Burn the Stars Quotes

“Yes. That’s what I want from you,” he says, with a self-satisfied nod. “And in exchange, I’ll get Adrienne out of the cave. And I’ll help you, because I think I might like you, even if you are without honor.” He shrugs. “You seem interesting. In a tragic sort of way. I’m sure you’ll be entertaining.” I open my mouth to reply, to offer some sort of retort in my defense, but nothing comes out. “And, before you reject my offer,” he continues, rambling on. “You’d do well to remember that you don’t really have any other options. You’re naked. You have a little blade.”
― Elisha Kemp, Burn the Stars

“He still cares about me? Still wants me?
His eyes widen, mouth dropping open, the look almost comical. “Want you?” he asks. “Do I want you?” He gives an almost maniacal laugh. “If I had my men and ships, if I had Xenodice before me and my oath to Poteiden still intact – I would give it all up again, if it would make you love me.”
Love me. Is he saying he loves me?
“You did,” I whisper. “You did give it all up for me.”
But he didn’t do it to win me over. He didn’t do it because he thought he would get anything. No, he did it, just to keep me safe. Me, and Asterion and Jadi.”
― Elisha Kemp, Burn the Stars

“I was wrong. Selfish, and foolish, and so wrong.” His jaw clenches, nostrils flaring as he takes in a steadying breath. “I had thought you were a gift for me, when really, you were a wound. An arrow to the heart, straight from Astarte’s bow. Some would call that a gift, but they are the ones who haven’t been wounded. The ones who haven’t felt the madness that Astarte’s poisoned arrows bring.”
He gives a dry, mirthless laugh, then leans forward, his eyes boring into mine, as if he is trying to see into the depths of my soul. “I was so absorbed in my own pride that I didn’t see it. I didn’t realize that you had marked every drop of my blood as your own – not until I almost lost you. Until my own greed almost got you killed.”
[Kit]”
― Elisha Kemp, Burn the Stars

“Now, I can see my fear was for nothing. I have lost nothing in sharing Jadi with her. Instead, I have gained everything.
“I am always yours,” I assure him, pressing a kiss to his forehead. “For as long as the stars burn, my heart is yours.”
― Elisha Kemp, Burn the Stars

“Are – are you asking him to pledge himself to you?” Jadi asks incredulously. “After how he’s treated you?”
I nod, my face still half-pressed against his chest. “He hasn’t been that bad.”
Actually, he’s been wonderful. Sweet, when he thinks no one will notice. Carrying my things. Heating water for me. Keeping me warm and fed.
Nearly getting himself killed when we were attacked by Acheans, all while yelling at me to run. As if I would have ever abandoned him.
“If you reject her, I swear to Appaliuna…”
“You’ll what?” Asterion’s voice is full of dark amusement. “You love me too much to hurt me.”
“It won’t stop me from beating sense into you when you need it,” Jadi growls.
“It’s fine,”
I swallow down my nerves and force myself to look back up at Asterion. “Please don’t feel like you have to do anything you don’t want to. But I mean it. I would be honored to have your pledge, if you want to give it.”
Jadi hugs me close, pressing his face to the top of my head. “What did I ever do to deserve you?”
“You mean it?” Asterion asks, his voice thick with emotion. “You would offer me that?”
― Elisha Kemp, Burn the Stars

“Jadi’s face lights up in a broad smile, the scar across his left eye stretching with the movement, a shuddered sob of joy catching in his throat, and all I can feel is warmth.
“Goddess.” He squeezes his eyes shut, but there is no mistaking the moisture gathering on his dark lashes. “I can’t – I won’t… I’m not worthy.” He’s silent for a long moment, his chest rising and falling in uneven breaths.
“Shh,” Asterion rumbles soothingly at my back, reaching around me to clasp Jadi’s shoulder, as if to steady him, even as the fingers of his other hand splay possessively against my stomach. “You are worthy. And I’m happy for you.”
There’s a catch in Asterion’s throat when he speaks, and I pivot between them, angling to look up at him. His jaw is clenched, eyes moist as he watches his lover, nostrils flared. When his gaze dips to meet my questioning stare, there is no missing the flash of pain in his eye.
“I am happy for you both.” He says, throat bobbing.”
― Elisha Kemp, Burn the Stars

“She shakes her head, her amusement muffled against my chest. Asterion rolls, tucking himself against my back, his breath hot against the nape of my neck. Adrienne’s cold feet start to warm, and she spreads her fingers tentatively against my chest, soft fingertips gently brushing my skin.
It feels so right to have them both beside me. Like a blessing from the gods. Like a gift I could never deserve. I can’t help the sigh of contentment that escapes me, or the warmth that blooms in my chest, even against the pang of longing and guilt that strike in the pit of my stomach.”
― Elisha Kemp, Burn the Stars

