Chapter 19
ARIANNA
Ididn’t want to leave. After Gaelan fucked me against the window, I wanted to spend the rest of the day wrapped in his body.
Still, he had to do some work, and as much as I tried to pretend that I didn’t have to find this book, I needed to.
I’m still going to my aunts as planned on Monday.
I’m planning to stay a week now, but I’ll stay longer if needed.
I take a deep breath, and all I can smell is him.
Gaelan got rid of my clothes because they were covered in blood, so he gave me a pair of his sweatpants and a hoodie, and as I sit in the back of his car, I hold back the urge to reach out and touch him.
Mark is driving us back to my house, and every second we get closer to dropping me off, I wish the car would break down.
Giving us just a little bit longer together.
Gaelan sits opposite me and has not taken his eyes from me.
Something inside is telling me that he feels the same.
“Ari, I’ll be away until Tuesday, but I want to see you.” I smile at the slight demand in his voice. He also grins and then adds, “Please.”
“I’ll be at my aunt’s house all of next week,” I say, wondering if he would come with me.
He picks up my hand and kisses the back. “I’ll join you there. I want you to have this—” he hands me a different card with a different number on it “—if you have any trouble while I’m away and you need me, call this number.”
I look at the card. “Whose number is this?” I wonder.
“It’s Mark’s, he knows how to get hold of me.” He then leans over and kisses me. I’m so engrossed in him; I don’t feel the car pulling to a stop.
It’s not until I hear Mark get out of the car that we break the kiss. “I’ll text you the address tonight, before you leave.”
“I’ll respond when I can.” He kisses me again before the car door opens. Mark is standing waiting; he grins at me just as Gaelan gets out of the car and helps me out.
Gaelan walks me to my door. “Be safe, Arianna.” He leans down and gives me one last kiss that leaves us both panting. I smile up at him.
“Thank you, Gaelan. I’ll message you later.”
He runs a finger down my cheek before turning to leave. He put on a pair of jeans this morning, and I’ve never seen jeans hug a man’s ass quite like his, so I watch him walk away.
Smiling, I unlock the front door and walk into the house. Flicking the light on, I wonder where everyone is; downstairs is quiet, but the soft thud of music comes from upstairs.
“Luce? Mekhi?” I shout, heading up the stairs to my room. Pushing the door open and almost dropping my bag in fright when I see both of them on my bed eating chips, popcorn, and drinking tinis. They look up at me, taking in what I’m wearing.
Mekhi grins and holds his hand out to Lucy. “Pay up bitch.” Lucy rolls her eyes and hands him fifty dollars.
I shake my head. “You placed a bet? On what?”
“On you letting that fine man have some of your kitty. I won.” He grins and places the note at the top of his vest.
I look at Lucy, shocked but unable to hide the laughter in my voice. “You bet against him?”
She laughs. “Yes, we have the first date rule, remember? I didn’t think you would break it.”
“Girl—” Mekhi replies to Lucy while coming over to take my hands and pull me to the bed, “—you didn’t see that fine ass man. I would grow a pussy myself to have him chew on it. Man was hot.”
I can’t help the smile that crosses my face as I whisper, “He really is.”
They both laugh and pull me down onto the bed with a heavy thud. We roll in a ball of laughter, and no matter what, I’m grateful to have both in my life. We settle, lying on our backs, looking up at my dark ceiling, where small fairy lights are mounted to resemble stars in the night sky.
“So, how was it?” Lucy asks me.
I smile. “It was really great, so much fun.” I’m not going to tell them about the daemon attack; Mekhi would freak out.
“Where did he take you?” Mekhi asks before getting up, refilling their drinks, and handing me one. I was ready to curl up in bed and have an evening of movies, but I guess that isn’t going to happen now. Mekhi always seems to start drinking early on Saturdays.
“He took me to The Amore,” I say, unable to hide the excitement in my voice.
“Shut up,” Mekhi gasps.
“Oh my god, that’s so posh.” Lucy giggles.
