His jaw drops as he breaks into a smile, crinkling his eyes at me. “Don’t tell me you weren’t listening. I just poured my heart out to you.”
“You’re serious?”
“Oh, absolutely serious.” He smirks, scanning our surroundings. Several angels meander by us, waving at Kai and staring blankly at me as they pass. “I didn’t peg you as a daydreamer.”
“I just got caught up in my own mind. I wasn’t daydreaming.”
He shrugs. “Semantics, really.”
I scowl, craning my neck to eye his expression. “Well, no use in hiding it now. What were we talking about?”
“I asked if you’ve ever been in love.”
Heat rises to my cheeks. “You did?Heavens, we really did get deep…”
He bursts into a boisterous laugh. His laugh is quickly becoming one of my favorite sounds. “Damn straight. I already shared my love story from start to finish. Time for yours.”
I stop dead in my tracks and stand in front of him, holding my hand up and pushing it against his chest. “Okay, I’m not naive. I wouldn’t have zoned out while listening to your relationship history. No chance of that.”
He tilts his head as an even bigger smile creeps on his face. Then, he rests his hands on my waist nonchalantly, as if his touch alone doesn’t make me burn inside.
“Is that so? I didn’t realize you’d be so interested in my past.”
“I’m not. Merely curious for entertainment purposes, that’s all.”
“Don’t worry, angel. The feeling is mutual.”
I want to learn everything about you.
I quirk a brow at him. It’s been a while since his deep voice echoed within my mind… Maybe it was just my imagination.
Flashing me an easy grin, he doesn’t appear remotely fazed.
Yes, I imagined it. I’m positive now.
But why would I imagine him sayingthat? Get a grip, Cleo.
I abandon my spot in front of him to join his side again, falling into step with him. As we stroll through the paved marketplace alley, we enter a quaint flower garden lined with tall hedges, sparkling flowers of every kind mixed into the greenery. Once we pass through the entry, I notice an opal fountain, complete with a statue of angel wings at its center. Four marble benches surround the tall fountain. It’s rumored that the benches each represent one of the different Archangels.
We choose one of the sculpted white marble benches and sit next to each other, thighs barely touching. The stone bench is complete with carved armrests and a small, intricate backrest modeled after—you guessed it—a set of angel wings. It’s placed below a tree overgrown with white Spanish moss, giving it a frosty, earthy appearance.
“Well, you’ve caught my attention. Let’s hear it,” I say, using my fingers to trace the armrest’s carvings absentmindedly.
He scoffs, leaning back slightly and lifting his head to face the pink starlit sky. He takes a deep breath in, exhaling through his nose as a beam of light illuminates his golden skin.
I can see why Iris compared Kai to the sun.
He and the sun share the same aura.
Noticeably warm, impossibly bright, and seemingly untouchable.
Despite taking after the sun, starlight suits him rather nicely, too.
“I’m an open book.” He drags his eyes down from the sky to glance at me, maintaining a lazy smile. “What do you want to know?”
“Your entire relationship history. Duh.”
“Easy. I dateda lotof girls in my younger years. Like, a lot. Like, an embarrassing amount.” He shakes his head and looks down at his feet.
