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The crisp morning air made me shiver, and I rubbed my arms. Jaxon grabbed his jacket from the log, wrapping it around my shoulders. When his fingers brushed my neck, he paused, sucked in his breath and pursed his lips.

A tingling sensation radiated down my arms from his touch, stirring a response deep within me. I jerked my sight to his and bit my lip. I know pixie dust doesn't exist, but by the way my body reacted to him, I swear I'd bathed in the stuff. I need air...

I stood and flattened my hair, then stepped away from him, trying to break the overwhelming urge to crush my lips to his. What is wrong with me? I pressed my cold fingers to my cheeks.

Jax chuckled, making his eyes sparkle. You can stand on the other side of camp—it won't matter. I've been fighting the spiral ring's call since it appeared on you.

"Just great." I took another step backward and bumped into Sage, exiting the tent.

"Hey..." She stretched, and let out a big yawn. "What's all the commotion about?"

"Sage!" Jessica held up her phone. "Wait till you see the picture I got of the lovebirds, Jaxon and Wren."

"Please, as if any picture you have is news." Sage waved a dismissive hand in her direction and yawned again. "Jaxon's ring is already plastered all the way up her leg."

"Well, I'm sure Kellan will be interested to see Wren asleep, cuddled up in Jaxon's arms." She flicked her hair over her shoulder. "If that doesn't raise Kellan's blood pressure, the picture with Jax's hand on her boob will."

"Are you that desperate for his attention?" Sage grabbed a mug from her bag. "This isn't Swallow Falls where your hive swarms your every move." She rolled her eyes, then shook her head. "Heck, none of us even asked you to join us on this trip."

Jessica glared at her, let out a growl of frustration, turned on her heels and stomped off toward the campfire.

"Coffee." Sage merely ignored Jessica's tantrum and continued rummaging through her bag. "I need coffee."

"Thanks for..." I pointed in Jessica's direction and handed her the paper bag containing the powder for the furry cocoa-like drink. "I definitely owe you a latte, you know, when my life doesn't depend on a thin timeline being met."

"Deal. And when we go, I'm buying a lifetime supply of those tiny roasted beans." She dumped the disgusting brown powder into her cup. "So you and Jaxon?" A smile crept across her lips.

I let out a sigh and glanced in his direction. He reached into the fire to adjust a log, and I gasped. "Jax!"

He stopped and looked directly at me. Careful. Your concern may cause people to think you care, or believe you have feelings for me. The corners of his lips crept into a smile, and he placed the kettle on the logs. "Don't worry." Your secret is safe with me. He pulled his hands from the flames and wiggled his fingers. "I've been able to do this trick since I was a kid."

Sage nudged me with her elbow. "Well? Spill."

"It's not like that." I gazed off into the fire, watching Jax, trying to understand what had happened.

He rotated his hand, then plucked his fingers against imaginary strings, and the kettle started to whistle. He lifted it from the flames, holding it out in front of him. "Sage?"

She nodded and held out her cup. The two of us watched the steam curl over the lip of the cup as he poured.

"Thanks," she replied.

"Sure." He placed the kettle on a log and plunked down on the ground where we'd spent the night. You wouldn't be talking about me in those hushed tones, would you? He rested his elbows on the log behind him.

Not everything is about you.

He smoothed out his t-shirt and grinned. Oh... Then you're talking about us?

Elena and Vega crawled out of the tent, joining our group.

Girl talk isn't all about guys, I replied.

Oh? Jax chuckled and crossed his arms. Has the female population changed in the last ten minutes?

"What is it like then?" Sage stirred the drink with a knife, then licked the blade clean. "Because I'd love to know."

"You and me, both." I hugged my arms to my chest, ignoring the urge to join Jax. "Last night we just talked about everything, including how I feel about Kellan."

Elena peered over Sage's shoulder. "As in my brother?"

"And...?" Vega combed her long hair with fingers.

Sage wrapped her hands around the royal blue metal cup, and took a sip, not lifting her sight from me. Vega wove her hair into a long braid, while Elena looked like she might be holding her breath, waiting to hear my answer.

My throat went dry. "Yeah, we talked about him."

"And...?" Elena wrung a handful of her dress in her clenched fist.