Sitting up, I take a sip of the tangy apple drink. “He owns it.” I know that by saying that, they might guess he’s supernatural, but no one says anything.
Lucy sits up and wraps her arms around me, hugging me. “And the sex?”
My smile gets even bigger. “Amazing, unforgettable.” A giggle burst from my lips as the words really don’t describe just how amazing it really was. “Perfect,” I whisper in awe.
Mekhi grins. “I bet his cock is as beautiful as he is. Tell me it’s true.” He pleads with me.
I roll my eyes at him. “I’m not saying a word,” I laugh, and Mekhi pushes my shoulder.
“Is he big? Tell me that man is packing, it would be a tragedy if he had a tiny dick.”
Taking a big sip of my drink, I raise one eyebrow at him and nod my head slightly. He lifts his glass into the air. “A-fucking-men.”
“So? When are you seeing him again?” Lucy asks.
“Next week. He’s going to meet me at Aunt May’s house,” I sigh.
“What?” Mekhi asks as he moves to my other side and lays his head on my lap.
“I guess it’s my house now, really, I never thought it would be mine, not yet anyway.” They hug me tighter, and I welcome the comfort.
“Will you be okay going there alone?” Lucy says. “I can come with you,” she adds.
I shake my head. “No, it’s okay. I need to do this alone. Gaelan will be there, anyway, so I won’t be alone.”
She nods. “Call me if you need me, okay? I’ll drop everything and come right away.”
Mekhi raises his eyebrows, downs his drink, and then looks at me, blowing me a kiss. “I love you, Hitch, but my ass is staying right here. I will support you on the phone.” I smile at him; he’s doing his best with all of this, and I appreciate that so much.
“I’m going to be fine,” I say, more to myself than them. I will be fine once I’ve found this book and give it to Drake, whatever it is he needs. The idea of Drake needing the book doesn’t sit well with me, though. I’ve not seen him since that night at the bar. Something I am very grateful for.
Mekhi stands up. “Well, ladies. I have a D appointment, so don’t wait up.” He winks at us both and then walks out of the room. I’ve not set him up with anyone for a while, so I wonder who he’s meeting.
Both Lucy and I laugh. “What are we going to do with him?” I speak.
Lucy stands up, walks over to the cocktail jug, and picks it up. “We love him and let him be free.”
I giggle at that. “He’s more than free, that’s for sure.”
Lucy fills up both of our drinks and then settles on the bed next to me. It’s then that I notice how tired she truly looks. She has dark circles under her eyes, and her cheekbones jut out just a little more than usual.
“Girls’ night?” I took a sip of my drink. I pull my white fluffy blanket over our legs, and we place the snacks around us. “We’ll have to get more snacks at some point,” I say, popping a chip into my mouth.
“Ari?”
I look at Lucy and smile softly. “Are you okay?” She shakes her head and lets out a big sigh. “I don’t want you to be mad, okay. Promise me.”
I narrow my eyes. “What is it?”
“Promise me.” She begs, I know I’m not going to like this.
In the past, when Lucy kept things from me, they always ended up going badly.
She dated a guy from the club a year ago.
She didn’t tell any of us because she was worried that it would reflect poorly on the club.
It turned out this guy was on a most-wanted daemon list for a murder.
I love my best friend, but sometimes her judgment can’t be a little off.
“Lucy?”
“Please,” she pleads. I nod my head.
“I broke up with Justin,” she fiddles with the stem of her glass. I wait because I know she’s going to tell me more. “He just… didn’t feel right, my heart kept screaming ‘no.’”
I sip my drink and watch as her eyes move to my door.
She smiles slightly before taking a sip of her own drink.
“No other reason?” I question because I know there is, I just don’t know what.
Since we were at my aunt's house and were threatened by Drake, Lucy has been acting a little off. I was feeling bad for not telling her what Drake had said to me at the club, about taking her. Now I’m pleased I didn’t.
