Page 17

Seventeen

T hey lay on their backs, enjoying the night air on their sweaty, exposed skin. Grimot dragged his fingers up and down her navel, a whisper of a touch, memorizing every mole on her pale flesh. They were more beautiful than the stars above; she was the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen.

“I never want to leave,” she confessed.

Grimot smiled—truly smiled—because he never wanted her to leave either. He wanted her next to him forever. He wanted to wake up with her each morning, and fall asleep with her each night. With the way she talked, perhaps that future would be possible, or perhaps Grimot was delusional. He still had a lot of apologizing to do.

He rested on his side, anchoring his elbow under his head to really look at her.

“I’m sorry for traumatizing you on that first day,” he said. He was so blinded by his pent up anger and the pressure of his own success that he’d taken it out on her. It hadn’t been fair, and he hated that he had allowed those emotions to cause him to be so cruel.

She bit her lip, as if reliving the moment, and how she had been humiliated in front of everyone. “You really were such an asshole to me, but I think the most traumatizing part was you calling me Kammy.” She gagged, theatrically. “Be grateful I never called you Grim.”

He shuddered at the sound of that nickname that only Kestra had ever used, one he hated even back then. “I’m very grateful.” He brushed a piece of her hair behind her ear. “And I am truly sorry.” The words would never be enough, but one day, he hoped he would prove how guilty he felt.

“I forgive you,” she said. “Only because of the great orgasms.”

His heart raced as he asked, “Is that the only reason you keep coming back? Because of the sex?”

She pondered his question for a moment, and Grimot swallowed down the bile rising in his throat.

“Maybe at first, but I don’t think so anymore,” she finally admitted.

“Good, because I like you for more than just the sex, too.”

A flash of lighting, and a growl of thunder sounded somewhere in the distance. Growing up, he’d loved thunderstorms. The loudness of it, the anticipation of when light would streak the sky. After his Undertaking, he resented storms for a long time. They reminded him of how desperately he had reached for a goal, only to be left unsatisfied afterwards. It was the rush of the game, just like Kamine had mentioned.

Tonight, though, he breathed a sigh of relief that his childhood ache for the power of the storms was back. It made him whole again.

“What else do you like about me?” she crooned.

He contemplated, but the answer was easy. “I like that you’re scared, but you don’t let that fear stop you. You’re determined and strong-willed. I like that you would rather be reading a book in your room than showing off your strength or powers. You’re brilliant and kind. Forgiving, too.”

Kamine blinked rapidly, and his heart ached at watching her become emotional at such simple words that poured from his mouth.

He palmed one of her breasts to lighten the mood. “These are great, too though.”

She laughed, her head tipping back. “Can’t forget about those.”

He kissed her passionately, hoping to convey the emotions that he could not properly voice.

Their kiss broke and Grimot started, “Before you—”

“What’s this?” a voice yelped from behind them.

They both jolted, but Grimot shifted to shield Kamine with his own body.

“The two of you seem comfortable,” Kestra said, jealousy lining her harsh voice.

“Leave, Kestra,” Grimot shot back. The shock of her presence had worn off. “There’s no reason for you to be here.”

“And what’s your reason? To fuck her?”

He growled. “Go.”

“Poor thing…” Kestra said directly to Kamine, who was hiding under the blanket, her body shivering. “Being the second woman he uses.” Kestra offered a sickly smile while Kamine’s brow creased with confusion. Before Grimot could interject, Kestra said, “He didn’t tell you?”

“Shut it!” he yelled.

“She deserves to know, Grim. What kind of a cheat and a failure you actually are.”

“Not like this,” he whispered. He had planned to tell her. He just wanted to do it on his own terms, when he felt ready and solid in…whatever this was between the two of them.

Kestra paced to the edge of the mountain. “Before you, Grim fucked me .” Grimot felt Kamine flinch beside him, and the sensation made him want to turn around and hold her, to comfort her. “I hide the Heart each year as the Gods intend, so I know exactly where it will be. Grim knew that, so he slept with me to learn the location before his Undertaking.”

As Kestra kept talking, Kamine pulled further and further away from Grimot.

Kestra continued, but Grimot imagined kicking her over the edge to get her to stop speaking. “He was so desperate for glory and attention, he would do anything for it. He won his Undertaking because he cheated, and now the Weather Gods have cursed him.” She turned around. “That’s why he’s here. Doing this will put him back on the good side of the Gods. That’s why he took you under his wing. Not because he loves you, but because you’re someone he could fix for his own gain. A good deed.”

Kamine’s eyes began to glisten, and Grimot could practically feel the way her heart broke at Kestra’s words.

“That's not—” But the words died on his lips, because he was tired of lying. Part of what Kestra said was true, and there was no running away from it. Kamine deserved to know it all, every broken, jagged part of him.

“Enjoy these last moments together.” Kestra said cheerily, satisfied with the chaos she caused. “You’ll soon part ways, and forget each other.”

Then, she left.

Kamine quickly got up, gathering her clothes. She was like her own storm with the way she frantically swirled around. He got up to follow her, not caring that he was still naked.

“Kamine, wait!” He tried taking her hand. He wanted to stop her, to kiss her, to tell her that while his actions may have started one way, what this had progressed to was so much more.

She pulled away. “Don’t touch me,” her voice cracked. “I want nothing to do with you.”

“Don’t say that.” He couldn’t bear hearing such words from her lips, not when minutes before she admitted that what she felt went beyond physicality.

She was muttering under her breath, calling herself a stupid fool for trusting him. She whipped around, as if she finally got the courage to face him. “How could you!” She yelled, tears now tracking down her cheek.

He opened his mouth, but she stopped him.

“I was nothing more than your experiment!”

“No.”

“You’re a piece of shit liar,” she said with such force that he stumbled backwards, accidentally knocking over one of the wine glasses. It shattered.

The storm that was in the distance was nearing. He reminded himself that all storms eventually passed. This one would be the same. It had to be. Because otherwise, what was the point? Nothing before Kamine had mattered—not even winning his Undertaking had been as important to him then as she was to him now.

“Was everything you said even the truth, or just a way to make me feel better about myself so I could perform well during my Undertaking?”

“Of course it was the truth!”

She shook her head, her hair a wild mess. “I couldn’t even believe you if I wanted to.” She pulled her shoes on and walked away.

This time, he let her go.