“Then do it. What’s stopping you?”
Life. Me. Everything. “It’s just not my time.”
“It is. Only you are in the way of your destiny.”
That earns him an eyeroll. “What does that even mean?”
His palms skate along my hips, and I squeal when he whips me around, hanging my body over the ledge. “Macareus!” A hand reaches inside my back pocket. Stretching around for me to see, he reveals a tarot card. “How did that—?”
“Nine of pentacles, mon cherie. My naive little bird is trapped by something or someone and is too timid to free herself and fly away. What traps you, love?”
My heart hammers inside my chest. The animated street below is alive with people moving and swaying to the music. Even from so high above, I can smell the promiscuity in the air. Feel it in my bones. Women revealing their breasts. Men exposing themselves. They dance and drink, celebrating life and death.
Cool air glides over my heated skin as he leans us farther over the edge. “What confines you? Fly away, Katie. Let go of the hurt you harbor, and in its place will come the luxuries you desire. Become the falcon and find your wings, enjoy the fruits of your labor. Fly, cherie.”
I shake my head. I can’t. I’m too afraid of falling. Getting hurt again. What if I’m not strong enough to take this flight? “I can’t.”
His lips press against my earlobe, and my eyes flutter. “So beautiful when you’re scared. I can smell the fear on your sweet skin. Makes me curious if you taste sweet in other places. Does fear turn you on, cherie?” His fingers grip harder at my waist. He could drop me at any moment and I would freefall to my own death. But something inside me tells me not to be afraid. “Or is it excitement? The thrill that I can release you at any moment? What if I took back my promise and touched you? Here, possibly…” His fingers journey lower, and my eyes fall shut as he grazes too close to my sex. I’m still hypersensitive from the scene at the club and I would instantly combust.
“So tempting. You know what you want, Katie. Ask for it.” He pushes my boundaries even further and caresses my sex over my jeans. I hate the material standing in his way of what I really want. His hands inside me. His tongue tasting me. I want to rid myself of all past evils and soar into something new and wickedly dangerous.
“If I released you, would you fall or fly, love?” Before I have a chance to answer him, he lets go. The heat of his finger disappears. My eyes widen and my lungs tighten as a scream expels up my throat. Everything rushes by in a blur. The intense speed constricts my throat. I can’t breathe. The warm night air pushes against my face, and I close my eyes, preparing for the devastation.
Be the falcon, Love. Embrace the unknown.
Macareus’s voice vibrates inside my mind. A buzz of electricity jolts though me, his words sending fury through my veins. This isn’t the end for me. I refuse to let James win.
I want to be free.
I blink, awaiting my pending doom, when suddenly, time rewinds and I’m back in Macareus’s arms. My chest constricts, trying to get air into my lungs. He flips me, cradling me in his arms. His silvery gaze is cool and calm as I stare back, panicked.
My voice shivers. “How—how did you—?”
“What do you want, Katie?”
My entire body is on fire. My breathing won’t settle, my heart hammering like a heavy drum inside my chest, my mind jumbled with the chaos of the night. “Is this real? Are you real?” I can’t explain what’s happening, and I’m not sure I’m prepared to hear his answers.
“I can answer that, but I would be breaking my promise.”
“How?”
“Because I told you I wouldn’t be the one to touch you, but I’m going to break that promise and kiss you. And you’re going to feel more alive than you ever have.”
My breath hitches. I can’t will my eyes away from his as he leans into me, his fingers digging deeper into my waist, capturing me tightly against him. His lips fall to mine, and he doesn’t just kiss me, he consumes me, possesses me, smooth and cool to the touch, balancing out my overheated skin. My body becomes not my own as his fingers journey to my butt, leaving streaks of heat in their wake. He presses me to him, and the feel of him hard against me threatens to bring me to my death.
When he slows and pulls away, I’m convinced I’ve already died and gone to heaven.
“How do you feel?” he asks.
“Like this is all a dream,” I confess. “That you’re not real and I’ve completely lost my mind.”
“Maybe it’s the death of your fears. Because you’re very much alive, cherie.”
A bell rings in the distance, stealing his attention. “We need to go.” He grabs my hand, hurrying us off the roof. We hustle through the courtyard and down another alley until we reach an old cemetery.
“What are we doing here?” I ask, curious how we got here so fast. We were just in the French Quarter. There’s no way…
“Dance with me,” he says, avoiding my question. He pulls me into him.
“In a dark cemetery? Seems kind of creepy, don’t you think?”
He laughs, planting his hands around my waist. “I find it quite intriguing and romantic.” He slides them to my butt cheeks and retrieves another tarot card out of my pocket.
“I swear to God, where are those coming from?”
“The mystery of it all…isn’t it exhilarating?” I give him my crazy eye. “Are you curious what it says?”
Yes. No. Each card so far has brought clarity and excitement. What do I have to lose now?
“What does it say?”
He flips the card, revealing the drawing of the man holding swords—the same card the tarot reader
