Free Grim Crush (Grimly Ever After) by S.L. Bynum Page A

him. It was hard to think straight with him so close.
    The fluttery feeling inside me felt nice, but it also frightened me more than anything in the world. I slipped my hands out of Shilah’s and stepped back.
    “I have to go,” I whispered, his eyes still holding my gaze. He didn’t say anything as I turned and willed my legs to flee, trying to run away from the strange feeling in my chest.
    It wouldn’t go away though. And thoughts of Shilah wouldn’t leave my mind. This must be what it’s like to become emotionally involved. I was on my way to breaking a Rule of Reaping, if I hadn’t already.
    For the first time in my non-life, I wished I was human.

 
     
     
     
    Chapter 9
     
    “I can’t do it anymore,” I told Jayza and Ziri. We sat with our legs dangling off the roof of a ten-story building. It wasn’t hard to guess I was the one who had chosen this location.
    “Xia, don’t talk crazy,” said Ziri, who was sitting on my right. “How could you want to give up on the hottest Native American in Arizona?”
    Jayza, who sat on my left, grinned. “I agree. Plus, you must like him a lot. If you stopped seeing him, wouldn’t you miss him?”
    “Yeah,” I replied, the thought alone paining me. “It hurts to think about never seeing him again.”
    “Well, if you did decide to give him up, could I have him?” Ziri asked.
    Jayza and I gawked at her. Then we all burst into laughter.
    “Okay, let’s put it like this, Xia,” Jayza said. “Would you rather be friends with him and let him know you’re a reaper, or be without him and keep the secret?”
    “When you put it like that…” I sighed, dropping my face into my hands. “I don’t know.”
    “You break our code all the time,” Ziri stated. “What’s wrong with breaking a Rule of Reaping?”
    “Nothing, according to Shilah’s grandmother. Rule One is the only one that counts.”
    “It’s not like Shilah’s going to die any time soon anyway. In fifty years, maybe.”
    “I know. I guess I better think about telling him.” I stood up, gazing down at all of the lights on the busy night street below. It was windy up here, the gales tossing my braids around my face. “Time to go, Ziri. And I know you don’t like hospitals, but people die in them all the time. You have to get used to it.”
    Ziri grudgingly got to her feet too, wobbling on the edge of the building. I grabbed her arm to keep her from falling off.
    “Thanks,” she said. “Heights and falls scare me, even though I can’t die.”
    “In that way, we are complete opposites. Are you ready to go?” I asked.
    “I guess so, since I still get to hold your scythe.” Ziri grinned.
    “And this will be your last time,” I warned.
    “But this is only the third time! I get two more. You said five.”
    “I said five souls . We reaped three souls at once last time, so this one will be the fifth soul.” I smirked.
    Ziri frowned. “You tricked me. I meant to say five different occasions.”
    “But you didn’t.”
    Ziri exhaled heavily through her nose. “I hate you, Xia.”
    “I know. I hate you too.”
    Jayza snickered, shaking her head as Ziri teleported away with a furious look on her face. I grinned at my best friend, then followed after the grim-in-training.
    * * *
    I waited by the stream this time for Shilah. He would probably check Chad’s Cliff first, but he could see me from up there. It would give me a little more time to myself while he made his way down here.
    I thought a lot about what Granna had suggested and what Jayza had said. I wanted to tell Shilah what I was. It would make things less confusing between us, if he wasn’t creeped out by it. Granna had said he could handle the truth, but I was unsure.
    When Shilah arrived, he was carrying a large basket. Today his hair was in a ponytail, and I loved watching the way a loose strand kept blowing across his face in the breeze.
    I raised my eyebrows at the basket. “What’s that?”
    “Since I can’t take you