Page 212 of Librarian

I open my mouth, but Kyrith pops into being directly behind him, and I snap it closed. My eyes must widen because North and Jasper turn, then grin.

“We’ll leave you to it,” Jasper says, heading straight for the door, blowing a kiss at the Librarian. “Enjoy your evening, lass.”

“But not too much,” North adds, following.

The door shuts behind them, leaving the two of us alone in a stained-glass room, an ocean of blankets and cushions between us.

“What is this?” she asks carefully, eyes lingering on the wisplights, then on the small pile of books resting on the blanket nearest the door.

“A surprise.” I wave her towards them. “What do you think?”

The words are confident, but there’s a strange fluttering in my gut as I take my own seat facing the door and wait for her to join me.

She might say no. After all, Iamstealing Jasper’s idea.

When she doesn’t laugh in my face, my shoulders inch lower.

“I’m…not exactly dressed.” She looks down at her scorched skirt and blood-stained shirt with dismay.

“Fortunately, the reindeer don’t care.”

“Reindeer?” She peers at me like she’s wondering if she misheard me, then lowers herself to float just above the cushions with her knees out to one side just the same. “What did you have planned?”

“I thought you might like to read beneath the northern lights.”

At the reminder, I knock on the door, murmuring the name of the cabin I rented for the night.

It swings open, and snow immediately gusts through.

Oops.

I grab for my grimoire before it can spread any further. “Culdua tuthiri.”

An invisible barrier covers the door, shutting away the blast of freezing air. I fumble for a heat scrap, and once cast, the snow that did manage to cross is evaporated and the sheets are toasty once more.

Kyrith might not be able to feel the cold, but I can. She’s already staring through at the dark sky. There’s nothing there yet. Damn. I had this all planned out, but I can’t control solar winds.

Narrowing my eyes at the uncooperative sky, I silently urge it to get on with it.

The stupid lights remain absent, mocking me. Ugh. Typical.

I should’ve checked they were there before I started messing with cushions.

At least the view over the fjord is pretty enough. The cabin I picked out is high up, with a good line of sight over the dark water and the shimmering stars above.

I dim the wisplights around the edge of the room, leaving the one by the door bright enough to read by, but hopefully not so bright as to ruin the view if the aurora does show up.

“I have a couple of options,” I explain, grabbing the pile of romance books from behind a cushion. “My preference is the Norse mythology one with the?—”

“Your preference?”

I stop. “I thought we would read them together. I’ll turn the pages, though you’ll have to wait for me to catch up.”

She reads at a speed that intimidates me, but I’m not surprised. She’s had hundreds of years to master the skill.

Kyrith’s brows are still raised, and I shrug. “If you don’t want to read the Norse one, Dakari says he brought you a couple of others…”

She shakes her head. “No, that sounds good. I just…I didn’t think you’d want to read romance books.”