Chapter 8
“You sure about this, Oakley?” Westin asks, leaning against a tree as we watch Nariko and her team settle around the fire pit outside the cabin they are staying in.
It’s nothing special. It’s a basic cabin built with wood I cut and chopped myself. The roof is tin, and the walls are thin, but it will keep people sheltered and safe. If a storm blows through and people need to take cover, there are storm shelters near every cabin on my property.
Nariko’s scream has me leaping to my feet, ready to take action when a laugh follows. She’s running around the fire; my rooster, Kevin, is chasing after her.
“Go.” Jazz shoves me forward.
“What? No, she’s had a horrible day. She nearly died. She needs her space.”
“You sure are talking about what she needs when the only one who can tell you what she needs is trying to outrun Kevin.”
“I can make Kevin into a rotisserie chicken.”
Jazz and Westin spit their beers out, startled when Lorcan pops out of thin air.
Me, on the other hand, I try not to pay him any mind. “You aren’t killing my rooster. He was a rescue. He’s been through enough.”
The orange glow of his eyes disappears before igniting again, and I think he might have tried to roll them at me.
“Fine. The rooster is safe. For now.”
I turn to Lorcan with my arms crossed. “What are you doing here?”
“I’m here for you.”
“I’m fine, Lorcan. I’m better than I was earlier. No need to check on me.”
“No, you aren’t understanding me.” He steps closer, the abyss of his soul a welcome relief to the emotions that bombard me. “I’m here for you.”
Westin stands, shoving Lorcan, and the Void doesn’t move an inch. He’s a wall, holding power I’ll never be able to understand.
“What the fuck is that supposed to mean? Are you kidding me? You can’t take him. He isn’t dead, Lorcan.”
“He’s dying, though. And so is she. Do you think I want to do this?
I consider you a friend because of Kentucky.
I was sent to reap his soul too. I can smell death on you, Oklahoma.
Your insides are slowly rotting because you haven’t had enough of her blood.
Stop postponing. Stop being afraid. Or the last person you will see is me taking your soul to Purgatory, and Nariko is definitely prettier than me. ”
Jazz throws an empty can at Lorcan’s head, and he catches it without looking. “Don’t tempt me, vampire. I’ll strip your skin from your bones and wear it as a fucking suit.” He snaps his fingers, and he is gone, leaving me with an uneasy sickness in my gut.
“You guys! Come on! Come join us!” Nariko shouts across the field, waving us over.
I don’t plan on dying when the rest of my life is right before my eyes.
The events that happened today have me rethinking a few ideas that I’ve convinced myself of.
I thought I needed to be sad and alone for the rest of my life, that the world would be better off without me.
My chance to have happiness again is right there, laughing and running around a fire because she’s afraid of a rooster.
I almost lost Nariko today. Even after the doctors gave her a clean bill of health with a minor concussion, my damned soul was scared into acceptance.
I was forced to see what would happen if I dragged my feet any longer.
If Nariko had my blood in her veins, she would have been able to save herself before I got there.
I’m killing her more every day by not accepting the gift that’s right in front of me. I don’t deserve her. That much I know, but I don’t think there’s anyone else in the world who deserves her either. She’s too smart, too beautiful, too fierce for a regular man to understand.
“I’m nervous,” I hate to admit to my friends. “She makes me nervous.”
“Clearly.” Westin claps my shoulders. “Don’t be.
You deserve good things to happen to you—even though you have convinced yourself otherwise for all these years.
You have been stuck in survival’s guilt, Oakley.
I get it, though. I understand why you have made yourself believe you don’t deserve anything beautiful, and you’re wrong.
We’ve always told you; you were wrong, but now the universe is saying it too.
Fate says otherwise.” Westin shoves me forward so hard, my shoulder clips the tree, and the force rips a large section of bark from the trunk.
“If I were human, that could have killed me,” I remind him, then point to the humans we have on our property. “Don’t use that strength on them.”
“No fucking shit. I’m not a complete idiot.”
“Not completely, no,” Jazz mutters, earning him his own shove from Westin.
“Shut up. I know of…things.”
“So many things.” Jazz pats Westin’s head, and Westin slaps his hand away, scowling.
“Oklahoma!” Nariko bounces on her feet, waving us to them, and my heart feels funny, like there’s a firefly inside flapping its wings.
My mate winces, and a wave of pain from across the field hits my chest. Nariko limps over to a nearby rocking chair they have set around the fire and takes a seat, the pain subsiding.
“Pump your brakes. Don’t go using your speed or you’ll give us away.” Jazz tugs on my shirt to stop me.
