Total pages in book: 53
Estimated words: 51038 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 255(@200wpm)___ 204(@250wpm)___ 170(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 51038 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 255(@200wpm)___ 204(@250wpm)___ 170(@300wpm)
“You don’t get it,” he says. “The glasses are me. They’re the only power I have.”
“You’re right, I don’t get you. I have no idea who you are. But Apollo sent you, Quaid. Which means you’re necessary. You should let that be enough for now.” Then I slap him on the shoulder. “Come on.”
“Where are we going?”
“To watch, of course.”
I snicker all the way over to the doorway of the bathroom and then lean up against the wall on one side, while Quaid leans up against the other.
“Shhhhh,” I say, putting a finger to my lips.
Then I peak around the corner.
Star and Aric are having one of those awkward sixth-grade, spin-the-bottle moments. In other words, acting like a couple of teenagers who both know they like each other, they're just not sure how to get from first to second base.
Aric mumbles something, which makes Star move in closer to him. Her breasts press up against his chest as her hands move down to his waist and then slowly begin to explore his back. Lucky bastard is already shirtless, having taken it off, so this skin-on-skin contact excites him enough to place his hands on her face and give in. If it was ever a struggle in the first place. Chills erupt all over his tattooed torso and I realize, I’m holding my breath, waiting for them to kiss.
It doesn’t disappoint. The moment their lips touch, all the reservations are gone. Aric leans in, opening his mouth, and Star responds by leaning up on her tiptoes. He holds her face in his hands and I’m actually getting excited, heart pounding in my chest, as Star’s fingertips play with the button on his jeans.
Next to me, Quaid exhales loudly. “Fuck, that shit is hot.”
And I’m about to laugh and agree, when the two lovers just… disappear.
17 - STAR
My lips against Aric’s feel sensitive and tender, almost charged with electricity. When we first came into the bathroom, there was an awkward moment. Aric was looking down at his feet worried about the maze and how I might be drawn in to it. “I don’t want that for you,” he whispered. “I wouldn’t want anyone to have to run this maze.” His gaze came up just enough to look me in the eye. “Honestly, Star, I wouldn’t wish that punishment on my worst enemy.”
There was so much emotion in that gaze it made my heart skip a beat. So much pent up… anger? Fear? Disappointment?
How must it feel to realize that your own father thought less of you than his worst enemy?
This only drew me further in to this mysterious man. I pressed up against him, wanting to be closer. My nipples peaked in anticipation as they pushed into his chest and my hands started wandering across his hips, fingertips dragging along the bare skin of his back.
I knew the kiss was coming, even before Aric leaned down. So I rose up on my tiptoes to meet him halfway. When our lips touched—my god, it sent a shock through my whole body. And then the kissing, which started slow and filled with hopeful expectations turned into something more like lust.
That’s when the shift happened.
Aric and I both pull apart at the same time. I gasp, and in the same moment, he says, “Oh, fuck. What did we do?”
It’s dark where we are, so I don’t know what’s happening other than, we are no longer in his bathroom. “Where—”
Suddenly, Aric is behind me, one hand clasped tightly over my mouth, the other snaked possessively around my waist, holding me close to him. “Shh,” he whispers in my ear. “Don’t say anything.”
I have a million questions, but Aric does not loosen his hand over my mouth, so I can’t ask them. He’s looking around, almost frantically.
And then I hear what he’s looking for. A snort, off in the distance. And then I smell it. The stench of animal.
Aric begins to back up, looking around as he goes. We take about ten steps like this and then he pulls me off the main corridor and into a side path. “No talking,” he whispers, still pulling me backwards with him. “Don’t say anything until I get us somewhere safe.” We round a corner, then he takes his hand off my mouth, spins me forward as he turns, takes my hand, and starts to run.
As if this couldn’t get any weirder, something else happens. The walls begin to sing. A note here, a melody there. And words too. I can’t make sense of them, but I can clearly hear a song!
My song.
And even though he’s a big guy, he’s not slow. So much faster than me, I’m being pulled along. And the faster we go, the quicker the song becomes. The beat of the music matches the panicked rhythm of my heart.