Page 164 of The Spider Queen
“I’m not human, Poppy.”
“I know that.” I finally bit into the red fruit I’d been holding, needing something to do. It was tart and sweet.
“Do you?” he wondered aloud. “I feel like I have to remind you. I’m not human. I am not a college boy who had the means to flirt and seduce you.”
His allusion to Hunter felt like a punch in the gut.
“I can’t take you out on a normal date. Even if I could, I’m not sure I’d want to. I’m Guardian of the Bridge. I’m immortal.”
I wanted to get us back to the levity and gentle intimacy that had been floating between us the last few hours. So I shot him an amused smile. “Are you saying because you’re immortal, you’re above wooing me?”
He grinned. “Okay, Poppy. I see what you’re trying to do.”
Thane took my hand, and we continued up the hill. As soon as we got to the crest, we peered out across the land. The island was gone, giving way to tall green grass as far as the eye could see.
“It’s like the Iowa prairie on steroids,” I blurted out.
He laughed and squeezed my fingers.
I held up the fruit core. “Can I chuck this?”
“Yes.”
I tossed it into the bushes and turned back to face him. “So where are the animals? Or does Purgatory not have them?”
“There are animals. But there are wards in place. To keep the beasts away from my property. That ends the moment we step into the grasslands.”
“What kinds of creatures are there?” I asked, instantly wary.
“Creatures that are more afraid of me than I am of them.”
“That didn’t answer my question.”
He raised our hands to his lips. “Trust me?”
I nodded.
Thane took a step, with one foot in the grasslands and the other still on the rocky island ground. With a deep breath, I followed him—and immediately heard sounds that had been absent thus far.
Insects chirping, cawing birds with bright plumes flying overhead, and beasts—shaggy beasts that were a cross between a goat and an elephant. They weren’t very big, and they looked like they’d stand only to my mid-thigh. Long trunks, stubby horns, cloven hooves. Black, gray, brown, tawny. Every now and again one would bleat. I wanted to pet one.
“Don’t look directly at them,” Thane warned. “If you meet their eyes, they’ll charge.”
I quickly looked away, my heart racing.
“Stay close to me. Step where I step. And if you see a pair of tawny eyes in the grass, run. Because not even I will be able to stop it.”
“Do I even want to know—”
“No. You don’t.”
“I hope there’s some type of fermented beverage once we make it to safety.”
He kissed me hard and fast, his eyes full of promise. “There will be more than that.”
Chapter 13
The afternoon finally melded into evening. As the golden sun set, turning the sky a wash of lavender and cotton candy pink, Thane’s steps grew longer, and our pace quickened.
