Page 85 of Interion

Within a few years, the immortal creatures dominated the entire continent, bringing chaos in their wake. As the lamias multiplied, the villages were wiped out. Soon, the five main cities came under attack, and that’s when protective walls became necessary—consolidating the five nations and marking the end of the villages. The leaders of each nation met and decided to reintegrate the gorgons into society to prevent more of them from transforming. They also noticed that gorgons were the only ones the lamias didn’t attack, so they became responsible for cultivating and trading food outside the nations. As a reward, they received a neighborhood within each city, where they established trade in food, information, and services in exchange for blood. And so, faeric and gorgon societies found balance, and things began to work.

I let my attention drift from the movie and glanced discreetly at Zion, who was focused on the screen. During some scenes, he didn’t even blink or remember to chew—he looked like a little boy watching a movie for the first time. I smiled at the thought of being the first person he’d done something like this with. But the movie was winding down, and the gorgon girl reunited with the faeric boy. The sappy music started playing, and soon the two kissed.

“Seriously? This is how the conflict ends? With a romance?” Zion grumbled, crossing his arms over his muscular chest. “How absurd.”

“I’m horrified to learn that Interion’s greatest general doesn’t know this ancient tactic! In movies and books, when all seems lost, the solution is to deploy an unexpected kiss. Everything magically resolves itself.”

He looked at me sideways and raised an eyebrow, holding back the crooked smile forming on his lips.

“I’ll make a note of that.”

I swallowed hard and looked away, because when Zion looked at me that way, something strange happened inside me. It was like a collision of asteroids in my stomach—they exploded and sent a shower of ice and fire everywhere. I definitely didn’t know how to handle the situation, so I chose to stare at the television instead, which only complicated things more. The camera focused on the protagonists’ lips meeting, and I shifted on the couch. I’d forgotten about this scene, and my cheeks warmed at what was still to come. The next scene was purely sensual.

I searched for the remote on the couch and turned off the television. Kiara and Zion stared at me.

“Why did you do that?” he grumbled, frowning, while the chimera snorted indignantly. “The movie isn’t over yet.”

“Yes, but the next scenes aren’t very good,” I countered, blushing. He studied me, and his eyes darkened.

“Are you embarrassed by the kiss? I wouldn’t think that’d be a problem for you after kissing two people in the same night.”

I turned to Zion incredulously.

“Are you seriously going to start with this?”

Seeing my expression, he softened a bit.

“I shouldn’t have said that.” His hand lifted unexpectedly toward mine, but he stopped halfway. “I’m sorry.”

I took a deep breath and looked at him with a frown.

“Zion, you’ve certainly kissed other people before or after me, so why did you make such a big deal about it?”

He stared at me for a while, and I thought maybe it wasn’t a good time to bring up something like that, since the day had been going so well—why ruin it? I opened my mouth to change the subject, but he answered:

“I’m 287 years old, Kyller. I’ve kissed some women before you, but none after you,” he replied, his gaze holding mine in place. “The problem is that after the bond, I simply couldn’t touch another woman. That’s why I got angry—because for me, it always felt wrong, and for you, it was easy.”

That caught me so off guard that I just blinked and stared at him for an awkward moment.

“No one after the bond? I don’t know if I believe that. It’s been five years.”

I knew I was pushing it, but he was being incredibly open today.

“It’s the truth.” He paused, cleared his throat, and seemed reluctant to continue. “I wouldn’t lie about that. I couldn’t get close to another woman, not even…” He trailed off, seeming uncertain about what he was going to say. “Not even the woman who was important to me before you came along.”

I nearly choked.

“What?” I asked, shocked. “You had a girlfriend?”

He shook his head and looked down at his hands.

“She wasn’t exactly a girlfriend.”

“And what happened to her?” I asked, sitting up straighter so I could watch his every reaction.

“What happens to all relationships when someone finds their bonded partner.”

Zion shrugged, as if it didn’t matter, and I couldn’t help but feel a little sad for him.