It wasn’t silent after that. No, it really couldn’t have been, seeing as how we were in the middle of the City of Lockes. But Prince Justin was silent, like his mind had be
en blown at the thought of my extraordinary generosity, his synapses firing in the face of just how much I cared.
Which, honestly, contrasted heavily when he finally spoke. “You did what.”
“Okay, so look. It’s really rather terrible, but something I’ve learned is that when one falls in love and is happy about it, one wants nothing more than to spread that love to others, to see best friends—okay, okay, don’t growl at me, almost best friends, gods—experience the same joy of falling for someone. I love love so much, that I want to shove it down your throat so you know what I’m going through.”
“Sam.”
“Yes, Justin.”
“Are you telling me that right now, there is someone waiting for me to come to them to go on a date with them? Someone I’ve never met.”
“Um. Yes?”
“How are you a real person?”
I frowned at him. “You know what? That’s not the first time I’ve been asked that.”
“Who is he?” Justin asked, sounding resigned (which possibly meant he was thrilled; I hadn’t quite worked out all of Justin’s facial expressions as of yet).
“Oh! You’re going to love him. His name is William and he’s a Sagittarius and he likes the same things you do.”
“Like….”
“Um. You know. Stuff. Things. That everyone likes.”
He cocked his head at me. “Sam.”
“Yes, Justin.”
“Where did you meet him?”
“At… the store.”
“What store?”
I was feeling awfully sweaty because I really couldn’t lie for shit. I suppose that was a good thing. Mostly. “The… hat. Store.”
“The hat store.”
“Yes,” I said, swallowing. “Where I was buying a hat.”
“What kind of hat?”
Why was it so warm in the dark and dank alley? “A pork pie.”
He took a step toward me. “Really.”
I nodded. “Gary says they’re all the rage this season. And I trust his fashion sense. Because he’s a unicorn. Unicorns are very fashionable, in case you hadn’t noticed.”
“And this man. This… William. What does he look like?”
And godsdamn his inquisitive mind! How neatly a trap it laid! “Like a… male… person.”
“Sam.”
“Yes, Justin.” He was standing really close to me. I was uncomfortable.