Goddess Revenge: Goddess Series Book 4 (Young Adult / New Adult) (11 page)

“Not yet,” he murmured.

Not yet
. She felt the blow to her chest. She knew what he meant, and there was no doubt he realized she wasn’t talking about herself when she said that. He’d once said he was a good player when they were at the fair during the fall, and she knew then what he’d meant by that too. He
was
a player.

A good one.

She stared at him as she stopped walking. He was the one to take the last remaining steps in her direction.

“Let’s get some fresh air,” he said softly.

Legacy nodded and headed outside, seeking the privacy of Calli’s backyard. She walked over to the outdoor fireplace and sat on the lavish patio couch, which was nice enough to be a settee in a formal living room of an upper-middle class home.

River sat beside her but not as close as before. She shivered as the cold night air hit her uncovered arms, and she lightly chafed them.

“Maybe
fresh
air wasn’t such a good idea,” she said with a chuckle.

River stood up and turned on the fireplace.

“Well, that was easy,” she muttered, rolling her eyes playfully.

“I know how to start a real fire too.” He laughed.

“Really? How?” With his godly abilities?

“Strike a match,” he said, chuckling as he sat down closer to her this time. He wrapped his arm around her, and she leaned into his side, cuddling against him for the warmth.

“Did you leave the media room,” River started softly, “because of what I just did?”

How to answer? She didn’t want her energy to be all over the place, but if he was forcing her to think about it, then she couldn’t lie. She figured he’d be able to tell. She took a deep breath and slowly said, “Not because of what you did. Because of how it made me feel.”

River leaned his head against the top of hers. “How did it make you feel?” he whispered into her hair.

She shivered as his hot breath coated her cold head, and he squeezed her tighter. “Wanted,” she whispered as she shut her eyes.

River groaned softly as he slid his hand onto the side of her face, holding her against his chest. “You know…you
know
how much I want you.”

“I know, River,” she breathed.

She tilted her head up to look at him. He looked at her for what seemed like an interminable amount of time while she gazed into his eyes. He slowly moved his head toward her until he softly closed his mouth over hers.

He kissed her slowly, taking his time as he gently stroked her face, her hair, her neck with both hands moving in opposite directions of each other. He kept his touch light, only once gripping her head when he moved it to the other side to briefly kiss her a little deeper.

Legacy had been kissing him back just as tenderly, but when he moved her head, she moaned. It was one thing to feel his hands gently caress her. It was something altogether different feeling him take control like that. There was no mistake—it was hot.

When she moaned, he pressed himself against her, but kept his caress—and his kiss—light as before, teasingly light. She knew he had to know what he was doing. She’d told him she left the media room because she felt wanted. She knew
he
wanted
her
. It was apparent now he was trying his hand at making her want
him
.

His delicate touch and feather light kiss were igniting a frenzied feeling she couldn’t explain. It was as if he were dangling something she had to have just out of her reach. Whatever he was doing to her, she was consumed with it.

She couldn’t take it anymore. She slid her hands into his hair, locking her fingers in his tresses and pulling his head against hers. She kissed him deeply, almost forcefully while she moaned into his mouth. She pressed as tightly as she could up against him.

He moaned in victory, banding his arms around her, kissing her hard. They both panted as they kissed fervently, holding and squeezing each other as tightly as they could manage through trembling arms. They were
both
shaking, and not because it was cold out.

As she kissed him, she couldn’t explain what was happening. She figured she had to be consumed by this because it was the thrill of the unknown. She’d only known one man to excite her, to make her feel like a desirable woman. A man she loved more than life itself.

So why was she kissing some other man, and why was she enjoying it? She wasn’t in love with River. She was in love with Adin. The only man she ever wanted to love.

River grabbed the tops of her arms and pushed her off him, suddenly breaking the kiss. “Fuck! That right there,” he said, irritated.

Startled, she said, “W-what?”

He crossed his arms over his chest and looked away.

“River?” she whispered. “What’s the matter?”

He shook his head, standing up. “I’m going home.”

