“Your mother is truly remarkable,” I commented distractedly, tearing my eyes from Kiran and admiring the raw earthly beauty of the gardens again.

Kiran stood immediately, disturbed by my comment. I turned back to him, ready to explain but the anger that flashed across his face, turning it into a volatile storm of emotions, held my tongue.

“They're waiting for us,” Kiran snapped, spinning on his heel and stalking through the gardens, trampling wayward stems and delicate buds until he was face to face with a stone door obscured from view by thick climbing vines.

He pressed his hand through the gnarled vines and I watched the stone glow against the greenery as his magic pressed the door open. I followed Kiran through the door and then paused to breathe deeply of the Romanian mountainside. The hills tumbled before us in waves of ungovernable creation. Each tree, among clusters of others, seemed to be painted its very own shade of green and in the setting sun shimmered brilliantly against the rough mountain rock interspersed throughout. The breeze picked up on the outside of the walls, sending goose bumps across my bare skin, but not from the coolness of the night, rather the emotion conjured by the spellbinding magnificence of the earth.

“Come on, Eden, I don't have time to stop for you every time you find something pretty,” Kiran growled. He was already stomping up the mountainside to our left and I had to believe he was right.

I hiked after him, breathless and panting when we reached the top of a steep incline. Kiran stood waiting for me, his gaze stretched out and appreciating. When I joined him at the top, I turned to look at what he was watching and my hand flew instinctively to my throat in a gesture of pure admiration. Before me was a wide, long lake that glistened in the softening sunlight and surrounded by tall, ancient trees mirrored in the perfect clarity of the water below. The crystal clear lake lapped against the soft earth that surrounded it, pushing against its God-made boundaries.

Kiran stood, drinking in the view, his body stilled in awe and his breath labored just the slightest amount. I looked down at Sebastian and Talbott who splashed around excitedly in the water, like two little boys left alone for the first time. Kiran hadn't noticed them yet, or if he had, he was choosing to keep his eyes on the serenity of the lake beyond the wild ripples and waves made by his two closest friends.

Standing next to Kiran made the moment feel religious, as if the hill we stood on was a secluded house of worship. A shiver ran down my spine and suddenly I didn't like sharing this picture of perfection with him. Suddenly, I felt like I was invading an intimate moment that only he was worthy of and I couldn't bare the way our magic had started to move in the gentle breeze.

“Come on, Kiran, I don't have time to stop for you every time you find something pretty,” I repeated sarcastically, running down the hill recklessly.

My haphazard decent down the hill caught Sebastian and Talbott's attention and they looked up extremely happy to see me. I stopped near the edge of the water, not ready to take my shirt off while an audience of teenage boys watched on.

“So the prison warden finally let you out?” Talbott asked, in uncharacteristic sarcasm.

“Yes, he finally did!” I sighed exasperatedly. I felt Kiran walk up behind me, his magic tense and confrontational.

“After she begged!” he defended himself incredulously, “I am so tired of tears, seriously, I just can't take it anymore.”

“I have never cried,” I stated clearly, ruffled at his accusation and frustrated that he made me out to be such a huge nuisance. I ripped off his borrowed shirt and threw it backward at him, slipping off his sandals and stepping bravely forward into the ice cold mountain water.

I sucked in a sharp breath, unprepared for the chilling temperature of the lake and stood awkwardly frozen waiting for my feet to acclimate to the icy temperature. Goose bumps rose drastically on my skin and I crossed my arms over my exposed stomach, impatiently waiting for the chilling shock to subside.

“Eden....?” Sebastian started. The mischievousness in his voice should have alerted me, but I was too frozen to think things through. I stood shivering in the shallow waters, finding the guts to step further into their depths.

“What?” My teeth chattered violently in my mouth and my jaw clenched tightly together.

“You do remember that you can use magic, don't you?” Sebastian asked and understanding finally dawned on me, but before I could get a chance to send a magical burst of electricity to warm my body, a strong hand roughly gripped my ankle and pulled hard against my leg so that I was dragged into the water before I had a chance to react.

Sebastian hauled me quickly beneath the surface and my whole body was plunged into the icy cold depths of the crystal clear lake. I struggled against Sebastian's vice grip, kicking my way to the surface and gasping for air once I reached it. I sent a frantic wave of magic through my blood warming my frozen veins and raised skin that turned sore to the touch from the chilling temperature of the water.

“Sebastian!” I shrieked, splashing water in his face as he surfaced too. “That was so uncalled for!” I splashed more water angrily in his direction, although I had already forgiven him for the good-humored prank.

With magic heating my blood the water felt amazing against my skin and the privacy of the lake reminded me of absolute freedom. But then the handcuffs around my wrists jingled beneath the surface while I treaded water and I was painfully reminded that even in the purity of this lake, I remained a prisoner.

I heard a splash behind me, and turned to see Kiran emerging to the surface. A rope swing, attached to a tower-like tree swung back and forth over his head. He ran his hand through his hair, but not in irritation this time; the smile that grew across his face lifted his eyes and there was trouble there before he dipped beneath the glassy lake.

