“I’ve never dated more than one guy in my whole life,” I reply quietly. “At least, not seriously, anyway. The only one I got close to betrayed me, broke my heart, and…” I’m trying to explain to him, going to make a point, but the second the word “betrayed” leaves my mouth, I see him stiffen and narrow his eyes before crossing his arms.
“Who was he?” he asks, his eyes flashing. “Where can I find him?”
I laugh at his possessive machismo. “Relax, Storm,” I tell him teasingly, “I made it clear to him exactly how I felt about that a long time ago. He was a human and a douchebag. But that was before…”
“Before?”
“Before I met you guys,” I reply, meeting his gaze. “The truth is, I never think about him much anymore - or anyone else, for that matter - now that I know the three of you.” I clear my throat, looking away. “Does that make me selfish? I mean, the thought of losing any of you makes my heart stop. I want you guys in my life, even if you don’t like me that way. I’m pretty sure Seth just wants to be my friend, but-”
“Seth doesn’t want to just be your friend,” Storm cuts me off. “I see how he looks at you; he is half in love with you already.” He takes a few steps closer to me, sliding his hands into my hair. I sigh from the contact, and my eyes battle to close against my mind, which is protesting at me to watch Storm. I want to see his every expression as I tell him my feelings, revealing these desires that I’ve never had the courage to speak about until now.
I’ve always thought telling someone how you felt made you vulnerable to them, that was a bad thing, some kind of weakness. But if there’s one thing I’ve learned from my birth mother, it’s that life is way too short to hide what you feel. If my mother hadn’t told me she loved me in those moments we were together when I was born, she would never have had the chance to tell me again. Now, even though the rest is a painful memory, that is a moment I will cherish forever.
Now that the emotions are spilling out, there’s no fighting them.
“I think I’m falling in love with you, Storm,” I whisper, reaching up to touch his chiseled cheek with my hand. “I feel like I’ve been looking for you my entire life, and I just didn’t know it until we met.” My voice is quiet, but my words punctuate the silence like gunshots. “I never want to be away from your side or hurt you. I only want to be around you, and I love being around you. Considering I think most people are arseholes, and I don’t want to be around them—”
I’m cut off as Storm kisses me. Every kiss with Storm feels like he is taking a bit of my soul and heart, and this kiss doesn’t feel any different. I fully embrace him, sinking deeper into the kiss as he holds me close.
“I knew I loved you the moment you were taken from the prison. I had never felt like that for anyone, and I know I never will again. You, Karma Maria Kismet, are everything and more to me,” he tells me, and I bite my lip as I grin up at him. I kiss him once more because I just need to feel his lips against mine, knowing that this is a god who loves me.
Yes, we have a lot more to talk about.
Yes, we are immortal, and this is risky.
But...I love him and he loves me. Sometimes that is just enough.
Chapter 45
“What number did you say it was again?” I ask Storm as he leads me down the winding road and towards the busy town in the distance. I’ve never been here before, but it seems quaint - the kind of small village that reminds me of where I grew up.
Damn, I think as I look around between the cute little buildings, it’s been a long time since I’ve been home. The streets seem to snake endlessly from houses to little shops to grocers, all of them bustling with activity and passersby. It’s not a huge town by any means, but there are plenty of folks out and about today, and it’s a local enough population that people glance our way as they walk past us. I know that look well; they’re suspicious of us, and it’s obvious that we must stick out like a sore thumb. Storm’s tall stature and long hair is certainly unique, and we clearly don’t know where we’re going or how to get there.
Several cars trundle slowly down the old stone roads, disappearing into narrow alleyways and side paths that branch away from the main street and lead to little blocks of houses that roll away into the distance. Everything is so spread out here - it feels strange and open in comparison to the island, where it feels like we’ve been trapped for years already.
It doesn’t help that Storm’s directions are not making the tiniest bit of sense. It’s clear that, for all his many talents, the guy’s sense of direction is not his strong suit, and it feels like we’re just getting more lost with every turn we take. Still, I can’t think of anywhere I would rather be in this moment than with him, and his inability to lead us to the house is actually kind of endearing. It makes me feel a little better about my own shortcomings that not even a four-hundred year old god is better at finding things than I am.
According to Storm’s information, the apartments where Jade used to live are above a market, but I can’t see any market around here. Aside from a couple of cute little grocery shops, I can’t spot anything even resembling one, and in spite of the people out and about, it’s too quiet for that; I’m pretty sure I would hear a market if there was one around.
