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Atia might have suppressed his memories, but the love had burned as hotly as ever. He had mistaken it for hatred. Of women. Of Atia. But the true emotion could not be quelled, only mistakenly labelled.
Her lips touched his in a delicate kiss that reached deep into his heart and tugged.
“I will use my wish to free you,” she murmured. “Then we can be together.”
His heart compressed, growing stone cold. He pulled her into his arms and hugged her tightly. How could he dash her hopes? How could he explain that what she feared most, being abandoned by the man she loved, was inescapable?
“Zurvan, what’s the matter?”
He sensed, rather than heard, the edge of panic in her words. He eased away from her, planting his hands on her shoulders.
“Celeste, I’m afraid that’s not possible.”
Her eyes widened. “Why not?”
“I can only grant wishes within my power to give. I cannot free myself from the curse. Only the Djinn who cast the spell—Atia—can do so.”
She stared at him with wide, disbelieving eyes.
“No. That doesn’t make sense. I’ve been planning this all along. Aren’t my wishes the key to releasing you? I thought that’s how it worked."
“In fairy tales maybe. But this is not a fairy tale, Celeste.”
* * *
Celeste felt her heart constrict. So love did mean pain, as she’d always believed. And abandonment. There was no way around it. Even with magic.
She threw her arms around his waist and clung tightly, as if holding him would keep him here.
“How will I go on without you? How will I survive?”
He stroked her hair, saying nothing.
She realized there was nothing he could say.
“Zurvan, you’ve had to carry this burden for so long.”
He gave a sad smile. “Not really. When I was a genie, I had no memory of us. Atia took that away from me, too.”
“But you did for those years she kept you locked up. And even after, you felt it, didn’t you? A sense of loss. A pain deep inside. You just didn’t know the source.”
“True.”
She stroked his hair, the long, silky strands slipping through her fingers.
“It’s not fair. You shouldn’t have to suffer an eternity of pain.” She kissed him, a sweet, tender brush of her lips on his cheek. Then she drew her shoulders back and stood up. “I wish I could take your place.”
She spoke the words clear and strong, then tensed, her eyes widening.
“No, Celeste, don’t even think it.”
Whether she expected a lightning flash or the heavens to come crashing down around her, she didn’t know. But despite the panic roiling inside her, she knew she would not take back the words even if she could.
“It’s the right thing to do. If we can’t be together, at least I can suffer the consequences of my ill-chosen wish.”
Her unselfishness touched Zurvan. “I cannot grant this wish, either, Celeste,” he said gently.
She narrowed her eyes. “You can’t or won’t?”
