Ascension (Book 4, The Watcher Chronicles) (26 page)

On the evening of the second day, we all gather together in the living room of the villa for a much needed moment of relaxation. It’s a time for us to just be together and share more about our lives with one another. I look forward to the day when we can do this and not have to worry about saving the world from damnation.

While I have everyone together, I tell them what God told me about our souls being like magnets to one another.

“And that’s how you grabbed me?” Gabe asks.

“Apparently,” I say with a shrug.  “Don’t ask me about the physics of it because I have no idea how to explain it that way.  All I know is what God told me.”

“Ok, well, I have a question for everyone,” Zack says, “especially you guys. When you first met Jess, did you think you were in love with her?”

To say I’m shocked by this question is an understatement. I look around at my friends and see them all staring at me.

“I kissed her once because I thought I might be,” Chandler confesses to the group.

“I have to admit,” Rafe says, “I have always felt closer to Jess than any of the rest of you. No offense.”

“No,” Leah chimes in. “I know what you mean. I never felt like I was in love with her, of course, but I’ve always felt closer to her than anyone else.”

“Oui,” JoJo agrees, “same with me.”

Gabe shrugs. “I had the hots for her,” he confesses without shame. “But I knew Mason would kick my ass if I made a pass at her. So I kept my hands to myself.”

Mason smiles at Gabe’s correct assessment of his reaction, and I feel his arm tighten around my shoulders as we sit on the couch and look around at my friends.

“Do you think it has to do with this connection with our souls?” Leah asks me. “I mean we all feel like we’re connected to one another, but the bond we all seem to feel with you is like ten times stronger, at least for me.”

“I’ve always felt like I was the leader of the group,” I tell them, trying to find a logical explanation for their feelings for me. “Maybe all of you feel that too. That I’m the one you can count on to lead you. You trust me.”

“I think it’s more than that,” Chandler says. “But, I can’t explain why I think that. It’s just a feeling I have.”

“Well, I’m just glad no one but Chandler tried to kiss me,” I tell them with a smile. “It was a complete disaster and the worst kiss of my life.”

Chandler groans. “Don’t let my droves of adoring female fans hear you say that,” he says. “It will totally shatter their fantasy of me being their dream lover. It’s an image I would rather keep perpetuating. You know I have a rock star god image to uphold with the ladies.”

Leah throws one of the pillows on her couch at our rock star god.

Chandler picks it up. “Oh yeah?  It’s on little girl!”

Things completely devolve into mayhem after that as a pillow fight ensues and we innocent bystanders are forced into entering the fray. I end up laughing so hard my sides hurt and have to call a truce.

As we all stand around, trying to catch our breaths from laughing so much, I suddenly realize this might be the last time we get to laugh with one another until everything is over.

I just hope we all get the chance to do this again after we save the world.

  On the day before the wedding, we take a break from practicing for the fight so we can help Mama Lynn, Faison, and my grandfather get things ready. I feel a little guilty that I haven’t been more involved in the preparations but none of them seem to mind. Maybe they were relieved they didn’t have to run anything by me. I pretty much gave them carte blanche regarding everything about the wedding and reception.

Mason was able to work out the phasing schedule for everyone in Cypress Hollow who would be attending the wedding. All of the Watchers were eager to help out as much as they could to ease our burden. I got the feeling they wanted me to have as little to worry about as possible. They all knew the fight I would be facing soon and seemed to want to help as much as they could, even if it was in such a simple way.

Aiden was the only Watcher who wouldn’t be in attendance the next day.

“He needs the day off,” Mason told me, “to take care of some things.”

I didn’t need to be told what Aiden might need to do instead. He had been helping us a lot lately and probably didn’t have a lot of time for his extracurricular activities that curbed his desire for human blood. Plus, there would be a lot of humans at my wedding. The last thing I needed was for Aiden to be led into temptation.

“Faison and I plan to just stay here at your grandfather’s house tonight. Are you going to stay with us?”  Mama Lynn asks me while we are sitting at the kitchen table making place cards for the tables in the big tent where the reception will be held.

“I don’t know. Do I need to?” I ask, not liking the idea of spending a night away from Mason.

“Well, you know it’s bad luck for the bride and groom to see each other the day of the wedding.”

“I’ve never been superstitious,” I tell her. “You know that.”

“Well, it would be nice to have a girls’ night,” she says, finally getting to the heart of the matter. “We haven’t been able to spend much time with you. And I know it’s not your fault. You have a lot going on right now. But, one night away from Mason won’t hurt, will it?”

I sigh. Yes. Yes it will. That’s what I want to say, but I know Mama Lynn is basically telling me she wants to spend some time with me before I become an officially married woman.

“Ok,” I say, trying not to make it sound like a reluctant ok even when it is. “I’ll stay here with you guys tonight.”

Mama Lynn smiles. “Wonderful. I’ll make sure we have everything we need.”

When I tell Mason later, he pouts. I just laugh.

“You get me for the rest of my life,” I tell him, hugging him around the waist. “All she wants is one night. You’ll live. Trust me.”

“Yes, I’ll live, but that won’t stop me from missing you.”

