by elda lore
Damn it.
Rolling slowly to my side before pressing upward, I sat. My body creaked, and I twisted at the waist to crack my back. Pressing my chin with my palm, I rotated my head side to side and it cracked as well. My chest was bare, but my linen pants were splattered with paint. She had a wicked arm on her, and if she ever threw a punch, I had better be prepared. I stared at the sheet, covered in an angry array of dark tones, with one bright slash of yellow. I scrambled for my camera and took a picture. I’d have to send it to her. Or better yet, I had an idea. The paint would need time to settle, and it gave me time to devise a plan.
Afraid of heights. I’d break that fear. I loved to climb.
+ + +
“I’d like to show you girls the valley,” Heph said, slowly spitting out each word like we’d practiced. I’d recruited him for the plan to rid Veva of one fear. For a huge man, he was incredibly shy. The rumor was that he was dropped as a child, abandoned like me. My father didn’t wish to explain, other than that Heph was a half-brother to me. An ugly scar marked his forehead, his nose disjointed, and a prosthetic leg left him with a limp, but he was definitely not weak. A master at metal work, the strength he possessed frightened me, and I was no small person, either. An artisan like me, I’d learned several techniques from him. He, in turn, had things to learn from me, like how to catch a girl. Not an easy task for a large man with a small vocabulary.
“Where do you wish to take us?” Persephone sweetly asked during breakfast. Heph looked at me, as I told him it would be a surprise for the girls: an adventure. His eyes opened wide in fear, and when Persephone’s delicate hand touched his wrist for his attention, he tilted his head. Help me, his eyes cried, and I didn’t intend to torture the poor chump.
“Actually, I thought the four of us could go?” My eyes easily avoided Veva, who ignored me with expertise borne from experience. I addressed Persephone instead, with a too-chipper tone.
“No.” Veva’s hand slapped the table, and my attention fell to her face. Her head shook.
“I think it sounds like fun,” Persephone responded, narrowing her eyes at her friend. “We haven’t explored the valley much since we’ve been here.”
“Persephone,” Veva hissed through her teeth. Her eyes strained to convey her displeasure.
“Let us surprise you,” I offered, still addressing Persephone. I tipped my head to Heph and he took the hint, nodding too exaggeratedly. My finger sliced across my throat for Heph to stop. Eyes shifting sideways, Veva caught my motion, and my hand dropped. She stood abruptly and stalked from the breakfast room. My head followed her retreat.
“I don’t think she likes you.” The words softly tumbled forth from Heph, his head lowered to his plate.
“She’ll be fine.” Persephone touched Heph’s wrist, and he flinched from the affection.
I shook my head in dismay. Poor Heph, he had so much to learn. I told Persephone how to dress and where to meet Heph and me. An hour later, Veva stood next to Persephone in short shorts, exposing the full length of the peacock tattoo, a tank top enhancing her curves, and ratty gym shoes. Sexy, but not overstated, she looked less fierce in the more casual clothing. Her hair was pulled up in a ponytail; she fidgeted with the ends. I parked the Jeep and hopped out to help each girl climb in. Veva refused the support of my hand but when her foot slipped, I grabbed her hips and lifted her to the backseat.
“Did he just throw me in the backseat?” she complained to Persephone as I walked around the back of the vehicle.
“No, I think he lifted you like a paperweight and set you back here.” Persephone laughed, and the beam of Veva’s eyes bored into the back of my head as I slipped into the driver seat. Taking off with a jolt, we headed for the edge of the valley where a national treasure existed, including large rock formations for climbing. The variety of levels offered a great challenge, but as I assumed Veva and Persephone were novices, I figured a lower difficulty climb might be the best start.
“So where’s the surprise?” Veva snipped, placing her hands on her hips, eying the gravel parking space and the jagged rock formations around it.
“There.” I pointed to the top of one jutting structure. Her mouth fell open.
“Rock climbing?” Veva snorted. “I’m not rock climbing.” She crossed her arms over her curvy breasts and turned her head like a spoiled child. She looked off in the opposite direction and squinted in the bright sunshine.
“Yes, you are.” Persephone pinched the under arm of her friend, who flicked her elbow out to ward off her friend.
