Page 29 of Synodic

I knew Harlan had gotten my number from one of the long-distance girls, but I had no idea it passed through her brother first. At the time, she stated he was some sort of tech mogul and that I would be stupid not to agree to meet up with him. She’d even tried several times herself to catch his eye. I reluctantly gave in, and now here we were.

I had to admit, Harlan had gone through quite the trouble.

He took the picked-at food from my hands and walked back to the kitchen, returning with two pink mochi ice cream balls on a small plate. “And for dessert,” he said, giving me a lopsided grin as he sat and offered me one of the strawberry rice cakes.

At least he got one thing right.

Harlan devoured his mochi, then watched me intently as I savored every last refreshing bite of mine. His glinting eyes never left my face as I licked my fingers clean.

I had initially come here with completely different intentions than the one written all over Harlan’s face. But I decided I would try.

Still on his couch with our knees slightly grazing, he asked, “How did you manage to get powder on your cheek?”

“I never know,” I replied with a guilty laugh as I brought my hand to my face.

Harlan readjusted his lean body more comfortably beside mine, dipping me further into the couch.

Eyes burning, he brought his hand up to my face, and I felt the smooth edge of his thumb wipe at the powder on my cheek. His Adam’s apple bobbed as he slowly transferred the stray bit of dessert onto my lower lip.

My breath hitched in my throat. Not because of Harlan’s caress, but because the ghost of another’s touch flashed before my memory. Heat rose to my cheeks when I thought of Rowen’s hand at my mouth before inducing me to purge the poison from Weir Falls. He’d saved me from enduring the horrifying effects of the corrupt water, turning what could have been a full-blown night terror into simply a strange and unforgettable dream. But Harlan took my flushed reaction as a sign to take his touch further, snaking his hand around the side of my head and pulling me towards him until our lips pressed together.

The kiss started slow and gentle, and he licked at the strawberry powder on my lips like a man who’d been denied sweet delicacies for years.

Not wanting to overthink this, I pushed Rowen to the dark recesses of my mind just as Harlan’s tongue dove past my teeth. His lips picked up speed and urgency against mine, forcing my mouth to move to his rhythm.

His other palm traveled up the length of my leg until he grabbed me by the hip and pulled me down onto the cushions with a swift tug. He came up over me with the weight of an anvil, and I let out a small grunt as he sank me deeper into the couch.

The memory of when Rowen had rolled himself on top of me shivered through my being. I couldn’t help but think how conscientious he’d been with my body beneath his, how his welcoming pressure made it easier to breathe, not harder.

It was Rowen’s weight my body craved as Harlan smothered me with hot, breathy kisses. I begged myself to forget the phantom of my dreams. At least for now. There was no point in torturing myself, and I realized I’d desperately needed release since last night.

I tried to focus on Harlan’s hand tracing the taut skin of my belly. His touch was smooth and soft, not a single callous. You don’t get many of those from being a tech mogul.

He slinked his way up and under my shirt and palmed one of my bare breasts. At some point, he’d pressed a knee between my legs, rubbing at the seam of my jeans, and my body arched slightly at the contact.

I could feel him growing impatient, though I didn’t know what the hurry was. His free hand toyed with the waistband of my pants, working open the top button.

We had been intimate before, but this time it felt different, suffocating.

“There’s a hidden light about you,” he groaned at my throat. “I see it, and I don’t want anyone else to have it. Ever. No more of this open-relationship bullshit. Move in with me.”

I didn’t make a sound or even flinch. I was still somewhat pliant beneath his touch, imagining the life I could lead with him. And for a few moments, I contemplated it.

It wasn’t until Harlan’s eyes found mine that I stiffened completely.

Brown irises met mine. Not green.

My spine went as rigid as the line I was about to cross. Rowen may have only just appeared to me, but the feeling of him and this other life waiting to emerge from the dark side of the moon had always been here. There was nowhere I could push it, nowhere I could hide it where it wouldn’t be felt.

Something that inherently deep within me couldn’t be wrong or imagined. It was too much a part of me. Too intrinsic and ancient to be ignored.

I couldn’t go through with this. With any of it. No matter how much I tried to talk myself into it or how much Harlan wanted it. It wasn’t happening.

“Harlan,” I said, my voice completely flat. “I can’t do this.”

He lowered the zipper of my jeans and dipped his hand inside. “Come on, baby?”

Broadening the divide between my clothes, he pushed my shirt past my breasts as if searching for that light he swore he saw in me, as if he could reach in and take it, bottle it up, and put it on display for all to admire as his.

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