"And what? Your brother drives me crazy." My cheeks warmed, and my stomach fluttered just thinking about Kellan. "He makes me want to punch him and kiss him in the same breath. Everything would be so much easier if this weren't on me." I exposed the knotted ring, then looked at the ground, not wanting to face any of them. "Then there's Jax. He's been there through everything, including dealing with how I feel about Kellan. He's been amazing."

"You're in love with my brother?" A toothy smile beamed across Elena's face.

I licked my lips and nodded.

Elena's shoulders dropped, and she released her stranglehold on her dress. Wrinkled marks crushed the floral pattern from her grip.

"Not that it's going to make a difference, Jaxon's family holds my partnering contract and with his spiral ring on me, the chances of being released from it..." My voice faded, and I stuffed my hands in my pockets. "Well, let's just say, they aren't good." I frowned. "Then to make things more complicated, I woke up this morning feeling, I don't know, different about him."

Vega stopped rummaging through one of the food supply sacks. "Different how?"

"Conflicted?" I said not knowing how to answer that. I glanced over at Jax, and he grinned when he caught me checking him out. "Like there's some magical force pulling me toward Jaxon." I turned to Sage. "And if you say it's pixie dust, I swear I'll scream."

"Why, do you have some?" Sage answered.

I rubbed my temples, feeling a headache coming on. "Sage..."

"What?" She hugged the mug closer to her. "Just saying, the stuff is totally marketable."

I groaned. "If it was real. And it's not."

"Am I missing something?" Vega looked at Elena for an explanation. "What's pixie dust?"

"No idea," Elena answered.

I let out a sigh and pinched the bridge of my nose. "Sage is under the delusion that I have some magic powder that can make guys fall in love with you."

"Hey..." She pointed to Jax. "The evidence is kind of overwhelming."

Vega shook her head. "Honestly, don't any of you read? Spiral and knotted rings have binding properties of the heart."

They what? I could feel the heat drain from my face.

"Spiral rings are said to strengthen a partner's physical attraction to the other," she said continuing.

"What do you mean, 'are said to?'" I asked in hushed tones.

"It's not like there are lots of people to ask if the effects are true. Until you showed up with that ring, most people believed spiral rings were a myth."

Elena elbowed Vega. "What about knotted rings?"

"Couples are only granted knotted rings if they are already tied together by their hearts. The ring will only amplify what feelings are already there." Vega scrunched her brow and looked from Sage to Elena, then over to me. "What? Don't they teach theology anymore in the other circles?"

"Who takes theology?" Elena whispered to Sage.

"Hmm. I'm going to go with Kellan and Jaxon," she answered.

"Bonus points to you." Elena patted Sage on the back, then gazed over at me. "But if you still have feelings for Kellan, that's good news, right? There's still hope for you two."

"How is that good news?" Sage polished off the last of her drink. "She's in love with one guy and is destined to marry another. Oh yeah, the guy she loves also happens to be on trial for his life."

"Thanks for putting things in perspective, Sage." I turned toward the forest.

"Where are you going?" Vega hollered after me.

"To get some air." And possibly be sick. Branches cracked underneath my feet, while I stomped through the treeline, letting the pine scent envelop me.

The farther away I got from the camp, the more I felt like my guilt-ridden self. After trudging over deadfall for a few minutes, I stopped at the edge of a path, trying to decide which way to go.

What are you doing? Jax said, interrupting the chirping birds and creaking woods. Come back to camp.

I just need some air to clear my head. Two men were talking somewhere ahead of me. Stop worrying. I'm not running away. I took cover behind a large boulder and waited for the men to get closer.

"I told you, you dumb lug, keep your voice down. We don't want them knowing we're here," a man said in an authoritative tone.

"Right." The shadowed figure tossed a flame between his hands. "What do we do about Jaxon?"

I peeked around the rock. Jax? We're not alone...

What? He leaped to his feet.

"You leave Jaxon to me," the first guard said quietly. "And the girl who breaks people's fingers, stay away from her. But whatever you do, don't lose Wren. Otis will kill—"

A stick snapped under my shoe, and both guards jerked their heads my direction.

Fire Circle guards. At least two of them, maybe more.

"Good morning, Your Majesty." The guard bowed. When he rose, he looked just past my shoulder and smirked.

"Or should we say, good night," a familiar voice said behind me.

I turned my head toward the voice. A fat stick collided with the side of my head, and the world faded into darkness.

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