18. Chapter 18
Chapter eighteen
Pink
O h my goodness! I feel as if I’m walking on clouds! I nearly kissed Monty! We had such a wonderful date. I could burst into song.
Conversation flowed. We laughed and chuckled. Discovered that we both love children.
He didn’t even mind at all when I chickened out of kissing. He merely accepted it calmly, like the wonderful man that he is.
I stumble to a halt outside Jade’s door. The empty silence on the other side of it is profound.
Oh.
My mood dims. My feet took me to my friend, but he is no longer here. He is on the run and I don’t know when I will ever see him again.
I can’t tell him all about my wonderful evening with Monty.
I take a deep breath. It’s okay. It is what it is. But I don’t want to lose this glow Monty has given me. I’ll go share everything with Lello instead.
I walk down the hallway towards Lello and Carter’s room, but as I get close, sounds reach my ears. I stop walking. Lello is busy with his mate. I’ll have to catch him later.
In the meantime, who else can I talk to? Ned is probably healing his relationship with Morgan. So, I could try Blue and Sammy, I suppose? I think Sammy is the type to enjoy a good gossip. But Blue finds touch difficult and I don’t want to trigger him. As for Gray, I can just picture him staring blankly at me with his too-dark eyes while I gush about nearly having my first kiss. A thousand-year-old incubus is bound to feel differently about such things.
The soft sounds coming from Lello and Carter’s room grow louder.
Oops, I should probably move away from here and give them their privacy. I know Lello wouldn’t be embarrassed, but Carter probably would be. And I’m not in the harem anymore. I need to adjust back to the normal world. Where sex is private. Intimate.
Sighing, I head for the kitchen. A cup of tea and then bed, I guess. If anyone wanders in, I can tell them all about my wonderful evening.
As I walk down the stairs, my thoughts drift back to the idea of sex being intimate. I wonder what it is like to have sex with someone you love? And only because you want to? When it has nothing to do with magic?
I already know that sex is a million times better with someone you like. My cheeks start to heat. When you like the other person and they are kind and gentle, sex is lovely. Monty has shown me that.
Making love must be so much better.
Kissing, cuddling, touching and exploring each other’s bodies.
Oh my! Now all sorts of naughty images are racing through my mind. And Monty is in every single one of them.
With trembling hands, I pull out my tin of chamomile tea. I’m going to need something to help me sleep. My heart is fluttering, my mind buzzing, and my cock is stirring even though I’m not ripe.
I shake my head to try to clear it, but it doesn’t work. So much for emotions existing only in the head. Thoughts of Monty are affecting my entire body. My feelings are physical.
As the kettle begins to boil, memories from earlier this evening flow. I can see, with crystal clarity, Monty sitting across from me in that sweet little restaurant. His blue eyes are sparkling and his smile is radiating into me.
A soppy, happy sigh escapes me as I pour boiling water into my mug.
I think I really am falling in love, and I think it might be wonderful.
T here is something so relaxing about housework. The noise of the vacuum cleaner should be deafening. Carefully lifting the heavy thing up the steps as I work my way up the stairs should be annoying, but it’s all peaceful.
It is a gray overcast Thursday afternoon. I’m doing chores, and I’m happy. Is there no end to Monty’s effect on me?
“Pink!” calls Lello, and something in his voice makes my heart sink.
I turn the vacuum cleaner off and look up at the little kelpie. His face is a picture of misery and he is clutching a piece of white paper to his chest.
“What’s happened?” I ask.
Lello sniffs. “Ned still thinks Morgan doesn’t want him, so he has left.”
Oh. This isn’t good. It isn’t good at all. I thought things were working out for them?
I hold my hand out to Lello. “Come on, Sweetie. Let’s go to the kitchen and I’ll make you a hot chocolate.”
Lello nods and I lead him down the stairs. I get him settled at the table and busy myself with making drinks.
Blue and Sammy wander in and Lello tells them the awful news. Our found family is breaking apart. First Jade, Red and Brodie. Now Ned. Everyone is leaving.
