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Inej knows it's the spirit of the circus to believe there's a spark of magic in anyone willing to try, but every time the aspiring illusionist shows up in his Kerch silk waistcoat and silver cravat pin she laughs behind her painted fan.
"My brother’s investments are prosperous, but I don't know if I'd like to sit in an office running numbers my whole life," he says when she inquires about a recession in Ketterdam.
Inej hums, perfunctorily examining the card he offers her. It has always been the right one, and somehow it has always been some sort of queen. “It’s Ketterdam. He would have more need for someone good at seeing what others don’t and making things happen without showing his hands than for an office clerk.”
His eyebrows furrow into a sulk. “Not him. There is no man this side of the Fold more honest than my brother Jordie.”
“So he doesn’t want the likes of you by his side? No, don’t conjure me another handkerchief, I have an ample collection by now,” she stops him as he fumbles into his sleeve. She keeps them sorted by color on her quilt, to feel the smoothness on her skin when she goes to bed. They’re all shimmering silk, the stitches hidden in cord or ribbon as if they were truly creations of pure magic untouched by human hand. She likes the attention to detail, and she likes to picture him doing it himself.
“It’s not a handkerchief.” There’s a note of pride with the usual exasperation in his voice as he presents her with speckled pink geranium. For the first time since he came in, she closes her eyes as she inhales the sharp fragrance. She can see him smile through her lashes.
“Today was very good. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
He sighs as she rises and brushes the grass from her thighs. “Come on.”
She stops and smiles at him behind her shoulder. “Geraniums are my mother’s favorite flower, not mine. I pick them for her fresh in the morning when I wake up first. If you must follow me through the woods so blatantly, you could at least try to learn better information.”
“You’d rather I follow you home like a Barrel thief and learn what you hide in your drawers, spider girl?”
She shrugs, but she can feel his eyes burning onto her lower back as she returns to her carriage. He’s getting better, she’ll have to welcome him into the caravan soon. But she can enjoy their little game for one day more.