Page 33 of Heavensent & Hellbent

Not only had I seen Zain’s wings form, but I had seen him fly—flown with him. Any lingering doubt I had about him being an angel—of angels existing—had evaporated.

“You sure? Normally, I can’t stop you from asking questions.” Despite Zain’s usual confidence, there was something in his voice that gave away his nervousness.

I took a few steps over to a tree and rested a hand on it for support. “It just makes sense.”

Zain raised an eyebrow. “What does?”

He followed me over to the tree, resting a hand against the trunk. I hadn’t even noticed it, but his wings had retreated. Before our flight, he had tucked his T-shirt into the waistband of his shorts. But he didn’t put it back on immediately, so I was left to face his bare chest. With great difficulty, my gaze moved beyond his shoulder, at the mountains.

“I’ve always had the sense that there was something more going on in the world.” Zain didn’t say anything, which promptedme to continue. “I even feel like I’ve been here before. That I’ve seen your wings, already, somehow…”

Zain was biting his bottom lip, but stopped, running his tongue over it. “So, you’ve seen me, too?” he asked. “Know what it means?”

I shook my head, holding my breath. I thought I knew, but I needed confirmation.

“The dreams of our past selves,” he said. “Of us being burned alive by jinn.”

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Past selves.

Burned alive by jinn.

Zain’s words repeated over and over.

He took a step closer to me, placing a gentle hand on my shoulder. “Roxana?” His touch was enough to remind me to focus, to be present. I searched his face for any clues about how I should be feeling. Frightened? Relieved? A mix of both?

“Why would they want to kill us?” I finally asked.

“It makes sense, to a degree, why they’d want to kill me. Angel and jinn are natural enemies, but you…I don’t know why they’d target you. That’s the mystery.”

His gaze was intense, and noticing my glossy eyes, he reached a hand over to my cheek, brushing aside a stray tear. “I’m sorry.”

I tried to smile, but my lip quivered. I just wanted thedreams to stop—to be normal again. But if anything, it had all just begun.

His warm hand stayed on my cheek. I felt the urge to lean into his touch, but I forced myself to keep still until he eventually removed it.

“What else do you see in your dreams, beyond us being burned?” I asked.

“It’s hazy, and they’re often fleeting. But you’re always in them, in some way.” His eyes softened, his voice almost dreamlike as he said, “I see us meeting in different places, in castles and cars, speaking in secret, though I can never remember what about. You look different each time, but your eyes are always the same.”

My cheeks heated, heart beating a little more quickly. It was so confusing how my body felt around him. At how my body could react this way with everything that was going on. Without even realizing it, we were standing even closer, with just inches between us.

“Roxana,” Zain whispered.

His lips were parted ever so slightly, and he had a sort of doe-eyed expression that contrasted with the intensity of his eyes, of him in general. I hadn’t ever kissed anyone, and yet found myself reaching up onto my tiptoes, like a moth to a flame. I thought I saw his eyes flutter closed, and him lean down, but then something happened.

I was in the castlecourtyard once more, with Zain next to me as we sat on the edge of the fountain, water trickling behind us. His shoulder was almost touching mine, but not quite. I could still feel the heat coming from his body, though, could smell him, and wanted so badly to embrace him.

He took my hand in his, and this small touch was like a bolt of electricity.

Turning my body to Zain, his hair was floppy, quite unlike the Zain I saw outside of my dreams. He was tracing patterns in the palm of my hand.

“Zal…” I said, though I had no control of my speech. “You know we cannot.”

“But you want to?” he replied fiercely. “If you don’t, that’s fine, but if you do…I don’t care what they think.”

He pressed his other hand on top of mine, sandwiching my hand between his. My eyes fluttered shut as I said, “You know how I feel.”