Chapter 24

Maris~Ufeli forest.

Her head rested on his rising and falling chest with her index fingers, drawing lines on his almost bald chest. Almost.

Heat spread all over her body and she solemnly wondered the kind of feeling of euphoria she'd get if it was the main thing they did since just a kiss ignited so much in her.

"So," he started, drawing slow circles on her shoulder. "You never replied if you love me back."

"Well-" she halted in her tracks then raised her head up. "Why are we acting as if we just made love?"

"I have no idea." He shrugged and they shared a laugh, enjoying the sound of the water fall. "So, you said you're a virgin, yeah?"

Maris sat up and stared at him with silent laughter dancing in her eyes.

"Of course not." She shook her head and looked ahead of her, picking up a stone and tossing it into the water. "I mean, locks man had his way with me and-"

"What?!" Logan sat up, face already turning red.

"Calm down, I'm just kidding." She tittered and Logan watched her the way a tiger watched it's meal. "You've got to get your anger under control before you flip and rip my head off."

"You've also got to stop cracking such jokes, they do things to my heart." His tone was soft and Maris couldn't help, but stare at his sumptuous lips she just devoured.

"Okay, okay." She raised her hands in mock surrender. "Why does your mother hate my kind?"

Logan propped his head up with one hand and sighed, fidgeting with the grasses in between his fingers.

"Okay. Firstly, I'm sorry I didn't do much of standing up for you when she went all abusive." He apologized with a down cast gaze. "The reason I didn't was that I couldn't piece it together. Why would the moon goddess make me fall in love with one of the enemies of the Oberon kingdom?"

Maris was mute. She just listened and continued picking and tossing tiny stones that sometimes skipped on the water.

"Exactly, it doesn't make sense." He answered himself and laid his head back on the grass before slipping both his hands under his head. "So I was dumbstruck and just had wild thoughts spluttered around in my head, but believe me... I looked for you everywhere that night."

"I forgive you." She licked her lips then turned to meet his eyes. "Why does your mother hate my kind?"

"Long time ago..." He exhaled, staring deep into the clouds with Maris' undivided attention. "... When my father was alive," he said.

Maris nodded and urged him to speak further. If it was one thing Maris loved, it was listening to stories that had the sentence, long-time-ago in it.

"On his way returning home from a battle he had gained victory, he caught sight of a siren and was lured by her." He explained and Maris pictured everything in her head like a movie. "He was killed, in front of my mother and she never remained the same since then."

Maris gasped, holding her chest as she felt awfully sorry for his mother. How could they do such a thing?

"Does that mean your mother fought alongside your father?" Maris questioned, admiring what she had pictured in her head about the two.

"Yes and she returned with the bad news. We mourned him for weeks and she never saw his dead body so we never gave him a befitting burial till date." Sadness laced Logan's words and Maris guessed it was time to change the topic, but a lot of questions popped up in her head.

"Does that make me a monster?" She looked at him with glossy eyes and he pulled her to his chest in the most affectionate way.

"No, babe." He rubbed her hair. "You're Maris, not the particular siren that killed him and you... You're kind and beautiful." He paid her a honest compliment and her cheeks shined pink. "How come you never knew you were a siren?"

"My mother never told me." A lump sat in her throat and she gulped, feeling heavy like there was a grand piano on her.

"Where's she now?" Logan asked. "She must be dead sick that you're no where to be found."

"She's in her grave, Logan." Maris croaked and Logan wished he never brought the talk up.

This took her back to memory lane.

Flash back.

Maris sat in front of their medium sized television, watching one of her favorite cartoons before her mother sprang down the staircase with a traveling bag in her hand.

"We have to run away again." Her voice shook and Maris frowned.

All her life, her mother and her had always been on the run, changing houses and countries. On the run from what? Maris herself didn't know. All her mother said was that bad people were after them because Maris was special.

Her mother cradled her in her arms and ran as fast as she could with a ragged breathing and constantly glancing over her shoulder.

Thumping of feet sounded loud and clear behind them and her mother's heart pounded violently as tears stung her lids.

When the sound of their feet were a little distant, her mother hid behind a bush and settled Maris down on the floor.

"Baby, I want you to run as fast as you can. Don't stop running till you find help." Her eyes were glassy with tears welling up in her eyes.

"No, I don't want to go alone." Maris whined, tears trickling down her cheeks.

