A light tap on her door woke North the next morning. She was snuggled in her covers and wanted to ignore it, but it came again and more insistently, making it impossible to do so. Smothering a yawn, she rolled out of bed and reached for a fur robe hanging there. She’d left her fae fabric out for one of the maids to collect last night for washing, and with it gone, so she wore nothing besides the robe.

When she reached the door, she half-expected it to be one of the staff returning her fabric, but it was Marek instead. He looked disgustingly awake and seemed raring to go. “What do you want?” The question came out grumpier than she’d intended, and she yawned again.

Though his eyes twinkled, he had the good sense not to smile at her morning grumpiness. “We’re going to work on your powers, princess. Get dressed.”

“You could try asking,” she muttered.

He rolled his eyes. “Will you please get dressed so we can practice water magic?” The question dripped with sugary sweetness that should have been enough to make her gag.

With a sigh, she stepped back and opened her door wider. “I guess you want to wait in here for me too?”

He shrugged disease crossed the threshold. “I can send for some breakfast, if you’d like?”

She shrugged. “I’m not sure I’m hungry.” About that moment, her stomach started rumbling. It startled a laugh from her, which considerably brightened her mood despite the lack of sleep. “I guess I am hungry.” Without waiting for a response, she turned from him and went into the dressing room, where someone had unpacked the mall bag she’d brought with her.

She really missed her fae fabric as she reached for a pair of leggings and a long T-shirt. The cloth was perfectly soft, and some kind of rich cotton, but it couldn’t compare to lightness and softness of the fabric Orin’s sister had woven.

She took time for a quick shower, deciding Marek could wait for that. Just like in the room she’d used at the Council headquarters, there was a big box of makeup, but she had no idea how to use any of it and skipped over the cosmetics. After shoving her wavy brown locks into a messy ponytail, she bounced out of the bathroom, a spring in her step at the smell of something delicious wafting through the room.

Marek sat in one of the wingback chairs, and there was another across from him. Either he or one of the staff had moved a nearby side table to act as a dining table, and breakfast waited for them. It was still piping hot when she removed the cloche and stared down at it for a moment. “What is it?” She poked hesitantly at the fluffy pile of light-purple…substance.

“Scrambled peana eggs and ground molinyn.”

She arched a brow. “What’s molinyn?” She wasn’t certain what peana was either, but since it could lay eggs, it was probably some kind of bird. Despite the strange light-purple shade, it did look like scrambled eggs when she looked closer. She was no closer to identifying the stark white starchy stuff beside it though.

“It’s a type of grain that thrives in subzero temperatures. We can grow it here in the valley, but the best quality is high in the mountains.” He took a moment to taste it. “This is definitely from the mountains, so you should enjoy it.”

“Do I put anything on it?”

“Some people like it with butter.”

She arched a brow. “Goat better?” She and her father had kept goats at their property for several years, until the last one had died a couple of years back.

He shook his head, looking a little surprised. “Cow.”

“You have cows in Fire & Ice?” Seeing him wince, she hastily added, “I mean Haedra and Celestina?”

He lifted a shoulder. “It’s an import from the Earth realm, but they’ve been part of our realm for hundreds of years.”

She took the dish of butter he passed and placed a small pat on the steaming hot grains. The butter quickly melted in and give the stark white molinyn the faintest hint of yellow. She brought a spoonful to her mouth a moment later and nodded her approval. “It’s good.” It most reminded her of grits, but with a slightly earthier flavor. The peana eggs proved to be virtually indistinguishable from the taste of scrambled eggs, save for the color. In what seemed like no time, they had finished their breakfast—which was surprisingly mundane despite its exotic appearance.

She followed Marek from her room and down the hallway before climbing another set of stairs. When they emerged onto the next floor, he led her down yet another hallway into a spacious room that took her breath for a moment. There were waterfalls appearing to drop straight from the ceiling, and the walls looked like sculpted ice. There was a hint of greenery here and there, but it was all frosted, and she reached out to place a palm against the closest wall. North shivered when coldness seeped into her hand, confirming it was certainly ice. “This is amazing. What is it?”

“It’s a training room. Ice beings rely on the element of water for power. It’s like building a fire. You need some sort of tender or kindling to spark the flame.”

She frowned. “What do you do if there’s no water?”

He gave her a lazy grin. “There’s always water somewhere in Haedra, and on Earth. The stronger your powers, and the more you practice, the easier it is to summon water from great distances. That’s something you’ll work on, but I don’t expect you to be able to do much of anything today.”

“Me neither,” she muttered under her breath. North was convinced she was completely powerless despite being a Trueblood. Surely, she would’ve shown some signs of it before then?

As she followed him across the room to sit beside a small pool of water carved out of the floor, she remembered lifting her father off the porch and into the truck. Had that been adrenaline, or was there more to it? Was it a latent power that stirred to life in her at the moment of urgency? She didn’t know, but it left her feeling slightly optimistic maybe she could do something with the water. “Um, now what?”

