Aflame (Apotheosis) (11 page)

“Yes. I know it must sound crazy. You have to know I’m one hundred percent sincere. I couldn’t lie to you even if I wanted to.”

Ha! Couldn’t lie. What man didn’t lie, or do everything in his power to deceive the women in his life? No man she’d ever known.

“I’d been out of town for several weeks on business. When I returned, a shift had taken place, not just in me, but around me. I sensed you. I followed the energy and it led me to the gym. Every cell in my body vibrated when I stepped inside. I zeroed-in on you, tried to make eye contact, but you avoided me at all costs, like you were afraid. So, I didn’t push. Nikolas warned me to take it slow. God, it was fucking torture.” He searched her eyes, she had no reaction to offer. “Anyway, you know what happens next.”

“If we’re connected like you say, why didn’t I feel you? Why didn’t I feel a bond or a pull?” Her bones ached with an unexpected sorrow, like she’d missed out on an important rite of passage.

“You did. You do. You’re so guarded you couldn’t or wouldn’t recognize it. That’s one hell of a wall you’ve built around yourself.” Sadness spread over his hard masculine features. An unusual urge to comfort him unfurled through her veins.

“So now what?” She surrendered her hands to the air. “Are you expecting me to call a minister? Buy a puffy white dress? ‘Cause let me assure you, I’ll do naked cartwheels through Disneyland before shit like that goes down.”

“I’d like to see that,” he chuckled. “We can take it slow. Or not at all, if that’s what you choose. But you need to know something.” He paused and rubbed his face roughly, drawing Grayce’s attentions to his rugged hands. They knew her intimately, gave her pleasure beyond reason, and despite being masculine and powerful, she didn’t fear them. It was ironic, really. Tyr’s long manicured fingers were far too pretty and delicate for a man, and with them, he’d only shown her pain.

“What?” She barked.

“Now that we’ve found each other...” He looked hesitant, afraid even to say what needed to be said.

Oh fuck, this was going to be bad.

“I’m with you forever. Mind, body, spirit. I’m yours. You are...” He stopped. He wanted to say
mine
. Zander knew better and didn’t want to ignite her fury again. Good boy.

“I can’t make you stay here. I’ll never force you to do anything. But you need to know that wherever you go, I’ll be there. If you never want to see me, you won’t. But I’ll be there in the shadows. If you want me to be your friend, we’ll be friends. If you need a father figure, brother, security guard...I’ll be there. If you’re ever sick, in danger, trouble of any sort, it’ll be me keeping you safe. If—”

“Stop. You’re killing me.” Grayce silenced him with a finger over his soft lips. “I get it. Fuck. I get it.” Her hand lingered. The skin to skin contact was like a shot of happy-happy-joy-joy without the nasty side effects. He nipped the pad of her palm and chuckled.

“Why the foul language, Grayce?” His eyes saddened as he grabbed her hand and placed it on his knee. “Don’t get me wrong, it turns me on.” He added quickly.

Grayce shrugged in mach indifference. Yeah, her foul mouth was a tool used to keep people at arm’s length. Didn’t take a PhD to figure that out. No one wants to get to know the crazy girl who drops the F-bomb in every sentence. She didn’t want to talk about herself. Not now. Not ever. Besides, if she did open up and spill her guts, the fire and fury might come back. It’d be a shame to burn such a lovely house.

“Never mind. It doesn’t matter.” Zander shook his head. “Would you like a tour of your maybe home?” Grayce nodded, hoping to walk off the obscene amount of food she’d scarfed. That, and give her some time to think about her possible place of residence, and Zander, too. Shit, she couldn’t believe she was even considering this insanity.

The forty-five minute jaunt ended in a large home gym decked out with top of the line workout equipment. It didn’t go unnoticed that a set of elliptical machines matching the one Grayce favored at the gym were placed side by side in the corner of the room. The man paid attention.

“Wow.” Grayce gasped when they entered. “Why would you ever buy a gym membership when you have this at home?”

