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“You,” I whispered. “I want you, and I want my freedom.” His lips touched mine, gently at first, then harder, his tongue licking the top of my mouth. I wrapped my arms around his neck and kissed him back, his taste sweet in my mouth. Our lips collided like two people drowning. He forced his mouth against mine, and I wanted him more than anything I’d wanted in a very long time.
The smell of Leo’s cologne was intoxicating, a spicy musk, the type that made your body tingle and your head spin. “Fuck, I’ve wanted this for so long,” he admitted between kisses. Leo tasted like freshly baked bread with a hint of salt from the ocean breeze.
His tongue pushed into my mouth, hot and furious, the assault delicious, and I worshiped him. Kissing Leo felt like closure. Like acceptance. My body melted against his. Leo’s hands swept over my back, grazing the nape of my neck, making shivers travel up my spine.
We kissed at the center of possibilities, my lips drilling holes into his soul, his breath a caress of sunshine on my face, his touch coaxing the blood flowing through my veins. I placed my hands on his cheeks and saw fire in his mouth as he kissed me again. I wrapped my arms around him and held him close, too close for any enemy to touch. He touched me selflessly, as if I was on fire.
He said my name.
He said my name as he kissed me.
He said my name as he took my breath.
He pulled away, and I was left swaying in his arms, my head spinning. I opened my eyes, and he was looking down at me with a look I had never seen before.
My heart swelled with a new kind of hope.
“Let’s go, now,” I said while clutching his shirt. “Let’s leave here. We can do this, Leo. Tell August I’m alive and—”
Leo squeezed his eyes shut and let out a groan. “August?”
I narrowed my eyes. “Yes. We need to go to August—”
One word was like a knife slicing through us.
“You’re using me. How could I be so fucking stupid?”
My hooded eyes widened, the daze dissipating. “What?”
“This isn’t real,” he said while taking a step back, his fists clenched. “This is just a game to you.” His words stung. I was left speechless, my eyes swollen and wet. Leo stepped back again, his eyes full of hurt. “Let’s just forget this ever happened.”
I shook my head at him, desperate to tell him the truth. “Leo, can’t you see that—”
“You’re trying to escape to Augustus.”
“I’m not,” I argued. “This is real.”
“It’s not,” he rasped. “You don’t see me as anything more than a way out of here. This is a trick. Why should I believe you?” he asked, his voice barely a whisper. His face looked pained.
“That’s not true,” I said, my voice shaking.
“You’re not the Christine I knew. Stay here,” he said while turning around and walking away. “I’m not taking you back. You might not love me, but I love you. I don’t agree with Atticus on a lot of things, but I do want to keep you safe. No matter what it takes.”
“But I do—”
He held his hand up to stop me from finishing my statement. “Don’t lie to me. The Crown is cruel, but you’ve never been. It’s hard to look at you when you act like them.”
He walked out of the room with those damning words.
I let out a cry of frustration and dropped to my knees. I buried my face in my hands and waited for the tears to subside.
A part of me wanted to run after him and beg for him to understand me. But Theodore’s words were still heavy in my mind.
Maybe he was right. Maybe I used these men. Maybe I was the whore he accused me of being.
Chapter Eleven
ATTICUS
