I should have known that he, of all people, would notice. “This means I can’t ask you what the writer and director of the third movie were thinking when they freaking killed Malec. He joined the good guys, risked his life to save Aliana, they admit their love, and then . . . he’s just dead? How is that a happy ending?” I was so caught up in my indignation that I accidentally added on, “You know, he doesn’t die in the books. Instead of having to live up to some masculine fantasy of being a noble martyr, he gets to pay for his misdeeds by actually physically atoning for them and making reparations to the people he’s hurt. And he gets to be with Aliana and get married and have little fairy babies. I guess it doesn’t matter now that the movie’s over, but I’ll never not be mad that they killed Malec Shadowfire. That ending was so bad it should be tried at The Hague.” It also infuriated me that the movie studio had severely underestimated Malec’s popularity and had walked away from hundreds of millions of dollars in continuing his story through animations, novels, or comic books.

Noah just looked amused. “Given this a lot of thought, have you?”

“Yes. And now I’m getting upset all over again. So before that happens, we should just, you know, kiss or whatever. That’s what I’m here for, right?”

“That is why you’re here.” He set his bowl down in the sink and walked over to me. I was already pressed up against the wall, so there was nowhere for me to go. “So, Juliet Nolan, are you ready?”

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

I was so not ready. My adrenaline grabbed me by the throat, making my heart beat out of control. “I want to say yes, but can we, like, be sitting down or something?”

“I should probably go brush my teeth. Like you already did.” He winked at me, and it annoyed me.

What was he implying? “Did you consider that maybe I just have a dedication to good oral hygiene?”

“You were getting ready for our kiss.”

“That wasn’t it.”

“Your minty breath says otherwise.” He said it as a parting shot as he left the kitchen. I made my way into the library and found Magnus already there, lying in his oversize dog bed near the fireplace.

I sat down on the couch, rubbing my wet palms against my pant legs. I tried telling myself that I was okay. Noah was a good guy and I had nothing to worry about.

Before I could get too into my own head, he returned. “Hey, would it help if I got you a drink?”