Page 51 of The Circus

“‘I was a child, and she was a child, in this kingdom by the sea,’” he whispers, and tears fog my vision, a lump welling up my throat. “‘But we loved with a love that was more than love, I and my Annabel Lee.’”

I snuggle into his embrace, warm and safe and content and so fulfilled I may just burst. His heart thuds a steady rhythm beneath my ear, and I commit the sound to memory. “I think I’m falling for you, Teddy Poe.”

I can feel his smile against me as I drift off to sleep, cradled in his arms and safe in these hallowed halls where my demons are too scared to roam.

“I’ve got ya when you do, Eden Clemm.”

TWENTY-NINE

EDEN

Pale,watery sunlight filters in through the jagged, broken glass of the window. There’s a storm on the horizon, the air heavy with the chilled humidity of the Pacific Northwest, static roiling in the clouds that roll forward ominously. A ghost of a smile paints my lips, Teddy’s arms still securely around me, his mouth pressed to my hairline in a lingering kiss as he snores softly against me. It’s so odd to see someone who is so lethal and powerful sleep so peacefully.

I pull away slightly, the desire to study him and commit him to memory overcoming me. My eyes trace the planes of his devastating face, from the sharp arch of his brows, to his straight nose that broadens slightly on the bridge, to his full lips and slightly crooked chin. I love it, when he smiles widely, because it makes his grin lopsided and boyish. A part of his soul is still a child, but the rest is of a man who grew up far too fast, a man who knows the darkness of this world but one who isn’t afraid of it.

The fact that he’s still asleep and not eager to explore warms my soul. In every movie, the heroine awakes to find the other side of the bed empty, whether because the man is makingher breakfast or because he’s rushed off to work. But Teddy is still here, still holding me as tightly as if he were awake, and everything in the world feels calm and right.

The ache between my legs throbs with every movement, my hips burning, the muscles I used last night not ones I think I’ve ever used before.

Last night plays on a loop in my mind, moments clinging there that I know in my bones I’ll never forget. I may have become his, but he is also mine, and I want to sink into that bliss and never resurface. If we could just abandon all responsibility and hide here for the rest of our earthly lives, I would.

He snorts in his sleep, shifting against me until I feel the hard tip of his cock prodding at the gap between my thighs. Shocked, I go still and hold my breath.

“God, I wanna fuck you again so bad,” he rumbles, voice gravelly and deep with sleep. Warmth and joy flood me, and I have to bite my lip to stave my smile. His eyes are still closed as he presses his lips to my forehead and pulls me even closer to his body.

“I couldn’t tell,” I tease. He pulls his face away from mine, eyes hooded with exhaustion, and grins down at me. The silvery light of an overcast day brushes his skin in hues of gray and charcoal, but it ignites the blue in his eyes, like a black and white film with a hint of color for the audience to cling to. His dark hair sticks up all over the place in messy spikes, and my smile only grows. “Can I show you something?”

I bite my lip as he eyes me. Showing him the asylum was one thing, but there’s still so much around here to share with him. Now that he’s made me such a life-altering promise, I want to introduce him to every single spot here that holds significance to me. Slowly, he grins. “Of course.”

Before I can hop up, the haunting sound of a piano key being struck sounds to us from somewhere below. There’s an oldpiano in the foyer, but I’m surprised it still works, for the last time I checked the strings, they were coated in dust and a hair's breadth away from snapping.

Eyes flashing open so wide they are perfect spheres, Teddy rises up on his elbow, leaning over the top of me in a protective stance, like a dog growling as it warns off intruders. Grinning despite his tenseness, I smooth my palm up his rigidly flexed arm, but his eyes remain on the open doorway. No other sounds greet us in the early hues of dawn, not that I would expect them. Here, it’s never a flesh and bone human. It’s always the dead, and if you listen closely enough, they speak to you in ways of their own.

“It’s okay,” I soothe, but he doesn’t relax. “Teddy…”

His eyes drop to mine, his brow crinkled as he hovers above me, this position reminiscent of last night. Pleasure curls low in my belly at the memory, and my cunt aches.

“Ghost?” he asks, and I nod. He releases a sharp breath through his nose and smiles, almost in a proud manner. “Who? Since you seem to know everyone here.”

I laugh, sinking down further into the warmth of the sleeping bags, knowing that what I’m going to show him will have me freezing my ass off.

It’s strange, talking to someone about this. I’ve never shared it with another soul. My father is too realistic and literal, and my mother would have happily burned me at the stake in front of her congregation. Add in the fact I had nolivingfriends until now, and…well…

“I call her Lily. She’s really playful. Doesn’t…uhh…belong in the era this place was built, though. She seems more modern.”

He rolls to the side slightly, propping his head on his hand and keeping our eyes locked, fascination bursting through his stunning irises. “Tell me more.”

I blush, fiddling with a loose string on one of the sleeping bags, but I lick my lips and answer. It feels…sort of good, to ramble about something I love, something that is intrinsically me. “She’s kinda shy, but she’s really curious. She plays with the…the nicer spirits here. They don’t mind her. She’s scared of the basement, though. Only goes down there if I go.”

His eyes shine.

“I saw her footprints in the dust yesterday, after we set up the room. After Cash left.”

My brows rise in shock. “Seriously? Damn. That…that takes a lot of energy. She must be comfortable around you, too.”

His smile is as devastating as a hurricane, but as beautiful as flowers growing from a grave.

“What about Eve?”

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