“I want you too.” Her words are no more than a whisper “I want you. And Jadi,” she admits, and there’s a raw vulnerability in those simple words that I don’t understand. “I shouldn’t, should I? Want you both, I mean? Like that?”
I roll to my side to stare at her in disbelief. With how close I am to her, the move has my face coming dangerously close to her own.
“You want me?”
“Why?” I ask.
But I already know the answer.
Because no one knows where Astarte’s arrow will strike, but when she aims, she strikes true. Because the gods are cruel and love to toy with their half-mortal children even more than they love to play with the mortals.
Because Adrienne’s fate is somehow woven with mine and Jadi’s. Jadi told me that, he told me, and –fool that I am – I ignored him.
“I’m sorry,” I say, trying to soften my voice. To curb the mocking, defensive bite in my words. “I just don’t see how you could. Not after how I’ve treated you.”
Adrienne gives me a lopsided grin, then reaches over to lightly pat my shoulder. “You not that bad.” Her smile falls, expression growing serious. “I don’t know how explain it. I just feel… it feels…” she trails off, brow furrowing in frustration. She tucks her hands under her chin, and without thinking about it, I grasp them in my own.
“I know.” The words come out in a low rumble. “I know. You don’t have to explain.”
Because I feel it too. The pull towards her. It’s more than a physical attraction. More than desire – though that is certainly part of it.
And now that I’m looking at her, with her mouth close to my own and her hands in mine and the heat of her body mixing with my own beneath the blankets. It feels right, and there’s no room for hesitation. Only action.
I lean forward, slowly enough that she has time to object, my eyes never leaving her own. My nose brushes against hers for a brief moment, and then she’s pushing forward, her lips pressing against mine with a raw urgency that has fire racing through my veins and lust clouding my vision.
It’s too much. Too much.
I pull back, angling my body over hers, keeping my weight on my elbows as I cup her face in one hand, my thumb stroking the underside of her jaw, fingers tangling in her loose hair. I stare down at her – at her dilated pupils and sleep-mussed hair. At her parted lips and the delicate line of her throat. I can see her pulse thundering beneath the skin, and the rosy flush spreading down her neck.
She’s so delicate. I’m torn between wanting to worship her and devour her.
Carefully, I brush my mouth against hers, then trace the shape of her lips with my teeth and tongue. My hands tremble where they grip her face, keeping her from chasing my teasing kisses. It’s almost embarrassing, the way I’m quaking like an autumn leaf above her.
She lets out a frustrated whimper, and I deepen the kiss, swallowing up the sound as I tangle my tongue with her own. When her own kisses become more insistent, I pull back, waiting for her to retreat before delving forward again.
“Good,” I murmur, my thumb stroking her pulse point when she relaxes beneath me. “There’s no rush.”
I’m speaking more to myself than to her. Because more than anything, I want to feel myself buried deep inside her. I want to push the fabric between us aside and feel her wet and clenching around me. I want to bury my head between her thighs and taste her, to turn those faint whimpers into wild, throaty cries.
But now isn’t the time for that. I kiss her again, slowly this time. Deep. Controlled.
I need to be controlled. Take this slow.
Her thighs part, long limbs twining with mine, the heels of her feet pressing against the backs of my legs. Pulling me towards her, until my cock is pressed against her core and I can practically feel the heat of her, even with our clothes between us.
She rocks against me, her faint mewling cry swallowed up by my mouth, and it’s like something in me snaps. Something primal and hungry and dark. Something that’s only come out with Jadi.”
― Elisha Kemp, Burn the Stars