“Stare at it for a minute. Allow the calmness to fill you. See how there are no ripples. Just the still expanse of water. This is a meditation pool, and it will help you focus on the water element.” As he spoke, Marek’s gaze moved to the perfectly still water, not flickering even to blink.

She stared down, trying to get that same expression of concentration and peace that he received just from looking at the tranquil water. It didn’t do much for her, and she reached out hesitantly to put her finger against it, wanting to see ripples appear. Nothing happened.

He laughed softly. “It’s enchanted to remain calm and pure.” He shrugged. “It’d take someone far more powerful than me to remove that enchantment.”

She nodded and went back to staring at the water, still feeling nothing.

“Can you feel the power flowing into you?” When she shook her head, he sighed. “Try visualizing it. Imagine it’s like a wave that washes over you. Can you feel it now?”

She hesitated, but finally nodded. That she shook her head. “No, not really. I thought maybe for a minute, but I’m not sure.”

“You need to focus.” He sounded a little frustrated.

“I am focusing. I’m just not sure what I’m supposed to get out of staring in a bowl of water.” She couldn’t help replying with a snarky tone.

“You’re supposed to get peace and harmony and find it easier to meld your power with the power of the water element.” His tone was anything but calm and peaceful as he snapped the words at her.

She subsided into silence, not wanting to argue with him, and gave it her best effort. She stared at the water for several minutes, but felt nothing. Nothing happened.

Eventually, Marek stood up and held out a hand. He seemed more at peace. “Now that we’ve had a chance to charge up, so to speak, you’re ready to experiment with some simple magic.”

She nodded as she took his hand, walking beside him. North didn’t think she’d done anything to charge herself, but she didn’t want to disappoint him.

He stopped near a waterfall that had a natural pool forming about waist height for him before trickling down into another pool that settled near their feet. He plunged in his hand and pulled out a fully formed crystal rose. With a grin, he passed it to her.

She took it, wincing at the coldness. It wasn’t crystal, but ice. That made total sense, but it had certainly looked like crystal before she held it. It was perfectly formed, and she was in awe of his power. “You made this, right?” At his nod, she stroked a finger over it. “I can’t do this.”

He shrugged. “Not yet, but you will. For now, just let a drop of water melt on your finger, and when you have one, make it refreeze.”

He made it sound so simple, but as she collected three drops of water all at once, before setting the ice rose back into the water, where it floated down the gentle fall of water to the final pool at the bottom, all she had were water drops on her fingers. Concentrating did nothing to make them anything but liquid. “How?”

“Feel the connection with the magic. Once you can focus on that and tap into it, you can consciously direct it to do whatever you want.”

She bit her lip, focusing as hard as she could and trying to find the elusive flow of magic of which he spoke. She still couldn’t feel a connection to water. Finally, with a sigh, she shook her head. “I can’t do it. I don’t feel anything.”

He looked frustrated. “How can you not feel anything? The element’s all around us, and you shouldn’t have any trouble tapping in.

She put her hands on her hips. “I can’t help that I can’t feel it. This is all just a waste of time.”

He scowled. “Caius said you’re the strongest Trueblood we’ve had in twelve hundred years. It should be easy for you.”

“I’m sorry to fail your expectations, but it’s not easy. I can’t do it.” Driven by her frustration, she shouted the words at him.

He took a step forward. “You aren’t even trying.”

She glared up at him at the accusation. “I’m doing my best. Maybe you don’t know how to teach me the right way?”

His lips tightened, and he took another step toward her. “There’s nothing wrong with my technique. Maybe you just aren’t a good student.”

She closed the last of the distance between them, her heaving chest brushing against his in her anger. “I don’t have the power that you think I do. Why can’t you accept that?”

“Because we need you, North. I need you.” There was still anger in his voice, but nothing like fury in the kiss he suddenly bestowed upon her as their lips pressed tightly together. It was gentle despite the sizzle of anger between them, and the angry words they’d just exchanged.

His hands gripped her shoulders and pulled her closer, and North clutched his shirt, curling her fingers in the fabric to anchor herself as she opened her mouth. It was her first kiss, and though she’d read about kisses before, even some very passionate descriptions, no literature could do justice to the reality.

Her head swam, and the room seemed like it spun around her even as the temperature increased by several degrees. She was both hot and cold. Frantically needing to be closer to him, she pressed her body tightly to his.

When his tongue swept into her mouth, she stroked it with her own, at first shyly, but gaining confidence as he moved his appendage leisurely around the recesses of her mouth, as though tasting every inch of her. When his tongue slowly retreated, it was like an invitation to follow, and she did so. She tasted him with tentative strokes like he’d used on her, enjoying his full essence.

