But I couldn’t let myself fall for Devon. Not when I was supposed to be protecting him and the rest of the Sinclairs. Not when I was trying to get my revenge on Victor. And especially not when I was planning to leave Cloudburst Falls as soon as he and the others were safe.
“Lila,” Devon whispered and leaned in even closer to me.
The hot spark in his green, green eyes, the husky sound of his voice, the warm kiss of his breath against my cheek. It was all so romantic—and far too much to bear.
Before I even really knew what I was doing, I shot to my feet, mumbled an excuse, and ran away, just like I had last night on the terrace when he’d held my hands and iced my bruised knuckles. His cloak flew off my shoulders and landed in the sand, but I was too busy stalking away as fast as I could to care.
“Lila—” Devon called out, but I ducked my head, wrapped my arms around my body, and kept moving, as though I hadn’t heard him.
I couldn’t afford to let myself hear him.
A few more folks called out to me, including Poppy and Felix, but I didn’t feel like talking to anyone, so I left the beach behind and stepped into the trees. It was darker here, almost pitch black in some spots, but I could see as clearly as if it were noon, thanks to my sight. I stepped off the trail and kept going, moving parallel to the tree line and deeper and deeper into the underbrush at the same time. Finally, I stopped and peered back through the trees at the beach.
Devon stood by the bonfire, looking in this direction, but he couldn’t see me through the trees and shadows that separated us. He took a few steps forward, as though he was going to come after me, but he stopped himself. He stared this way for another minute before turning and facing the fire again.
I let out a tense breath, not sure if I was relieved or disappointed he hadn’t come after me—
“Looks like I’m not the only one with boy problems,” a voice called out.
Branches rustled, twigs cracked, and Katia stepped out of the shadows and up beside me. She followed my gaze and looked through the trees at Devon.
“You should snatch him up while you can,” she said. “He’s one of the good guys.”
I sighed. “I know.”
“Then what’s the problem?”
I sighed again. “I’m not one of the good girls.”
She gave me a puzzled look, but I wasn’t about to explain my complicated life, so I decided on a simple answer.
“I’m supposed to be Devon’s bodyguard,” I said. “Not that he really needs one, but that’s my job in the Family, which means that anything else between us makes my job . . . complicated.”
Katia snorted. “Complicated? Really? The only decision you should have to make about a guy like that is where you’re going to go to make out with him.”
I winced. “I’m sorry. I’m being stupid and insensitive. I shouldn’t even be talking to you about this.”
She snorted again. “Why? Because Felix dumped me? Don’t feel bad about that. You didn’t dump me, and you’re obviously not the girl he’s seeing. Besides, it’s not like Felix and I made any promises or anything to each other last summer.”
“Then what is it like?”
She shrugged. “I just . . . really liked him. And the closer the tournament got, the more I thought about him. The more I was looking forward to seeing him again.”
Katia looked out over the beach where Felix was standing with Poppy and the Ito guards. Poppy was talking and nibbling on some toasted marshmallows. Felix was right next to her, but he wasn’t paying any attention to Poppy. Instead, he was staring at someone at the next bonfire down the beach.
Deah.
She had a cup of lemonade in her hand and seemed to be listening to Blake talk to the other Draconis. But she was staring right back at Felix, ignoring the people around her, many of whom stopped and congratulated her on her victories in the opening rounds of the tournament. Deah finally had to look away from Felix when two of the Draconi guards stepped forward, scooped her up, and started carrying her around on their shoulders. Even from here, I could hear her shrieks of surprise and laughter, and so could Katia.
“I hate people like her.” Katia spat out the words.
“What do you mean?”
“People who get everything they want all the time, without even trying. Without even working for it. Without doing anything for it.” She threw her hand out. “Look at her. They’re carrying her around like she’s already won the tournament. She’s rich, pretty, a great fighter, and her dad is the most powerful man in town. Her life is perfect.”
I thought of Deah’s mom, all the strange things Seleste said, and how Deah had to watch her all the time. “I’m sure that Deah has her own problems, just like everyone else.”
Katia let out a bitter laugh. “I doubt that. At the very least, her father’s not a drunk like mine.”
I followed her dark, hazel gaze over to the picnic table where Carl Volkov was sitting. Well, sitting wasn’t really the right word. He was slumped over the table, his head resting in the crook of his elbow. A silver flask was cupped in his free hand, and I was willing to bet it was empty of whatever liquor it had contained.