Page 61 of Touch of Death
27
Eros
Iam startled by my own confession. It was as close to confessing love as I have ever come … and yet, I still cannot determine what the mortal feels for me. What would my brother say if he knew?
The tension forming between us is almost unbearable; my own cravings intensified by her nearness to me.
But from her, I can sense nothing.
I watch as she pulls away from my touch to pace the room, lost in her own thoughts and feelings.
It is driving me mad, obviously, to have confessed my desires to her with no certainty that they are or ever will be returned. Even now, I can do nothing but stand here wondering.
One touch of her skin, and I would do anything to have her.
I would give up my palace. Forsake all other lovers. Forgo all that brings me pleasure just to have a taste of her.
To feel her energy at my fingertips. To know the satiation that I had felt after our kiss.
I can only begin to imagine what losing myself completely to her would feel like, and this need to know fuels me almost as much as my own desire for her.
But for now, I must be patient.
I will not take what she is unwilling to give.
I do not know why Death will not admit to his feelings for her unless I truly am mistaken.
No, impossible.
I have never felt anything more powerful than what I have felt from him for the mortal. Even as I think this, a pinch of jealousy twists my gut. It almost makes me laugh out loud.
Me, jealous?
I force the thought aside.Ido not get jealous. Not for anything or anyone.
Still, I know this is a lie when I feel the way the girl’s gaze continues to slip toward the closed doors as she paces.
Even now, she still waits for him. Hopes for his return.
“You should sleep,” I say when her feet start to drag in exhaustion.
“Not until he comes back.”
“You need your strength for the sake of your body and soul.”
“What do you mean?”
“You are still connected by a thread to life, not having completely crossed to the other side.”
“So?”
“The food and sleep you partake in here, they will help sustain your body to some extent. Delaying the effects of time, however little.”
She pauses in her back and forth and lets out a sigh.
“Fine, but you must promise you will not come near me as long as Death has not returned.”
“I swear it,” I say, hating the words and the fact that I mean them the moment they leave my mouth. I move past her, settling on a lounge in the hopes of easing her mind.