“Are you torturing me?” Veva glared at me. “You know I’m afraid of heights.” That feisty tone, mixed with a touch of fear, reminded me of her admission from the night before. My hands twitched between dragging her to me to comfort her, and shaking her for her stubbornness.
“Time to face your fears, Peacock.” I stalked away from her, anticipating the climb.
“Don’t call me that.” Her voice called after me. The pile before us was an easy incline, and I paused to allow Persephone to step in front of me. Turning back, I noticed Veva still standing by the Jeep.
“You can stay behind if you’d like. Lots of millipedes around the rocks and other creepy, crawly things.” I wiggled my fingers for emphasis and turned away from her. Eventually, I heard the rustle of gravel behind me and the crunch of determined feet as she neared. I slowed, and she purposely bumped into me.
“I hate you,” she muttered, brushing past me. I watched her sweet ass sway before me and shook my head. Within moments, we fell into companionable silence. Heph led the way, coaching Persephone where to place her feet, leading by example. For a man with an artificial leg from the knee down, he was surprisingly agile. I stayed in the rear to support Veva. When her foot slipped, I was there to right her body. She may have flinched, but I used any excuse to touch her. The heat of the day was nothing compared to the electric sparks nipping at me when our skin connected.
The incline grew steeper, but Heph persevered. This climb was a Sunday stroll for him and me. At one point near the top, Veva stopped moving.
“I can’t do it,” she whimpered. Both hands outstretched and legs spread to support her climb, she appeared like a giant X against the rock wall. Her head tilted down. “Oh, God, it’s so high.”
“You can do this,” I countered. I’d been staring at her ass for the last hour, my body fighting its own struggle for control. Finally, I slid up against hers. “You can do this, Veva.” My hand covered hers and I pointed with our collective fingers where to place her hand next. Stretching, her fingers gripped the natural ledge and with my hand braced on her hip, she slid to the side. We climbed in unison for a short stretch until Heph found the plateau and reached down to hoist Veva upward. I maneuvered to the top on my own and sucked in a breath at the amazing view.
The space wasn’t really large enough for four, so we stood close to one another. I teetered toward the edge, my toes aligned with rock and nothingness. I flung out my arms.
“I’m a god of the universe!” I yelled. Veva stood close behind me, and the flip of my outward arm startled her. She stepped to the side, arms flailing through the air as she lost her balance. Instantly, I encircled her with one arm and pulled her against my side. Her breaths came in ragged pulls, her fear palpable.
“Did you push me?” she shrieked, struggling against my grasp. My arm tightened around her. “I could have fallen to my death.” The exaggeration extreme, I held her against me and stepped back from the edge. My mouth rested below her ear, inhaling the combination of exertion and rain scent on her.
“I’d never let you fall,” I whispered against the skin that I imagined tasted salty and sweet. “I’d never let anything hurt you, not even me.” I held her flush against me; both arms secured her back to my chest. My chin rested on her shoulder. “Look at the view.”
Her gasp confirmed what I saw. For miles, the uninhibited world stretched before us. Rock formations and tufts of green landscaped the scenery. I wished
for my camera. I’d not only capture the glory before me, but the beauty of Veva. She looked radiant, her face relaxed, as she observed nature before her.
“You did it, Vee.” Holding her, I tried to reassure her, despite the fact she shook against me, trembling from the exertion of the climb and her fear of heights. My eyes drifted to the pebbly rocks at our feet, where something caught my attention. I bent to the side, not releasing Veva, but taking her down with me while I squatted. She screamed and her hands gripped the sides of my shorts. Righting us, I presented her with the gift.
“A hidden heart.” The heart-shaped pebble rested in the palm of my hand. “My mother called them that: hidden treasures in nature. A sign of good things.”
Her fist clamped around the rock, removing it from me. “You scared the crap out of me for a stupid rock.” Her arm reached back, preparing to fling the treasure out into the great open space, but I gripped her wrist.
