I turned the whiteboard to her:Decision?
“Kind of.” She glanced at Tadhg nervously, probably sensing if not completely comprehending his internal struggle. “I actually have a few counter requests.”
Counter requests.Interesting.I lowered the board and waited for her to continue.
“You said everything was up for negotiation.” She averted her shy gaze to somewhere beyond Tadhg’s shoulder. “So, I wanted to talk with you about this training.…”
Not good. Our entire plan was underpinned by the training we’d give her.
Tadhg and I exchanged a look.
And mask back on, he returned to talking for the both of us with a much gentler tone. “I said we were open to negotiation,Strawberry. But some things aren’t up for discussion. Especially when it comes to your training.”
“Oh.” Her shoulders sagged.
And my bear made a disgruntled sound inside my chest.
Did she truly not want us, then? Were none of the sparks I’d felt from the moment she sat up in that box, read my sign, and asked if I was the embodiment of Death present inside of her?
Also, we were not up for negotiation when it came to training. But there was no scenario where either of us would force ourselves upon her if she did not wish for our touch.
Tadhg shifted his huge body with a conflicted look.
“Strawberry…”
“It’s just, I was hoping there would be kissing.” Sadie eyed the ground miserably. “I don’t want just touching. I want kissing, too. But if you’re not willing to do that…”
“Sorry, are you fecking kidding me?” Tadhg asked. “You actually thought kissing was something you could negotiate?”
Sadie didn’t answer. Just continued to stare at the ground miserably. And her voice was much quieter when she said, “I’d hoped. Just hoped.”
Tadhg stepped closer and put a finger under her chin to tip up her face.
“And I’m telling you, kissing’s not a thing you hope for with us. Because it’s a non-negotiable. We’re going to kiss you, Sadie Strawberry. We’re going to kiss youeverywhere. There’s no getting out of that.”
I had no wish to see Sadie miserable or any more confused than we’d already made her. But the sweet smile that lit up her face after Tadhg told her that almost made her few moments of pain worth it.
“Was that the only thing holding you back from agreeing to your Potential Training?” Tadhg’s voice had become a quiet, confidential husk, even though there was no one else around to hear him and Sadie talking.
“No, not the only thing.” She took a step back, away from Tadhg’s touch. And this time, when she lifted her chin, she met both of our eyes.
“I have two more conditions. And these aren’t negotiable for me.”
Pact
Sadie
A coupleof years after her sister, Tara, ran away from St. Ailbe, Naomi started talking in a peculiar way.
More and more, she used strange idioms and curious turns of phrase that were completely foreign to me, yet somehow always made sense and often described things perfectly. I privately labeled it Naomi Speak.
And I’d been using it like a second language ever since waking up in a glass coffin.
In Naomi Speak, my first day in the Secret Kingdom wasa whole situation.
Tadhg agreed to my conditions:
#1: Training had to include kissing.
