Page 67 of Tik-Tok

“It’s not a spell.” She sighed. “He didn’t even ask me to stay. He told me to go home and decide if I wanted to come back to him. But if I do go back, I don’t want you to hate me.”

Tin stared at her for a long moment, an eternity longer than any she’d ever faced. “North.” He broke the silence and scooted closer. “I was one of the most hated males in Oz. Do you think your mother gave a fuck about who would hate her if she were with me?”

“No…” Crow hadn’t stood in his daughter’s way when she’d chosen to be with Tin.

“While I want you to remain nearby for the rest of my life, it doesn’t mean you have to. Regardless of what you choose, you will always be my daughter.” He held up a finger. “But if you do choose him, I will end his life if he treats you wrong. The bastard already pissed me the fuck off when he turned me to stone.”

Tears fell down her cheeks and she launched her arms around him. “I love you, Father.” She remembered how he would carry her on his shoulders when she was a child, throw her into the air, swing their axes together in sync, and had even let her slip flowers into his hair. “I thought you would hate me.”

“That’s an impossible feat.”

Chapter Twenty-Five

Tik-Tok

Large white sea birds cawed overhead as Tik-Tok busied himself with swabbing the deck. He’d fought off the brownies for the chore, just as he’d peeled vegetables for Cook earlier. Anything to occupy his time now that he’d gotten his revenge. Perhaps he needed to visit Celyna so Dax could fuck her and get him some insight into what to do next.

“Captain?” Dax approached with light steps and a wary expression. “We’re heading into town. Are you sure you don’t want to come along?”

Tik-Tok gripped his mop tighter. If he left the ship to venture onto the Land of Ix, he would get drunk at any number of taverns and then, when thoughts of North returned to plague him, his mood wouldtrulysour. “No. Go enjoy yourselves—you deserve it.”

Dax hesitated for a moment. “Cook left you a plate in the kitchen if you get hungry later.”

“I’m not a child,” he snapped, then winced, hating himself for being such an ass. It didn’t stop him from tacking on a grumbled, “I can feed myself.”

With a stiff nod, Dax walked backward to where the rest of the crew waited. “We’ll return after the performance.”

Quavo, a renowned minstrel, was visiting the Land of Ix, but it didn’t interest Tik-Tok in the slightest. It was good for the crew, though. Not only had everyone suffered recently, but Tik-Tok wasn’t the most pleasant fae to be around since North had left three weeks ago. Part of him wished he’d never sent her home, but another, more rational, part knew that it was the right thing to do.

Fuck beingright.

As the crew filed down the pier and into the city, Tik-Tok’s heart lurched.Alone,it seemed to say. When was the last time he’d hadThe Temptressall to himself? Had he ever? He wasn’t entirely sure he liked how lifeless the ship felt without them. The yawning emptiness inside him widened a fraction, making him bone-weary. A nap would soothe the ache…

Another fucking nap.He wasn’tthatgods damn old.

Instead, he shoved the mop into the bucket of now-muddy water and tilted his face up toward the sun. The warmth of its light barely registered as he closed his eyes and sighed. What was North doing now? Did she also stand beneath the sun, or was she holed up inside a palace doing … whatever it was she did before he came along? He should’ve asked her—found out what her days were like. It was too late now. She was home with her family, where she belonged.

Damn.This was disgraceful. He was a grown-ass male, not a sappy youngling, and he had to snap out of it. With a low groan, he rubbed his temples. But, combined with his new aimlessness, the sting of North’s absence refused to fade. “What the fuck is wrong with me?”

Maybe heshouldjoin the others in town. Order Cyrx or Dax to keep him far from any sort of ale. The minstrel might even be as talented as the rumors say, which could lighten his spirits. The performance was hours away, though, which left too much free time on his hands. Time he could spend drowning his …feelings. He scowled. If his cock worked anymore, he would even consider sticking it in the nearest willing female, but North seemed to control that from afar.

Bending, he dragged the bucket to the far side of the ship and hefted it up to the railing. Brown, soapy water sloshed out when he tipped it on its side, sending the liquid straight into the silver sea. A squeal sounded as it splashed against something solid below, and he leaned forward to see what it came from.

Gliding across the gentle waves was a small rowboat covered in soapy water and …

North.The soapy water had just missed her, hitting the front end of the boat instead.

Tik-Tok’s chest expanded at the sight of her rowing the last few feet toward the hull. Dressed in a casual, deep green gown, she slid the oars gracefully through the calm water. The sun glinted off her silver hair, making it appear as if she glowed. He blinked a few times, sure that he was imagining things. But she was still there. Still rowing.

“North?” he called out. Was it really her? Why would she leave her family again so soon? Not that it mattered. She washere—exactly where he wanted her.

“Hold on,” she called back, her cheeks flushed. “This kind of thing always works better in my novels.”

A small, amused smile tugged at his lips, and he leaned forward, dangling his arms over the rail. “What is it you’re trying to do, my star?”

“Rowing.”

“Is there a reason for it?” There was a perfectly good pier she could’ve walked down to reachThe Temptress.

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