“Never mind,” I muttered, embarrassed at mentioning my mother. I released Veva. My heart sank, like I anticipated the heart-shaped rock would once Veva hurled it. I stepped back. I couldn’t watch her throw away my gift. Thoughts of my mother were rare, and I’d just shared one with Veva. Her hand came forward and I turned away. Heph went down the wall first, and I guided Persephone to follow his lead. Spinning back to Veva, I found her staring off at the vast display of nature, her fist clutched to her chest, her other hand covering it to hold it in place. She briefly closed her eyes, then lowered her hand and opened her palm. To my surprise, she still held the rock. I watched as she pocketed it before turning toward me. The intensity of her turquoise gaze washed over me, a cool bath cascading down my body in the powerful heat. My mouth grew dry, and I wondered if kissing her would quench me. My heart hammered inside my chest. Reaching out a hand, I nodded toward the rocky descent. It was time to return home before I did anything foolish, like suck those peachy lips and drink in the dewy mist of those eyes.
VEVA
We returned to solid earth, but Heph stopped and began to pile rocks in decreasing size. I noticed several other similar piles around me.
“What’s that?” Persephone asked.
“A cairn. You stack rocks in a way to make a display of largest to smallest. Some artists try to balance mismatched shapes to make a statement. Other people form the pile as a marker or a memory. Something that says, I was here. Romantics say the marker meant someone was thinking of you.” Solis explained and waggled his eyebrows at Persephone. My heart dropped. He was really into her. I turned away to approach a pile. I took in the varying shapes and the flat rocks. I should have made a cairn on the plateau we climbed. I wanted to make a statement like that on the world, to mark a spot to say, I was here. The idea of a lover making such a statement to me seemed absurd. I didn’t have romance in my life; I had meaningless flings, like Tripper Grant last summer, or any of the nameless souls from the past year at college. I ached when I thought of the love I’d witnessed between Persephone and Harris Black. The edge of mystery about who he was and where he came from enhanced my curiosity of their insta-love. The intensity of their love was a quandary in and of itself, as I didn’t understand such deep emotion.
My hand returned to the rock in my pocket. I don’t know why I even contemplated throwing something so precious out into the abyss. It really was amazing how nature formed this one pebble into a jagged yet distinct heart, and it lay on top of that plateau waiting for someone to discover it. Equally curious, was the fact Solis found it and gave it to me. It was sweet. My teeth clamped at the thought, but then my jaw relaxed and my cheeks softened. A smile fought to curve my lips, but I couldn’t fight the strength of my pleasure.
Taking it out of my pocket one more time to look at it, Heph startled me.
“I could make you something to hold that, so you could wear it as a necklace.” His voice was rough, but gentle. I turned to face him, prepared to tell him I wasn’t interested, but the tender look of his huge brown eyes stopped me. My anger disintegrated in the presence of the man who stood before me. My eyes took in the scar across his forehead, the bump on his nose, possibly broken a time or two. My head dipped, and I noticed, not for the first time, the metal contraption making up the lower half of his left leg. He hadn’t complained once while we climbed, while I muttered under my breath and cursed in my head the entire time. Without realizing it, I’d cupped the rock in my fist, holding it against my chest as I had done after I almost threw it away. Unclear why I made this motion, I lowered my coupled hands and held out the rock for Heph to view.
“How would you do that?”
“I could make a wire support and attach it to a clip. You could slip it on a leather cord or a silver chain.” His big eyes peered at mine, hopeful. I remembered hearing he worked with metal, and the delicate way his large hands twisted in explanation of how the wire would attach to my precious rock endeared him to me. I stared at him a little too long, but there was something familiar about his eyes. My brow pinched as I fought to recognize him, but the sound of Persephone’s laughter behind me scattered my thoughts.
“I’d like that, Heph. Thank you.” I spun to face my friend, and found Solis chuckling. Despite the four of us spending this day together, I suddenly felt like a third wheel. Solis made Pea laugh in response, which had been so rare over the last year. Her sadness followed her like a shadow, despite her smiles and general cheer. Inside, she told me, her heart was black, and ached for Harris, and while I didn’t doubt she loved him, her life was too young to never love again. The images of Solis and Persephone together hardened my insides like the stones surrounding us. Lava bubbled where my heart should be, at the thought of Solis kissing Persephone. I recalled the night before, when I caught him in the hall, his mouth engaged with Mel’s, his eyes watching me while he devoured her. My breath rushed out of me in a whoosh, and I gasped.
