Page 40 of Ghosts of the Dead

“He mentioned G.L., whoever that is,” I say.

Mars frowns. “I don’t know what that means.”

“Not yet,” Jace says.

Silence creeps in again, stretching too long until Mars reaches over and peels open the candy bar wrapper for me. He hands it back with a grin and a bump of his elbow against mine. “Eat. You’ve got that ‘traumatized but cute’ look again.”

I scoff, but the moment cuts through the tension.

Mars leans back on his elbows, and squints up at the dying light of the sky. “You get attacked by a sniper, blow up a train station after trying to blow up half the city, and nearly kissed by death. What’s next?”

I raise a brow and take a bite of my chocolate. It’s too sweet for my taste, but I eat it anyway. “Are you offering to take me on a danger tour?”

He grins and looks up at me. “Only if I get to be the final boss.”

Caspian snorts and shakes his head.

“Final boss of what?” Jace asks, but when Mars waggles his eyebrows at him, he rolls his eyes and looks away, muttering something I don’t catch.

Mars shifts. This time, when his shoulder bumps against mine, it lingers. “Seriously, though. Are you okay?”

“I won’t be if you guys don’t stop asking me that. But on a serious note, yes, I’m fine. I’m a girl with chocolate, after all.” I hold out my half-eaten chocolate bar in offering.

He shoves it back toward me with mock offense. “I fought two possums and a rat for that thing, all for you. You better eat every bite.”

My eyes widen. “You’re joking.”

Caspian scoffs. “Don’t worry. All he got was a splinter when he snatched it off the shelf too fast.”

Mars lifts his thumb to proudly show off the small red spot where he pried the splinter out after. “It really hurt, though.”

I laugh and grab his hand, then press a kiss to his thumb with a dramatic flourish. “Better?”

He freezes, and for a moment, his usual smirk falters. His eyes go wide, black as obsidian in the dancing firelight, and something sharp and wild flickers behind them. His gaze drops to my lips. I pull back, suddenly aware of how close we are.

Too close, but also not close enough.

Maybe.

I’m not sure anymore.

Across the fire, Caspian watches. His expression is unreadable, eyes tracking the space between me and Mars.

Mars’s gaze lingers on mine, heat sparking between us. That’s when it hits me. This isn’t just survival anymore.

It’s more.

A lot more.

What the hell am I getting myself into?

The fire’sdown to embers now, its red-orange heart flickering among the coals.

Jace is back at the car, pretending it deserves his full attention. I’m convinced all he does is bang things around without trying to fix anything. He crouches near the rusted heap that I doubt has many more days left in the engine.

Every now and then, I hear the metallic clink of something getting wrenched. The hood creaks when he leans over. His shoulders are taut beneath his shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows and tension that carves into every inch of him.

Caspian pokes at the fire once more, then rises. “I’ll collect some more firewood before the sun goes down. Try not to set off many more explosions while I’m gone.” He flashes me a smile before turning to leave. His long frame glides away until he disappears into the shadows.

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