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He stepped towards me without hesitation.
“I’ve missed you so fucking much,” he whispered as his fingers moved the hair from my face gently. “I thought it would kill me when you disappeared the first time. Time slowed to an unbearable pace, and I felt so empty that I thought my heart would shrivel and fade away without you. Then I heard you calling out to me as I slept. I thought I had completely gone mad without you, but I followed your voice calling to me softly in my dream. It was then that I realized it was you, but you didn’t seem to know who I was, so I was content just watching you. Just being near you would have been enough to live out my life.”
“I could never understand why I felt safe when you were in my dreams. I never said anything. I was too scared that you would leave and not come back.” I admitted. His hand cupped the side of my face, warming it as the chill from the storm still lingered.
“You still said those horrible things about me,” I whispered so softly I didn’t know if he had heard.
“Your curse keeps me from telling you too much information. It’s a form of punishment for me and you.” His golden eyes shifted between my green eyes as he frowned. “I’ll try to tell you, but I don’t know how much I can say.”
I nodded in understanding.
“My father and I had intended for others to hear that conversation, not you, but you always were good at sneaking out and not listening when I asked you to stay.” He chuckled softly. “Someone was feeding Cerithia information from our castle and we were worried that they would tell Cerithia that you were no longer a prisoner, so we tried to make it seem like you were unwanted by us. We thought we could hide…”
His words were cut off suddenly and I frowned when he tried to speak again but nothing came out. He groaned in pain when he tried again.
“Prisoner?”
“You started as a prisoner here.” He watched me for a reaction. Flashes of the dying guardsmen muttering my name outside of Exile flashed into my mind. It made sense how he knew who I was. “Not that we could contain your powers. You and I had a history before that, and you didn’t remain a prisoner for long.”
“What kind of history?” My heart pounded in my chest with all this new information. I wanted more. I wanted everything. He gave me a wicked smile that made my stomach clench with anticipation.
“A history that got us into this mess.” Cassius’s smile dropped. “Born enemies who tried to kill each other for years before I finally got you as a prisoner. Born to hate each other, destined to love one another.”
I paused at the information. So, if we were born enemies, then I must be Cerithian born. Fragments of the puzzle in my mind started piecing together.
“How did that happen? If we were enemies.”
“I can’t tell you. I’ve tried already.” He sighed, irritated.
“And what is your involvement with the elitist magic holders?” It was a question that had plagued me every day for as long as I could remember. Who was responsible for Exile?
“It is forbidden to talk about. The curse will hurt me if I even try to talk about it. I tried the first year you came back for the trials, and I was bedridden for three days trying to recover.”
So many thoughts and questions swirled in my mind that I didn’t know what to ask or what to say. This was more than anything I could have thought. So complicated. I was in love with my enemy, and he was in love with me too. We had caused this curse and mess. The Kingdom of Cerithia must hate me.
“Let’s continue this conversation at our favorite place.” He grabbed my hand and helped me onto his horse before climbing on behind me. The white horse with a half-black face followed us.
“She’s yours,” he whispered. “You probably hurt her feelings when you took my horse instead.” She followed next to us contently. She had been the only horse to not spook at me when Cassius and his men saved me from Nev. Even in my beast form, she seemed unbothered. The Wisp was following closely, still with her dark green flames. She was happy.
Cassius led the horses through the thin forest for a little bit before a clearing welcomed us. A field of flowers greeted us on top of a knolly hilltop. Beautiful shades of red and orange blanketed the hilltop as we climbed down from the horse. I rubbed the face of my horse to apologize for not taking her. She gave me a nudge as if to say it was ok.
Cassius grabbed my hand and led me toward the cliffside. My eyes took in the sheer cliff and the waterfall that boomed with loudness across the cleaved landscape. Its water was so blue that it gave the illusion that the sky was falling, not water. Mist formed in the sunlight creating multiple rainbows in the ravine. My mouth gaped open at the beauty of this hidden place. Cassius squeezed my hand tightly.
“There are some perks to you not remembering anything.” He smiled softly at me. “I get to witness all the firsts again. First kiss, the first look of lust, the first look of our favorite place. You and I are the only ones who know of this place. We found it by accident and your face was in awe of it just like it is now.”
“It’s stunning.” I smiled at him.
“You haven’t smiled like that in years.” The weather here was colder due to the waterfall. I tugged my cloak around me tightly and Cassius pulled me closer to him, so I was tucked under his arm.
“When I lived in Exile, I had always been so lonely. It didn’t matter who was around me, I felt incomplete. I prefer to be by myself most of the time and I always thought it was because I was so lonely in my past. Now I wonder if it's because I wanted your company. I felt lonely because no one else could compare to you. Even in my dreams, I felt less lonely with you lingering in the shadows. Maybe my heart knew that I wouldn’t feel better until it had you near us again.”
Cassius was still for a long moment, and I thought maybe I had said too much. But it was true. I felt lonely every time I watched him walk away from me or didn’t see him. His presence alone could ground me, heal me, tame me.
I stared up at him when he didn’t say anything and met his golden eyes. He was watching me like I hung the stars in the sky, and it made me suck in a breath at the sight of him. Cassius leaned down, kissing me softly before he lost his restraint. His lips dominated mine as his hands pulled me to him. I molded myself against him as if we were two pieces that fit perfectly together. His tattooed hands cupped my face as his mouth devoured me. Cassius's tongue danced with mine, teasing me.
I could feel how hard he was and all I could think about was feeling all of him. I pulled him to my mouth so that he couldn’t pull away. He only groaned in approval as I pushed harder against him. His shadows burst out around us like they couldn’t help it, but then I realized my fire mist was tangling with them. My cloak hit the ground when I untied it. Cassius stared at me surprised, but I pulled my shirt up and off. I needed him now. His eyes cascaded over me slowly, but frantically.
“Remind me how good we are together,” I demanded. It was the only encouragement he needed. My cloak lay beneath me as Cassius lowered us to the ground. He had removed his shirt at some point. His warm skin glided against mine as he kissed me deeply. I tore my mouth from him so I could see his face. He knelt back as I sat up and ran my fingers over his tattooed chest. He was perfect.
