Excerpt: Infinity's End

It was like a bolt of lightning, only without the blinding pain and disorientation. Ione came to a sudden stop, words crashing like rampant staccato in her mind.

“I like you,” she said, only to belatedly realize that it had been spoken aloud and Gale must have heard her.

He, too, stopped to turn and look at her, blinking in confusion. “What?” Gale prodded, tipping his head to the side.

She flushed, cringing. “Ah, I said that out loud, didn't I?”

Gale chuckled a bit, but it was more nervous than she would have suspected. “Yes, ma'am. You did.”

Ione hadn't intended on this sudden confession, but now seemed as good a time as any. And she never had been the type to go back on her words. “Well, it's true,” she said, meeting his cyan gaze unflinchingly.

He took a step closer to her, uncertainty dancing in his eyes. “I think you're nice, too,” Gale said, and Ione breathed out a gust of frustration.

Was he being purposefully obtuse? Or had Kieran been right? Was he really just that unsure of her and his feelings? This boy was never going to make the first move! It was both refreshing and frustrating all at once!

“That's not what I mean, Gale.”

The former noble took on an almost shifty-eyed look, lifting his shoulders helplessly. “Well, you like a lot of things. Chamomile. Oranges. History. The color green. Marshmallows and apple cider, but not together because that would be gross,” he babbled, dragging a hand through his white-blond hair. “And last time I checked, you liked the leaves in fall and the quiet of the library and--”

Ione kissed him, cutting off the stream of words that only further proved that he'd been paying attention, that he obviously liked her in return. Her lips fell over his, briefly thinking that they tasted of the clover he had been sucking on. The kiss was brief, more like an interruption than an embrace.

Gale froze beneath her, his eyes watching her in stunned amazement. She watched as his tongue dragged across his lips and Ione couldn't help it. She kissed him again, feeling the weight of his hands falling across her shoulders. Her lips pressed against his mouth and finally he stirred, his lips parting only to bite her. Of all things, he bit her.

Ione blinked, pulling back. “Was that a rejection?” she asked, tongue poking at the sore spot on her bottom lip where she could still feel the pressure of his teeth.

To her amusement, a hearty flush spread across Gale's cheeks. “No,” he assured her quickly, his fingers flexing on her shoulders. “I was just... surprised. Try again. I'll do better this time?”

Ione arched her brow. “The whole confession?”

“Just the part where you kissed me is good enough.”

Chuckling, Ione couldn't help but grin. She should have known it wouldn't be the stuff of fairy tales, not that she'd ever liked those anyways.

“Okay, but you better not bite me again.”