Page 131 of Damned and Broken Gods
“No!” Number Four ran toward the treeline, only to rebound off an invisible wall and fall back on her ass.
Number Two hurried to help her up.
I walked toward the treeline, cautiously scanning the air, eyes slightly out of focus, looking for a barrier but seeing nothing. I put my hand out, palm up, and stepped forward until a sharp tingling bit at my skin.
I pulled back. “We’re trapped.”
A male voice answered. Not Number Three. Someone new. “Well, if that isn’t a defeatist attitude.” A man strolled out of the treeline. Tall, broad-shouldered, wearing a cream shirt, sleeves rolled up, front partially unbuttoned to showcase a smooth brown chest. His dark hair was tousled, his jade eyes sharp and bright in a face that was all angles and sharp features. “Hello, all.” He raised a hand in a wave that was meant to encompass the group. “Need a little help?”
“Who are you?” Number One demanded.
“A friend,” he said, his gaze locking on to me as if he was speaking just to me. “I thought I might be able to give you a little nudge.”
He walked toward the invisible barrier, and I took several steps back to keep a distance between us.
“He passed through it!” Number Two pointed out, a little redundantly, but still.
“Oh, that old thing?” He jerked a thumb toward the barrier. “That only keeps you trapped if you don’t remember who you are…or if you think you don’t.” He winked at me, and warmth bloomed across my collarbones.
“Do I…do I know you?”
He smiled, slow and sexy. “I mean, that is one of the oldest chat-up lines, isn’t it?”
I blinked sharply. “I’m not…I wasn’t.”
“Shame.” He shrugged. “But to answer your question, yes and no.”
“What does that mean?”
“Do you want to waste time on that question, or do you want me to help you remember who you are?”
“Helpherremember?” Number Two said. “What about us?”
He moved a step closer, his eyes glinting strangely in the gloom. “Frankly, the rest of you aren’t my problem, but if you must know, all it takes is one of you to remember. Memory is like an infection. It will spread. And lucky for you, I’m not bound to the system.” He lowered his tone to a whisper. “It doesn’t see me.” He brought his finger to his lips in the universal hush sign and stepped even closer. This time, I held my ground. “Will you allow me to help you remember?” His tone softened, his gaze raking over me.
“How?”
“You anchored one memory. I can help you bring it to the surface. But I will have to touch you.”
“Whoa!” Number Three rushed forward to stand beside me. “What kind of touching are we talking about?”
The man didn’t take his gaze off me. “A kiss. One kiss.”
Something stirred in the back of my mind—a nudge, a flicker.
“You don’t have to do this,” Number One said. “We have no idea who this guy is. He could be a creep.”
The jade-eyed man merely smiled, his gaze soft as he waited for my answer.
If this could help me remember, and my gut told me it would, then I had to try. “It’s fine. I’ve kissed plenty of creeps in my time. One more won’t make a difference.”
Number Two snort-laughed.
“Try anything funny and I’ll kick your ass,” Number Three said to the man.
The man nodded. “But fair warning, there will be tongue.”
“Ew,” Number One said.
