There it was. The moment of truth. Or, at least, a highly edited version of it. My stomach twisted into knots. I couldn’t keep up the charade any longer. The guilt, the attraction, the sheer absurdity of the situation… it was all too much.

  “Lily,” I said, my voice barely above a whisper, hoping I sounded sincere and not like I was about to throw up. “I need to tell you something.”

  She looked at me, her expression softening, though a flicker of suspicion still lingered in her eyes. “What is it?”

  I took a deep breath, the spiced cider doing absolutely nothing to settle my nerves. “I wasn’t just passing by your stall. I was sent to… to seduce you. To get information from you. It was a test, set by my mistress.”

  She stared at me, her eyes wide with shock. Then, slowly, her face darkened. “You’re kidding me,” she said, her voice dangerously low.

  “No, I’m not. I’m sorry. I know it’s a terrible thing to do, but...”

  “Terrible?” she cut in, her voice rising, each word like a shard of ice. “You think? You lied to me, Samuel. You used me. So all that talk about your ‘mother’ and the flowers... all lies?”

  I felt a pang of guilt so sharp it hurt. More like a dagger to the gut, actually. “I know. I’m so sorry. But I couldn’t help how I feel. I didn’t mean to hurt you.” I trailed off, unable to finish the question. Gods, I was pathetic.

  She shook her head, her eyes fshing with anger. “You didn’t mean to hurt me? Are you serious?” She leaned forward, her voice dropping to a near whisper. “And who is this ‘mistress,’ hmm? What kind of test was this?”

  I wanted to say something, anything, to make it better, but I didn’t know what. All the smooth lines, all the practiced charm… it was all gone. I was exposed, vulnerable, and completely at her mercy. I was just… me. A clumsy, nervous, morally compromised idiot. So I just sat there, feeling like the biggest asshole in the world.

  “Well, I’m training under a master rogue...” I started.

  “So you’re training to be a rogue then?” She interrupted, a smirk pying on her lips.

  “No,” I blurted out a little too quickly. “I am a rogue.”

  “A rogue-wanna-be.”

  “No,” I said, shaking my head. I tried to stand taller, puff out my chest a little, project some kind of confidence. It probably just made me look like a puffed-up pigeon. “I’m a real rogue.”

  She raised a skeptical eyebrow. “A real rogue?”

  “Yes,” I insisted, my voice cracking slightly. “A real rogue.”

  Lily chuckled, shaking her head slowly. Then she said “Sure”, a teasing glint in her eyes that set it on fire And then, out of nowhere, she started ughing. It was a small, giggly sound at first, but it grew until she was almost doubled over, her hands covering her mouth.

  “You’re an idiot,” she said, her voice muffled. “Oh Gods, you’re such an idiot.” But the anger in her eyes had softened, repced by… something else. Amusement? Pity? Attraction? I couldn’t tell.

  I stared at her, confused. My brain felt like it was short-circuiting. “What?”

  She looked up at me, her eyes shining with tears of ughter, not anger, which was… a relief? I think? “You’re cute, Samuel. And I’m not going to lie, I’m curious. You’re a terrible liar, which is strangely refreshing. But you’re also kind of a mess.”

  I blinked. “So… you’re not mad at me?”

  She shrugged. “I’m mad, but… I don’t know. There’s something about you. You’re honest, even when you’re lying. Does that make sense?”

  “Not really,” I admitted, my head spinning. This was definitely not how I’d envisioned this going. I’d expected yelling, maybe a sp, possibly a thrown drink. Not… this.

  She smiled, a mischievous glint in her eye, the same glint that had been there when she was haggling over prices, the one that said, I’m in control. “Good. Let’s keep it that way.”

  And with that, she reached out and took my hand, her fingers intertwining with mine. I felt a spark of electricity at the touch, a jolt that went straight to my… well, everywhere. and I knew, in that moment, that I was in way over my head.

  “So,” Lily said, her voice soft, but with an undercurrent of pyful challenge. “What was your pn to seduce me?”

  I choked on my cider, a cough escaping me. I pulled at the colr of my shirt, which suddenly felt far too tight. “Uh,” I stammered, my face burning. “I... I hadn’t really thought it through yet.” Pathetic, Sam. Utterly pathetic.

  Lily leaned closer, her eyes wide and sparkling with mischief. “Will you still seduce me, then?” she asked, her voice barely a whisper. “That way you can tell your mistress about your roguish seduction skills.”

  I stared at her, my carefully constructed composure completely shattered. “I… uh…” I stammered, my brain feeling like it had been repced with cotton wool. “That is… I mean…” I took a shaky breath, trying to regain some sembnce of control. “Yes. I… I still intend to… proceed. With the… seduction.” Gods, I sounded like an idiot.

  The stairs creaked under our feet, each step echoing through the dimly lit corridor like a countdown. I’d actually done it. Well, sort of done it.

  The confession had been a disaster, a complete deviation from the pn, but somehow… it had worked. Lily was here. With me. Going to my room.

  I could feel Lily’s hand securely against mine, the touch sending jolt of pure, unadulterated excitement, through me. I was going to prove to her I was a rogue. A real rogue. Not some clumsy, stammering idiot who confessed his entire mission after a few drinks. Tonight, I’d show her skill, finesse… and maybe a few other things Ashara hadn’t exactly taught me.

  I gnced at her, her profile lit by the faint glow of a distant mp, and she smiled, her eyes sparkling with mischief. That smile… it was like a promise. A promise of… what? I wasn’t sure, but I was definitely ready to find out.

