Broken Wings (Hidden Wings Series Book Two) (33 page)

As soon as she st
arted up the stairs, Ethon came into view. When his eyes met mine a smile grew on his lips. His red eyes looked almost black in the distance, and his face was glowing. He looked happy.

Ethon
was very handsome, and I had to pull my eyes away. The attraction was there. A connection I couldn’t control, especially when he was near.

This D
amn bond!
What the hell was I supposed to do about it? I never wanted to have these feelings for him. This was so messed up!
 

“
Hi, Emma!” he called. I took in a breath and faced him

“
Hey, Ethon,” I answered, giving him a smile.

“So, y
ou’ll be staying up there?” he questioned, raising an eyebrow.

“Yes
,” I answered. “Alaine is making arrangements for you and your friends to stay in the tower. I’ve heard it’s really nice out there.”

“T
hat’s very kind of her,” he said.

Bane and Azza
h glared at me. They were standing behind Ethon, and had permanent furrows embedded in their brows.

“Emma, are
you going to see Kade now?” Courtney squealed. “He’s been waiting for you, and he’s been sooooo worried.”

“
Yes, Courtney,” I said through gritted teeth, as she got closer.

“W
ell, he’s awake now. I’ll go take you to see him!” she exclaimed.

Oh God! She was going to throw this whole situation into a complete disaster.

“Who is
Kade?” Ethon asked. His eyes narrowed with concern, and he stepped closer.

My pulse
started to race and my heart began to pound so loudly I could hear it in my ears.

“Kade is Em
ma’s Guardian,” Courtney said in a high, lovey-dovey tone.

Oh hell.
Someone must have explained everything to her while I was away.

I heard a door open up behind us, and Ethon’s eyes told me exactly who it was.

My heart, my head, my stomach…everything suddenly went into a tail spin.

“I thought your fa
ther said that your Guardian died? That before he passed he gave you the Bloodstone amulet?” Ethon asked.

Oh crap.
I didn’t know what to tell him.

“Emma?” Kade
’s voice, called from behind me. “Emma, is that you?”

My head snapped back
to look at him and I instantly became breathless.
Oh God.
I didn’t realize just how much I missed him until now. He was shirtless; his muscles ripped across his chest and abs. His chocolate hair was disheveled, in the sexiest way possible, and his hazel eyes smiled and beckoned me to come.

I wanted to dash
up the stairs to him. I wanted him to wrap me in his arms, carry me away, and make me forget the hell I’d just been through. But I also knew that every other eye in the room was staring and scrutinizing. I could only imagine the expressions on Ethon, Azzah, and Bane’s faces. I didn’t want to look.

Kade brushed back his
hair with his fingers, which made my heart flutter. “Wow. I can’t believe you’re here,” he said, with a smile and gleam in his eyes.

“Yes,
we just got back,” I said, breathless.

“I was getting worried,” he paused, and
then glanced at Ethon.  

“Well, y
ou look… great,” I said. I didn’t know what else to say. I couldn’t see his back, but he looked like he had been healing just fine.

Another door opened
and soon the voices of Dominic and Malachi echoed off the walls.

Dominic
rounded the corner and nearly bumped into Bane. “We have visitors?” he asked, in a snarky voice.

They both eyed each other,
but the goons towered at least two feet over him and Malachi. 

Dominic’s
eyes suddenly caught mine. “Emma! You’re back! And you’re alive!” he yelled.

I nodded
. “Yes. I’m alive,” I answered.

B
ut by the looks of things, it might not be that much longer.

“So
what did you drag in with you?” Malachi asked, in a deep tone. The same tone that scared me the first time I met him. 

Bane and Azza
h began to growl and glare at Malachi and Dominic like they wanted to tear them apart.

“I am
Ethon and these are my friends Bane and Azzah,” he said, holding out his hand to Malachi. “I’ll be here to watch over Emma and protect her until my father arrives.”

“Why would she
need your protection when she already has us?” Dominic asked. His eyes narrowed on Ethon.

“
Because Emma and I have been bonded,” he paused up and glanced up to me with a smile, “and because of that bond, her safety and well-being are now my main priority.”

S
hit!
He did
not
just say that! My heart sunk down to the ground, and my face began to burn with heat and confusion.
This cannot be happening right now.

“
What the -?” Dominic snapped. His eyes darted to me for answers.

I couldn’t speak. A
ll I could do was shake my head and shoot him a look of confusion.

“
Ooooh Shit!” Malachi muttered, also shaking his head. He looked very upset. 

I glanced u
p to Kade. He had a look of complete bewilderment, wrapped with pain, in his eyes.

Everyone else’s
eyes quickly darted between the three of us.

There was
confusion…complete and total confusion, and I felt like I was being suffocated in it.

Alaine
came out from the hall and walked up to Ethon. Just in time.

“Come, gentlemen. I will
personally escort you to the tower. There is a bathroom where you can shower, and we have a small kitchen that is fully stocked with whatever you will need,” she said, leading them to the front door.

“Good-bye Emma,” Ethon
said with a sad smile. He turned to follow Alaine out.

I stood there…
frozen.

Azza
h and Bain gave me evil glares before they turned and left. I was glad they were going to be tucked far away in the tower, but even that wasn’t far enough.

W
ith Ethon and the goons gone, I still felt the heat of everyone else’s stare on me, boring huge holes right through my soul. I had a lot of explaining to do, and they were waiting for me to give an answer. I had none.

From the start of this quest
all I wanted to do was to make it back alive…and we did. All of us except Danyel, but I had to shut out that haunting memory. There was still too much pain.   

We
survived. We accomplished what we set out to do. We traveled through the five deadly levels of Hell and spoke to Lucifer, who was now plotting his revenge on Lucian…a plot that would save us…except one. The one soul he would claim at the end.

This
was all too overwhelming. 

Yes, our
quest was over, but my journey was just beginning. Right now all I could think about was being with Kade. I wanted to melt into his warm embrace, and get lost in his kiss. I had missed him the moment he left me.

I
hoped he would understand. I hoped he would be able to help me figure everything out.

I knew this much…
I wasn’t going to make any choices. Not today. Not for a while. Right now I just wanted to be with him, and find some peace again.

I closed my eyes
and sucked in a deep breath. Then I turned to Kade, and headed up the stairs toward his beautiful hazel eyes.