Page 104 of Fallen Gods

“You were cold.”

“Sure, that’s why you picked me up.”

“It’s the truth. But okay.” I lift her off my lap, but she slings her arms around my neck to stay in place.

The rush of relief has me expelling a breath.

“Okay, hit me with your question. You deserve at least one answer after your heroism.” It’s physically painful having her in my lap like this, but it’s a good kind of pain. She’s so warm, smells so good. I ache to press my lips to hers again.

Something shifted between us back there. I don’t want to think too much about it. I just want to sink into the feeling.

I clear my throat. “Do you believe in magic? Myths? I mean, beyond what we already know about us and where we come from.”

She goes completely still above me. “What do you mean? Like, magic-wand-style magic? Myths like the Roman gods or Hercules?”

“Sure. All of it.”

The only sound that fills the air is our breathing and the slow, steady melt of the ice around us as it sloughs off into the lake. It’s comforting.

Rey turns in my arms so she can look up at me. Pieces of dark hair are caked to her face. Her lips are still swollen from my mouth, her eyelashes collecting my frost. I feel possessive of it,jealous of myself when I stare down at her.

“Yes,” she says.

“That’s it?” I ask. “Just a yes?”

She lifts her hand and very slowly cups my face. It’s warm. It feels so good, I close my eyes for a moment. “I think there’s a lot of truth based in stories about Gods and monsters.”

“Gods and monsters,” I repeat, pressing my hand against hers to keep it on my cheek. I can’t fight the feeling that I’m running out of time. As soon as we have the location of Mjölnir, we’ll go our separate ways, burying whatever connection we’re sharing now. We’ll be enemies again, on the opposite sides of a war we didn’t start. “Gods, I can believe in. Not all Gods are bad. And I want to believe in something powerful sent to save the world. But what if you’re the monster? What then?”

Her eyes lock on mine. “If the monster knows it’s a monster, then it’s capable of being something else, don’t you think?”

“What if it has a reason for wanting to burn the world? What if it’snecessary? What then?”

Her lower lip trembles. “Then I guess you already have your answer. Maybe we’re all just monsters pretending to be heroes, Aric. Maybe the real heroesarethe monsters. One thing I do know is that we write our own history. Don’t ever let something that feels predetermined make you veer from what you think your path should be.”

I reach out and gently pull a few strands of hair away from her face. They’re so soft. I drop my hand. “I think that’s easier said than done, considering both of our families. The idea of having a choice is a nice fantasy, though, isn’t it?”

Tears fill her eyes. “It really is.”

I shift my body. “We should get back to the dorms.”

“Wait.” Rey licks her lips. “I’m not the best at math, but I’m thinking we have at least one minute left of this ceasefire before we have to go back to reality. One minute with both swords onthe table? One more minute of pretending?”

“One.” I nod. “Sure.”

“Okay.” She presses both her hands against my cheeks and pulls my face down, meeting my mouth again with hers.

Gods, she shouldn’t be trusting me again, not after what happened.

The fact that she is undoes me in a primal way.

It’severything.

I moan into her mouth, devouring every part of her. She tastes like home. A home I’ve never really known but want to. I slide my tongue into her mouth, my hands tangling in her hair. I stop thinking. I stop hoping. I just exist for her taste, for her touch.

Rey slides her arms around my neck and fully pulls herself into my lap. I angle my head a different way and deepen the kiss.

I hate time.