Raith felt the misery inside Scarlett vibrate through her and into him through their latched hands. He knew Cade would be feeling it, too.

Something inside Raith changed. His power buzzed inside, threatening to burst right there. He continued to absorb the emotion Scarlett spewed. He had seen the vision that played through her mind—her darkest memory. He could feel her love for her mother and her heartbreak with her mother’s last breath—and her guilt. He, too, knew the anguish of being motherless. But the feeling of betrayal that hit Scarlett when relief struck her was foreign to Raith. He’d missed his mother with every fiber of his being since the moment she’d died.

The power continued pouring into Raith until Scarlett collapsed. Both he and Cade kept their grip on her hands and gently lowered her to the ground.

The announcer spoke. “And so begins the Summer Court Battle of Heir.”

The crowd cheered.

“What’s wrong with her?” Raith asked the announcer.

“She’s been drained. She’ll recover.” Could he sound any more apathetic? Scarlett’s skin was nearly as pale as snow. The announcer could at least pretend to feel bad for the mortal.

“Don’t worry about her,” Cade said. “You have your own date.”

Raith found Natalie a few feet away, gaping at her friend on the floor. He glanced back at Scarlett. Cade was right, Scarlett was his. For now. And Raith needed to keep Scarlett’s friend calm.

“What did you do?” Natalie asked Raith as he approached her.

“The liquid she drank caused her to relive her darkest memory,” Raith told her. “And then when she felt the pain, we took the pain from her like I’ve done for you.”

Natalie bit her lip. “Is she going to be all right?”

Raith nodded. “Cade will take care of her. She’s too valuable for him to do otherwise. Come now, let’s get out of here.”

They would go back to his room, he’d give her some fae wine, and she’d fall asleep. Then he would see if Scarlett cared enough to save her.

Blackness enveloped Scarlett. She jerked her eyes open and took in her surroundings. The familiar silk sheets sent relief through her. She wasn’t in the nightmare world. Thank god.

But something felt wrong. That place was horrible, but she didn’t feel agony inside anymore. She felt like all her cares had been pumped from her, leaving her weightless.

She was no longer in the dress she wore to the ball. Someone must have taken it off of her, leaving her in just her slip. Scarlett turned on her side. Moonlight poured through the window, dimly lighting the room. Something gold and shiny caught Scarlett’s attention—a pocket watch. It meant something, but what?

Her eyes grew heavy. She was tired, so tired. They blinked, threatening to shut, but then the darkness would return. Scarlett stared at the watch, trying desperately to remember what it was for.

Someone had given it to her earlier—at the ball, maybe? Why was everything so fuzzy? Her arms tingled at her side. She was supposed to go somewhere at a certain time. That was it. Raith had given Scarlett the watch as they danced. She wanted something from him.

Think, Scarlett, think, she told herself.

The vision of her mother, cold on the ground, eyes blank, surfaced. No. Focus. Scarlett was supposed to meet Raith to make a bargain.

Why even bother to remember? Thinking felt too difficult—like moving hands through wet cement. It would be so much easier to fall back asleep.

No, her subconscious screamed at her. Whatever she was struggling to remember was important.

It was about the ball. Someone at the ball. Scarlett remembered meeting the Unseelie King—Kaelem—and his cocky, gorgeous face. A smile threatened to surface on Scarlett’s face, but the thought alone stole all of her energy.

Kaelem, not Cade, warned her about the ritual. And he could read her thoughts. He knew who Natalie was.

Natalie. She was here in this realm. And Raith said he’d make a bargain with Scarlett to send Natalie back if Scarlett met him at three in the morning.

Scarlett pushed herself up, her body stiff. What if she was too late? How long had she been asleep? The questions weren’t going to help so she reached for the pocket watch and opened it. Two-fifty-seven. She would have to hurry, but she could make it.

She glanced down at her slip. There was no time to change. It covered her, mostly. Enough, at least. If she had to run down there naked to save Natalie she would—whatever it took. She may have been a crappy daughter, but Scarlett refused to be a bad friend.

With no shoes, she hurried down the hallway. No one else was in sight, the whole castle likely asleep after the ball. How long had they celebrated after Scarlett had been drained?

She kept her feet light on the floor, careful not to wake anyone. She didn’t need Cade finding out about her late-night rendezvous. Her meeting Raith would not go over well, especially in so little clothing.

Then again, as much as Cade would like to believe otherwise, Scarlett was not his.

The ballroom seemed so huge from the top of the stairs now that it was empty. Scarlett looked to the balcony where she drank that vile liquid.

