The Marriage Game

In Which Camila Learns She May Die Brutally

Camila woke inside a cloud.

Tendrils of fog wrapped around the outside of her tent, hugging the firepit from the night before. A lone morning dove cooed a greeting, then fluttered off into the cold, damp air. The sun was obscured, hidden behind layers of fog, and the shadows were barely brighter than they had been during the night.

"Morning." Alex passed her a cup of hot coffee. "Rosa brought an enchanted coffee maker."

"Thank you. Good morning." Camila tried to keep a silly grin from her face. She failed miserably.

"You two are looking awfully chipper," Zora said. She caught Camila's eye, mouthed "details!", and then let them be.

"So, how have-"

"How'd you sleep?" Camila started, then stopped. "Sorry, what were you saying?"

"Oh, I was, um, going to ask how you slept." Alex nodded, scratching the back of his head.

She had barely slept. Her mind had refused to relax, bouncing from subject to subject like a caffeinated kid on a trampoline. From the upcoming date with Alex—who was planning it? What were they doing? What if it went horribly and she could never look him in the eye again?—to the admittedly more deadly problems in her life: the murderous centuries-old witch, the murderous centuries-old vampire, the volatile alliance with the Vindicators, and the rapidly fading spell concealing the mating mark.

"Good." Camila nodded, her head bobbing up and down. She took a sip of her coffee. "I slept good."

Alex raised an eyebrow. "Really?"

"Well... Not bad. We've got a lot going on right now, you know? How did you sleep?"

"We do," Alex said. "Oh. I slept good too."

"Good."

"Yeah."

Camila smiled. He looked nice this morning. Actually, he looked nice every morning. His eyes were blue as the sky, his cheeks were flushed, and the sleeves of the admittedly expensive sweatshirt they'd bought at the airport—a wrinkled blue thing that read 'I heart KC'—had been rolled up to show off his muscled forearms. 

She smiled. 

He smiled.

They glanced around, looking for something to talk about.

Before Camila could continue what was probably doomed to remain an awkward conversation, Rosa slung an enthusiastic arm over her shoulders, squeezing her neck just a little too tight.

"Hey! Good morning! How's it going?" Rosa trilled. "You ready for today?"

Camila nodded.

"Do you..." Rosa paused for dramatic effect. "....know what's going on today?"

Camila glanced at Alex. "We're going to find the Heart of Catalina?" she guessed.

"You're going to find the Heart of Catalina." Rosa grinned. "Isn't that fantastic? This way, if anyone gets brutally murdered, it's you!"

Alex stiffened beside her, shifting forward slightly so he stood between her and Rosa.

Camila frowned. "Excuse me?"

"Yeah. Your ancestors are the ones who hid it in the caves. You've got to be a werewolf with royal blood to get in there." Rosa shrugged. "I'm sure it won't be too bad. I'll even let you have your daggers back."

Rosa waited expectantly.

"Thanks?" Camila said, the familiar weight of responsibility settling in her stomach.