Prologue
Citrus; bittersweet, tangy and hard to devour. It stings through little finger cuts, leaves sticky residue and a sharp burn on tongues. A sprinkle of sugar or sour, a garnish on drinks, an afternoon snack that claims remaining hunger. Squeezed, pressed, juiced. It didn’t matter.
She was like biting into an orange with the rind still attached. Like an aperol spritz, iced and a little too strong. Sipping on a day so hot that heat waves were visible as they steamed off surfaces and singed shoulders.
Looking at her felt like she was the eye of a storm. Dangerous, wind whipping every which way and so forth, but so desirably beautiful. A rainbow after a hurricane. The distraught flooding of the streets, the rubble of what once was a home.
A love spell, maybe a curse, enchanting with curls that wrapped around slender fingers. Her body carved by gods and destined to encapsulate every definition of the word ‘perfect.’ Dipped in honey and coated in praise. A breath of fresh air, caught in the back of her throat, choking and coughing in a sickeningly saccharine haze.
Everything she could ever dream of having, just barely out of reach.