He surfaced again, closer to the three of us and treaded water in tight circles, clearly enjoying himself.

“You should feel special, Eden,” Sebastian explained, giving Kiran an amused sideways glance. “Kiran's never brought a girl here before.”

Kiran averted his eyes, clearly embarrassed, and to save the awkward moment, I offered, “I suppose he's never had a girl locked in his room for months at a time either.”

“Oh you'd be surprised,” Sebastian laughed sarcastically.

Kiran splashed water in his face before leaping forward through the water and dunking Sebastian roughly. Sebastian splashed and fought his way to the top only to attack Kiran in revenge. Soon the interaction became a full on wrestling match with Talbott jumping in to assert his own manhood. I watched on, wonderfully entertained while shielding my eyes from the excessive splashing. Kiran caught my eye through the tumult, his impish look turning absolutely wicked before he disappeared beneath the lake's depths. Sebastian and Talbott were left to fight things out between themselves, while I wondered what Kiran plotted against them. I began to conclude that something must have happened to him when two hands gripped my feet firmly, dragging me roughly beneath the water. I didn't even have time for a scream before Kiran was pulling me speedily downward with him. Forgetting magic, I began to panic, struggling against his arms that slid from my feet to my waist.

Our fight became a contest then, pushing each other down, while the other one fought to get to the top. I pressed my hands on his shoulders, pushing him beneath me, thinking I had the upper hand, but then his hands were around my exposed waist and he was pushing himself ahead of me. I took his lead and grabbed him around his waist, my fingers hot against his skin from the magic that heated my blood. He paused in the water, tiny white bubbles soaring toward the surface from our flailing struggle, and stared at me. Even against the dark backdrop of the water, Kiran's eyes were starkly turquoise. We seemed suspended under water, my hands against his waist, his hands holding my arms.

I realized then that one of us had subconsciously time-slowed our struggle. I wanted to blame Kiran, I wanted to believe that it was his left over feelings for me that kept us suspended closely together under water, but when I pushed against Kiran's body toward the surface and I fluttered forward with effortless ease. Once I broke free of the water, the world sped up to real time and Kiran was only a half a second behind me. Talbott and Sebastian slowed their hoarse play, realizing what happened, but not understanding why.

They weren't the only ones.

“I won,” I quipped, splashing the smallest wave of water in Kiran's confused face.

Rather than sorting through what happened or dealing with Kiran's accusing eyes, I turned my back on him and swam to the shore. Stepping out of the water and reaching for his shirt, I dried myself automatically with magic and slipped my feet back into his shoes. I looked back at him, trying to find an explanation to offer, but his gaze was at my feet, that indefinable look marking his expression.

“I think I'm ready to go now,” I explained uneasily, slipping Kiran's shirt over my head. “I'm tired from the day. Can I go back by myself, or does someone need to go with me?”

“Talbott will go,” Kiran growled; his unexplainable look replaced with anger and hate.

Talbott swam to the shore obediently, his chocolate eyes set firmly in disappointment and I waited patiently for him to dry off and grab his things. At least I pretended to be patient. I forced myself into calm resolve, although inwardly I cringed from the intensity of Kiran's anger. When Talbott was ready, I turned silently to follow him, finally allowing myself to close my eyes in embarrassing regret. Whatever steps Kiran and I had taken today, I just set us back an infinite amount by trapping him under water. I sighed heavily, disappointed to leave the lake and frustrated with how much harder I was going to have to work to pretend to be in love with Kiran.

Chapter Eight

“You have got to be quiet though,” Sebastian warned. I followed behind him, trying my hardest not to giggle, but his stooped-over walk on his tip-toes like a little boy sneaking down to wait for Santa Claus was hard to ignore.

“I am being quiet!” I whispered harshly. A sharp giggle threatened to explode from my mouth as Sebastian looked over his shoulder at me with his pointer finger pressed firmly against his mouth.

I suppressed the urge to laugh and worked consciously to sober my face. I was so thankful for Sebastian and his friendship that I willingly let him get me into all kinds of trouble. Tonight we were in search of a midnight snack and so far made it passed the guards outside Kiran's room. The kitchens, located on the main level of the castle, were still a long way off according to Sebastian, and if we wanted to reach our destination, we needed to be quiet.

Our secret mission was abruptly cut short however, when we rounded the corner and ran directly into Kiran, Lucan and Talbott. The three of them stood together, obviously waiting to ambush us. Sebastian straightened, his expression falling into humbled defeat and I once again had to stifle the explosive laughter the deflated look on Sebastian's face demanded. The midnight hours and long imprisonment made me giddy and immature and even if Lucan was furious with me, I knew I would have a terrible time taking him seriously.

“I'm sorry, sir,” Sebastian offered first, in a rush of apology and respect. “We planned only to visit the kitchens and nothing more.” Sebastian kept his eyes lowered, staring at Lucan's feet.