His laugh bounced off the wall to wall windows. “I’ve never had to work out a day in my life.” He smiled. “I went to Armstrong’s to be near you.” The steel framed bench creaked in protest as he sat. “You went every day. I thought you might like to have your own gym here. I built this for you. Finished a couple days ago.”

Unable to help herself, Grayce threw her head back in laughter. “You’re kidding me, right?”

Her feet left the floor and her ass landed on his thighs faster than she could blink. “I’m not kidding. What’s so funny?”

“I hate going to the gym. I’d joined a couple weeks before you came in, to take self defense classes, which I loathed by the way. I kept going back...” She couldn’t believe she was admitting this. “Because I wanted to see you.”

Zander squeezed tight and laughed with her. Grayce hadn’t laughed like that since she was a child...a million lifetimes ago.

* * * *

“Grayce. Grayce. Baby wake up.” Her eyes snapped open, releasing her from the nightmare. Hands trembled in panic as she loosened the death grip on her own throat. Zander nestled her to his chest and stroked her hair. “Hey. I’m here. You’re safe.” Soft kisses tickled her scalp.

No. Not the damned nightmares again. Why was this happening? She searched his gaze for the solace only he could offer. “He’s in my head again. God I hate this shit.” Grayce scrubbed the forming tears away, along with the goo that’d collected in the corners of her eyes from a hard sleep. After planting a few kisses on her cheek, Zander grunted and rolled out of bed.

“Come, Chelsea’s making breakfast. She’s dying to meet you.” He planted one last soft kiss right on the tip of her nose. A prickly heat shivered down her spine and spread like wildfire across sensitive skin. Never in her wildest dreams did she imagine being so receptive to a man’s touch. Waking in bed with one, safe and warm? Well, miracles really did happen, didn’t they?

They dressed and headed to the kitchen. The aroma of bacon overwhelmed her senses and her stomach roared. Zander heard it too and laughed. At the sink stood a tall, raven-haired curvaceous woman. Couldn’t have been older than thirty-five. As if she felt them enter, she squealed and dropped the pan she’d been drying onto the counter.

“Grayce, I would like you to meet Chelsea.” Voice thick with pride, Zander beamed. She’d never seen him smile so wide.

“Oh my.” Chelsea cupped her mouth. Deep green eyes gleamed with pure joy. “May I hug you?” she asked, choking back tears. Not waiting for an answer, she lunged at Grayce, throwing delicate arms around her neck. She squeezed so tight, it left Grayce grasping for breath. “You’re here. You’re finally here.” A sob escaped her lips followed by the most unladylike sniffle. She held Grayce at arm’s length, gave her a once over, then hugged her again. “You’re more beautiful than I could’ve possibly envisioned.” Like a mother hen, she scooted Grayce to the table. “Sit, sit. Breakfast is almost ready.”

The strangest sensation swept through Grayce. A warm-and-fuzzy, cinnamon roll-and-coffee, gossip-over-a-glass-of-wine kind of feeling. How could someone she’d never met feel this comfortable and familiar?

Chelsea zipped over to Zander and embraced him in a bear hug. “I’m so happy for you Zander.” He embraced her back, swung her in a circle and kissed her cheek as he set her down. “Nikolas is waiting in the lab. I’ll let you know when breakfast is ready.”

“Yes ma’am.” Zander grinned, shot Grayce a wink and headed for the doorway in the far corner of the room.

“Okay. Got rid of him easily enough,” Chelsea snickered at Grayce. She shifted her dress and positioned a chair to bring them face to face. “How are you doing?” Dainty fingers enveloped her hand and squeezed.

Grayce avoided eye contact for fear of having a meltdown. “I...um...I don’t know. This is...overwhelming.” She looked down at their clasped hands. “Unbelievable is more like it.”

“I know what you’re going through. I truly do. It’s going to sink in eventually, I promise.” Chelsea tucked a long slender finger under Grayce’s chin and lifted her face to catch her gaze. “I’m here for you. One hundred percent. I’ve got your back, whatever you need.” Her eyes glowed a brilliant jade green. What was the deal with everybody’s eyes? Chelsea’s smile was so warm, inviting and maternal that Grayce couldn’t help but feel at peace, at home. “I think we should spend the day together, just the two of us.” Her eyes widened and glittered with anticipation. “Would you like that?”

