I ran my fingers through his hair and gave it a little pull. Partly in anger, partly in jest.
“Where does Elian Beyer call home?” Elian laughed, making this dark discussion into something sweet. Something good.
How was he able to do that?
I tingled. No buzzing.
“Diamond Creek, Pennsylvania. Home of the Dolphins.” I giggled. I giggled? I couldn’t stop. He did this to me. Elian Beyer. Unconditional Elian Beyer.
“Are there a lot of dolphins in Pennsylvania?” I asked, my fingers straying down his back, over the star. He kissed mine. I touched his.
Our stories…our stars…our unyielding history that wouldn’t go away.
In our blood.
In our hearts.
Always.
“Uh, I don’t think so. It’s a big joke actually. Dudley the Dolphin is the high school mascot. My sister—” He stopped abruptly. Completely.
Done.
He wrapped his arms around my waist and buried his face in my stomach. I braced myself for his emotional onslaught. I waited for the tide to take me under.
I pulled away. Back and far. Distant from his needy hands and grasping mouth.
“Tell me about your friends.”
Distance. Safe. Away.
Elian sat up now that we weren’t touching. He pulled the blanket to cover him. Our nakedness making us too vulnerable.
“They’re all right. Just some people I met through the studio,” he dismissed. Not important. He didn’t care. I could see that.
“What about the girl?” I couldn’t help but ask.
Jealous. Mean. Spiteful.
I hated and hated.
“What girl?” he evaded. Not looking at me when I knew he wanted to. The smile he tried to hide gave him away. He liked my jealousy.
So I gave it to him.
“That bitch that you slept with.”
Elian’s mouth dropped open. I had shocked him. I gave him a tiny smile of my own.
“How did you know about that?” He wasn’t denying it. I knew he wouldn’t. He wasn’t that sort of person. He was the good kind.
“That day in the park, it was all over her face. She hated me on sight. She doesn’t know me, but she didn’t have to. You wanted to be with me. She wanted to be with you.” I shrugged, pulling my hair over my shoulder.
Elian watched my face, his eyes falling to my hair draped across my chest.
“Does it bother you? Knowing she and I were together?” he asked, licking his lips, his green eyes bright. Hopeful.
“Yes,” I said.
“It’s over. There’s no one else.” Necessary assurances given eagerly.
“I know.”
He reached for me and I went to him. He held me close and I let him fold me in. Tight. Together.
“Did you leave anyone behind in Norton Hill? Is there anyone out there loving you? Waiting for you to come back?” Elian asked, kissing the top of my head. I let my lips linger in the hollow of his throat. Just there.
“No,” I murmured against his heartbeat. I thought of love and loss. Of ghosts and haunted memories. Of monsters ever present.
“No one.”
“Who are you, Layna Whitaker?”
I should tell him. Shine light on my withering darkness. But I liked being alone with my secrets. They deserved to be kept.
Truth was the only enemy.
It was the echo of a mutinous scream. Angry at being released on an unready world.
“Would you be willing to hang out with my friends tonight?” Elian asked. We were dressed and having coffee in my kitchen. I never had people in my home. I wasn’t sure how I felt about it.
But Elian conformed to the space around him. Fitting in unobtrusively.
His question, however, irritated me.
“With your friends?” I asked, handing him a spoon to stir his drink. The sun was finally starting to go down. I felt as though it had been in the sky for far too long. I felt more relaxed once the light dimmed.
Elian laughed a little, sounding strained. “Yeah, my friends. Tate’s having a few people over to watch the UFC match on pay-per-view. I just thought it might be nice. You know, because we’re…uh…well, you’re my…”
I let him flounder. I didn’t define the role he was trying to place on me.