“Ouch… well, you have me there.”
At this, he suddenly looked regretful of his harsh tone.
“Eliza…” he said my name in soft reprimand, but I held up my hand after walking a few more steps back from him.
“No, you're right. I don’t know anything about your world, and I shouldn’t have made assumptions,” I replied, because it was true. Any prenotions I’d had about Hell, or its demons, were based solely on mortal myth. A lifetime of books, movies, and other pop culture was hardly the basis for a knowledgeable conversation about this. Maybe I should start talking about PMS just to even the playing field. I almost laughed at the thought.
Thankfully, Oblivion spoke before my wayward brain had a chance to.
“Boruta was summoned,” he replied quietly.
“So? Does that make a difference?” I asked, unable to keep the hopeful lilt out of my tone.
“Of sorts, yes, as he didn’t choose to come here.” The explanation was simple enough, yet it did nothing to stop the small frown tugging at my brow. As though some part of me still refused to hope for the best. Like the simplest answer couldn’t possibly be anything but finding some relic and using it as a bargaining chip to grant us sanctuary. Definitely not something as easy as changing Oblivion’s mind about letting Bo stay and allowing us both to leave.
Although after everything that had happened between us, I wasn’t even sure leaving him was ever going to be an option now. Especially as he, clearly, wanted me here for some reason. Even if that reason was a foolish one, with him believing I was something more than I actually was.
Yeah, keep telling yourself you’re normal, Eliza. Because that will somehow make it true and conveniently erase the small detail that you can summon demons, create portals, and break the spells of powerful overlords. A thought I kept circling back tolike a tornado that refused to die down, even long after the storm had passed.
“So, you might let him stay?” I asked slowly, the words leaving me before I had fully decided whether they should. But even to my own ears the question sounded hopeful, bordering on naive.
“Your concern for him is… notable,” he observed, his tone quieter now, although the weight of his gaze had not lessened in the slightest. The small distance between us felt like something he was allowing for now…but not for long.
“He was scared,” I replied simply, lifting one shoulder in a small shrug that was meant to appear far more casual than it actually felt.
“And despite what you may believe, that’s not something I find particularly easy to ignore,” I added, and Oblivion regarded me in silence, which was long enough that it had me nearly squirming.
“You took responsibility for a creature you barely understood,” he said eventually, and I exhaled softly at that, resisting the urge to roll my eyes.
“Well, someone had to, after all, I am the cause of all this, so if anyone needs to be punished for it, it’s me,” I stated, the answer coming out more honest than I had intended.
“That is not an option to me,” he replied firmly as if the idea of taking this out on me was abhorrent to him.
The quiet that followed stretched just long enough for me to become painfully aware of the slow, steady rhythm of my own pulse. Because Oblivion was still watching me with that same unwavering focus. His attention rested on my face with an intensity that made it feel as though the entire room had narrowed down to the space between us. Space he cut short once more as he stepped closer.
Close enough that he could raise his hand to my face and run the backs of his fingers down my cheek. Which meant that, pretty soon, the unsettling realization hit me that whatever this moment was becoming, it had very little to do with Bo anymore.
“So, what now?” I asked shyly, and this time, it was a question that made him smile down at me. But that wasn’t all, as it was also a question that prompted him to get even closer.
“Tell me, Inanna, do I make you nervous?” he asked, making me swallow hard.
“Eh… no.”I stammered as he started to tilt my head back, his hand framing one side of my face, leading my motions.
It also meant I was only inches away from his lips that had grown into a full smirk at my answer. Also close enough to see the moment they started to lower further, only stopping when they were a whisper away from my own. So close, in fact, that I stopped breathing the second I felt his breath caress them as he once more called…
“Bullshit.”
I opened my mouth, ready to argue, and he took the opportunity for something else, as he muttered,
“And there she is.”
Then he swallowed my reply in the best way possible, as he finally…
Kissed me.
6
KISS AND TELL
