Page 12 of Frost
“I thought I warned you against exploring.”
A smile breaks across my face. I look up to see Jack on the branch directly above me. “Are you stalking me now?”
Jack’s hair falls forward as he leans down to me, that mischievous smile tucked into the corner of his mouth. “It’s possible. Though I wonder if it’s actually the other way around. You’re the one who came here to findme.”
“And why would I do that?” I ask in the same teasing tone.
“Because.” He grabs the branch and swings down in front of me before standing to his full height. He’s an inch or two taller than me, standing at six foot one or more. For someone of his stature, he’s seriously light on his feet. He moves closer, and our chests nearly touch. “You fancy me.”
“Fancy you?” I scoff. “I don’t even know you.”
“Yes, but you want to.”
My mouth snaps closed. There’s no point in denying it when I’m sure the truth is written so clearly on my face.
“Why are you even in these woods?” I ask to change the subject. “This is a long way from Greece.”
“You do know I’m well over a thousand years old, yes?” Jack chuckles as he takes in my expression. “Or perhaps you haven’t considered it. I’m sure it’s hard for a mortal to comprehend such a long lifespan.”
“But you look like you’re my age,” I respond. “Younger, even.”
“I stopped aging after my twenty-first year.” Jack turns his face to the sky and closes his eyes, soaking up the sun. As the rays shine down on him, it looks as if ice crystals are embedded in his porcelain skin. He’s so goddamn beautiful. “As for your question, I have no answer.” His eyes open, and the way the light hits his blue irises makes them look like they’re glowing. “Something drew me here long ago. Like a fire in my belly I couldn’t ignore. I leave every so often and visit other parts of the world, but I always come back.”
“How long have you been here?” I walk toward a fenced-in area in the backyard, probably where animals were once kept.
“Nineteen years,” Jack answers.
I stop in place and turn to him. “The first time we met.”
He nods. “When I first arrived in these woods, I heard a small voice calling out for help. I went to investigate and found you curled up in the snow, your little hands frozen and your cheeks stained with cold tears. I knew then you were the reason I was pulled to this area.” Jack smiles at me. “Now it seems you’re the one being drawn to where I am.”
“What do you mean?” It’s hard to breathe, let alone speak. Something’s shifting between me and him. I feel it in my very core. That fire he mentioned earlier swirls deep inside my chest and spreads all throughout my body.
“Because you came back.”
“Jack…” With one step, I close the small gap between us. It’s like gravity’s pulling us together—unstoppable, just like my connection to him. He doesn’t move away. Whatever I feel, he must feel it too. I hope he does anyway.
Only one way to find out.
I slide my hand to his nape and softly bring our lips together. He tastes like winter berries and peppermint, and he’s warm, as if I’m sitting in front of a lit hearth, feeling the echo of flames on my skin. At first, he doesn’t react at all. He stands frozen just like the winter wonderland around us. My lips stop moving, but they remain on his.
And then he kisses me back, gripping the side of my coat to tug me closer.
“Luka,” he says with a sigh against my mouth before diving back in for another kiss.
The world quiets around us as we revel in the taste of each other, and only the sounds of our soft breaths fill the silence of the wintery woods. And within that silence, a spark is born, one that bursts to life in my chest and soars through me, nearly bringing me to my knees. A spark I’ve never felt with anyone else.
“We mustn’t do this,” Jack says, pulling back from me. Within seconds, he’s out of my reach, having leapt away from me and landing softly on the balls of his feet in the snow.
“Why not?” I hate the whine in my voice, but I can’t hide my disappointment. In a single moment, my whole life—my very existence—shifted. For the first time ever, I felt that heart-melting, take your breath away, weak-kneed attraction to someone.
And in the very same moment, it was ripped away from me.
Jack shakes his head, his expression veering on panicked. He looks taken off guard, as if, perhaps, he feels that same life-altering connection that I do and it scares him. “You’re the light, and I’m the dark. Summer and winter. Fire and ice.”
“You felt pretty damn warm to me,” I say, stepping toward him.
“I’m not even human, Luka.” Jack moves back with each of my steps, as if we’re doing a kind of dance. But finally, I reach him.
