Page 37 of A Lesson in Obedience
River and I knew about Marianne already, but even I wasn’t that much of an asshole to touch that subject. That memory would haunt her forever; it was something she would never be able to change. There were things that graced my mind, things I would rather leave in the past and didn’t like bringing it up because I didn’t want to relive it. I had the luxury of doing just that because no one really knew about them.
We were all aware of her situation. She had nowhere to hide when it came to that loss she dealt with, so the best place to go wasto retreat within herself, keep it buried down so that no one would inspect or poke at it. I heard her sniff and I focused my attention on her again.
“There are more lives than just ours when you really think about it and you want to stand in front of me, without an ounce of empathy and tell me in a less pretentious way that I should just deal with it better?”
“Don’t put words in my mouth, Riley. That is not at all what I said.” I let myself step closer to her this time. “You are allotted your time and space to grieve and feel fucking upset, but I won’t have you deciding at any random moment that we are changing the plan, that you don’t want to do this or that you are going to go it alone, whether that be due to Grayson or whatever reason that pretty brain of yours can conjure up.”
I wasn’t sure if the heat I felt from her body was due to the fact that she could turn into a human inferno at any point or if it was entirely natural. Up close, I got to notice more things, like the way her eyes were dilated and the nonchalant way I could tell she was pressing her thighs together. Her shoulders were slightly tensed, and a light pink hue appeared on her cheeks from her frustration. Her hoop nose ring glinted even in my dim bedroom light.
I could have kissed her. Iwantedto kiss her. She could be so infuriatingly upset with me. Fuck, she could hate me, and I still wanted to kiss her and then let her leave because I wouldn’t let myself have anything more than that.
She huffed, her eyes narrowing to an almost lethal degree. “If I know you at all, you would have been fucking pissed at Grayson. You would be fighting against him, yet here you are defending him in some weird way.”
“Let me remind you again, don’t put words in my mouth. I am not defending your little shadow wielder. Rage and upset were my first reactions to what he did, but I realized something that I hope you are slowly figuring out. You are all in your twenties and every thing that comes your way, every single inconvenience, causes you tothink that there is no way out. There are a few who are the exception, but he is not. He’s a smart kid and you can’t just look me in the eyes, little liar, and tell me that isn’t true.”
She sucked in a sharp breath and I sighed harshly. “We’ve all fucked up, Riley. We’ve all made shitty decisions and some of those decisions deserve punishment. The individuals also deserve to be heard and it may fucking hurt to listen, but you need to do it. And then you speak on your demands, what you want and how you see things moving forward.” My voice was stern and precise.
She pressed her lips into a hard line. I could tell she was taking in what I was saying and maybe I should have waited to throw all this glowing wisdom at her later on, but she had me impatient with how she continuously fought against me.
“Please, stop telling me what I need, for fucks sake,” she said the words through her teeth. “You speak like you seemingly have my best interest at heart, like you have everyone’s. Your dad taskedyouwith getting into my head and making me hurt.” She pushed her finger into my chest, pressing into the fabric of my shirt. I didn’t feel any pain, but maybe that wasn’t the point. “The ultimatum between your brother and me. That seems like an easy choice, Asher. Hey, River might not ever look at you the same if you fuck me over, but at least your dad will leave him alone. I’m not dumb!”
I pushed against her finger at my chest. “I told him no. I’ve already told River I would never. This whole argument is ridiculous, even for you.”
A pulsating shove hit my chest. I was thrown backwards onto my bed, planting my hands on the comforter. I sat up, adjusting myself so that I was on the edge when she came up to me, placing herself between my open legs. She leaned towards me, placing her hand on my shoulder. I felt a force holding me down. It was like my bones, my body mass, everything was bolted into place and there was no way of getting out.
She was still undisciplined, but she wasn’t so feeble. Her emotions would always get in her way and at some point, she woulduse her powers to really hurt someone that didn’t deserve it. Fuck, maybe she already had. Being a Celica legacy gave her magic a lot of strength and I was afraid she had no idea what to do with it when it all started to come out in waves. That kind of magic could consume her in an unhealthy manner.
“Just because I go along with you and listen to your plans does not mean I trust you. For now, River is theonlyone I trust. Your brother seems to believe what you say, but anyone with half a brain knows that it’s because he’s your family, Asher.” Her breath washed over my face and my hands nearly tore at my bedspread, wanting to slide up her legs and under her shirt. “I’m just a girl you fucked because your resistance got weak.”
I cut my eyes to her mouth and then quickly looked back into her eyes. “Don’t insult me. And it’s beneath you to insult yourself.” Her power quickly lessened and the minute I felt my own strength return, I popped up from the bed and started walking forward. I towered over her causing her to walk backwards towards the wall next to my door. I placed both my hands on either side of her head against the wall, caging her in. “You asked me if I simply liked control or if I actually gave a shit. My control allows me the luxury of giving a shit. That control is being tampered with by my fucking father and now you’re undermining it by thinking I’m not on your side. If you want to believe that, then fine, I can only continue to do what I’m doing.”
My fingers slowly curled into my palm against the wall. I berated myself internally over and over again not to touch her. If I touched her, that resistance she mentioned would deplete yet again. “You want to harp on me about resistance, so be it. I went easy on you in my bathroom anyway, but oh, little liar, let's not forget that you were less than amicable to me until you realized my thoughts. Your resistance weakened, same as mine.”
I could have sworn I heard our hearts beating rapidly, the sound thrumming in my ears. I watched her throat move as she swallowed and that pink hue at her cheeks got deeper. “You didn’t eventhink about it a little when your dad told you what he wanted you to do?”
I let out an exasperated breath. “No, Riley. I can resist my father. I have learned to withstand his threats.”
She reached up and lightly touched my hand, tracing her fingers against the skin. “Lucky you. I have to figure out how to withstand mine.” Her touch was searing, and I wanted more of it. “Asher, do you think our resistance fumbled because?—”
I cleared my throat, pulling away from her. “I need to do some things that don’t involve you being in my room, especially without pants on.”
She looked as if I’d just slapped her in the face. Her eyes darted from the open doorway, then back to me. “Okay, if you want me to leave all you have to do…”
“Leave.” The word was harsh and I surprisingly regretted it. “Please. I just need to concentrate, and I can’t do that with you here.” I definitely couldn’t since instead of focusing, I would be bending her over my work desk, pressing her face into the wood and making her thank me for letting her come.
She could get that kind of distraction, that kind of care, from my brother. I shook my head and watched her start to leave. I closed my eyes, tapping my fingers on the outside of my thigh. “Wait.”
She had grabbed the doorknob and was about to close it when she stopped. “What?” she snapped.
I opened my hand and she watched as a translucent gray outline formed in my palm. It pulsed and soon, it burst into something that made her place her fingers over her mouth.
“Is that…” She tentatively pointed at my palm. “Is that my necklace?”
Her previously shattered necklace sat in my palm, the delicate piece of jewelry shined as if it was brand new. The ruby color was vibrant and sparkled.
“What? H-how?” she stuttered, picking it up as if it might disappear.
I ran a hand through my hair, giving a slight shrug. “I think it’s common knowledge that oneiromancy can involve pulling things from dreams and into reality. It’s easy when it’s your own dream, but it takes practice and lots of headaches to be able to do it with someone else’s.”
