“You said gods, which would mean you believe in more than one god?”
He rolled his eyes. “You are going home.”
I shook my head and folded my arms. “No, I’m not.”
He brow arched and his eyes glittered with challenge. “Either you walk out the door or I carry you.”
I lifted my chin. “You wouldn’t da?—
I shrieked as he scooped me up in his arms, holding me like I was a bride and we were about to step through the bedroom door. Just like he did when he carried me up the incline.And through the forest.
“Put me down,” I squirmed, even though his grip wasn’t tight, he had me pinned to his chest, so I stopped struggling.
“I warned you. You are lucky I didn’t throw you over my shoulder and haul you out like a sack of potatoes.”
“I see what you’re doing. Practicing for when you marry me, in case you’re not strong enough,” I squeezed his shoulder, “and you need to do some weights.”
He strode toward the door. “For goodness’ sake, how much have you had to drink?”
I twisted my lips in thought. “I can’t remember.”
“Choc-mint, you owe me a nudie run!” Georgie yelled out from behind.
“What about my friends? I can’t just leave them!” I swung my head back in the direction of the dance floor and the blur of shadowy, swaying bodies.
“Shelley is taking them home.” He kicked the door open and we strode into the cool night air.
I snuggled my nose into his neck and sniffed.
“Mmm, you smell good. You have a very nice neck, you know? Has anyone told you that? That little bumpy thing at the front is quite sexy.” I traced my finger over his Adam’s apple. He sucked in a sharp breath. “I might just have a nibble.”
“That’s enough,” he growled.
“That’s enough,” I mimicked, attempting his low voice. “You’re not scary, you know. You don’t scare me, not even a little tiny bit.”
He sighed. “I do not wish to scare you, Amelia. Now stand here.” He lowered me to the ground. I clung to his neck for a moment to steady my feet, then dropped my arms to my sides. Karson grasped my arm. My body swayed like a blow-up puppet in the wind. He didn’t let go as he opened the car door, guiding my wayward limbs inside. I half sat, half fell onto the seat.
In a flash, he was seated in the driver’s seat beside me. The car interior spun.
“Your car’s broken, too, just so you know.”
“Seatbelt on,” he snapped.
I reached across to pull it down, fiddling with the buckle, but the clasp moved before my eyes and I couldn’t locate the waiting slot.
“For fuck sakes.” He leaned over and grabbed the seat belt from my hand, latching it in.
I smiled at him, resting my head back as I turned sideways to stare at his profile. The car took off, my stomach swirled like I was on a ride at the local fair, and I giggled. The background blurred, and my head spun as a sea of buildings and then greenery streamed by my eyes. My stomach roiled.
“You’re very nice looking . . . hard to resist . . . but you know that, don’t you?”
“I think you’re very drunk and you are going to regret this conversation in the morning... if you remember it, that is.” His face turned my way, but I couldn’t make out any details.
“I’ll remember. I have an impeccable memory—I remember e-e-everything. Even things people don’t want me to remember... I remember them too,” I whispered.
He frowned, his tone cool as he asked, “Really? Amelia, what do you remember exactly?”
A sudden need to vomit landed like a bomb in my stomach.