I hate that my friends know me so well.
“She already knows,” I admit, rocks and leaves crunching under our boots as we make our way over to our guests.
“Whoa, what the fuck? What do you mean?” Westin questions, cutting me off by stepping in front of me.
“She knows I’m not human. I haven’t said what I am. She noticed my eyes and my fangs. I tried to hide them, but she reeked of her blood earlier, and I was barely keeping it together.” Even the thought has my fangs on edge. “And she kissed me.”
“Still? Even knowing all that?”
I duck my chin with a smile, rubbing my mouth in memory. “Still.”
“She isn’t afraid?” Westin steps out of my way, and I waste no time putting one foot in front of the other to get to Nariko.
“No. I only felt curiosity, relief, and happiness when she looked at me. Really looked at me. I didn’t know if I’d ever be able to be myself again.”
“Doesn’t surprise me that she isn’t afraid. She chases fucking tornadoes. I would think nothing scares this crew.”
“We are vampires. That’s completely different. In every story about us, humans are meant to be afraid. Them finding out we are real? It would send the world into chaos. Humans hate anything they don’t understand.”
“Well, she isn’t. I can’t speak for the rest of them, but Nariko seems intrigued.” I step over a slithering root from a tree that is older than me, then take off my hat, pressing it against my chest when I’m close enough to smell Nariko.
She’s tired, but when her beautiful brown eyes land on me, a burst of happiness energizes her. It invigorates me like a shot of fresh blood to my system.
“Evening,” I greet everyone, never taking my eyes off Nariko. “How is everyone doing after today?” I don’t care how they are doing. I only care about my mate. As long as she is okay, that’s all that matters to me.
I don’t sit down yet; I stay far enough away to respect Nariko’s space.
“Feels good to blow off steam.” Ruka relaxes in his chair, staring up at the beautiful starry-night sky. “Thanks for having us here. We appreciate it.”
“We will leave. Just let us know if we overstay our welcome.”
I can’t believe the words that leave Nariko’s mouth. “You could never overstay your welcome. Ever.” The reflection of the flames dances in the espresso brown of her eyes, and I find myself jealous again.
Jealous of a reflection because I’m not the center of her attention.
“So fucking beautiful,” I say loud enough for everyone to hear, even Nariko. It’s clear the words are for her, as I haven’t been able to take my eyes off her.
“She is, isn’t she?” Jess winks at me from the steps of the cabin.
“Don’t talk about my sister like that.” Ruka hiccups, then takes another sip.
“Everyone should be talking about your sister like that,” I reply, still not taking my attention off the person who means to consume all of me.
Consumption is a dangerous word to use. I want to consume her mind, her body, soul, and heart. I want to consume her blood and taste what makes Nariko, Nariko.
No other will have that ability—that gift.
Nariko dips her chin to hide her shy smile, her bottom lip pulled between her teeth, and I so badly want to tug it free to take her in another kiss.
She pats the empty space next to her, urging me to sit. I’m never going to say no to an invitation like that. The heat from the fire warms my jeans, silence falling over everybody to see what I do or where I’m going.
The old rocking chair creaks from my weight, and I wince, waiting for it to fall apart any second. It’s been too long since I’ve checked on the condition of these chairs. I never use them, and time has not been kind to the wood.
I blow out a breath after a few seconds, realizing I’m safe. Everyone laughs, including Jazz and Westin.
“I told you months ago to replace those chairs. One day, you’ll sit, and a piece of that wood will be a dagger through the heart.”
Nariko’s hand squeezes my arm, a rush of fear slamming into me, only it’s coming from her. Taking her hand in mine, I bring it to my lips to kiss, hoping it reassures her.
I lean in and whisper, “Hey. I’ll be alright. He was kidding.”
“No, he wasn’t. Promise me, you’ll fix the chairs.” She turns to me, her long, silky hair falling over her shoulder, the strands glossy against the firelight.
I want to feel the silken pieces drag across my chest or caress the tops of my thighs when she’s on top of me, riding my cock. I hold in a growl from the mental image, and I have to hide my eyes, squeezing them shut until they return to normal.
The longer I sit next to her and feel her emotions, scent her blood, my imagination is going haywire, and it’s becoming harder to control myself.
Everyone’s conversations lull to a buzz. The crickets chirping, the frogs singing, the fire crackling, it all fades to nothing.
Except for one.
Nariko’s heart.
It’s louder than all the other mess the world creates. The beat is the only one I want to hear.
Bahdum. Bahdum. Bahdum.