Page 31 of How To Summon A Memory
That narrows it down even further.
Ethan: Straight on, or from an angle?
Wick: Angle. I can barely see the pool house, too.
Narrows it down the most.
Ethan: Down to seven crossroads. I’ll find you, Wick.
Chapter 15
Warwick
I paceFlutter and Fangs so much, Frankie whines and trots beside me. Everyone else continues on with transforming the place into a majestic wonderland for the masquerade party, but now I can’t concentrate.
“Hey,” Wren, Lark’s older brother, also a Fae, pops his head into the backroom I’m hiding in. He looks so much like Lark. Sometimes the only way I can tell the two apart is by their hair. Lark’s is bubblegum pink, while Wren’s is stark white. “You okay?” He pops something in his mouth as he strolls into the room.
“I’m fine. Just nervous, I guess.” Which is ridiculous.
“Wanna tell me why?” Wren plops down on one of the benches lining the far wall and pats the spot beside him.
He usually has solid advice, so I join him. “Me and Ethan have been apart so long. I have this image, this memory of him, but we were so much younger then. What if we aren’t compatible anymore?”
Wren shrugs. “You’ll just have to wait and see.”
“I know you’re right.”
“I usually am.” He grins and I knock my shoulder into his. “We’re almost done out there if you wanna check out our handiwork. I brought in some Fae flare.”
My phone vibrates, and I laugh when I read the text.
Ethan: First crossroads was someone named Crawford. You should have seen his face when I broke the circle without uttering a word to him.
“I think I want to see the final look when I show up to the party. Will you tell the others I left?”
“I will. I’ll see you then.”
Before Wren can leave the room, I’m at my crossroads behind the veil, just watching and waiting for Ethan. It’s like a scavenger hunt, almost. I hate that he’s out here in the dark all alone, though. While Hex is safe, it still worries me. His essence calls to mine and I find him easily on a walk over to another crossroads.
“Wick!” He runs to me, but we both stop short of hugging each other. His blue eyes sparkle in the dark night. He has a halo of stars behind him.
“I want to touch you so badly,” I admit. Hold him in my arms to feel the weight of him. Press my lips to his.
“Same,” he whispers. “And I’m sorry, but I looked, well, Vi looked everywhere for how to break the spell so we can remove the pendant, but she nor I found anything.”
“It’s okay,” I say, hesitating as I place my hands on his shoulders. “And I think as long as we don’t touch skin to skin, we’ll be fine.”
Awkwardly, we hug, keeping faces, necks, and hands away from each other, but it’s the best hug I’ve had in a long, long time.
“I want this gone,” Ethan says as he tugs on the pendant.
When he lets it fall back against his chest, I try my luck, though it doesn’t budge.
“I want to remember everything.” He drops his head to add, “I want to kiss you, but only if you want that, too. There’s something in the back of my head that says you might not be agreeable to it, but I hope it’s wrong.”
I raise a hand. “I absolutely want to kiss you.” I dream of it some nights, especially now that we’ve reunited. “Perhaps your memory is coming back slowly. I told you years ago I was somewhere on the asexual spectrum.” The more I think about it, demi-sexual is probably where I land. “When it comes to you, I want kisses, maybe more.” I’m glad I’m not that awkward teenager about it anymore. I’ve never felt broken about any of it, but it’s weird to talk about.
“I’m a virgin,” Ethan blurts. “A lot of people lose their virginity in college, but I was still a kid and so exhausted it never crossed my mind. Then I was just always busy. And I think in the back of my mind I always knew there was someone I was waiting for and it was the pretty demon in my dreams.” He sucks in a breath, going bright pink. He’s so cute. “I’m not ashamed. Just wanted you to know.”