When they broke apart, he was breathing as heavily as she was. Foreheads pressed together, they stared into each other’s eyes as they breathed deeply for a moment.

“I’m sorry.”

She frowned at him. “For the kiss?” Pain shot through her that he was apologizing for something so beautiful, that had felt so perfect.

He lifted one side of his mouth in a small grin. “No, of course not. I’m sorry I yelled at you and got frustrated. And for pushing you too hard and expecting too much.”

“I’m sorry I got frustrated. I just don’t feel the connection you talk about.” As she said the words, North realized she felt completely different now. There was a low hum filling her, similar to the sound emitted from the portal, but without the nausea and headache side effects. This felt different, almost pleasing, like a soothing vibration. Yet it was also strong and pulsing.

Without thinking about it, she reached into the pool of water beside her and pulled out a soaking wet hand. As drops of water ran down her fingers, she stared at them and thought about them freezing. Less than a second later, there were several frozen drops of water on her hand, and a few suspended in midair as icicles.

He grinned at her. “It’s amazing. You did it.”

She looked at him as a thrill shot through her. “It is amazing. I can feel it now.” Her eyes widened. “I felt it more when you were kissing me though. I didn’t realize it was that. I thought it was just… You know…”

His lips twitched. “No, I don’t. What was it?”

Her face felt like it must be a thousand degrees, and she was sure to be bright red when she muttered, “I thought it was just because you’re such a good kisser.”

He looked smug. “I certainly am, and it could be that, but maybe we should experiment. Kiss me again, and let’s see if it causes your power to increase. I know the first kiss boosted my power. I can feel it more intensely than I ever have.”

She moved forward again, lifting her head to meet his lips as they descended. This kiss was fast and more forceful than the last one, making it difficult to focus on the idea of doing magic when she was experiencing such a magical kiss already. Still, she managed to half-focus on placing her other hand into the water. She imagined removing a diamond-shaped ice, and when they pulled apart a moment later, a sparkling ice diamond rested in her palm. She looked up at him with excitement, but frowned when she saw his gaze. His eyes had turned a darker blue, and he was breathing harder. “Are you all right, Marek?”

He shook for a moment. “Can’t control…” He trailed off and looked away from her. His gaze landed on the meditation pool, and it suddenly started bubbling like the hot springs on her father’s mountain property.

She stared at it in surprise, and then wonder, as it bubbled up above the level of the floor and formed a funnel. She looked at Marek, whose gaze remained focused on the pool, and realized he was the one causing it. Not five minutes ago, he’d told her he wasn’t strong enough to affect the enchantment on the meditation pool. Now, he was making it bubble up and form the equivalent of a water tornado as it spun in place above the basin.

She put her hand on his cheek, and his gaze moved from the pool. There was a splash of water, and she looked over in time to see the water return to the basin, though a lot of it ended up on the floor around them.

“What was that?” His voice was still shaky as he asked the question.

She looked up at him as she offered a shrugged. “I don’t know how, but that was you.” Her gaze dropped to the frozen diamond on her palm. “This is me in comparison.”

He frowned. “I’ve heard a Trueblood can bolster others’ power, but never expected it to feel like that. It was amazing and intense, but also kind of scary.”

She frowned. “I was scary?”

He shook his head, but hesitated for a moment. “Not you, necessarily, but the experience. I could feel the power swelling in me. I’ve never had such a connection with it before. My great-grandmother, who had a strong link to the Baelic blood passed down by Balthazar, was a powerful water witch. She created this room for practice and meditation. That water hasn’t moved in more than a hundred years, until this morning…just now. Kissing you boosted my power to a crazy level I couldn’t control. It wasn’t until you touched my cheek, breaking my concentration, that I was able to pull it back. I don’t know what I would’ve done if you hadn’t interceded.”

He seemed unsettled by the whole thing. She couldn’t blame him, but it still hurt when he was obvious in his withdrawal from her a moment later. He took a step back, quickly masking his uncertainty, but not fast enough to keep her from seeing entirely. He seemed to want to be away from her.

That brought tears to her eyes. A sharp sting at the corners of her eyes made her wince, and she lifted her fingers to swipe at them. She hissed with surprise when she encountered ice crystals. Her tears had frozen as they came from her eyes. North wasn’t certain if it was his magic, her magic, or a combination of both that had caused the reaction.

“I have things to do.” He said it quickly as he backed away from her before turning his back on her and hurrying from the room. She stared after him for a moment, not sure what she should do. He obviously needed time to process what had happened, and she wouldn’t mind some time herself, but couldn’t help feeling hurt.

He seemed to be blaming her, or at least afraid of her now, and that made her chest ache. What if he was the one who was meant for her, and that was why her power had surged like that, while boosting his to an entirely new level? What if it frightened him so much that he didn’t want anything more to do with her?