Page 94 of Serpentine

It’s not what we should be focused on right now. The Jackals are likely planning their next move. Aella’s father could grow suspicious of where she is right now, and there are tons of worries rumbling around in my mind that I need to deal with.

But neither of us seems to be locked in on any of that. I catch her stare every so often, and she catches mine.

Brax has been looking at us like he’s exasperated with the both of us all day.

Aella comes toward me, and my heart beats a little quicker. She slides into my lap and wraps her arms around my neck, and I’m surprised.

“I’m not mad at you for kissing him,” she says.

It’s like she only needed time to process. And now that she has, she’s ready to discuss. Brax is that way, so it’s something I’ve gotten used to. Honestly, the longer I’ve known him and how he operates, the better it’s for me not to react in the moment, too.

“You’re mad because I lied.”

She nods, but her eyes are soft and forgiving. “I get why you did, though. Now that I’ve had time to think about it. Don’t think for one second I don’t condone the love between you two. Because I do.”

I nod at her words, swallowing past the lump in my throat. “I don’t know how what just happens factors into us. The collective us, I mean,” I tell her.

She smirks. “The collective us. I like that.”

I shake my head at her. “Of course you do, greedy princess. Can’t have too many princes, hm?”

She laughs and then remembers Brax is asleep, so she covers her mouth.

“No. A girl can’t have too many princes. There’s no such thing. There aren’t any rules to say who you can and can’t love, nor how many people you’re allowed to love, either.”

I breathe her words in, letting her acceptance fill me. “Aella, I want to tell you the truth, and I’m sorry I lied.”

She cups my face. “It’s okay. I know why you did.”

“One night, when we were younger and more foolish, we had too much to drink. That’s not to say it’s why it happened, but it’s why inhibitions slipped away. Far away. The way he kissed me, Aella. Like I was the only person he wanted on the face of the universe. The only one he’d ever love.”

She nods with a knowing grin on her face. “I know the feeling. It’s how he kisses me. It’s so consuming.”

My face softens, a breath leaving me. “It’s fucking addictive.”

“How far did things go that night?” she asks, and I smirk.

“You little fiend, don’t pry.”

She giggles again, minding the volume so we don’t bother Brax.

“It didn’t go further than the kiss. But the next day, when the world came crashing back around us, I knew I’d never kiss another that same way. I knew no one would accept us, too. I vowed to kiss no one but him again. It took a while before he realized I wasn’t kissing any women I took to my room. I know he knew he was the reason. But a few weeks later, he confessed his feelings to me, and I couldn’t do the same. Not that I didn’t feel them; it’s just that I wasn’t ready to feel them. To admit them. To let anyone else know what was inside me…”

“Stubborn man,” she says, leaning in and kissing my cheek.

“I was raised to think a certain way. So was Brax, but he’s always been so fluid with how he views the world, and I’m not. You know? It’s hard.”

She shakes her head. “You need to just get out of your way; that is what you need to do.”

I narrow my gaze at her. “So, this is something you’re willing to be a part of?”

I recall how she shifted as she stood up from the bed after Brax and I kissed, how her cheeks had flushed.

“Who am I to impede love? It makes no sense for me to stand in your way when I’m sharing the both of you.”

“Mmm, and it has nothing to do with how hot you thought us kissing was, hm?”

Her cheeks heat, and she slaps my shoulder. “Don’t pick on me.”

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