Chapter Twenty-Eight #2
Unsure what to do other than hug her back, Gemma gave Lysa a gentle squeeze, eyeing the smile on Christian’s face, a smile that she hadn’t seen in quite a while. The sight of it released some of the pressure in her chest.
“It’s nice to meet you too,” Gemma replied as Lysa let her go. “I’ve heard lots of things.”
“All bad, I’m sure.” Lysa beamed.
“Nah, not all bad. Just mostly,” Christian answered, and Lysa swatted his arm.
Gemma smiled. She never thought she’d see this side of him, and blazes, it felt good.
“Where’s Dad?” Lysa asked Christian.
“I sent him home,” he replied.
Lysa sighed, but she seemed to understand. “Well, show me around then, and tell me where I put my stuff.” She pointed with her thumb at the bag on her back.
Christian’s grin was still plastered to his face as he took Gemma’s hand in his and led Lysa on a quick tour of Tent City. Afterward, the three of them found Hawk and Imara and joined them in the mess hall.
The companionship was unparalleled. Gemma didn’t remember smiling so big or laughing as hard as she did while Lysa told many childhood stories to embarrass Christian.
Imara and Lysa became fast friends. Gemma also couldn’t help but notice the way Imara and Hawk would subtly touch the others’ hand in affection. It seemed she’d missed a lot while she’d been in the temple, but Gemma couldn’t be happier.
As their group wandered back to their tents, she and Lysa meandered behind the other three, who continued to taunt and tease each other.
“Thank you for what you’ve done for Christian,” Lysa said, hooking her arm with Gemma’s and slowing her down. “You have no idea how hard things were for him, so to see him smile like he is . . .” Her eyes pooled with tears.
“He’s done a lot more for me than I did for him. Trust me.”
They let their three friends wander ahead and walked at their own pace.
“He really loves you, y’know,” Lysa said. “And I’m pretty sure you’re the only person he’s ever truly loved.”
Gemma’s chest fluttered. “He loves you too.”
“Yeah, but he has to.” Lysa laughed, and it rang, bright and unguarded, like sunlight breaking through clouds.
Gemma found herself smiling again. “Still, you’re the reason he fights as hard as he does. You gave him something to come home to. Don’t think that doesn’t matter.”
Lysa blinked fast then beamed. “Guess that makes us quite the team then, huh? You keep him smiling, and I’ll keep him from doing anything stupid.”
Gemma chuckled. “That sounds like a lot of work.”
“You have no idea.” Lysa’s laugh was bright and easy. “Good thing we’re both stubborn enough to manage him. Between the two of us, he might actually stand a chance.”
Gemma couldn’t keep the grin off her face.
When she and Lysa at last reached their tents, Christian was several paces away, talking with a girl of Asian descent. And by the look of it, the conversation was heated. They knew each other.
Lysa stiffened.
“Who is that?” Gemma asked.
“She’s, uh, an old friend of Christian’s from the Falaichte. I didn’t realize she was part of the distraction team until we were already in the field. She was at Gallowood House.”
Gemma spun her head to look at Lysa. “Wait, the Systems knows about him being in the Falaichte?”
Lysa nodded. “I don’t believe it was a pleasant conversation, but yeah.”
Gemma narrowed her gaze at Christian. What had she missed those weeks he was in Perileos? She’d been so wrapped up in her own slop that she’d never asked him about it. Maybe she should.
The girl Christian spoke to caught Gemma’s stare and then stroked Christian’s chest before heading over to her and Lysa. Gemma’s face lit on fire at the intimate gesture.
“Ah, so you’re the girl,” the girl spoke. “I was wondering if Christian would ever introduce me.”
“Not a chance,” Christian said as Gemma’s hands balled into fists. He nudged her and Lysa toward their tent openings. “Let’s go.”
“Aw, but I so was looking forward to telling your girlfriend about all those nights we spent together.” There was laughter in her words.
Gemma’s heart fell to her knees.
Christian froze, spun, and spoke venomously. “You stay the fuck away from me, Gemma, and Lysa. Do you hear me?”
The girl raised her hands innocently but gave Gemma a mischievous grin.
“I mean it, Cho.”
“Heard ya the first time, Christy.”
Christian gently pushed Gemma into their tent and followed her inside. The heavy flap of their canvas door fell into place behind him, leaving them beneath walls of fabric with only the battery lamp for light.
“I’m so sorry, Gem,” he said within seconds. “If I’d known she was helping Lysa, I would’ve warned you about her.”
Her hands were already clenched into fists, nails biting into her palms. “She talks like she knows you well.”
“Not as well as you do. Not even close.”
“I don’t know about that. You shared a bed.” She couldn’t contain the flare of jealousy that shot through her. “How long were you two together?”
He took a slow breath. “We were never ‘together.’ I never had feelings for Cho. She was convenient. And she came from the same pit I did.”
“‘Convenient? ’”
He offered a loud sigh and ran his hand down his face. “That wasn’t the right word. After the hunts, when my head was too loud, she was there. And she understood. But I promise, it was never more than that.”
The shame in his gaze when his eyes found hers annihilated any lingering thread of jealousy. His past was just as dark as hers, and he needn’t feel guilty over what he’d had to do to survive.
Gemma put her hand on his chest. “You’re a good man, Christian. I’m sorry I let myself feel a bit jealous.”
He placed his hand over hers and gave it a gentle squeeze.
“You have no reason to be. You’re the first person I’ve ever been with where it meant something.
There’s nothing in my past I want more than I want you.
No one I’d trade you for. Not Cho. Not anyone.
I haven’t shared much about that part of my past because—maybe naively—I thought it didn’t matter.
It was over, and I’d hoped you’d be my future.
I love you, and only you. There was no one before you, and there won’t be anyone after.
You’re it for me, Gem. You always have been.
Maybe even seven-year-old me knew, and it just took me thirteen years to find you again. ”
She tilted up her chin, and Christian’s lips found hers. Gemma breathed in the smell of him, reveled in the taste of him.
Unwillingly, she pulled away before her body could crave him in all the dangerous ways. He brushed her cheek with his thumb.
“You’re it for me too, you know,” she said, staring into his hazel-green eyes.
“Glad to hear it.” He smirked. “Though there is one matter we still need to settle.”
She cocked her head, brows furrowing. “Which is?”
“What devious schemes did you and Lysa plan? Is my life in danger?” The grin on his face reached his eyes.
She offered a mischievous smile. “I shall never tell.”