“Veva, what’s wrong?” Persephone rushed to me. Heph spun me to face him.
“She’s gone sheet white. I think she’s dehydrated.” Instantly, I was off my feet and in Solis’ arms. He carried me like the pebble in my pocket.
“I’m fine. I’m fine. Just spun too fast or something,” I lied. It wasn’t the heat getting to me, or rather it was the heat. Each time Solis touched me I felt those sparks, growing all too familiar and way too comfortable with the prickle at my skin. The more he touched me, the more I craved the shocking sensation, and I cursed myself for enjoying it. I didn’t want to cave in to the warming energy. But I did want in, and my head warred with my body. He was a player, I reminded myself, and I didn’t wish to be played, but his god-like body sang out to mine, and I wanted to be strummed. I shook my head to rid the thought, causing silver dots to float before my eyes. Maybe I was dehydrated after all. Maybe I needed to quench the unending thirst for Solis.
“Feeling any better?” His voice rushed over me like a trickling stream. I was in a cold sweat despite the heat. My skin tingled and chilled at the thought that his mouth on my skin might produce the same sensation. My lips dried, and I couldn’t speak. I merely nodded, letting my hands rub up and down my gooseflesh arms. He had carried me to a spot shaded in shadows by the mighty rocks.
“Cooling down a little bit, now that we’re in the shade?” he asked, his voice still too close, his body too near. I shivered when his chest brushed my back and his firm hands took over mine, rubbing my chilling arms, a contradiction to the heat. He pulled me tight to him, like he tugged me to him on the rock plateau. He was strong, and I wanted his strength. Needing to push him back when I wanted to draw him close, I didn’t trust him. Only a moment before he was flirting with Persephone.
I spun to face him, ready to tell him the opposite of my thoughts. Twisting in his arms, I stood too much in his space, and my eyes locked with his. Caramel smoothness twinkled in the filtered sunlight. He smiled slowly, and coolness continued to cascade over me, traipsing over the hills of my breasts and the valley of my sides to hike the curves of my hips and settle between my thighs. My cor
e beat like increasing rapids against jagged rocks in a river. My breath hitched at the sensual experience occurring from one intense gaze from his eyes. He leaned toward me, and I licked my lips. His hand almost to my face, he tilted his head, and I was mesmerized, as if struck by lightning, my body electrified, stood petrified, anticipating the current about to fill me.
“I’m starving,” Heph’s rough tenor boomed among the trees. “Let’s eat.”
Solis stepped back slowly, his eyes questioning what almost occurred. My heart contracted in disappointment and relief. He couldn’t kiss me. He’d just been flirting with Persephone, and yet, my mouth instantly missed his without ever having met.
SOLIS
Stupid Heph.
“Just give us another minute.”
My mouth had been so close to tasting the sweet nectar of those lips, her blue eyes blinding all thought to us being mere feet away from her best friend and my half-brother. It wasn’t the way I anticipated a first kiss with Veva. In fact, the more she pissed me off, the less I envisioned a kiss happening between us ever. When I thought she threw the heart shaped rock away, I vowed to not think of her again. When she looked like she would pass out from the heat and Heph touched her in concern, jealousy reared its ugly head. I’d never been jealous before. I didn’t have to be, at least not of other guys. I didn’t keep a woman around long enough to be upset if another guy took interest. I actually hoped some guy would come along to distract whomever I’d taken my pleasure from, but with Veva, it was different. I didn’t want another man to think of her, let alone touch her. If I didn’t know Heph was harmless, I would have flattened him on the spot and made a cairn of him.
But Heph’s interruption was a good thing, because once my mouth met Veva’s there would be no taming the storm of desire that raged inside me. I’d been erect on and off all day, and my body hummed with suppressed tension. My lips would not just taste hers, I’d devour her. Lips and breasts. Heart and soul. I intended to blind her with my passion, and she’d rain down on me like no other. I hastily swiped a hand through my unruly, chin length hair. I should have brought a hair tie to hold it back. Holding it collected at the nape of my neck, I sighed in relief. That call had been too close. Images of taking Veva lingered and I looked away.
