Total pages in book: 92
Estimated words: 87781 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 439(@200wpm)___ 351(@250wpm)___ 293(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 87781 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 439(@200wpm)___ 351(@250wpm)___ 293(@300wpm)
Now, I’m here in the Upper World, and I’m realizing that even though this was my home and always will be, I can’t let Tuoni go back without me. Perhaps it’s because I love him (though he’s still been careful to never say he loves me in return), or perhaps it’s because I know I’m not done. There’s a prophecy at stake, and I’m the daughter of a goddess—my story doesn’t end here.
Is it possible that deep down, I knew I was never meant for a normal life?
I mean, I know that’s what we all secretly think. We all think that maybe we really are that special, different in a coveted way. We grow up believing we might be some sort of chosen one no one has discovered yet.
And yet…and yet…
Here I am.
Lying naked in a hotel bed in Helsinki next to the God of Death, who happens to be a king and my husband and the man I love.
Because, fuck, I do love him.
With every fiber of my being.
Just watching him sleep here, in this Ikea-furnished, white-washed room so different from his black curtains and the obsidian walls of Shadow’s End, I realize I will follow him to whatever world he chooses. He has my heart, every damn bit of it.
I just hope that one day, I will have his.
In the end, that’s what I truly want.
His elusive love.
“You’re staring at me,” he says, his voice soft and rich with sleep, his eyes still closed.
“I like watching you sleep,” I admit. It’s very Edward Cullen of me.
A gentle smile forms on his full lips as he turns his head slightly, his eyes metallic in the dim afternoon light. “I slept like the dead,” he says. “That was intended without pun.”
I laugh and reach over, tracing the silver lines down his arms, all the way to his hand. I wrap my fingers around his, relishing the feel of his skin against mine. “Your lines haven’t glowed once,” I say. “I wonder what that means?”
“Perhaps no one is dying while I’ve been in this world,” he muses. “Wouldn’t that be something? A blessing, really. That way, if Kaaos happens, no one will be hurt.”
“Except for all of humanity inside the City of Death already,” I say.
He frowns and sighs. “Yes. Except that.”
“But maybe in the meantime, everyone on Earth is immortal. Can you imagine, death being put on hold temporarily?”
He purses his lips and considers it. “I wonder if anyone would notice here. I suppose not for a while, but it would be noticed in Tuonela. Lovia and Tuonen must realize something is happening. Fuck. I wish I could let them know what’s happening. I hope it’s not too late.”
“On the plus side, at least we know that time over there is barely moving,” I point out. “When we get back, we might have only been gone a day at the most.”
“A lot can happen in a day if the Old Gods are raised,” he grumbles. “And if Louhi resurrects her father, Rangaista, which I am sure she will, then…”
I lean over and kiss him on the cheek. “Then it’s best we get started on finding our way back. We’ve already slept half the day away.”
“That can’t be,” he says with a groan as he slowly sits up and I climb out of bed. “Why am I so tired then?”
“Because this world is particularly tiring,” I tell him, grabbing some clothes and heading into the washroom. When I’m done washing up and getting dressed, I come back out to find him still totally naked and trying to fiddle with the Nespresso machine.
I sit on the armchair and ogle his ass for a bit while he struggles with the coffee maker. Fuck, is he ever built like a god. Strong, muscular thighs, solid round ass with just enough bounce. I just want to crawl over there on my hands and knees and bite him, lick the silver lines wherever they lead.
Yet, I know that would lead to sex, and in another world, we’d spend all day in bed fucking, but right now, we have a job to do.
So I help him with the coffee machine, promising him that once we leave the hotel, we’ll stop by a shop and get him a proper cup. While it whirs and pours, I get to work on my phone.
It’s damn hard not to get swept away with the internet. I know it has only felt like a few months while I’ve been at Shadow’s End, but that’s still a long time to go without checking your Instagram or Google news feed, and now, I have a whole year to catch up on.
Somehow, I stay focused. I still can’t find much information about my father—the last stuff was him working at the resort before he “died.” But searching through Facebook and then old emails, I was able to find out that my Uncle Osmo lives in Helsinki, working as a journalist for a local paper. My father had even emailed me his address once in case I wanted to come visit, his way of wanting to see me without any added pressure.