Coldbloods (Hotbloods #2)

With that, he folded his arms across his chest and frowned at me, waiting for my response.

My heart felt like it had skipped more than a couple of beats as he’d talked, particularly at that kissing admission, but I let silence reign over the ship, taking my time to consider my response. I could tell he was nervous even now, judging by the unevenness of his breathing, and the way his lips twitched ever so slightly.

Truth be told, I’d found his ranty confession downright cute, and it had melted most of my annoyance. I could accept his excuse that he was a procrastinator because, well… if I was honest with myself, I could be one too, sometimes, and I understood how uncomfortable this subject was for him to talk about. But I wasn’t quite ready to let him know that yet. There were still many things about this situation that concerned me.

I kept my face a passive mask as I looked back at him. “So… who is this woman exactly?”

“Just a family friend,” he replied quickly, a flicker of relief crossing his face. “We’ve known each other since we were kids. She doesn’t feel anything romantically for me either—I guarantee you.”

“She wouldn’t be at all hurt if she knew you were dating another girl?”

“No, she wouldn’t,” Navan said. “If anything, she’d be happy for me, because she doesn’t want to marry me either.”

“She wouldn’t come stalking me and slit my throat in the night?”

“No!” he insisted.

I folded my arms, leaning back in my chair. “Hmm. So what’s your plan, then, Navan? Your parents expect the two of you to marry. How will you avoid it?”

“Right now, the two of us are doing everything we can to delay it. The whole situation is… complicated, but we’ve managed to put it off so far, and I swear, I will not end up marrying her, no matter what. Even if you weren’t in the picture, I wouldn’t.”

I let out a steady breath and took a long pause, running my tongue over my lower lip and giving him a considering look.

“And, one final question… How many Navans are there? Is there a Grumpy Navan, a Dopey Navan…?”

A relieved smile broke out on his lips, before he narrowed his eyes at me. “Now you’re being mean.”

I laughed, letting my mask break. “Yeah, but you deserve it, you big oaf. Seriously—imagine if you randomly found out that I had some guy waiting to marry me back home!”

He shrugged. “Simple. I’d hunt him down and rip his head off.”

“Right, point made.”

“So can I kiss you now?” he asked abruptly. I realized a look of deep longing had developed in his eyes, his gaze intensified.

I frowned. “What, to make up for not kissing me first before? Sorry, I scored that baby al—”

I didn’t stand a chance against Navan’s supernatural speed. Before I knew it, he’d leaned forward, his hands touching my face and drawing my mouth to his. His lips caught mine in a deep, slow kiss that forced my eyes shut and overwhelmed my senses.

“How’s that for an… eighth first kiss?” he murmured after several heady moments, as he parted our lips.

“Has it even been eight times?” I asked weakly, still half intoxicated by his taste and the feel of him so close.

“I’ve lost count, but how was it?” He drew away with a smirk.

“It was good. But don’t get too cocky—I’ll always have one over on you.”

“I guess I’ll have to live with that.” He chuckled, settling himself back into his pilot seat. “So, now that… all of that’s out of the way, let’s go see Lazar, shall we?”

As Navan took off, I couldn’t deny that I felt better about the situation, but still, there was a knot of anxiety in my stomach. I hadn’t even met this woman, and had no idea what she was like.

I just had to hope Navan really would be able to find a way out of the engagement, and that he was right in his assessment that Seraphina didn’t care for him romantically at all.

Because otherwise, this was going to get awkward.



The Snapper headed across the city district of Regium, and before long, we arrived at a circular structure that lay in the very center of the city. Navan lowered the ship right into the middle, where other ships of a similar build were parked, looking like silvery beetles resting on the ground.

As we stepped outside the Snapper, I looked up and saw that the entire inner wall of the building was made from glass, revealing the coldbloods within. There were stacks of books on several floors, making it look like a library, while others looked like grand meeting rooms. On the lower floors were rooms that looked like laboratories, with black-coated individuals walking around importantly. A few glanced our way, but with my hood up, their attention soon waned.

We entered, with Navan walking up to the front desk, asking for Lazar’s location. The man behind the desk pointed us in the right direction. From the hallways, I could see the courtyard with the ships neatly parked, but I could also see through to the other side, watching the coldbloods at their work. It seemed strange that a race so alien could have everyday jobs, just like humans.

After walking down several corridors, Navan and I reached the door we were looking for, and I took the lead, knocking.

“Come in,” Lazar’s voice spoke from the other side.

We entered to find Lazar standing beside the window, reading from a tome in his hands, while the other coldbloods in the room seemed to be doing very little. He turned toward us as Navan closed the door.

“Where have the two of you been?” he asked curtly, dispensing with the usual niceties.

Navan sighed. “Seems like everyone’s asking that today.”

Lazar frowned. “Is something the matter?”

“No,” Navan replied quickly. “We’re good.”

“Well, that’s good to hear—but you’ve put me in a bit of an awkward situation, Navan,” he said grimly.

“How so?”

Lazar raised an eyebrow. “I’ve spoken with your father. He says you won’t answer his calls, and your comm is switched off. Is there any particular reason you’re avoiding him? I had to make something up about decompressing after your trip, but I’m fairly certain he didn’t buy it.”

“Of course there’s a reason, Lazar! Naya died because of him,” Navan growled, his bad mood returning. I sighed. Just the mere mention of his father seemed to flip him like a switch.

“But that was an accident,” Lazar countered. “He loved your sister dearly.”

Navan’s eyes flashed angrily. “Even so, that doesn’t excuse him of his crimes. All of this is his fault, Lazar,” he said, gesturing around. “We wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for him. Nobody would know about the immortality elixir if he hadn’t been hell-bent on figuring out the solution—he has ruined everything. He just had to be the one to crack it. I can’t even bring myself to look at his face, let alone speak to him.”