Page 6 of Weave the Dark, Weave the Light
Jonathan—the fucking elemental star—looked at his hands. “Yes. But your cell number’s not a piece of you.” He drew the citrine from his coat pocket and turned it over in his fingers. “This is.”
Ari curled their hands into the scarf, wishing they were curled in Jonathan’s hair. “But you can’t use that to ask me out for coffee.”
Jonathan focused entirely on Ari. “It’s not coffee I want.”
Desire ripped through Ari. They grasped the scarf, the licks of element coming off of Jonathan, and pulled both close to themself.
Jonathan’s eyes flickered, as if in pleasure. “Maybe youaredangerous, little witch.”
“Oh, I am.” Sitting next to Jonathan chased away the worries and the doubts of the morning. This feltright. They’d ponderwhylater. “There’s a price for more.” Despite being wicked and honed, Ari had also been hot and sharp most of their life.
“So you’ve named.” Thoughtfulness in the set of his mouth. “Control is a heady thing, and I’m your equal, Ari.”
Equal. Ari turned that unfathomable piece of knowledge over in their head, and wanted to dispute it, but Jonathan spoke it as fact. “Wouldn’t be all the time,” they said. “Just—in certain situations.”
A slow nod. “Not over coffee, I expect.”
Ari laughed. Couldn’t help it. TheylikedJonathan, in that moment. Trepidation clung to Ari—Jonathan wasn’t human and he wore power like a second skin—but he was also intriguing and smiled like sunlight.
“I’ll pay your price,” he said, just like that.
Ari exhaled, and yes, control took their mind into the clouds. There were so many ways this could go wrong. They leaned close to his beautiful face and whispered, “My stop is coming up, so here’s what’s going to happen.” They pressed a hand over the citrine, palm touching Jonathan’s where it could. “You’re going to find me after work, treat me to a lovely dinner like the gentleman you are; then I’m going to take you home, tie you up, and fuck you like the monster I am.”
Jonathan’s feral smile returned, and he moved his lips close to Ari’s. “Reckless.”
“You can say no.” They wanted to lean in and kiss him, but their stop was next.
“You know I won’t,” Jonathan said. “Your offer is interesting.”
Ari couldn’t help a grin of their own. They reached back and hit the strip to signal the bus stop. “It’s not an offer, Jonathan.”
“Ah.” If anything, his smile deepened.
They bumped his legs. “Time for me to go.”
He nodded and tucked the citrine back in his pocket before standing. Ari slid into the aisle, but not before Jonathan brushed a hand down Ari’s back. “I want my spell, though.”
“You’ll get it. I don’t break promises.” They caught Jonathan’s hand and squeezed. “Any of them.” They let go and headed to the front of the bus. Didn’t look back when they stepped off. Jonathan might be there—or might not. They had no idea how this elemental existed in the world, except that, somehow, Jonathan was real and solid to Ari.
So, they were going to do exactly what they said they would. Maybe more time with Jonathan would unlock the spell he was so desperate for Ari to weave.
3
Just after five,Ari walked out of the office. They hadn’t expected Jonathan to be waiting in the lobby. Same peacoat, same pale hair, golden skin, and tantalizing smile. He turned the citrine over in his hand, and his bright blue eyes burned straight through Ari.
The pack of coworkers they’d left with broke apart, with choruses of “Good night” and “See you Monday.” Ari murmured some kind of response, their being entirely focused on Jonathan.
“Ari.” He said their name like a prayer, as if there was no one else in the lobby. He held out his arm, as if they were on adate. “Shall we?”
“This isn’t a romance, Jonathan.” Still, they took his arm.
“Oh, I’m aware.” Together they pushed through the doors into the evening.
“What do you think this is?”
Jonathan guided them through the streets of Pittsburgh, the air blustery, dry, and harsh, hinting at the winter to come. “A beginning.”
They shook their head. That had been last night. They had prices and promises between them. “We’ve already started.”