  And Ashara... she wanted proof of my abilities? Well, she’d get it. Maybe not exactly the way she’d envisioned, but she couldn’t fault the results. Could she? A small knot of anxiety tightened in my stomach, but I pushed it down. Tonight was about Lily. About proving myself. To her. To myself.

  I pushed open the door to my room, the hinges creaking in protest, a sound that was drowned by the loud merry making down in the tavern. and stepped aside to let her in.

  But before I could follow, a presence caught my eye. Downstairs, in the bar, a figure cloaked in shadows sat at the end of the counter, her face obscured by a hood. She raised her mug to me in a silent toast, her smile a thin, knowing line. I felt a shiver run down my spine as she winked, the gesture lingering in the air like a challenge.

  I shook off the grin that appeared on my face and stepped into the room, closing the door behind me. The fire was already lit, casting a warm glow over the space, but the atmosphere was far from welcoming.

  Felix was sprawled on my bed, one leg crossed over the other, a dagger twirling zily in his hand. His violet eyes met mine, and I could sense the unspoken rivalry hanging between us like a bde’s edge.

  “Well, well,” he drawled, his voice smooth as silk. “Look what we’ve got here. Samuel Thornwood with a dy friend.”

  I gritted my teeth, trying to keep my cool. “Felix. What are you doing here?”

  He shrugged, the dagger spinning faster in his hand. “Oh, just thought I’d drop by. Didn’t realize you were… occupied.” His gaze flicked to Lily, and I could see the appraisal in his eyes before he looked back at me. “Busy tonight, aren’t you?”

  I felt a flush rise to my cheeks, my heart pounding in my chest. “Felix, come on. Can we talk about this ter?”

  He stood, the movement fluid and deliberate, and sauntered over to me. “My, my Samuel. I was hoping to catch you… alone. Nevermind. I’m sure we’ll have plenty of opportunities… ter, don’t you think?”

  I could feel Lily’s eyes on us, the tension in the room thick enough to cut with a knife. Felix’s words hung in the air, a promise of future confrontations, before he turned and left, the door closing behind him with a soft click.

  My heart was still racing, as I let out a breath I didn’t know I was holding. My cheeks burning from that smug bastard’s parting shot. But as I turned to face Lily, all of that faded into the background.

  She was standing by the fire, her silhouette glowing like she’d been carved out of the fmes themselves. The room was warm, the air thick with the scent of burning wood and something else, something sweet, like her.

  I walked over to the door, locked it with a deliberate click, and leaned against it for a second. My mind was a mess of nerves and half-cocked confidence, but I knew I couldn’t let it show. Not now. Not when I was so close.

  The fire was roaring, casting flickering shadows across the room. The bed was a mess, the bnkets rumpled from Felix’s little visit, but I didn’t care. I had other things on my mind.

  Lily turned to face me, her eyes sparkling in the dim light. She was still smiling, that mischievous little tilt to her lips that made me want to kiss her just to see if it felt as good as it looked. And I was going to. Oh, I was going to.

  “Where were we?” she asked, her voice low and pyful, like she already knew the answer.

  I pushed off the door and walked toward her, my boots heavy on the wooden floor. “I think we were right about here,” I said, trying to sound suave and failing miserably. But she didn’t seem to care.

  She stepped closer, her hands slipping out of her sleeves, and I could see the faintest tremble in her fingers. She was nervous, but she wasn’t backing down. Neither was I.

  The room was warm, but I could still feel the cold seeping in through the cracks in the walls. It didn’t matter. We were about to generate all the heat we needed.

  I stopped in front of her, close enough that I could feel the warmth of her body, the faint brush of her breath against my chest. She looked up at me, her eyes searching, and I knew I was done for. I reached out, my hand brushing against her cheek, and she leaned into the touch like a cat.

  “You’re really bad at this,” she said, her voice barely above a whisper.

  “At what?”

  “Pretending you’re not nervous.”

  I smirked, trying to keep up the act. “Who says I’m nervous?”

  She ughed, the sound soft and sweet, and stepped closer, her body pressing against mine. “Your heart’s about to pound its way out of your chest.”

  I gnced down, and sure enough, my shirt was fluttering like I’d just run a mile. “Oh. That.”

  She reached up, her fingers brushing against my colrbone, and I felt a jolt of electricity run through me. “You’re cute when you’re flustered,” she said, her voice teasing.

  I opened my mouth to respond, but she cut me off with a kiss. It was desperate, like she was trying to breathe me in, and I was happy to let her. I grabbed her waist, pulling her closer, and she wrapped her arms around my neck, her fingers tangling in my hair.

  The room spun around us, the fire roaring in my ears like a crowd cheering us on. I stumbled back, my legs hitting the bed, and we both went down, a tangle of limbs and fabric. I nded on top of her, my elbows braced on either side of her head, and she smiled up at me, her eyes sparkling.

  She ughed, the sound muffled against my chest, and I kissed her again, harder this time.

  We shed our clothes like they were on fire, the fabric catching in our fingers as we pulled and tugged and cursed under our breath. The room was a mess, the bed creaking under us, but I didn’t care. I didn’t care about anything except the way she felt, the way she smelled, the way she made me feel alive.

  The kiss ended, leaving me breathless and wanting more. Much more. She ughed, the sound muffled against my chest, a vibration that went straight to my groin.

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