“I’ll miss you too,” I tell him. “So keep your phone close. I might need to text you or call you.”

“I’ll keep it right next to me in bed,” he promises.

Right before Mason leaves after supper, we sneak off to a secluded spot near the pool area at the back of my grandfather’s house to make out.

“Do you really have to stay here?” Mason moans, not wanting to let me go.

“I promised I would,” I tell him, kissing his lips and making mental notes on how soft they feel against mine, hoping the memory will get me through the night.

“I should probably leave then,” Mason tells me, though his body seems to have other ideas because his arms tighten around me instead of loosen.

“Yeah,” I say in complete agreement but find it almost impossible to stop kissing him.

“Do you think they would notice us making a quick run for some matches?”

I laugh and force myself to pull away from him.

“Take your shirt off,” I tell him.

Mason looks surprised by my request but begins to quickly unbutton his shirt.

“Are you sure you want to just do it right here?” He asks.

“No,” I tell him. “We’re not doing anything. I just want your shirt.”

Mason takes it off and hands it too me. “Can I ask why you want my shirt?”

“So I can wear it when I go to bed,” I tell him. “It’ll make me feel like you’re holding me.”

Mason tugs me back into his arms for a breath stealing kiss.

After a while, I reluctantly pull away from him. He makes to bring me back to him, but I hold up a hand to stop him.

“No,” I say. “If you touch me again, I’ll never be able to let you go without me. So go. Please.”

Mason’s naked shoulders sag in disappointment.

“Text me later?” He asks hopefully.

I nod but don’t say anything. If I do, I feel sure my resolve to keep my promise to Mama Lynn will completely dissolve.

“I love you,” he says.

“I love you too.”

Mason phases and I instantly feel the emptiness of his absence.

Chapter 17

When I go back inside, the girls are already dressed in their pajamas. I hurriedly put mine on and leave Mason’s shirt on the bed to change into later. When I go back downstairs for one last girls’ night as a single woman, I find a plethora of junk food laid out on the kitchen table.

“You know I have a wedding dress to fit into in the morning,” I tell them.

“Oh, a little snack isn’t going to fatten you up that much,” Mama Lynn insists, filling a glass bowl on the table with tortilla chips for the Rotel queso dip she made.

“Yeah,” Leah agrees. “You’ve probably lost weight since she measured you last anyway.”

Faison giggles. “With all the exercise you and Mason seem to do together, I’m sure you’ve lost some more weight by now.”

Leah and Faison giggle together at my expense and Mama Lynn just smiles.

I quickly grab a chip and begin to nibble on it, choosing to ignore their gentle gibe about my newfound sex life.

We spend most of the night eating and playing a game of UNO. I’m thankful Mama Lynn didn’t decide we should play Jenga. My nerves were already starting to fray thinking about the wedding without having to endure playing that game on this particular evening.

Near the end of our game, my grandfather comes into the kitchen holding a slim blue velvet box in his hands about the size of a book.

“How are you ladies doing down here?” He asks, all smiles.

I get the feeling he likes having us in his home filling it with food and laughter.

I stand up from my chair and walk over to him.

“We’re doing fine,” I tell him. “Are we keeping you up with the noise?”

“Oh no,” my grandfather insists. “I just came down to give you something I thought you might like to wear tomorrow.”  He hands me the box in his hands. “It belonged to your grandmother. I bought it for her on our tenth anniversary. I think she would like for you to have it now.”

Mama Lynn, Faison, and Leah gather around me as I open the lid to the box. Lying inside is a necklace made up of diamond clusters in the form of sunflowers. The clusters are largest in the middle and taper to smaller clusters as you go to the ends of the platinum setting.  In their own separate holder in the center of the necklace is a pair of matching earrings.

“It’s gorgeous,” I say, gliding the tips of my fingers across the diamonds.

“I thought it might look nice with the dress,” my grandfather says.

I look up at him and can see he’s happy I’m pleased with his gift.

I lean up and give him a kiss on the cheek.

“Thank you, Grandpa.”

“Oh, you’re welcome. That thing’s been sitting in my safe for years now. It’s about time it saw the light of day. Maybe you can give it to your own daughter someday. I think your grandma would have wanted it to become a family heirloom.”

I smile at the thought of a daughter of my own and nod.

“I will,” I promise him.

“Well, I’ll let you ladies get back to your party. Let me know if you need anything.”

After my grandfather leaves, the girls take turns fawning over the gift.

By the time I’m allowed to go to bed, I feel exhausted.

I set the necklace my grandfather gave me on the nightstand beside the bed and grab Mason’s shirt.  I quickly take off my pajamas and slip it on. I’m instantly surrounded by Mason’s smell trapped in the weave of the fabric, woods and cinnamon.

My eyes are drawn to the wedding dress that JoJo sent over early. It’s draped on a white silk dress form, which is basically just a headless mannequin.

I walk over to the dress which is taking up a quarter of the room because of the layered train at the back. As I look at it, I realize my fears about a wedding are all coming true. Tomorrow I’ll be walking down the aisle in front of all our friends and family in a big poufy white dress while they gawk at me.