She shakes her head. “No, no other reason.”
“Luce, if you need to talk to me, I’m here.”
She sighs and leans her head on my shoulder. “I know, you just have a lot going on, then I think about that yellow-eyed daemon…” She pauses as if she’s hearing something. “Did you find it? The book?” Her question tumbles out of her mouth in a hurry.
A frown mars my face; this is the first time since my aunt’s house that Lucy has mentioned the book.
“No, it’s nowhere to be found. It’s vanished.” It’s not entirely untrue; I have the information from my aunt’s daemon files and those numbers, but currently, they don't bring me any closer to finding the book.
“I hope you find it soon,” she whispers.
“Me too,” I whisper back.
The rest of the afternoon, we drink and talk. I texted Gaelan my aunt’s address, but he didn’t reply. My guess is that he doesn’t have cell service, given that the message delivery ticks never turned blue. I should shower, but I don’t want to wash the smell of Gaelan off me.
I miss him.
My alarm clock woke me up, Lucy left me at some point in the night, and I felt her get out of bed, but I was too tired to say anything.
The first thing I do is check my phone—still no message from Gaelan—I would’ve thought he’d have sent something to say he got the address and was still coming to see me.
Doubts creep into my head again, but I remember what he made me feel—his truth—and it stops the doubt from growing. He’ll message me when he can.
I shower and start to pack my bags for the week.
I may stay longer at my aunt's if I can’t find the information I need; then I might have to.
Everything at work is covered; the new girl, Eden, has been working really well, and Kat will be there to help her if she needs it.
Both of them will look after everything while I’m not there.
After my shower, I put Gaelan’s hoodie back on—it still smells like him.
I’m slightly obsessed with the lemon scent, which is mixed with something manly that I can’t quite put my finger on.
I picked up my bags and headed to my car. I open the trunk and struggle to lift them in.
“Going somewhere?”
I jump at the voice and turn my head slowly to see Drake leaning up against a tree in front of our driveway, his eyes flashing between red and yellow like a police siren before settling on red, his long blonde hair tied in one of those man buns, and he’s wearing a black suit.
He’s good-looking, almost like a Viking, but he screams evil most terrifyingly.
“Not that it’s any of your business, but yes.” I probably shouldn’t speak to him that way, but he wants something from me, so it gives me a confidence boost. He needs me, and that gives me a bargaining chip.
“And the book? Have you found it yet? Time is ticking.” He taps his watch and moves from the tree, stalking toward me. “You are testing my patience, Arianna,” he snaps.
I turn to face him fully, unable to hide my irritation. “Drake, you asked me to find something I have no idea the name of, or what it even looks like. I need more time.”
His expression darkens, his top lip curls back, revealing his fangs to me before he sneers. “Time is something we do not have.”
“Why do you want the book so badly anyway? What are you going to use it for?” I question, but he just stares at me. Why I thought I could reason with him or even have a conversation with him is beyond me.
He chuckles darkly. “I am not a daemon that can be reasoned with, and what I need the book for is my concern, not yours.” He moves quickly, pinning me to the car, his hand finding my neck.
His fingers wrap around it, and he squeezes hard.
I lift my hand to try to get him to let go, but he squeezes tighter, making it hard for me to breathe.
He lowers his head, his voice dark as he whispers in my ear, “So do as you are told and find it.” He squeezes my neck even tighter, a smile crossing his lips.
He watches me struggle to breathe for a few more seconds, as if he’s enjoying this, before he shimmers away, and I fall to the floor, panting for breath, tears running down my cheeks.
Fucking psycho.
I stand and run my hand over my neck—it’s going to leave a bruise.
Looking back at the house, I can’t help the worry and fear that’s now running through me.
Part of me wants to go back into the house so I can hide in my room; the other part wants to find this book and find out exactly why Drake and everyone else want it.
My hand lifts to my necklace, and I touch the gold stone. “Drake won’t get the book,” I whisper. And he won’t, I’ll make sure of it.