But wait, the ballroom was empty, no Raith to be found. She checked the watch. Three o’clock sharp. She was here right on time. If that ass lied to her…

“I can feel the wrath radiating off of you like heat from a fire.” Raith stepped out of the back-corner shadows.

“I figured you were an ass who stood me up.”

“I could never stand you up, love.”

She didn’t have time for his fake flattery. Somehow, he knew Natalie was her friend so he preyed on her weakness to lure her here. Scarlett wouldn’t be surprised if tricking her into a bargain was his plan all along.

“So, let’s bargain.” She walked down the stairs and met Raith in the middle of the room, which was lit by the moonlight shining through a huge skylight above. Scarlett hadn’t noticed it during the ball. It was too busy then—too full of fae staring at her.

Now, Raith’s eyes were the only ones watching her. “I’m glad you dressed comfortably. Wouldn’t want to be overdressed for a bargain.”

“Thanks to that stupid ritual, I was blacked out until a few minutes ago. You’re lucky I woke up in time and showed up at all.”

“No, you’re lucky,” Raith said. “You are the one who wants to save your friend.”

“There must be something you want, or why even bother to make a deal with me?” Scarlett was within an arm’s length of Raith now. He was still in the same pants and boots he wore to the ball, but his jacket was off now, leaving him in the cream undershirt, the top three buttons undone.

“Clever, girl.” He smirked. “I will take Natalie back to the mortal realm if you vow to stay here until the battle is over.”

At first, Scarlett’s instincts had told her to run away from this place, fast. Then, her curiosity swelled and she decided to learn more of the realm and the fae. But after being drained during the ritual, her intuition was throwing red flags to get the hell out of there again.

“I thought humans couldn’t be held here against their will?” That’s what Cade had told her. “I’ll convince Natalie to ask to go home.”

“True, but when someone is taking away all your pain, leaving becomes difficult.”

The memory of her mother crept in and pressed against her heart. The pain she’d been running from since it happened was what brought her here in the first place. Scarlett wanted to think she was strong enough to leave now, but even if she was, she couldn’t leave Natalie here.

“I agree to stay until the battle is over and you take Natalie back and never bring her here again.” Scarlett had to be careful. Bargains were tricky. She had to cover all her bases.

“I will never bring her back, but I can’t guarantee she won’t find another way. For all the dangers we fae present, humans aren’t very good at staying away once they’ve felt it here in Faerie.”

So, if Scarlett made this deal and then Natalie was desperate to have her emotion fed from again, she could find another fae. Would that be difficult? Or were fae everywhere, eagerly waiting for a new human to prey on?

Cade had said Raith’s power laid in memories.

“Then take away her memory of this place,” Scarlett said. It was better that way. Then it would be as if she was never here and she would have never seen Scarlett. But taking away someone’s memory without her consent seemed low. But it was for Natalie’s own protection, Scarlett convinced herself.

“I could, but I’d need something else in return.”

“What?”

Raith shrugged. “How about…a kiss?”

“Just one kiss?” Was there some trick behind it? What harm could come from a kiss?

“One measly kiss and it will be as if Natalie never saw any of this.” Raith gestured to the ballroom.

“Why? Why all this trouble to make sure I don’t leave until after the battle?” Scarlett was just a mortal, and the importance, or lack thereof, of humans in this world was apparent.

“You’re making this whole battle far more interesting,” Raith said. “So, do we have a deal?”

“Deal.”

“We’ll seal it with the kiss.” Raith stepped toward Scarlett and placed his hands on her hips.

Scarlett looked up. A grin molded on his lips.

“Don’t look so miserable, love.” Raith leaned in and pulled Scarlett’s body into his.

Her chest pressed into his as his hands moved to her face.

Scarlett closed her eyes.

His tongue grazed her bottom lip before his mouth crushed into hers.

Scarlett’s instinct took over as she kissed him back. Their mouths moved feverishly as his hands roamed her body, grazing gently over her breasts and moving on to her waist.

This was pure passion, more than anything Scarlett had felt in her entire life. Her hands combed his hair.

And then he pulled back, a smirk on his face. “Well, that was…”

“Get Natalie home safely and make her forget it all,” Scarlett’s tone was bitter. But it wasn’t Raith that she was furious at; it was herself. It was supposed to be a quick kiss. Not whatever that was.

“As you wish.” Raith’s index finger brushed over his lips as a smirk formed on his mouth. “And Scarlett? Should you ever grow tired of my little brother, I can take your pain away better than he can.”

He disappeared before she could refuse him with some colorful words.

Scarlett wiped her mouth as she walked back up the stairs. She could still taste Raith’s mouth on hers.

And she didn’t hate it.