“Ned is going to do a Long Sleep,” wails Lello.
My blood turns to ice. Oh heavens. Ned has only just recovered. I’m not sure he is going to be strong enough for that. What is he thinking?
I rub at my aching chest. Ned probably isn’t thinking at all. He has a broken heart. If Monty ever rejected me, I don’t imagine I’d ever be capable of a single coherent thought ever again.
But I’m pretty sure Ned is wrong. I saw the look in Morgan’s eyes when we told him Ned was fading away. It was unmistakable. Morgan loves him. So why has Ned run away? Did Ritchie and the harem truly make him believe he is unlovable?
I place Lello’s hot chocolate on the table. And then I hear the knock.
My stomach drops. It has to be Morgan. The timing is too perfect, too cruel, for it to be anyone else.
For a moment, I debate letting him stand there. Maybe he’ll think no one’s home and leave. But no, he deserves to know. He deserves something, even if it’s just the truth.
I pull the door open, and there he is, clutching a bouquet of red roses like it’s his last lifeline. His suit is impeccable, his hair carefully combed.
His eyes meet mine, and I know immediately he’s seen too much in my expression. He glances down at the roses, and I see the flicker of hope dim in his gaze. Damn it, Pink. You could have at least smiled, I tell myself.
“Come in,” I say, stepping aside.
He hesitates, but only for a moment. When he moves past me, I can feel his nerves buzzing like static in the air. As we make our way to the kitchen, I steal a glance at him. He’s gripping the flowers too tightly, his knuckles white.
Morgan freezes when he sees Lello, his eyes darting to the crumpled note on the table. The color drains from his face.
“What the fuck is that?” he asks, his voice rough.
Lello jerks upright, snatching the note like it’s a grenade about to go off. His eyes are wide, panicked. “Sorry! Ned said you weren’t to see it! I was supposed to come and tell you.”
The room goes silent except for Lello’s sniffles. I bite my lip, unsure what to do. Morgan looks like he’s about to collapse.
“What does it say?” Morgan croaks.
Lello hesitates, then answers in a shaky voice. “He’s gone. He’s…he’s gone to find a castle to hide in. For a Long Sleep. Ten years.”
The relief that washes over Morgan is so visible it’s almost painful to watch. He even lets out a faint, incredulous laugh. I guess he was expecting something far worse.
But I can’t let him stay in that bubble of hope. Not when the truth is worse than he realizes.
“He still hasn’t been feeding properly,” I say, my voice barely above a whisper. “He’s weak. I…I’m worried he won’t wake up.”
Morgan stiffens, and the relief vanishes from his face. He turns to me, eyes wide, like he’s hoping I’ll take it back. I wish I could.
“Surely he knows what he’s doing?” he asks, though his voice wavers.
I shake my head slowly. “Ned’s…young. For a vampire, I mean. He barely knows anything, and he’s…”
“An idiot?” Morgan finishes for me.
I nod, biting the inside of my cheek. The word is harsh, but it’s not wrong.
“I can take you to him,” Gray’s voice cuts through the room like a knife, making all of us jump.
I whip my head around to find him standing casually in the doorway, as if he’s been here the whole time. I swear, one day this demon is going to give me a heart attack.
“Can you?” Morgan asks, his voice a mix of desperation and disbelief.
Gray nods solemnly. “He’s in France. I can take you through the shadows.”
The color drains from Morgan’s face again, but his jaw sets in determination. “How long will it take?”
Gray lifts a hand and snaps his fingers. The harsh click echoes around the room.
Morgan flinches, and I almost feel sorry for him. Shadow walking doesn’t sound fun, but it’s better than wasting hours getting to an airport. And we don’t have hours.
“Take me!” Morgan says, his voice breaking slightly.
Gray doesn’t hesitate. He grabs Morgan’s suit jacket, and then they’re gone.
I sink into a chair, my hands trembling. The room is silent again, except for Lello’s muffled sobs.
I don’t know what Morgan’s going to find when he gets there. I just hope it’s not too late.