Page 99 of Lust
Her fingers wiggled over my right cheek. “Perhaps we can cover it up with some makeup. Or we’ll just put a bag over your face. And if you expect me to have sex with that face, you’ll definitely have to go down on me a hell lot more, ahhh—”
She squealed as I grabbed her ankles and dragged her down until she lay flat on the bed. In an instant, I loomed over her body. “Really. I didn’t know you had complaints in the bedroom. Should I start by fixing that?”
I nipped at her ear, making her giggle. I went back for her mouth, kissing her while one arm wrapped around her, the other still in a sling. My body shook at the possibility of this being snatched away, and I could only force myself to stop for clarity.
“You really don’t care what I look like?” How could she not?
She looked at me with clear eyes, honesty shining in them. “If anything, I prefer you this way. Scars are kind of sexy on a man, and you were a little too pretty before.”
My lips were on every part of her skin, kissing her repeatedly with gratitude and relief. With her hands locked around my neck, she kissed me back with absorption until I was convinced that my looks didn’t matter. It never had for her.
The confirmation that something ugly only brought us closer made me simultaneously believe in Heaven and Hell. I could barely detangle our lips to murmur the biggest truth of my life, “I love you, Sara.”
There was no hesitancy as she murmured back, “I love you too, Tris.”
Coming abruptly to a stop, Asmodeus watched the couple on the bench.They didn’t notice him lurking in the shadows of the large trees, engrossed in their conversation.
The man bore a large scar on the side of his face, which seemed to be the result of an unfortunate incident. It had mended fairly well, though distinct. The girl wore an ivory dress, holding a cup of Mocha Latte in one hand, the other interlaced with the man’s fingers.
They were quite a scandalous duo. Supposedly, he had once won the senatorial race by a landslide but resigned the very first week. Instead, he took on a large corporation and fought them to keep a small shelter open. He was successful in his efforts, and the place continues to thrive to this day.
Later, the man moved his entire family to Australia, including his parents and adopted sister, who transferred to Macquarie University in Sydney.
Though an official reason was never provided to those back home, gossip spread that he had impregnated his adopted sister. It was speculated that Australia was the furthest they could move in order to live as husband-wife while avoiding the judgment of their former associates. Apparently, they married in a church without filing official paperwork.
Rumor had it that the girl sitting next to him was, in fact, his sister. Then again, this was all hearsay.
Asmodeus kept his distance from the couple and knew little of their new lives other than ‘stumbling’ upon them on his daily route at this very park.
From the conversations he had overheard, the boy had opened various youth centers around the city, shaping the minds of the new generation. He sounded passionate about his work and was in the process of becoming an Australian citizen so he could get involved in politics.
As for the girl, she was finishing her last year of college, all the while frustrated by the ways of life. Every week, a new injustice irritated her, though her husband never tired of hearing about it.
In the beginning, her incessant talking annoyed Asmodeus. But now,Asmodeus found himself wondering,What is bothering you today?
“This is total bullshit. That professor only favors male students because he thinks girls can’t do math. He is practically pushing for all the female students to drop out and stick to cooking or painting.”
“Angel, you hate math, and you love painting.”
She gasped as if he had struck her. “That sexist pig doesn’t know that. He shouldn’t be encouraging me to drop his class because it’s toodifficultfor my puny brain.” She used air quotations around the worddifficult.
“But, baby, hadn’t you planned on dropping his class anyways to focus more on your freelance artwork?”
“Over my dead body. I’ll never give him the satisfaction.”
The man bit his bottom lip in an effort to subdue his laughter, all the while pacifying his passionate wife. “Let me get this straight. You want to stay in a class that makes you miserable instead of pursuing something that you actually want… And all to stop your professor from getting what hemightwant out of the deal.”
Her hands turned into fists. “Stop being so rational about this.”
“My mistake, baby,” he responded dryly.
“It’s the principle of the matter. And whose side are you on, anyway?”
“Yours, Angel. Always.” He dismissed any remanent amusement. “I just hate to think that you’re willing to be miserable and all to stick it to a man you hate.”
She stared at him incredulously. “It’s like you don’t know me at all.”
The man couldn’t do it anymore, breaking out in hysterical laughter. Even Asmodeus found himself smirking from behind the trees.
