Page 55 of Lies That Bind
“Girl, I like him so much,” she confessed, and I laughed.
“Is he nice?” I didn’t know Dev that well, but I hoped he wasn’t a player.
“The sweetest. Last night I went to my bunk, and there were wildflowers and a note on my pillow.”
“Aww.” I leaned in and shoulder-bumped my bestie. She had a hard time trusting guys. I loved this for her. He couldn’t have gotten wildflowers down here, so that meant he’d snuck out topside to retrieve them for her.
“How’s Kohen?” She waggled her eyebrows, and I flicked my gaze to the door to make sure we were alone.
“The sweetest,” I winked, using her words. I hadn’t said anything about Kohen and my secret little thing we had going on, but after hearing about our kiss on graduation night, I’m sure she knew. She was my best friend. She had to know.
“Aisling, the way he looks at you, it’s like you’re the biggest piece of ember in the world.”
I laughed. “That’s an interesting comparison.”
“Shut up.” She lightly punched me, smiling. “It means you’re valuable to him.”
We were quiet a moment, and then her hand slipped into mine. “How are you doing with the empress stuff and your dad being gone?”
I heaved a big sigh. “It’s a lot.”
She nodded, squeezing my hand. “It’s going to be okay. You’re doing a great job,” she told me.
This was what I came for, a Tetra pep talk. I left feeling a little lighter than when I came.
That night,I eagerly awaited for Kohen to come to my room around midnight. When he did, I pulled him inside and we were both grinning ear to ear.
This was love, love in the middle of a war, and I was so excited to see him, to touch him, to kiss him. He never pressured me like Jace had, even though sometimes I wanted him to. Sometimes, I didn’t care what would happen if I slept with Kohen. I wanted him, all of him.
We were playing our chess game again, this time with me winning, when I peered over at him.
“What did you mean when you said you want me to trust you about certain things like about my father?” I hedged.
Kohen stiffened. “Aisling, I don’t want to do this. Not tonight. It’s been such a good night.”
It had. We’d told funny stories and kissed until my lips were swollen, and eaten chocolate and played chess. It was almost like a date.
“Why not tonight?” I asked. “And why are you saying more bad is coming? Kohen, I can’t relax knowing we might be separated.”
He set his chess piece down and looked up at me.
“Please,” I begged. “My mind is running wild with scenarios. Will I be kidnapped? Will Tetra die? Just tell me.”
He fisted his hand and lightly rapped the side of his head. “I wish I could bash all of the visions out of my skull.”
“Don’t say that.” I reached for him, letting him pull me onto his lap.
“Just tell me,” I begged again.
He peered up at me with those impossibly blue eyes. “Remember that day I said it was the last time I’d kiss you in a long time?”
I nodded. He’d said he’d gotten the timing wrong.
Leaning forward, he planted a chaste kiss on my lips. “It’s tonight. Tonight is the last night I kiss you for a while.”
My stomach dropped, and I suddenly felt sick. “Why?”
He breathed out harshly. “I can’t say. You won’t believe me… it leads to a fight.”
