Aaron scratched his chin and appeared to be thinking. She’d vowed not to read his mind. Gabriella emphasized that her power of telepathy wouldn’t be fair to a mate who didn’t have the same ability. Aaron’s only power, according to his own admission, was invisibility—and he rarely used it.
“I understand what you’re saying, andit’s humanto react to things other people do that make you angry, but there are usually good and bad ways of coping with them.”
It’s human? Is that what I’m doing? Acting human?Now she was really embarrassed. She had always thought she was better than that.
“For instance,” he continued, “if your actions areoverreactionsmeant to get revenge or to dole out punishment that doesn’t fit the crime, you might have been able to find a better way of handling it.”
“Oh. Yes, sometimes my temper gets the best of me. And to be honest, I’m in a unique position. Some of my eruptions of temper are because of my own mistakes. I’m actually mad at myself.”
“That’s very wise.”
“I wish.”
Aaron leaned back in his chair and swirled his wine. “It sounds as if you have one major regret. Perhaps you should just tell me about that.”
“Yes. I probably should. My worst mistake—the thing responsible for most of my bad behavior—is…” She took a deep breath and finally spit it out. “Because I created the human race.”
Aaron sat up straight. “Excuse me? Did you just say the worst thing you’ve ever done is to create mankind?”
“Yes. And womankind. All kinds of humankind. You’d think the word ‘kind’ right in the name would provide a hint of what I’d intended to do, but no.”
Aaron paused, then asked in a quiet tone, “Have you ever been tempted to correct that mistake?”
“You mean have a big flood and start over? No. It’s too late for that. Humans would just get on their cruise ships and aircraft carriers. They’re too damn smart now. No matter what I’d do, they’d find a way around it. And what makes me mad as hell is that I gave them so many gifts! Free will and bigger brains to survive…and instead, they’re using my gifts to kill each other! Their greed and misguided beliefs caused all these problems in the first place.”
She could feel her temperature rising as her anger surfaced, but she was on a roll, and maybe this was the stuff he needed to hear. “Did my animals ruin my planet? No. Even lions and tigers respect my rules. They only kill so they can eat. Do the birds foul my air so that no one may breathe? No. They utilize the winds and currents and respect the sky. Do fish pollute the waters beyond their ability to live? No. No, they don’t. But man…humankind, smart enough to share the land with my animals, share the sky with my birds, and share the sea with my fishes, they disrespect it all. They pollute it all. They ruin everything! Sometimes I wish I had never created them.”
She slumped over with her head in her hands.
Her date was quiet. Too quiet. She was beginning to wonder if he had become invisible, then snuck off and run away. A lot of men would.
At last, she felt a warm hand on her back, gently rubbing in circles.He didn’t leave. He heard my worst mistake and all the regrets I’ve had because of it, and he didn’t leave.
Moisture gathered in the corners of her eyes. One tear leaked out and ran down her cheek.What’s happening? I don’t cry. I never cry. Ever!
She raised her head, and there was Aaron’s face, close to hers. He swiped away the tear with his thumb. He didn’t try to tell her she was wrong or that everything would be all right. Smart man. Instead, he simply adjusted his body and pulled her close to his chest, enveloping her in a comforting hug.
“Wh—what is your biggest regret?” she asked finally.
“Not meeting you sooner,” he said. And then he pulled back just enough to kiss her.
It wasn’t a friendly kiss on the cheek or an even friendlier peck on the lips. No, it was a long, deep,emotionallysatisfying smooch that made butterflies flit around her stomach again. Not only that, she liked the way he opened his mouth and swirled his tongue with hers. That was very intimate.
She didn’t know how long their lips were fused together or when they started running their hands over each other’s arms and backs. She just knew she liked it and wanted it to last forever.
Chapter 13
Gaia had told Aaron she needed some time alone to think. She was having somehumanreactions, and that made her uncomfortable. He reluctantly let her pull him through the ether and return him to a private spot in the Fierros’ backyard. Before she left, he pressed a kiss to the back of her hand. Her hand tingled in the most agreeable way. She hadn’t felt anything special when Bruce had done it. The sweet gesture she had seen centuries before made her wonder why it ever went out of fashion. Perhaps humans weren’t a complete failure as a species after all. Aaron seemed perfect. But according to him, nobody was perfect.
Eventually, Karma and Fate found her brooding a few miles away under a large leaf dripping moisture in the foggy Puerto Rican mountains.
“Hello, Sister,” Fate said cheerily.
“Oh, it’s you,” Gaia answered, deadpan.
“I’m here too,” Karma said as she walked out of the ether.
“Fabulous.”
