas, and walk over to check through the peephole. Nikolai stands on the other side, looking like a model ready for a photo shoot. His hair is tousled—no doubt styled that way—and the dark, form-fitting leather jacket brings the whole James Dean look he’s got going on to another level of attractive. Ugh, he’s so annoying.

With much reluctance, I open the door and force a smile. “Good morning,” I mumble, heading back to the counter.

Nikolai closes the door and walks into the kitchen, leaning against the counter across from where I’m sitting. “Yes, it is,” he beams, flashing his stupid perfect teeth. “You ready to feel better?”

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