Storm rubs his chin, coming to a stop in the middle of the road. “We must have the wrong place,” he says, his brow furrowing. “There is no market here.”
“Would you mind, um, not standing right in the middle of the road?” I ask, my voice teasing as I give his hand a gentle tug. “We’re lucky there are no feckin’ cars moving around, Storm!” He obviously doesn't understand the rules of the road, which I suppose makes sense - he was stuck in that prison since before automobiles had even been invented. I remind myself to cut him some slack as he sheepishly follows me back onto the sidewalk.
“Gods,” comes a female voice, and I whirl around to see a woman approaching us. She stops directly in front of us, crossing her arms over her chest. “You’re going the wrong way if you’re looking for the magical market,” she continues, her voice taking on an amused tone. “It’s over there,” she adds, gesturing off to the right, in the direction of a side street. I’m taken aback for a moment by her brazenness, at a loss for words, especially because, by all appearances, I would guess she is human. But there’s just something about her - an air of the otherworldly, a bit like the aura that the higher gods give off. Not to mention that she clearly knows what we are… which she shouldn’t, considering we aren’t wearing flashing signs proclaiming we are gods.
I take a step back and sweep her up and down with my eyes. Her hair is a dark auburn, almost red like mine, but cut short at the shoulders, and her blue eyes watching curiously - a little too intently, I might add. She’s dressed similarly to me, which only gives me further pause.
Storm and I exchange a glance before I clear my throat, deciding that there’s no point in denying what we are. “Thanks for the advice,” I say, putting on a friendly smile. “What’s your name?”
“Rhiannon,” she tells me as I eye her cut jeans and leather jacket. “Last name isn’t important.” She considers us for a moment before adding thoughtfully, “Maybe you both owe me a debt now.”
“A debt?” I ask, frowning.
She nods solemnly. “But then again, maybe I’ll come back to collect another time.” As if that cryptic message is enough to satisfy our curiosity, with that, she turns on her heel and starts to walk away. I glance over at Storm uncertainly, and he nods in her direction before we begin to trail along after her.
“What are you?” I ask. “You look human, but you knew we were gods. How?”
That’s enough to give her pause, and I watch as Rhiannon stops in her tracks. Slowly she turns around, her eyes still searching me with that appraising expression. “I’m not human,” she replies at last. “And I’m not a god, either.”
“Then what are you?” I persist. Other supernaturals - supernaturals who aren’t gods, like leprechauns, nymphs, and vampires - are easily distinguishable by appearance alone. That’s why they tend to live isolated from human society. I’ve never heard of a magical being who looks exactly like a human and isn’t a god.
Rhiannon snorts, shaking her head. “You know little about this world if you think you guys are the only monsters in it,” she says, coming to a stop in front of an empty intersection. Without any warning, a sexy black motorbike manifests on the curb, and she swings her leg over it with practice ease, revving the engine without another word. Seconds later, she is speeding off down the road and out of the town. A few people turn to watch her curiously as she goes, and it dawns on me that we might have not been the only newcomers around here.
I also have a funny feeling this isn’t the last we’ve seen of this Rhiannon. I’m curious what the heck she could possibly be… as well as whose side she’s on. The only thing for it now, I suppose is to see whether her directions to the market were accurate.
Storm watches as she drives away, a curious expression on his face, and it dawns on me that this might very well be the first time he’s ever seen a motorbike. “The world has changed so very much,” he observes quietly, his expression unreadable as he slowly turns back to me.
“Yeah,” I say, rubbing the back of my neck, “I guess it would feel that way, to you. Does that bother you?”
“A little,” he replies. “Mostly for all that I’ve missed over the years. Time… felt like it stood still back in the prison, sometimes. For a while back there I had forgotten just how much of your world I’ve fallen behind on.” He takes my hand again and says, “I’d like to travel and see it all once we deal with everything. It seems I need to catch up on the world.”
“Can I come along?” I ask tentatively. “I’ve always wanted to see the world, too.” We begin to make our way towards the alleyway that Rhiannon had pointed to earlier. I’m aware that this could be a trap, but we seem to be at a dead end right now, and it’s worth having a look. Besides, I have Storm with me - for better or worse, he makes me feel safe.
“I’d never leave without you, little one,” Storm assures me as we approach the mouth of the alleyway.
Little one. I had almost forgotten about that name. It’s strange to think about how much has happened in the short time since we met.
