AllFreeNovel
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"People are difficult."
"Yeah. And I'm not constantly doing badass, unique sleeves. I'm drawing hearts on wrists—"
"Hey."
He smiles. "It is one of my favorites. I promise." He slips his hand under my jacket and presses his palm against my ribs. The spot where he adorned my skin.
The design is beautiful. A rose stem wrapped around a heart, shedding petals on the ground.
Our collaboration. I shared a lot with him, online, before I met him. (Via Instagram, of course). I told him I wanted something that would prove I survived hard things, that I wasn't afraid to face anything.
It was very…
Over the top.
But that was perfect.
"And this too." He runs his fingers over the edges of my blazer. "May I?"
I set my drink down.
He helps me out of my blazer, and he traces the Latin quote on my forearm.
The evening breeze brushes my skin, but I don't feel a chill. Then his fingers are tracing the words and I'm on fire.
"It's simple," he says. "But it's beautiful."
"It's not yours."
"I know. I hate it."
"You're jealous?" I ask.
"Someone else marked your skin forever."
"A woman. Does that make a difference?"
"Will you think I'm a pig if I say yes?"
"Maybe," I say.
"Yes." He leans in and presses his lips to my upper arm. "It's you, too."
How does he know?
He barely knows me.
But he's right.
Veritas lux mea
Truth is my light.
He traces the lines of ink again. "You want to talk about it?"
"No," I say. "Is that okay?"
"I know you didn't come here for conversation."
