Page 107 of Tempt

Sort of like magic, the clouds jet on by, exposing a gang of constellations. The celestials blaze, the lights smirking and beating darkness out of the way. Humans and deities call them different things, which is fine by him. There’s plenty of room for every idea.

Anyone who says differently can go to hell, which can’t be all that bad. He’s heard the weather is fantastic in hell.

It’s been months since his second resurrection. Tonight, he sits nude at the top of a hill, with a voluptuous wildflower reclining in his arms. Curling on the grass, she tucks her naked shoulders into his torso and rests her head against his chest. That alone drives him crazy. But then, she’s always driven him crazy.

Right from the get-go, she’d affected him. This goddess, with her grit and generosity, her intelligence and resolve. This sprite, with her strong-willed jaw that he’d routinely wanted to lick, her wandering voice that had turned his heart into a battering ram, her competitive streak that had gotten him as hard as a screwdriver, and the marigold hair that he’d constantly had an urge to wind around his finger…sometimes to tug, sometimes to caress.

So easy to push her buttons yet so freaking tough. She’d clashed with him, stared him down, fallen asleep with him. She’d wrung him out and filled him with adrenaline, rivalry, and rage, swamping him with confusion and cravings.

And yeah, desire. And affection.

And then more. A heck of a lot more.

But fuck, right here, right now? This is a new kind of crazy, with a new shape. It’s a peaceful, happy crazy.

Why had fate done all this? Why had the stars enabled any of it?

Maybe he’d been reincarnated because of his letter to Wonder, when he’d expressed a desire to know what immortality was like. Maybe the sky had listened. Maybe the constellations had granted him that wish as compensation for what one of their goddesses had done, having cut short his life’s path.

And in the Hollow Chamber? He might have released Quill, but he’d still been shot through the heart. So maybe he’d been given this new chance at immortality because of the legend, because he’d only just succeeded in recovering his heart, because he’d only just earned the reward. And maybe fate had wanted to apologize for the ruler who’d struck him down during a ceasefire.

Maybe all of this had happened because of one thing. Or a shitload of things.

Maybe a bunch of stars had aligned.

No matter what, one fact is clear: Destiny had expected this. It had taken crucial steps to unite Malice with Wonder, knowing what they’d mean to each other, knowing he would play his part in the bigger picture, in the balance of fate and free will.

Oh, the irony.

Malice grins. He bows his head, skimming Wonder’s nape with his lips, relishing the goosebumps charging across her flesh. His limbs bend on either side of his library queen, and his arms sling around her. Conjuring a blanket, he wraps them in the material, their cheeks touching as they watch the landscape thrive.

It’s only been a few minutes, and already his body simmers. How many hills have they christened so far, since he came back to her for the second time? He’s lost count.

He nibbles her shoulder. “Rawrrrr.”

She giggles. “Again?”

“Is that a question? I like questions.”

“This is dangerous,” she gasps when he cups her tits under the blanket and snacks on her neck. “We should prepare.”

“Where’s the fun in that?” he pouts.

“I can’t believe you talked me into this.”

“If I recall, you’re the one who tore off my sweater. We haven’t done much talking since.”

Also not true. He usually has a lot to say when they’re in the thick of it.

As to their location, sure. She’s right about doing this here, of all places. But really, he likes to think of it as a rebel’s rite of passage.

Why not bless the battlefield, give it a dose of lovin’?

Malice mumbles as much, earning an aerial laugh that slips right into his abdomen, joy lurching through his blood. It’s the best sound in the universe, other than when she’s reading aloud or moaning his name.

His name.

“Malice,” she says, twisting to receive his greedy kiss.

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