“Why?” she asked, jumping up and grabbing his arm when he started to walk off. Her throat tightened.

He glared at her angrily while she stared at him wide-eyed. “Stop,” he said through his teeth while he twisted his arm away from her grip.

He stalked into the house, and she followed behind, not knowing what to say. He walked into the media room, but she kept walking down the hall to buy a few minutes before joining them. She had thought River changed his mind about going home and was going to start watching the movie again since he went into the media room, but she heard him announce he was leaving.

She headed to the door since she was ahead of River and knew that was where he was headed. When she reached the front entryway, she turned around, ready to face him. She wondered what he’d say, if he’d explain himself before leaving. She didn’t have to wonder long.

He didn’t say anything. He walked right up to the door beside her without looking at her, opened it, and slammed it shut as he left.

What the hell was wrong with him? She was pissed. But what shocked her was that she was hurt.

Oh gods, she felt like crying. Over River. What was happening to her?

Paul walked out of the media room with Calli beside him. They both looked shocked at the sudden turn of events.

“See you later,” Paul said as he glanced at Calli. He left without looking at Legacy either.

“What was that about?” Calli asked, stepping up to her.

“I-I don’t know. Er, we were kissing,” she said in a daze, “and he suddenly pushed me away and got up.” She shrugged, looking into the blank space of the hallway.

“If you were kissing him, why did he stop? You’re the number one person in his life.”

On a sigh, she said, “Because he’s not the number one person in my life, and he knows it.”

“Did you think about this scheme of yours while he was kissing you?”

“No, well, kinda. At the end, I did wonder why I was enjoying it since he wasn’t the man I love.”

“Legacy, you know River can feel your energy. He’s told you he can sense when you’re pulling him in and when you’re pushing him away.”

“Ugh, I know,” she said, shaking her head and walking away from the door.

“No. I don’t think you do,” she insisted.

Legacy turned around and looked at her with her eyebrows raised.

“He already knows you’re confused, that you’re pushing him away on some level, but how do you think he felt when you wanted to push him away when you were in the middle of, um …”

“Oh gods, you’re right! That’s it. I should go talk to him.”

Calli sighed, shaking her head. “Legacy, do you want to punish him or not?”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, you’re already torturing him. He knows that part of you wants him, and the other part doesn’t. You just repelled him when he was at his most vulnerable. Not that I think you should continue with this scheme, but it seems like it’s working.”

Calli was right. That was her goal—to make him suffer—but right now she really didn’t find any comfort in that. Maybe because she hadn’t planned on River suffering along the way. She expected to crush him in the end, not hurt him little-by-little. These little wounds to his ego would desensitize him to the big crush to come. She didn’t want that. What would be the point then?

She sighed. This plan was too complicated.

Revenge
was too complicated.

Chapter Nine

“Watch out, for he lies. Evil lies inside the good.”

Legacy awoke from her dream, realizing both warnings had been present. There was no mistake—both had to have been about the same man. Adin wasn’t evil, so that left one man. The man who stormed out on her last night.

She left Calli’s house early that morning because she didn’t want to chance seeing River. Now that he had time to calm down, she figured he’d be remorseful, but she needed time to think, to sort through things.

She drove home in a daze, staring out into the wintery morning. The chill in the air was depressing her even more. She didn’t really like the winter. She hated being cold. Of course her emotions could be causing the particularly icy feeling of this Saturday morning.

She walked into the house and passed Olive on the stairs. “If River comes over, I don’t want to see him,” she said without looking at her.

Legacy spent all day barricaded in her room. She read, watched TV, and caught up on homework. River never once showed up. When she got ready for bed, she put on her watch, smelling its metallic scent as she drifted off.

When she awoke Sunday, she decided to keep the watch on. It wasn’t as if she was going anywhere, and if she did, she’d just take it off. She liked the feel of it on. She missed having it where it belonged. She missed having Adin where he belonged, too, but she couldn’t dwell on that.

