Page 49 of Pearls of Salt and Sacrifice

“Please,” Reva choked, wishing she could explain. “Make him take me home now, please.”

After a stilted meal in the guest room, Belen found Reva more practical clothes for the journey home. Dressed in knee britches and a loose-fitting tunic that cinched at the waist with a scarlet sash, Reva slipped into the long coat Belen had also provided. Her boots still squished, soaked with water, but she forced her feet into them.

Calix sat on the bed, squeaking and waving his limbs in agitation. She scooped him up and patted him on the top of his round head. “You’re going to have to go back to Jareth, you know,” she said as he squelched up her arm and tried to reach for her coat pocket. She shifted to allow him access and smiled as he dove into the pocket with a happy chirp.

Belen and her entourage of guards were silent as they led Reva through Argos, back to the chamber where she’d first arrived. She couldn’t help but imagine their disappointment and disapproval.

But the decision and risks were hers alone to take.

Jareth was waiting when they arrived, expressionless. Belen reached up to touch his cheek before turning to Reva to say her goodbyes.

“It was wonderful to meet you,” she said sincerely. “I do wish you the best. Hopefully we’ll meet again one day.”

Reva nodded but couldn’t speak past the lump in her throat. She watched in silence as Belen and her guards exited the grotto, leaving her alone with Jareth once more. They stared at one another without speaking until Reva worked up the nerve to move closer.

She wasn’t looking forward to what came next.

Jareth inhaled a ragged breath—apparently, he wasn’t either. “I can’t do this without—without—”

Reva winced, already aware of the direction his thoughts had wandered. “You may breathe for me, Jareth.” Her voice quavered, but she lifted her chin and demanded calm from herself. “Just breathing.”

He offered a curt nod and reached for her hand to draw her closer. She shivered and took deep, stabilizing breaths.

“I’m sorry there isn’t another way,” he said.

“I’ll be fine. At least I know what to expect now. I’m getting quite good at this kissing and not drowning thing.”

Something flickered in Jareth’s gaze, and Reva wondered if she shouldn’t have mentioned the word kissing. But it was too late now to rethink her word choice.

Half-laughing to mask her discomfort, Reva let him guide her to the barrier and place her back against it. The coldness of the ocean seeped through the invisible wall. Uncertainty roiled in her belly as Jareth positioned himself squarely in front of her. Why did he have to look as nervous as she felt?

“So, um, how do we get…out?” she asked as he slid his arms around her.

Jareth’s arms tightened around the small of her back as he leaned his face toward hers. “Like this,” he whispered. Then he barked, “Apollos!”

And he sealed his mouth over hers as kraken arms exploded through the barrier, coiled around them, and dragged them out into the dark sea.

Chapter Fifteen

Reva’s chest ached as she rolled onto her stomach on the foggy beach and tried to inhale. She had thought she’d be more prepared this time, but her lungs still refused to draw in the oxygen they so desperately needed. Jareth crouched beside her, one hand on her shoulder as she struggled.

His touch should have been comforting, but it only made her pain greater. She dug her fingers into the sand and screamed inwardly—not about the agony in her lungs but the ache in her heart.

While she thought she’d been ready for the long journey through the ocean, she hadn’t been prepared for the feeling of resting in Jareth’s arms. It had been a strange, exhilarating sort of torture, now that she knew how he felt about her…

Why did she have to be strong? Why couldn’t she just let herself melt in his arms and forget the rest of the world? Her cheeks burned as she finally managed a small breath.

And now she had to walk away.

As Reva resumed breathing on her own, Jareth withdrew and let her recover alone. She had no one to blame for any of this but herself.

Pulling herself together, Reva stumbled to her feet and tried to brush damp sand from her fingers and clothes, but it clung stubbornly. Calix squirmed in her pocket when she brushed too hard against the side of her trousers.

Muttering an apology, she fished him out and patted his head. Mist hovered above the water, so thick she could only see a few yards behind her. Above her, she could see only one turret of the castle piercing the thick fog, its stones pockmarked from exposure to the elements.

Voices and clamoring reverberated from somewhere inside the castle.

“They’re up early,” Jareth said quietly as he joined her on the beach. “It’s not much past dawn, I’d wager. It took us half the night to get here.”

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