"You have to, Maris." Her mother cupped her cheeks and kissed her head, craning her neck to see if they were in sight. "You have to run, I have to stall them and promise me you wouldn't look back."

"Mom, I don't-"

"Promise." She shook Maris gently and she accepted.

"I promise," croaked Maris before her mother let her go.

Maris ran as fast as her little feet could, heart beating violently against her chest. Tears streaming down her cheeks as she heard her mother scream in agony.

"No." She cried, running and keeping to her promise.

Instantly, she got entangled in Vines and the struggle to set herself free sent her tumbling down a heel and falling deep into the ocean. Water filled her lungs and she blacked out, but was washed to the sea shore by the ocean waves.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Logan snapped her out of her trance and she blinked her tears away.

"Oh, so I'm supposed to just walk up to you and be like... Oh. Hello, there! My name is Maris Caine and my parents are dead." She demonstrated in a goofy way and they shared a laugh. "I was raised by some nice people who found me unconscious on the sea shore and they are dead. Me being the only child since they couldn't bare any, I inherited their properties."

"I'm s-"

"Shh." She placed a finger on his lips and straddled him like a horse.

His body emitted heat from underneath her and so many thoughts of what she could do to him flashed in her head. Slowly, she reached for his lips and kissed him.

She sucked his bottom lip and let his hands wander around her body. Swiftly, they switched positions and she was under. He kissed her passionately and she parted her lips to moan a bit when she could feel his bulge against her. He used the opportunity to slip his tongue into her mouth and their hearts grew fond of each other in a world of apples and lamb chops.

Her heart skipped a thousand times and she immersed herself in a whole world of pleasure.

*************

Maris and Logan walked hand in hand back to the kingdom with him preparing to rebel if that was what it'd take for him to keep his consort.

He took her through a small path, beautiful one of course and they burst out in front of a fancy black gate. He placed his palm on a screen like box that hung on the right side of the wall and a weird sound came out of the machine.

Briefly, the gate opened and he pulled his palm away.

"Where's this?" She folded her forehead in a frown. "Your step mother's place?"

"No, silly." He shoved her head and she chuckled heartily, walking beside him with interlocked fingers. "This is my home."

Maris stared at the not too tall and not too short building in front of her in awe. He wasn't like those spoilt alphas she read in books after all. She smiled in satisfaction and followed him into the house.

"Make yourself at home."

After showing her around, he walked back to the palace and left her all alone in the house. It was boring even if there was a good power supply. She still missed talking and fighting with him. She sighed then decided to go out for a stroll, forgetting the town knew about where she came from.

She tried to remember the paths she had taken and successfully did. She watched from behind the bushes as the villagers carried on with their daily activities.

She finally decided that was enough for one day and spun to return back, but bumped her head hard on something. Maris winced and held her head, feeling an intense headache weaving it's way around her head.

"Ouch." She whispered and noticed she wasn't the only one whispering. Instantly, she snapped her eyes open and once she locked gazes with him, she gasped almost too loudly and fell on the ground.

Thankfully, none of the villagers had seen her. She sat up immediately for safety and her face mirrored acrimony.

"What are you doing here?" They whispered together and she clasped his mouth when she heard footsteps approaching them.

"Ugh! I forgot the basket." The person that was approaching them retreated and they used it as an opportunity to leave the bushes.

"Got bored in Logan's place so I decided to go for a walk." She muttered.

"Alone?!" He exclaimed, but got shushed by Maris. "I mean, alone?" He whispered, "You could get killed by them."

After the talk with Tristan, which Maris found fascinating, he walked her to the gate and marvelled at the sight in front of him.

"I know about Logan's house, but never seen this one before." He widened his mouth with a slacked jaw.

"Oops!" She wiped off an invisible sweat. "Then I didn't bring you here."

They both giggled then stood in silence for a while before the bruises on his neck screamed her name.

"I'm sorry about this." She touched the bruises and he winced, shifting back.

"It's okay." He held her hand and squeezed it lightly. "I have to go now."

Maris watched him leave till he was no longer in sight. She tried to push the gate, but there was no luck in getting it open.

Maybe I should place my palm there and see if it'll work.

She walked over to the scanner and placed her palm, but it only showed her a big red X after few seconds. Tiredness weighed her down so she decided to press her back on the gate and slide to the floor with her knees drawn to her chest.

After some minutes, she sank her head in between her knees and wished she had asked Tristan to stay a little longer with her.

Suddenly, a voice made her soul to almost run out of her body by asking, "What are you doing here?"