Chapter 35
THIRTY-FIVE
sinner
I was a disturbed man.
A sick soul.
I’d known this for a long time now, but it had never been more clear than it was during those few hours, with Athena’s body pressed against mine in the warm bed.
Because when I held her like this, I didn’t give a fuck that we were in a crumbled, war-ridden city.
I didn’t give a fuck that we were in the middle of the Ministry’s tests.
I couldn’t bring myself to care that we could be attacked at any moment.
I was consumed by the smell of jasmine and the smoke filling my lungs as I breathed her in. The feel of her waist beneath my arms, her back against my chest.
I’d done many evil things in my life, but whatever I’d done to earn these few peaceful moments, I’d do a thousand times over again.
For this, it was all worth it.
As the sun filtered through the moth-eaten curtains covering the cracked window, I carefully pulled a stray piece of Athena’s dark hair out of her face.
She looked so peaceful when she slept. Happy, even. When she wasn’t having nightmares, anyway.
That disturbed part of me took over, and I leaned down and brushed a soft kiss to the spot below her ear.
Fuck it all.
I was tired of hiding my feelings. Of pretending to be a man with morals.
So I kissed her again, closer to her jaw.
She moaned, and in response, my phantoms snapped to life, hungry for her. She arched against me, grinding her body into mine in the scraps that remained of that thin black dress.
“Athena,” I sighed against her neck.
“Hmm?” She slipped a hand around the back of my neck, pulling me closer.
Heat flooded me, and blood rushed to my groin. Fuck.
“Tell me to stop,” I whispered. “Because I don’t think I can control myself around you right now.”
She twisted in my arms until she faced me, her hand trailing my neck, my jaw, my throat, my chest.
She looked at me with a devotion that made me believe I wasn’t entirely evil after all. “If you think I’m going to tell you to stop, Sinner, you’ve really lost your mind.”
“Elijah,” I said, some instinct taking over.
She smiled, her lips almost brushing mine. “Please kiss me, Elijah.”
God have mercy on my fucking soul, I did.
I kissed her hard. There was no holding back. My mouth encapsulated hers and our bodies rolled together in the bed. She fit into my arms perfectly, like she was made for me.
This close to her, my phantoms roared in excitement. I let them out, let them dance around us and play in Athena’s hair. They roamed her skin, and she gasped in surprise.
I took the opportunity to slip my tongue between her lips, deepening the kiss, gripping her hips and grinding against her.
The paper in my front pocket crinkled, and though I was more than happy to ignore it—hell, I would have burned the fucking paper gladly—Athena heard it, too, and paused.
“What is that?” she asked.
With a groan, I pulled back. “I don’t know, some note that was in my pocket when I woke up out here.”
I leaned in, but before I could capture her mouth again, but she sat up. “A note? What does it say?”
Huffing, I flopped onto my back and pulled the wrinkled, half-torn note out of my pocket.
She took it from me in one swift motion and smoothed it out across her bare thigh. Her eyes flickered across the words with ease and widened.
Then her jaw dropped.
“Sinner—” she started.
“Elijah,” I corrected her again. “You should call me Elijah now. I meant that.”
She shook her head and pointed out the window. “Elijah, have you shown anyone else this note? Did you show it to them?”
“No, why?” I sat up, a lump forming in my throat. “What does it say?”
She exhaled a shaky breath and held the paper out so I could follow as she pointed.
Don’t trust Alexander
I held my breath, waiting for more of an explanation, more words, more anything, but nothing came.
“Is that it?” I asked. “That’s all it says?”
She flipped the note over, frowning at it. “Unfortunately, yes. You have no idea where this came from?”
I hauled myself to the edge of the mattress and pulled on my boots, then I rummaged in the dresser to find Athena some real clothes.
“What are you doing?” she asked, scooting to the side of the bed.
“We’re getting the fuck out of here, obviously.”
“Because of the note? Are we even sure we can believe this?”
I tossed her a shirt and pants without bothering to check the size. “I’m not willing to take the risk. I’ve been looking for a reason to get rid of him since they found me, and this is it. Something’s not right with him.”
She read the note again, not moving.
“Athena,” I warned. “Put those clothes on or I’ll do it for you. We have to leave before—”
“Before what?” Karlyle stood in the doorway. He looked at me, then Athena, then at the note in her hands.
His smile dropped.
“Took you fucking long enough.”