It was jarring as fuck. When was the last time I’d kissed a girl or even wanted to?
Tatum?
No. But she was the last time it meant something and that kiss from Aurelia earlier had certainly felt like it meant a lot to her. I just don’t feel the same. Since I don’t want Aurelia taking my rejection personally, I take a page from her book and choose not to remark on it. “So, you and Seth?” I ask instead.
“Uh-huh. Is that weird?”
I shrug even though I want to say yes. I don’t know how far Seth has gotten with her, but it’s possible I’ve already been inside her and I don’t remember any of it.
Not. Important.
Aurelia makes a sound of distress, and then she’s clutching her stomach and looking horrified. “I’m sorry. I just realized how that must make you feel.” This strange and beautiful girl covers her face with her hands and groans. “God, you must feel so violated.”
Yeah, they definitely had sex.
Nothing less would spark that kind of remorse and shame.
My lips twitch from the smile I keep at bay as I stare down at her. “It’s okay. It’s Seth’s body too. He never really understood that, but I guess he finally found the right motivation.”
I let my smirk fall when Aurelia slowly lowers her hands. She still has trouble meeting my eyes. “You’re not mad?”
“I’d have to be blind,” I mumble.
“What’s that?”
“No.”
“Oh. Good.” She gathers the mass of her blond curls in her hands and a claw clip off Thorin’s nightstand. The movement causes the gap in her robe to widen, and I’m momentarily distracted by the inner curves of her breasts while she twists and clips her curls. The natural brown roots are already starting to chase away the gold, creating an unintentional ombre that makes her skin look more bronzed.
When my gaze returns to her face, I find her arms by her side again as she silently contemplates me with a crestfallen look. “Are you okay?” I ask.
“Huh? Oh. Yeah. Honestly, today was nothing.” She waves me off, misreading my concern. “You’ve missed a lot. There’s been nothing but drama since I arrived.” Sighing, she dropsdown onto Thorin’s bed and leans back on her hands to consider her statement. “I’m pretty sure I am the drama.”
“Aurelia…” There it is again. Her soft lips flatten, and that look like I’m breaking her heart by simply saying her name returns. I push past it again and focus on the reason I’m even in this room, ignoring the need to run away from her. “Do you need help?”
She sits up straight, bringing her hands into her lap before dropping them back to her sides to curl around the sheets like she doesn’t quite know what to do with them. “Help?” she echoes quietly.
Thorin and Khalil are no longer pounding on the locked door. I hear them pacing outside though, and the words get stuck in my throat. The part of me that leans on them doesn’t want to know the answer. I don’t want to know if my best friends betrayed what I went through by holding someone else against their will. I feel like shit for even suggesting they’re capable of doing that, but I can’t ignore the way Aurelia’s suddenly looking around the room like a cornered animal.
“Did my brothers hurt you?”
Aurelia’s gaze snaps to mine, and she searches for something before quickly replying, “No.”
Knowing Isaac would often trick me with kindness in order to break me down further, I don’t let it go. “It’s not a trick, Aurelia. Did they hurt you? You can tell me.”
She blinks, seemingly regaining her composure and shedding some of her unease before she cocks her head and tightens the sash on her robe. “And then what?”
I’m stumped by her question for a moment, feeling my brows pulling down. “And then I get you out. I…I’ll help you get home. I’ll keep you safe from them. I promise you.”
“Even if that means you all go to prison?”
My eyes fall shut.
I knew those pricks were lying to me.
I knew it the moment I tasted her lips, heard her speak, walked into this room and saw her body, and caught her scent.
She’s ambrosia.
