Rafe’s words thrilled Bree all the way down to her toes. It had been one strange night, that much was for certain. She had started out as Lord Dagen’s “date” or whatever they liked to call it here. He’d brought her a gown and paraded her out in front of the rest of the Court. Prince Taveon had yelled at her, as always. And a random fae named Fillan had kissed her.

And now she was here with Rafe.

She didn’t want this moment to end. As soon as this night was over, everything would go back to how it had always been.

“So, where are we going next? There’s so much of the castle I haven’t seen yet.”

“We are not staying in the castle,” he said, his lips twisting into a wicked grin. “This is your chance to see our realm. I know you only experienced a small portion of it when Taveon brought you here.”

Bree raised her eyebrows. “We’re...leaving the castle? But what will Taveon think?”

“For once, I do not care what he thinks.”

A thrill went down Bree’s spine, heart trembling from both his words and the conviction in his eyes. Was he willing to risk his friend’s wrath, just to show Bree more of this realm? She wanted nothing more, but she couldn’t help the dread and hesitation that twisted in her gut.

“Rafe. I don’t want him to punish me again,” she whispered.

And as much as she hated herself for it, a tear slid down her cheek.

Frowning, he reached up and brushed that tear aside, gazing into her eyes with a strange intensity. It was the kind of look that felt as though he saw far more than what was merely before him. He saw deeper than that. Further into her soul.

“There is something you should know, but I fear it is not my place to tell you,” he murmured.

“What is it?” she asked.

“I truly do not know if I should tell you, Bree.”

“It’s a secret of the Prince, isn’t it?” Her heart began to race again, though this time, it was for a different reason. Was this the information that Dagen wanted? Did Rafe hold the knowledge that could get her set free? She hated the idea of betraying his trust. It was one thing to weasel things out of the Prince, and it was another thing entirely to do it to Rafe.

“I would not call it a secret but more of a lie that he told only to you.”

Bree frowned. “Another lie? I’m not surprised. He’s been feeding them to me since the moment we met.”

“He did not order that arrow to be shot at you,” he said, suddenly and all in one breath. “That was not your punishment. Hell, he did not even want to punish you in the first place. Some of the Court think the arrow was meant for him while others are convinced it was intended for you. As the Prince’s champion, any opponents of his would want you dead.”

Bree blinked and stepped back, her mind tripping over Rafe’s words. “I don’t understand. He said he ordered a guard to shoot that arrow at me to make me suffer. To scare me into doing whatever he said.”

“He lied,” Rafe said. “He thought if he told you that then it would make you stay in line. He will not say as much, but I am convinced he is worried about your well-being. He is scared the attacker will try again if given the chance.”

“That’s why he was so angry I showed up tonight,” Bree murmured, almost to herself.

All of this was almost impossible to believe. Bree had formed such a clear picture of Prince Taveon in her head. A cruel monster, one who would do anything to make her suffer. One who didn’t care what happened to her. One who took joy in seeing the pain in her eyes. But all of that had been dependent on one thing and one thing only: his order to shoot that arrow.

And it had been all a lie.

“He should have told me the truth,” Bree said. “It would have made the last few days a hell of a lot more bearable. For me and for him.”

“He is not interested in his life being bearable. He cares far more about keeping you safe than his own comfort.”

“I’m sorry. I’m finding all of this very hard to believe.” In fact, Bree kind of wanted to sit down. “He’s been nothing but an asshole to me. He’s keeping me here as his slave, for fuck’s sake.”

“I never said he was perfect,” Rafe said, running a hand down his face. “He should have told you the truth, and your involvement in the Battle for the Crown should be voluntary. But...he did not have you shot with the arrow. I just thought you should know.”

Bree loosed a breath. “Well, I’m not going to just forgive him for everything else. One not-horrible thing doesn’t make him my best friend or anything.”

A ghost of a smile crossed Rafe’s face. “No, and I would not expect it to. Now, enough about Taveon. Would you like to see our realm?”

“More than you could possibly understand.”

But as excited as she was to leave the castle, Bree couldn’t drag her thoughts away from Prince Taveon. All this time, he’d let her think that he was the asshole who wanted her shot. And he did it in a bizarre attempt to keep her safe. To find out that he was actually worried about her? Well, she never would have guessed it. He’d made a pretty clear picture for her, one that had been etched so deeply into her mind that it was difficult to let it go now.

Rafe stepped back, smiling as his entire body began to tremble. A pair of ebony wings exploded from his back, tearing through the embroidered tunic he’d worn to the ball. Bree widened her eyes and gasped, placing a hand over her heart. She hadn’t expected...that. Those large black wings stretched wide on either side of his tall frame, his tightly-coiled muscles rippling with every beat. The moonlight glistened across his chest, highlighting every ridge, every dip of his abs, the way his pants hung low around his hips.

Bree swallowed hard. He was absolutely mesmerizing. She had never seen anyone like him before, and she’d seen thousands of people in the city on a daily basis. She tried to imagine him walking through Manhattan with those powerful black wings and those silver eyes.

Girls would crumble to their knees. Boys, too.

“So, we’re flying?” she asked in a small voice. She was impressed she’d managed to say any words at all.

“That was the idea,” he said, pursing his lips into a smile.

“I don’t have wings though.”

“No, only Dark Fae have wings. The Light Fae have not been gifted with this particular ability.”

“All Dark Fae?”

Why was she still talking? She was stalling, she realized. Regardless of her babbling, she knew exactly what Rafe had in mind. He was going to hold her and fly her through the skies, a fact that made her more than a teensy bit nervous. Heights had never been her favorite thing in the world. But more than that, she would have to be pressed up so close against him, and her blood was roaring from the thought of it.

“Most Dark Fae,” he said. “But not all. Now, come here.”

More stalling was necessary. “And you have different colored wings? Prince Taveon’s were silvery white.”

Rafe’s face clouded over at that. “You saw his wings? He failed to mention that. Nevermind. Forget about the Prince and his wings. I am certain the color was just a trick of the light.”

Bree frowned. That was odd. Bree had clearly seen silver white wings on the Prince. Sure, the moon made everything glow a blueishy silver sometimes, but there was a big difference between black and what she’d seen. Plus, Rafe seemed surprised that Taveon had let her see them in the first place.

She couldn’t help but wonder why. Another one of the Prince’s secrets? But if so, what in the name of the forest did it mean?

“We do not have much time before I will need to get you back to your room.” He held out a hand, closing the distance between them. “There is no need to be nervous. I would never let you fall.”

Bree was certain he wouldn’t let her fall, at least not from the sky and onto the ground. She wasn’t so certain about her heart though.