Waters of Oblivion

Chapter 12.4: The Test

"What? What did you realize?" He moved his head, trying to get into her line of sight and regain her attention.

She looked back at him and forced a smile. "I realized that being around you brought out another side of me, and I wasn't sure if I was ready to accept that."

Hopefully he'd believe the quick cover-up of what she had almost allowed to slip out. Just in case, she needed to move on, so she plowed through with the story.

"Anyway, I'm also pretty sure I got tipsy from one tiny bottle from the mini-bar, and you brought me my shoes, which I had idiotically forgotten to put back on in the gondola," she said.

"Damn." He pressed his lips together into a thin line and shook his head. "I thought you'd left them on purpose so I'd have a chance to go up to your room after you."

She laughed again, very aware now of the touch of his hands still resting on her waist. "Oh, believe me, I'm not that slick. But I suppose it could have been subconscious."

"Do you remember anything else? By the time I got back up to you, you were a bit . . . wobbly."

She sighed. "Not much. I mean even all of that was spotty, like seeing certain quick frames from a movie. But the rest is much vaguer."

"That's too bad," he said with a frown.

"Is there something you want to fill me in on?" she asked with increased curiosity.        

He took a deep breath. "Let's see. You asked for help with your dress, and if I remember correctly, you had your back to me something like this." He pivoted her around to illustrate his point.

She glanced back at him over her shoulder. "And then you fidgeted with the lacing of the corset."

He lightly touched the base of her neck with a gesture meant to mimic the actions of that night. A shiver ran up her spine in response to his touch. There was no way of hiding the goose bumps on her bare arms.

He continued to move his warm fingers along her skin. They were no longer reminiscing about the past, but instead in a brand new moment.    

Reine swallowed. "Was there, uhm, anything else?" she asked.

Instead of answering, he stood up and slowly spun her back around to face him. His baby-blue eyes under the familiar mop of tousled blonde hair made Reine's heartbeat accelerate. Surely, it was going to explode right out of her chest.

"No, nothing else. Because I never got to do this." He cupped her face in both hands and bent down to kiss her.

It was exactly what she needed, but nothing like what she would have expected.

Unlike the night before, her attention was fully focused on him, and the passion was almost overwhelming. This time, there wasn't any hesitation on either of their parts. Grabbing the front of his shirt with her good hand, Reine drew him closer until there was no space separating them. This just fired him up even more. Before she knew it, he had sat back down on the stool, pulling her between his open knees.

Her senses exploded as she tasted a faint hint of coffee on his lips and smelled his usual soap on his skin. The sounds of their mutual exhales and soft moans intermingled to the point where she wasn't sure who was making them.

When they paused for a proper breath, he only drew his face a few inches away from hers. "Hmm, I've been looking forward to that."

She cocked an eyebrow. "You were that confident in yourself, huh?"

He winked back. "It was just a matter of time."

"So, did it meet your expectations?" She smiled.

"Well, let me just double-check." He softly parted her lips again with his own. "Absolutely. But before I triple-check, I think it's time to see that hand."

After removing the bandages, he drew his finger along the now unblemished skin of her palm. "You know, I wouldn't have minded if this hadn't healed."

Although Reine had wished for the same thing, Gabe's reaction to it surprised her. "Really? You mean you wouldn't have missed being with a girl with superpowers?"

"I'm sure it would have been a huge deal for you, but frankly, I think life is only worth living when you have something to lose. I wouldn't give up my humanity for any price."

She tilted her head. "Your humanity? Don't you mean mortality?"

"Humanity, mortality, they're all the same," he said with a shrug.

Reine pulled her hand out of his grip and took a small step backward. "No, they're not. Because if they were, that would mean immortals were inhuman. Surely you don't think that?"

"I didn't say that, but living forever is unnatural."

"What about Mal?" She asked as she spread her arms out. "He's your best friend, after all."

He nodded. "Yes, but that's in spite of being one of you, not because of it."

"One of us?" Reine snapped her arms back to her side. "All right. So what about me, then? Have you even really considered how I fit into your life?"

He crossed his arms. "I could ask you the same thing."

"What are you talking about?" She took another step backwards.

He frowned. "Not what. Who."

"Seriously?" She rubbed her temple. "You're going to drag Max into this? Because that's who you mean, right? He has nothing to do with this conversation."

Gabe stood. "I beg to differ. He has everything to do with it. Don't you see that until your issues with him are settled, he'll always be between us? And you know what? You are going to have to make a decision sooner or later. Call me when you figure it out."

He stormed out so fast that Reine didn't even have a chance to protest further. She was left wondering how Gabe managed to manipulate the topic so smoothly that even though he basically referred to her as inhuman, she ended up looking – and feeling – like the bad guy.