Dominion of the Star (Descendants of the Fallen Book 1) by Angelica Clyman

forward, his palms moving up her waist, over her ribs, his mouth
claiming her breast.
    There was a short, sudden knock
on the door. They both sat up quickly, their legs entangled, Kayla immediately
straightening her blouse and smoothing her hair. Her frightened eyes searched
Jeremy’s face as he looked toward the sound, his features hardening. In the dim
evening light that came through the window, his slow walk towards the door
seemed to her like something out of a dream. She held her breath as his hand
clutched the knob, his body tensing.
    Kayla heard Kittie’s voice ring
out, “Geez, you could look happy to see me!”
    Jeremy pulled her into the
room, slammed the door behind him, and fell to his knees, putting his arms
around her. “Kit…you don’t even know…” he breathed.
    “You’re such a baby,” she
laughed. “What’s the worst that could have happened?” Kittie looked up. “Oh,
hi, Kayla! I — aagh!” Her words ended in a strangled cry as Jeremy pulled the
neck of her shirt down. “Hey, stop! You’re going to stretch it out!”
    “That bastard. Dammit, Kit, how
did we let this happen?” His voice was soft. Kayla was surprised that the sight
of the tattoo on Kittie’s chest didn’t pull a more violent reaction from him,
but she knew this wasn’t the worst scenario he had imagined and prepared
himself for.
    The girl just giggled again.
“It’s a rub-on!” She licked her finger and wiped it firmly against the mark,
leaving pigment on her small digit.
    Jeremy stopped mid-laugh,
staring at her. “Kit, I don’t know how you’ve gotten away with it so far, but
that’s never gonna work.”
    “Don’t you know me any better
by now? I have a super-special-super-secret-technique! He thinks I’m a good
girl, and I’m your Ophan and we’re on the strong side of things, so all is
well.”
    He shook his head. “Heh, little
favors, right? Alright, so act like an Ophan and give me some kind of report.”
He shifted from kneeling to sitting, pushing himself backwards and leaning
against the bed. His anxiety was gone; his earlier passion traded for a poised
watchfulness.
    Kittie pulled his chair closer
and sat, her legs swinging. “Well, it’s been a really tiring couple of weeks!
Za’in is serious about getting all his ducks in a row. He had me talking to the
stars, listening to stones, and dreaming into events halfway across the planet.
It’s the usual stuff, I know, but it was never this much, and he was never so
insistent! He tried looking into me too, to see what was really there. I don’t
think he found much, and the tattoo proves it. Oh well. Hmm, what else…ah yes,
you’re vexing him quite a bit too!”
    Jeremy frowned. “I shouldn’t
be, not anymore. What’s his problem, anyway?”
    She looked embarrassed,
covering her face with her hands. “Jeremy, Kayla’s in your bed!” she whispered.
    Kayla flushed, tensing to jump
up. Without turning around, Jeremy grabbed her wrist and held her still. “So
what?” he asked, his voice low.
    Kittie peered at him through
parted fingers. “Don’t look at me so scary! He’s the one that’s
bothered!”
    “So what did he say?”
    “You know him — he didn’t say
anything to me. I just know that if you keep this up, both of us are going out
somewhere without her. It’s been years since we, or hardly anyone, have gotten
to just hang out here for more than a few days, but we brought Kayla with us,
so we get a little vacation. Get too close, though, and poof! We’re out looking
for some relic or quashing some unorganized rebellion. Yuck.”
    Kayla struggled against
Jeremy’s grip. He wouldn’t release her. “I don’t know why it even matters to
him,” he growled.
    Kittie blinked, her head tilted
to the side. “You don’t? If you think about it, it’ll come to you. Kayla, I’m
sure Za’in gave you some version of his reason, right?”
    She turned her head away, just
as Jeremy looked back at her sharply.
    “Something to do