Empire Island, Exile the First

Chapter 6

"The first ferry isn't until nine," Eva said in the morning, stretching out her limbs under the covers next to me. The sunlight had rudely woken us up, and she'd tumbled out of bed to shut her curtains, but the deed was done.

We were both wide awake, and it was only five in the morning.

"So I have time to do more of this," I said, pulling her over for a kiss. Her body was so warm and soft, I could close my eyes and fall into the sensation of touching her.

We fit together like we were meant to do this, and I ran my hand down the curve of her breast, to the valley of her waist, and back up the swell of her hips.

I settled there for a moment, just allowing myself to love this. To love her.

When I opened my eyes, blue light clung to us like the film of color a gas spill leaves on the water. It swirled and danced along our skin in the hazy shadows of her bedroom.

The only time it sparked brighter was when we reached our release together.

And then it faded as we mellowed in each other's arms, talking about the past and the present, completely avoiding the future.

I'd always cared for Eva, but I wasn't the kind of person who'd settle down.

And it wasn't because of any sort of edgy self-ascribed personality trait, I literally couldn't settle down unless it was with a man I found through Empire, and for the sole purpose of having daughters to continue our guardian tradition. The tradition that I'd fled in the first place.

So there was no falling in love for me, no settling down. I had gone to Vancouver in full acceptance that my life would be a solo expedition. I just hadn't expected to be so bothered by that idea when I got back and found Eva again. Maybe it was aging, or maybe it was Empire magic receding, but it was unexpected to be sad over the prospect of never finding love.

"Why don't we grab breakfast first, Magpies is open early, and then come back here to work on your Empire tea?" Eva asked, rolling to the side of the bed where she slid off and stood up. She looked down, held her hand out and said, "We should shower first, how about I scrub your back if you get mine?"

"Sounds like a deal," I laughed, remembering I had no money to buy her breakfast. I barely had enough to pay for my own after yesterday's meal. I followed her into the bathroom and waited until the water was hot and steamy and the mirror had fogged up before I confessed this to her.

I didn't know why it made me feel so weak and ineffectual. It wasn't as if many people went to Vancouver and fell into pots of money unless they had pots of money to begin with. I guess I felt like I should have done more over the past few years instead of pissing my time away struggling to stay afloat.

"Listen," I said, hooking her by the elbow as she stepped into the shower.

"What's up?" she asked, turning back. The water spray from the shower head hit the glass of the enclosed surround. Some of it splashed up and little droplets clung to her wild curls, the sunlight catching it and brightening around her head like a diamond halo. She was goddess-like just then and she took my breath away.

"I, uh," I stammered, clearing my throat.

"Just spit it out, Kai, there's nothing you can say that will surprise me," she said with the twitch of a smile playing around her lips.

"I'm broke," I said at last, feeling lighter as the confession drifted out of my mouth and dissipated into the morning light. "I barely made it in Vancouver and I don't know why I made it seem like I was such a badass. I wasn't. I was about to get evicted even before the visions hit me and called me back. I think half my wrinkles and gray hairs are from the stress of barely hanging on."