“Shh,” I murmur, taking care to keep my voice low. “It is only a dream. You’re safe. I’ve got you.”
[...]
"A dream,” she repeats, pupils dilated as she stares up at me. She licks her lips, and I follow the movement with my eyes, a heat pulsing low at the base of my spine. “It was just a dream.”
I nod, trying to angle my hips away from her in a futile attempt to hide my thickening cock. But her body is pressed close to mine, tucked beside me under my and Jadi’s wool traveling blankets.
I see the moment she realizes, my preternatural vision able to take in the details of her shock. I see the way her pale eyes go wide, cheeks flushing pink. Hear her breath hitch in surprise. I feel my own cheeks heat in response, a flush of shame tightening in my chest.
Shame at how much I want her. At how I’ve treated her. Shame at how jealously I guarded Jadi’s affections. At the way I cruelly tried to drive him away from her.
“Asterion?”
My name is barely a whisper on her lips, but she doesn’t pull away from me. Instead, her thigh presses against my hardening length. Almost like she’s seeking me out.
But of course, that can’t be right. No woman would seek me out. Not after the way I’ve treated her.
“Yes?” My voice catches in my throat, but I don’t dare look away.
“Do you – are you…” her voice trails off, but she keeps her eyes locked on mine.
Guilt tightens its hold behind my ribs, but I nod. There’s no point in denying it. No point in lying to her. Not when she can feel the proof of my attraction to her pressing against her.
“I’m sorry,” I grit out, pulling my hand away from her face. “I don’t mean to… Please, just ignore it.”
I roll away until I’m lying on my back, my erection almost painful as it pushes against the weight of the blankets.
“Because of Jadi?” she asks, her voice thready and uncertain.
I furrow my brow, glaring with irritation into the darkness. “Jadi? What does Jadi have to do with it?”
“I mean – just that you and Jadi are together. Lovers? I not know word,” she babbles. “And I know that. Respect that. I not want come between you and Jadi. At party, he asked if he could court me,” she confesses. “I sorry if I…”
I cut her off with a frustrated hiss, hating myself even more for this proof of how I’ve hurt Jadi. How successfully I have pushed her away from him.
“You have nothing to apologize for,” I grind out. “Jadi has every right to court you. Every right. The only one who could deny him that is you.”
“But you and Jadi…”
“Are lovers? Intertwined as closely as two threads woven into the same cloth? Yes.” I bark out a bitter, mirthless laugh. “Which makes my treatment of him – of you – even worse.”
The words are spilling out now, like water into the hull of a ship once the wood has cracked. Now that I’ve started, there is no stopping it.
“I’ve known for moon cycles that he cares for you, and I hurt him for it. I was cruel to him and tried to chase you away. Because I was afraid you would steal him away from me, and he’s all I have. He’s everything to me. He’s my heart. My heart.”
I clutch my fist against my chest in emphasis, still staring at the ceiling, not daring to turn and meet her eyes with my own.
“I was jealous, and it was wrong, and now the gods are probably laughing at me. Because I want you. I want you. After trying to drive Jadi away from you, now I want you for myself. But I don’t deserve you. Not after the way I’ve treated you. And even then, even if I hadn’t…”
[...]
“I want you too.” Her words are no more than a whisper, and I tense, my first instinct to dismiss them the moment I register what she’s said.
“I want you. And Jadi,” she admits, and there’s a raw vulnerability in those simple words that I don’t understand. “I shouldn’t, should I? Want you both, I mean? Like that?”
I roll to my side to stare at her in disbelief.”
― Elisha Kemp, Burn the Stars

“If she is a goddess, it would be fitting that the gods would blind me to it. Me, the great Bull of Crete, who can see the path of the stars even on the darkest nights - too blind and stubborn to see a deity made flesh when she’s glowing in all her glory before him.
And gods above, is she glowing. Even exhausted and coated in dirt and sweat. Even with her pale cheeks pink with cold. It’s like I’m seeing her – really seeing her – for the first time. Like the fog has lifted from my eyes, revealing the moon in all her glory. She’s beautiful, yes, but it’s something more." -Asterion”
― Elisha Kemp, Burn the Stars

“But then I remember the flash of fear when I had leaned over her. The way her pulse fluttered and eyes widened. The way her pupils constricted. An uneasy, sickening sort of anger rises up in me, with all the menace of a sharp-toothed ketos rising from Poteiden’s depths.
“I won’t hurt you.” My voice sounds gravely, my throat tightening around the words. “You can lay beside me safely. I give you my word.”
Her breath hitches, her body going still beside me.
“I know.” Her answer is little more than a whisper.
“Let me hold you,” I say, and for some reason, hearing that request from my own lips sends heat rushing like lightning up my spine. “Let me keep you warm.”
“Okay…”
That one word, it’s all the invitation I need.
As if it has a mind of its own, my arm snakes around her trembling body, pulling her so that her back is flush against my chest. Her hands are tucked to her chest, and when my own hand brushes against her fingers, I feel sick at how unbelievably cold they are.
If she had stayed out there all night – if I hadn’t invited her to share my blankets – she could have suffered irreparable damage. The thought of those pale, delicate hands being permanently disfigured sends an illogical burst of rage through me, so strong I can feel my muscles rippling and heating. Without thinking about it, I cover her small hand with my own, and pull her closer against me.
She gives a small, shuddering sigh, and I can’t help but smile into the darkness when her shaking and chattering subsides. When her breaths become long and even, and her body becomes soft and pliant against my own.
“Yes, sleep,” I whisper, when I know she won’t hear me.”
― Elisha Kemp, Burn the Stars

“I would never have guessed he could be so thoughtful. Kind, even – despite his gruff exterior.
I’m starting to think I had Asterion all wrong.”
― Elisha Kemp, Burn the Stars

“Be calm? That’s his advice? Since when has telling someone to ‘be calm’ ever had the desired effect? I’m in a cave with a person who wears teeth for a necklace.”
― Elisha Kemp, Burn the Stars

“If Jadi were here, he would say that Potina’s axe swings both ways. That the seasons are just one more way the gods give and take, keeping a balance in the world. And I would tell him that an axe cuts off a man’s head regardless of how it swings.”
― Elisha Kemp, Burn the Stars