Page 91 of Between Earth and Eternity
“I have to go,” he says, and I might say there is some disappointment in his tone.
“Okay,” I reply, trying not to stare at his lips.
He opens his mouth, about to say more, but instead tucks a loose strand of my hair behind my ear, a wordless promise; for what exactly, I don’t know. And then he is gone.
I trace the mark on my shoulder. The imprint of his teeth, still embedded in my flesh. I’d tattoo it if I could, forever inking the moment he was here. I would treasure it, so even when the mark fades, I’d remember that, for a brief moment, I was his. Claimed.
A moment that has come and gone as fast as our ship, speeding across the stars. Enchanting but fleeting.
I was waiting for lovin’ to catch me
But it was never strong enough to have me
“Emotional Vacation,” Stephen Sanchez
“Um, excuse me?” Ori asks as we exit the club a couple of hours later. “Did you just say you kissed Vallen Mannox?”
Technically, he kissed me . . . and bit me, and licked me. I still haven’t come down from the high of every touch, word, and sound.
“I’m still processing it myself,” I reply, the feel and taste of his lips lingering on my mind and body.
“How did I miss this?” She wobbles slightly.
“You’re slightly drunk for one,” I say, steadying her as we enter the tube. “Just let me know if you think you’re going to be sick.”
She blows a raspberry, but when we exit the car, she rushes to the suite. It was fun while it lasted. I hear her in the bathroom and give her some space, pouring her a glass of water and retrieving a few pain relievers to numb the impending hangover.
What now?
I feel like pieces of me are scattered across the universe. A part of me lightyears away back on Earth, another piece still in that hallway with Vallen, and a bit of me in the cargo hold that I might not ever get back after what Slade did to me.
I need Elliot more than ever.
You don’t need me, San Fran. You got this.
“Yes, I do,” I say under my breath, as if he is standing beside me.
The bathroom door slides open, and Ori is as white as a sheet.
“Come lie down.” I direct her to the couch and offer her the water and tablets. She takes them without question, and before her head hits the pillow, she’s asleep. “Happy birthday, Ori.” I chuckle softly.
I take a shower, hoping it will calm me down, but I’m still wired, now staring up at the ceiling in my room. I’d give anything for my music right now. I know just the playlist I would choose to help me sleep, to help me process all that happened. I grab my StarComm from the nightstand and search through the catalog of music to create a new playlist to join my running tracks. I didn’t have the heart to do it before.
I put together a solid list and push play.
It’s like I stepped through a portal back to Earth, back to E.P.S., Elliot, and my family.
Tears come without warning, and I press my face into the pillow, seeking refuge. The songs bring both solace and anguish, swirling memories of joy and sorrow tangled with hopes that once belonged to the past yet still linger in the present, but my hope is barely a flicker now, and I don’t know if it will see me through to the end.
Songs and space eventually guide me to sleep, and for once, my dreams don’t make me sorrowful. I am dancing in starlight, and Vallen is there to keep me safe, but it is all a lie. He isn’t mine.
This is a world of the Mannoxes’ creation. Why would someone who has the stars at their fingertips ever care about someone like me?
Ori doesn’t complain once about her hangover. In fact, she already wants to plan another night out at the club. But I tell her it was a one and done for me. She says if I’m not coming again, then I owe her every detail of my kiss with Vallen.
I fail miserably in my attempt to make it appear as just the heat of the moment, a one-off; I can’t disguise the fever and longing that was there. I tell her every detail except being caught by Slade.
“Okay, let me make sure I’m hearing this correctly. You danced together. He kissed you . . .” I cover my mouth to keep from laughing, and my cheeks go red. “Did he really say, ‘I’m not sure I can stay away anymore?’ Because that is some deep yearning there.”
