The darkness of night drifted into the morning, and I hadn’t slept at all. I’d been too wrapped up in my thoughts and in Selene by my side. I wanted to soak her in, imprint her in my very DNA, so even in death she would be with me.
Part of me wished that I would have met her years ago, that I could have been basking in her light before now. Only I knew that it was strange circumstances that led our fates to join as one.
“I’ll be back in an hour.” I kissed Selene’s cheek, then rolled out of bed. She mumbled, “OK,” but didn’t open her eyes to see me leave her room. I would be back before she awoke, but just in case, I found spare paper among all of her notes and scribbled my message. Once the note was secure in a place she’d see, I noticed the research she’d been doing on the curse. Three tarot cards sat by Madam Tully’s information. I’d seen those cards before . . . many times before.
I knew what those cards meant, and for the first moment in my life I had hope.
Chapter Twenty- Nine
Selene
The bed appeared to be cold on the side where Jude had laid when I woke up. My fingers grasped onto the pillow and pulled it close to my nose. His scent, our mingled scents from last night, lingered in the fabric. Every muscle in my body felt languid and warm. My heart radiated so much happiness I thought it would glow.
I’d had suspicions Jude loved me, but I didn’t think he’d say it. Not with the fate of his death looming over our heads. His fears of leaving someone behind drove him into isolation for so long, it must have been hard for him to admit his feelings to me. The fluttering in my stomach pick up the pace. I basked in the morning light, thinking of Jude’s eyes, his tan skin, and brown hair. I dreamed of a future that seemed so far out of reach but not impossible.
When the need to pee became too much to bear, I rolled out of bed and practically danced to the bathroom. After my morning routine, I settled into a pair of sweatpants and a large T-shirt. My automatic coffee pot had already began brewing, thanks to the timer ten minutes ago. I’d slept in a little later than normal, but it was welcomed after the night I’d had. Emotions had run rampant over my mind and I struggled to push them back into the depths of my head. I knew they were justified, but thanked my depression for feeling like shit for those emotions, a never-ending cycle of sadness and anger.
Just as I sat down to go over my notes and do more research on the performers, I jumped from a knock on the door. My heart raced, and my hands shook so much, my coffee spilled onto the table.
“Selene, it’s Jude. Don’t freak out!” Jude’s voice echoed through the door and I leaped to my feet to peer through the window to make sure it was him. He stood there, bundled up in a jacket with two bags in his hands. A lightness settled in my gut, and my knees wobbled from the sight. Instantly, I unlocked the door and ushered him in.
“Shit! Your notes.” Jude saw the mess from jumping up and dropped the bags on the counter. He grabbed a rag from the stove handle and rushed to the table. His actions were cute and my bright smile from earlier came back.
“Thank you.” My knees were weak from the elation running through my body without abandon. He carefully wiped up the mess and set the wet papers off to the side so they wouldn’t get stuck to one another as they dried. He set the rag in the sink and then stood in front of me, his hands caressing my jaw.
“Those cards. Did Madam Tully give them to you?” He sounded curious.
“Yes. Why?”
“I’ve had my fair share of readings with those cards. She’s never let those cards leave that room as far as I know. So they must mean something big if she gave them to you.” He leaned closer, his warm breath teasing my lips with the promise of a kiss.
“Yeah, she said they held the answer to breaking the curse, but I’m missing something important.” I closed the distance between us, unable to take the overwhelming desire that demanded his mouth connect with mine. Our kiss heated in seconds, then as quickly as it started, Jude pulled away.
“She said the answer was in the cards?” His words had a desperate edge laced within voice.
“Yeah. Do you know something?”
His hands dropped, and he moved swiftly toward the table with me following behind him. His fingers grasped onto the first card, the hanged man.
“This card represents sacrifice, that you must release control and your fears and move forward. Kind of like ‘stop resisting and go for it’ card.” His hand jerked as he showed me the second card.
“This card rarely means actual death. It’s more a symbol of endings and transformation. Something is coming to an end to make room for better things.” He quickly grabbed the next one, holding it up so I could see.
“Temperance signifies soul mates and balance. These cards prove that what we have is something that a curse can’t break. I stayed up through the night with you in my arms thinking about how I wished I had more time with you. How I feared losing you and how your broken heart would shatter with my last breath. I don’t feel that anymore. I feel hope.” He dropped the cards back on the table and pushed my wild hair behind my ear.
“I think we need to have sex right now.” I needed him inside me, claiming me, sealing those words with the hope of the love we share when we’re together as one.
He smirked and grabbed my hand, bringing it down to where his growing cock pushed against his jeans.
“I wouldn’t have thought this moment would warrant that, but I guess he agrees with you.” I laughed and palmed his hardness through the denim.
“Claim me, mark me, and be mine forever.”
His kissable lips parted. My words were those of a siren coaxing her lover into the arms of death. Death pulled down my sweatpants and pulled up my shirt before lifting me onto the kitchen counter.
“What about your bags?”
He pushed them off the counter, and they landed on the floor with a crinkly thud.