With nothing else to do, she spent the day thinking about everything. When she considered coming clean with River, letting him know she knew what he did, she’d think about her dream again. If her mother or her old soul was trying to warn her about River’s evil tendencies and lies, then she really didn’t need to anger him by coming clean with her plan to punish him. If she left that part out, he’d realize she’d played him. Why else would she be cozying up to a guy who she knew had betrayed her? River was too smart and perceptive for her to only confess part of this. She’d have to divulge everything. No way was that happening. Oh boy, she’d really made a mess of things.

A knock on her bedroom door jolted her out of her reverie. Since she had locked it to keep River from storming in, she had to get up.

“Who is it?” she asked while she unlocked it.

“Adin.”

Her heart squeezed in her chest. She slowly unlocked and opened the door, looking at the tall near-god in front of her. No matter how she thought River made her feel when she was with him, it didn’t even begin to compare to how Adin made her feel. Because there was no comparison. “Hi.”

“Can I come in?” he asked softly, looking into her eyes. She didn’t miss the bag he was holding.

“Um, sure.” She stepped away and motioned for him to enter. She happened to glance at her arm holding the door open. She was wearing the blasted watch! She’d worn it every day for months, so it didn’t surprise her that she had forgotten about it. She covertly put her wrist behind her back.

Adin sat on the edge of her bed and looked up at her. “How are you doing?”

She took a deep breath. “As well as to be expected.”

Adin pondered that for a moment, but didn’t push it. “Can you, er, come sit beside me? I have something for you.”

She stepped to the bed and sat beside him, keeping her watch from his view while wondering what he’d brought over.

“I’m leaving tomorrow after my last final,” he said, reaching in the bag, “so I won’t see you again until after Christmas.” She felt the blood drain from her face as he pulled out a beautifully wrapped gift draped in silver paper and a billowing bow. “Merry Christmas,” he murmured as he handed her the gift.

She felt numb. “Adin,” she breathed, reaching for the gift, not thinking about the watch. “I-I don’t know what to say. I didn’t get you anything. Well, I haven’t done any Christmas shopping yet,” she said with a shake of her head. This was so surreal.

“Don’t worry about getting me something,” he said while she stared at the gift. “And I didn’t spend a lot of money this time, so don’t worry about that, either,” he said, looking away.

She nodded while she started to tug on the bow.

“Wait,” Adin said as he reached up to stop her. She looked up at him, still in a daze. “I want you to open it on Christmas.”

She frowned at him. “But you won’t be here. Don’t you want to watch me open it?”

He chuckled softly. “I’d love to watch you open it, but, er, since I won’t be here, if you have something to open from me, then I can still be a part of your holiday.”

“Oh,” she murmured. “Well, do you want me to thank you now or later?” she asked with a small smile forming on her face.

“Both.” Adin smiled crookedly.

She sat the gift on the bed and wrapped her arms around him. “Thank you,” she whispered against his chest while she hugged him.

“My pleasure, sweetheart,” Adin said as he rubbed her back. “I hope you like it.”

She pulled away from him, looking into his eyes. “I’m sure I’ll love it.”

Adin reached up and tucked a stray piece of hair behind her ear, and her heartbeat quickened. “I love you, Legacy,” Adin whispered as he moved his hand from her ear to her cheek.

She shut her eyes. His touch was electric. There was no comparison to River or any other man for that matter, but she couldn’t get absorbed in this moment. Adin’s life depended on it. She must stay focused! She reached up and started to pull his hand off her face. “Adin, I—”

Adin lightly grasped her arm, and she opened her eyes, startled. He was staring at her watch. “
Legacy
,” he breathed. He pulled her wrist up to his face, his hand shaking, and pressed it against his cheek, shutting his eyes.

“Adin, it doesn’t change—”

“I know, princess,” he whispered without opening his eyes. “Just let me enjoy this moment, please.”

She kept quiet while Adin felt her watch on her wrist. It was the first time he’d seen her wear it since their breakup. She was sure he hoped there’d come a day when she’d wear it again. He was already privy to her sleeping in it, but he hadn’t actually witnessed that. He lowered her arm and wrapped both his hands tightly around her hand as he opened his eyes.