Page 19 of Ashes and Lilies
I nodded and drank some more. My eyes were beginning to droop already. “It’s fine, though,” I told him. “I didn’t drink any alcohol.”
At his questioning look, I added, “Because I’m not of legal drinking age yet.”
“Ah.” He lifted a shoulder. “I told you it doesn’t really matter in my culture. Besides, it shouldn’t matter so much to you either, if you want to be technical.”
“What do you mean?” I asked.
“The legal drinking age is a rule forhumans,” he pointed out, taking on a scholarly tone. “You’re fae.”
My eyelids fluttered as I processed this surprising loophole. But… but by God. He was right.
It wasn’t that I wanted to drink alcohol. Maria’s description of my twenty-first birthday plans, which included being sick into a toilet, sounded less than appealing. But I would endure the ritual.
What other freedoms did this news bestow?
Still, this wasn’t exactly the kind of behavior a lawyer should condone. He must have been playing devil’s advocate. “Why areyou telling me this? Are you trying to get me in trouble? It's not right to destroy someone’s innocence.”
Miles pressed his hand against his chest.
“What?” I asked, biting into the cookie.
“That’s cute.” He smirked, dropping his hand back onto the counter and leaning toward me. “But if I wanted to corrupt your innocence, there’s a better way to do it. More fun, too.”
Fun? Only infidels would think breaking the law was fun. Then again, Miles was a witch. Considering that, despite his pure nature, he probably had a certain level of godlessness to him.
And on that topic, “How does that work anyway?” I asked.
He hummed in response. His eager expression made me believe he’d do anything I asked. Miles wasn’t as flirtatious as Damen, but his goodness had a way of breaking through my defenses. I never thought it was possible to feel safe, but Miles—especially—was comfortable to be around.
“You know what I mean,” I continued, ignoring my racing heart. Of everyone, Miles was probably the easiest to talk to about this. He’d been the one who told me about their chastity requirements—and I had questions.
“What you told me,” I explained. “How does it work? I mean, you're a witch, which means you delve into dark magic, but also a monk, sworn to purity. It seems counterproductive.”
Miles had jumped back so quickly that it seemed as though he’d been thrown across the room. He crashed into the refrigerator, breaking the door and tearing off the handle.
I frowned at it. Would Damen consider this damage to be my fault?
Miles didn’t seem to notice. He stared at me, wide-eyed and horrified. “What?”
My frown turned into a scowl. First Maria, and now this?Could it be that every question I asked was offensive? This might be a sensitive topic, but I did have a right to know the plan.
“I’m talking about your abstinence, Miles,” I told him. “I get that we're supposed to be some kind of celibate, supernatural, crime-fighting group, but I have questions about the logistics. Also, how does Damen being demon-possessed impacthispurity?”
I was beginning to grow worried about Miles. He hadn’t even twitched, and his mouth was open in shock. But then he jumped to his feet and yanked out his phone with shaking hands. He began to pace as he waited for his intended recipient to answer.
It didn’t take long.
Without so much as a hello, Miles launched into a tirade. “Julian, please help. I can’t do this alone. I’m with Bianca, and it’s….” He paused, shooting a strange look in my direction. “Well, it’s just terrible. Get back here as soon as you can.”
I couldn’t help but wonder what I had done wrong this time, and why call Julian?
Would I always feel so lost when it came to understanding my new friends?
5
All remnantsof sleepiness faded during the long, awkward wait for Julian to arrive. Miles’s growing tension, and the way he was unable to speak or meet my gaze, was enough for my anxiety to counteract any relaxing effect his witchcraft might have procured.
By the time Julian arrived, I, too, was wringing my hands as my nerves frayed. Somehow, I’d crossed a line. Now I was going to pay for it.