Yes, for some bizarre reason, she did want to spend the day with this stranger who radiated warmth and love. This woman who wouldn’t judge, who didn’t have a nasty bone in her body. How did she know that? What the fuck did it matter? Weirder things had happened. Say like, in the past three or four days.

“That would be nice.” Besides, she needed a break from Zander, a reprieve from the foreign emotions that attacked from every direction. Work had offered a minimal distraction, but not enough to...

“Oh shit!” Work. She’d missed her shift. “I have to get to work. I didn’t call them yesterday. Fuck. I’m going to lose my job for sure.”

Chelsea giggled and rose from her chair. “Zander was right. You do have a colorful vocabulary.” She grabbed plates, then glasses from the cupboard. “From what I understand, it’s not safe for you to go back.”

Crap, she was right. Tyr had been watching her. She’d be a fool to go back. He’d be waiting.

“The boys are coming,” Chelsea proclaimed. How did she know? A few seconds later, heavy footsteps preceded hearty laughter. Doctor Compton entered first. “Good morning, Grayce.” A warm smile and wise eyes greeted her.

“Morning, Doctor Compton.” She breathed a sigh of relief when he didn’t come in for a hug.

Chelsea snickered. Nikolas snorted.

“Oh God, child. We’re family, call me Nikolas.” He headed for his wife, kissed her hard, then grabbed the dishes from her hand.

Family? Sure, in theory the idea was kinda awesome, but in reality? Yeah, right.

Zander scooted his chair close enough to Grayce’s to keep their thighs in contact. It would’ve been annoying as hell if she didn’t crave his touch so damned bad.

No one talked much at the breakfast table. Seemed as if a secret lingered between her three hosts. They made eye contact and small talk, with nothing of much importance being said. No one delved into her personal life. Thank God. They took turns checking on her. Kept her plate full, asked if she wanted more coffee. Small stuff. So many questions burrowed through her brain. So much she wanted to know but was afraid to ask.

Chelsea winked across the table at Grayce. “I’m sure you have a ton of questions.” Shit. Was she a mind reader too? Grayce nodded and poked at her scrambled eggs. It felt like she’d been sucked into an alternate universe. She was surrounded by people who obviously loved each other and carried a deep respect for one another. When they spoke, the words were kind and thoughtful. They made eye contact and shared gentle, trusted physical touch. No one yelled or barked commands. No one was drunk or under the influence of illegal substances.

“If you’d like,” Chelsea continued. “We can go for a walk after breakfast. I’ll tell you anything you want to know. The men can join in, or we can go alone, it’s your call.”

Grayce glanced at Zander and melted a little in her seat as he flashed his sinfully sexy eyes her way. She didn’t know how to act around all this normal, happy family, breakfast at the table, have a nice day shit. Irritation rumbled through her bones like an oncoming storm. Conflicting emotions muddled her brain. For so long, she’d survived on pain, anger and fear. How could she let that go?

It couldn’t be that easy, could it? It couldn’t be that easy to just trust somebody? All these years she’d shielded herself from physical and emotional contact. Protected her heart and mind from the inevitable pain that accompanied intimate bonding, on any level, with another human. Now, her own body had double-crossed her. This damned attraction to Zander was fucking unbearable. She not only needed, but wanted him near. Why? Maybe she should run while she still had the chance. Never look back.

And what was with all the creepy shit? She practically ignited into flames when she got mad or saw Zander naked? What the hell? There hadn’t been time to tackle that subject. Maybe she didn’t want to. Then there’s the whole topic of Zander’s super strength. What was he? What the fuck was she, for that matter?

Questions, questions, questions. Unable to bear any more bombardment, Grayce slammed clenched fists on the table hard enough to make plates jump. “I have to get away from here. How the hell do I get out of here?”

Zander jumped to his feet so fast his chair flew across the room and splintered against the wall.