The Law of Stars and Sultans

“What was that?”

“Nothing.”

“No. I heard what you said.” She detected a deepening anger in his voice. “What the hell does that mean?”

Ari’s shoulders hunched up at the question, not sure she was ready to talk this out with him after all, but saved by the bell, Jai’s cell rang. He cursed in frustration before answering it.

Turning around, she watched him as his one-word answers gave nothing away. “I’ll be right there,” he finally said. He hung up and looked at her, his mien grave. “That was Michael. He needs my help on something, but when I get back, we’ll talk.”

Great. “Can’t wait,” she answered sarcastically.

With an unamused sigh, Jai stepped back into the peripatos.

Stomach in knots over their disagreement, Ari rushed to her room to shower. Having lived with Jai temporarily months ago when they first met, Ari already knew some things about him. He was incredibly organized and tidy and he didn’t have a lot of stuff. Ari, on the other hand, liked to nest, so she’d bought a lot for the house using her Guild Hunter money. Jai didn’t say anything as she gradually filled what had been a fairly modern but masculine home with little girly knickknacks—cushions, candles, ornaments, vases …

They didn’t share a bathroom so she hadn’t been introduced to the intimacy of that, but she had on occasion watched him as he shaved. She knew he made his bed every morning like a soldier, that his bedroom was filled with two things—clothes and books—that he ate well—protein shakes, fruit, nuts, oatmeal, vegetables, grilled chicken, fish—and that he rolled his eyes every time he took in Ari and Trey’s side of the refrigerator—pizza, burgers, pudding, diet soda. She knew he worked out every day for two hours and if he worked out longer than that, something was bothering him. Sometimes she got that something out of him; other times he just pulled her onto the sofa and switched on a movie. All these things she knew and yet she still felt like she didn’t really know him. He was holding back and she didn’t know why, and the thought of talking about it scared the hell out of her because she was so terrified he was going to tell her this had all been a huge mistake.

Trembling at the thought, Ari got out of the shower and wrapped in a towel. When she stepped out into her room, the steam cleared and the sight that greeted her knocked the wind right out of her.

“Looking good, Ari.” Charlie grinned at her from where he lounged on her bed. The grin was wide but not wide enough to reach his eyes. “Nice towel.”

Once Ari had picked up her jaw from the floor, Charlie felt a tingle of magic in the air seconds before the towel was gone and replaced by jeans and a T-shirt. He felt a flicker of annoyance that she’d cover up around him—as if she wasn’t safe from him. He snorted inwardly. Who was he kidding? Of course she wasn’t safe from him.

With less difficulty than before, Charlie managed to keep his expression blank as Ari took a step toward him, whispering his name. He felt the familiar ache in his chest whenever he was around her. Would it kill her to stop being so beautiful and caring just long enough for him to get through this? He didn’t want her to care. Fallon had died caring about him.

Feeling the fury build in his blood, Charlie dropped his gaze, trying to control the rage.

What happened to Fallon was not happening to Ari.

The plan had been to stay low, to figure out what his next move would be now that he was a fugitive and had a chunk of Mount Qaf emerald in his possession. There were options. After he’d killed the labartu, he’d gone somewhere dark, started thinking some pretty shitty things about Ari. After a week of hiding out, he’d begun to feel a little normal again and realized that they’d all been right. The emerald had changed him. But he wasn’t giving it up. He was, however, intent on giving up Ari. He harbored some deep resentment against her, resentment he feared would one day get the best of him. Thus, all the options he’d drawn up … well, not one of them had included her ever being in his life again.

But then the ghulah found him.

“Charlie, what are you doing here?” Ari asked in a low, panicked voice.

He sighed as though bored, as if being in the same room with her, smelling her perfume, seeing a pair of her panties lying on the floor didn’t do a number on him. Just because he resented her, didn’t mean he wasn’t still attracted to her.

It was quite the pickle.

“I’ve been approached by a ghulah. Apparently you and Jai attacked her in Roswell.”