From the room where Jayce was waiting, he could see into the central opening of Rika’s cave. Through a fissure in the wall, he’d watched the glowing faery, the one Rika and Sionnach had called Keenan, leave. Jayce hadn’t heard every word, but he’d heard enough to know that this faery thought he had a right to Rika’s attention—and that Sionnach was acting like Rika was his. Despite everything that had happened the past couple of weeks since he had met Rika, Jayce still knew people. Faeries might have been a big surprise to him, but he’d come to understand pretty quickly that for all their differences, they still had the sort of emotions humans had. It didn’t take a genius to notice that Sionnach had feelings for Rika. She, however, acted like she was oblivious. Jayce didn’t know if that was because she was trying not to hurt Sionnach or because she had decided she didn’t date faeries. Either way, the emotions weren’t as hidden as either faery seemed to think.

What am I doing with her?

Jayce walked to the mouth of the cave where Rika stood. He wanted to wrap his arms around her, although he suspected that the smart thing to do was to leave. Rika didn’t look at him. Instead, she stood staring out across the desert. He wasn’t sure what secrets she hid, but he knew that the past was something she avoided discussing. As Jayce looked at the shadowy desert vista, he could see light radiating from Keenan as he strode across the desert like a ground-level meteor.

“How many faeries are in line for your attention?” Jayce forced himself to stand slightly to the side and behind her.

Rika glanced back and frowned at him. “None, why?”

“The one who left sounded—”

“Keenan’s a jerk,” Rika interrupted. Her tone and expression softened instantly as she looked at Jayce. She stayed like that, silently watching him for several heartbeats.

“What?” He didn’t soften; he couldn’t. He was only eighteen, not looking for a wife or anything, but he wanted a girlfriend. He wanted this girl in his life with a ferocity that had shocked him.

For the first time since the night they’d first kissed here in this same cave, he could tell that Rika had just decided to reveal more about herself. Her expression tensed, fear and nervousness filling her eyes, and then she relaxed visibly. “He was the one who made me this.”

“He made you a faery?”

“A long time ago. He thought I could be someone he needed. I tried. I failed. This”—she gestured at herself and the barren cave around her—“is part of the price. The worst part was that there were full decades when my body was filled with ice.”