It pops open and she’s stacking a roll of cash, passports, and a jewellery box into her luggage.
“You told me you remember what happened.”
She finally pauses what she’s doing and looks up at me from her knees. Her eyes are wide, that all-consuming deep bronze colour is threatening to swallow me whole. And I want it to, because then I don’t have to show her this. She nods her head for me to continue.
“I just saw a picture-”
“Of me,” she interjects. Her voice is stern, accusatory, unlike the Delphini who speaks to me every day. It’s like a punch in the gut. “I knew that they would get shared, part of the whole master plan.”
“What plan?” I ask, my fingers clenched around my phone.
I don’t know why I am angry at her. She has a right to her own fucking story. But I’m furious with myself as well. If I had done this right from the start. Everything would be different. We could have been different. There are people across the world who get to see her last horrid moments, and she’s resigned to it.
“For Miles to get out of our sham engagement and gain access to my trust.”
“Why the fuck didn’t you say anything sooner?”
“Because what good would it have done?” She stands up now, and the note of anger in her voice calls to mine. “What could you possibly have done?”
“I know people, they can-”
“Can what? Erase lewd pictures from the internet? “She hurls her questions at me like she would a fist. “You say you want to help me, Orthia, then help me. I need to harness Love’s power and get my revenge. What will hiding those pictures do for me now, Captain?”
With my title on her tongue, I couldn’t stop myself from grabbing hold of her sweatshirt. There are tears in her eyes. Anger seeps from her pores and yet she holds onto her emotions so tightly. She’s more controlled than I have ever been as she glares at me. Her breathing is harsh and warms my skin with shame.
“I gave everything up for this second chance at life, to be with my soulmate,” she hisses. “And you’ve been cold this whole time, even when you say you want me. So don’t act like seeing a glimpse of my past has changed you.”
“You’re right,” I say, dragging her down until she is almost touching my nose. “I have been the worst possible soulmate for you. I have been cruel, and I don’t know how to rectify that, Delphini. I have failed at every turn up to this point, but I will spend the rest of my days trying to make up for it if you’ll let me.”
When she licks her lips, she nearly touches mine. I feel the ghost of her heat on my skin and I want it. Though the words won’t stop falling from my lips like the rain, I refuse to stop them now.
“You’re right, seeing that photo is just a glimpse and change takes time, just like learning all the parts of you will take time. All I can promise is that even when I stumble, I am still changing for the better, for you.”
She closes the distance between us. All her anger and hunger bleeds through the kiss as she grabs the side of my face. Her fingers curl into my short hair and scrape across my scalp as warmth explodes around me. I surge forward into her hold and my back bows into our embrace.
Her tongue traces my lips and she sucks the bottom one into her mouth when I refuse to open. I could push her down onto the bed behind us and show her real power, but I can’t. Delphini doesn’t deserve roughness. She deserves a tender love that shows her power is more than strength and anger. It’s patience, understanding, and knowing when to let others in.
When her plush body presses into mine with a need for friction, I break the kiss. Her forehead rests against mine as we breathe each other in.
“I won’t beg,” she says, recalling my earlier promise. “That kind of play is earned.”
“You’re right. I haven’t earned your submission yet, but will you let me show you how goddesses are honoured?” I ask. It’s her choice if she wants to test the waters of our desires. This isn’t a power play to show her what a dominant partner I can be. I am asking her as a priestess coming to worship at the altar of my goddess.
“Yes,” she purrs, her nose tracing mine.
I push her suitcase onto the ground and gently lay myomphalosdown on the delicate silk sheets. Her body sinks into the mattress as she relaxes and my heart warms. With one knee on the bed for balance, I lean over her. The sigh on her lips is soft, and I’m chasing it with a kiss. Her tongue dips into my mouth slowly and I let her explore. My hands trace the curves and dips of her slowly, squeezing her plush form until her hips rise for something more.
She tastes of minty toothpaste and need, but I have a promise to fulfil. I slide down her body until I can kneel between her spread thighs. The material of her dress has bunched up and the elastic shorts have ridden up to press into her pussy. Delphini leans up on her elbows to look at me. I stare at her through my lashes in awe at her beauty, at the hunger in her eyes.
“Tell me if I overstep,” I murmur, kissing the stretch marks on her inner thigh and savouring the burst of warmth at our connection.
“Of course,” she promises. “Can I touch you?”
I think of the first time she asked me that question. The awe for her I felt then seems immature now. It was a selfish thing that didn’t take into account the full breadth of her wonder. She is vicious and hungry for revenge, yet she cares for me, for Love and I, like we were her lovers lost long ago at sea and now finally returned to her. There is intention and grace in everything she does.
“Guide me in how to worship you, myomphalos.”
Delphini’s hand brushes across my cheek. Her thumb pulls at my bottom lip until my tongue slips out and wraps around it. I draw it into my mouth and suck on it gently, just like I would her clit. Her eyes burn into me as I let go of it. Her fingers scratch against my scalp as she cups the back of my head. My skin tingles, and my clit throbs with how good this feels. A moan slips from my lips and her smile is brilliant.
