The Scattered Bones

by Nicole Scarano

In such a brief acquaintance, this breathtaking man had carved a jagged hole in my heart and buried himself inside it. It was crude and bloody, still raw where it tore, but I held the pain close. I never wanted to be free of him. I couldn’t explain his importance to me. He was a thief. A stranger. A sinner, yet he called to me in ways I didn’t know one soul could beckon another. Perhaps it was my naivety and loneliness, but something had bent inside me. Bent and cracked and shattered. I would never be the same.

Every second I spent with him was an act of defiance, a rebellion against the calling I was bound to, yet the lonely ache in my heart had burned a hole into my soul, a hole that Kaid’s presence filled so thoroughly the edges ripped.

“I don’t want to take anything from you.” Conviction fortified his voice. “I want to give everything to you. I’m not here to break your vows. A lonely girl simply helped a lonely boy, and I love the light in your eyes when we’re together. How can that be a sin? How can wanting to be your friend be wrong?”

“I’ll even return when you’re old and grey and Hreinasta abandons you for another. It may take a while, but I’ll always come for you.”