Page 120 of The Tribrid Princess and the Taste of Chaos
“Ice cream?” I look towards the ice cream stall, where they are making fresh ice cream.
“Sure.”
Between Us
Sienna
His lips brush the side of my head, his hand caressing my skin one final time before he lets go of me, my heart thudding, and I feel so lightheaded.
We walk side-by-side towards the ice cream stall, waiting quietly in line, Jayce standing just slightly behind me. When we reach the counter, he chooses Oreos and vanilla ice cream, and I choose cherries with raspberry ice cream.
Watching it is a fascinating process as they crush the fruit, mixing it with the ice cream. Once the ice cream is ready, they are scraped into rolls and put into a little pot.
“Thank you,” I say, accepting the two pots as Jayce pays, before he folds the bag containing the jewellery and shoves it into his jacket pocket. I pass him his cup as we walk along, stepping down from near the shop and walking closer to the edge of the water.
“What happened at the game between you and Seth?” I ask. It’s not what I want to discuss on our first date, but he has questions. That much I know, and so do I.
“Not much. He just said something that pissed me off.” He shrugs as he takes a spoonful of his ice cream.
“Ok, was that something to do with me?”
He looks down at me. “What do you think, Darling?”
I blush at that before sighing. “Seth and I began dating around six months before… before Dad.” I swallow the lump in my throat before shovelling a spoonful of my ice cream onto my spoon and eating it. “He was interested in me months before that, and after a while, his efforts paid off, and I agreed to go out with him. He won me over.”
“Did you love him?”
I look up at him before nodding. “I did, but it’s…” I don’t elaborate on what I was about to say as I continue. “When Dad died, my powers were out of control, so I shut him out. I couldn’t bring myself to tell him the truth, just like I couldn’t tell Mama, Jaddati or anyone else about what I’m going through. He tried a few times to get me to open up, to let him be there for me, and that final time I was almost on the brink of telling him… but then he just didn’t bother anymore. He had to go away, and he was fed up, and I don’t blame him. I’m stubborn.”
He’s silent for a moment as I reminisce about it. It did hurt that he stopped trying, but in comparison to losing Dad, nothing hurt.
“After that, I got over him. I didn’t even remember him much, or regret ending it. I changed when Dad died. I know I did in so many ways.” I look at the night sky. The clouds block out most of the stars. “Since Dad, it felt like I was in limbo, just stuck in time, until now.”
He’s silent, watching me patiently, waiting for me to finish. I turn to gaze up at him. “Since you came into the picture…somehow you managed to get me to open up when no one else could. I want to do better, even if I know I’m messing up badly. I want to control my powers. I’m not lost in thought every night. I’m getting up, looking forward to the day.”
Looking forward to you.
The wind blows, and he brushes my hair back.
“Well, that sure boosted my ego,” he says with a faint smirk.
I roll my eyes. “Wasn’t it big enough already?”
“I could do with it getting bigger.” He winks at me, and my eyes widen, thinking of something else rather than his ego. My cheeks burn up, and he chuckles, a sound that messes with my head. He looks away, taking another spoonful of ice cream between his teeth, a tiny smirk on his face.
“So that crush you said you had on me, any timeline on that?” he asks as I try not to think of Jayce naked, because right now I wouldn’t mind that. Gods, I would never mind that.
Stop, stop, stop!
We’re taking it slow, remember? This is the first date!
“Well, for as long as I remember, there was something there. Until I realised it was silly, and you’d never see me like that.” Because you were sleeping with a variety of girls, I heard and saw things. That was one of the reasons I agreed to that first date with Seth. I look over at him. “So, I’ve shared my past. What about yours?”
“There’s not much to share, aside from what you’ve already teased me about.”
“And Allison? She’s not so subtle about your… nighttime shenanigans.” I cast him a look from beneath my lashes, pretending to focus on my dessert, but I know my tone gives meaway. Soft, but a little sulky and maybe just a little hurt.
Jayce slings his arm around my shoulder, leaning closer. “You look even sexier when you’re jealous.”
