Consumed (5 page)

Rourk nodded. “How are you feeling?”

“Much better after a nap.” She stretched out her legs and wiggled her toes. “I’m hungry.”

“Aren’t you always?”

“Hey!” She swatted his arm. “Yeah, I guess I am always hungry. I like to eat. What can I say?”

Keegan rolled to a sitting position and stretched. She stood and offered her hands to Rourk, pulling him to his feet. They moved into the kitchen.

“I can make you something to eat if you want.” Rourk stood behind the grey granite counter. She noticed it matched his eyes.

“Are you sure? You know how to cook?” She was skeptical.

“Yes.” He laughed. “I know how to cook. I cooked for you at the cabin. I know you don’t recall—I made you vegetarian meals.”

“Umm, Ok, sure. You really seem too good to be true.” Keegan smiled at him and waved towards the kitchen. “It’s all yours.”

“Your mom won’t mind?”

“My mom spends as little time as possible in the kitchen. She won’t care, I promise.”

Rourk walked over and peered into the fridge. “Your mom keeps the fridge stocked.”

“Well, we are a house full of elves with big appetites.”

Keegan watched as he took out some vegetables. He washed and chopped the celery and carrots expertly, then grabbed the ranch dressing out of the fridge and placed it before her. “Here. Snack on this while I cook something up.”

She picked up a piece of celery and dipped it, then smiled. “I guess I’ll keep you around.”

Rourk walked around the counter to where she sat on the stool. “I sure hope so because I can’t lose you again.”

Keegan bit her lip and looked up, her eyes sparkling. “I’m not going anywhere.”

Rourk leaned down and kissed her. One of the amazing slow and passionate kisses she’d come to expect from him.

“You must have driven the girls crazy,” she murmured as he pulled away.

Rourk shook his head. “It’s so odd you don’t recall our time together. Keegan, you are my first and only girlfriend.”

“What? Are you serious? You’re so hot. I don’t believe it.” Though, if she was going to be honest, she loved the thought of being the only one for him. The thought of anyone else having ever kissed him made her the tiniest bit jealous.

“I’ve never been interested in anyone but you. Although, if Tommy had his way I would be dating half the state.” Rourk chuckled and went back to cooking.

“Oh really—I can’t wait to meet this Tommy character.” She narrowed her eyes, pointing her half-eaten celery stick at Rourk as menacingly as she could.

“Character is a good word for him. You’ll like him.”

Rourk pulled out chicken and cut it into strips as the pan was heating up. Keegan found that she loved watching him cook. He looked so at ease in the kitchen, which was odd because he screamed soldier when you saw him in public. She really couldn’t wait to find out more about him.

She smiled to herself.
We have a lifetime ahead of us to do so.

“What time is your plane leaving?” Keegan asked, crunching into another celery stick.

He didn’t turn to look at her, but his voice was subdued. “Tomorrow at 9 pm. It was the latest flight out I could get.”

Keegan shifted uncomfortably on the stool. “I’m leaving at 6pm. I have a long flight. And classes Monday morning.”

He was silent a moment. “This is going to be hard.”

“I know,” Keegan said. She sighed. “I’ve never felt this way before. I feel panicked at the thought of being separated from you.”

Rourk looked down at the pan and moved the chicken around. “I know. I’m not looking forward to leaving you. I just got you back. It’s going to kill me to see you get on the plane.”

Keegan realized she was choked up, and didn’t answer. Instead, she covered a carrot in dressing and ate it.

Rourk scooped up the chicken and placed it on a bed of lettuce and tomatoes then sprinkled some shredded cheese on top. He placed it in front of her along with the dressing. “I hope this is good enough.”

Keegan gave him a look of adoration. “It’s perfect. Go get yours so we can eat.”

They ate in silence, neither wanting to talk about the fact that they would be saying goodbye soon. Keegan felt anxious anytime she thought about him leaving her.
Please let it not be as bad as I think it will
, she thought.

After they ate, Keegan said, “I’m going to jump in the shower, then we can go shopping for your laptop.”

Rourk grabbed her hand and pulled her towards him. “I’ll be right here when you get back.” His kiss sent fire through her body.

She smiled, then turned on her heel and ran up the stairs. Her cell phone was laying on her desk. She grabbed it and sent Anna a text.
Thank you!

You’re welcome. Everything is good?

Perfect other than we have to be separated tomorrow.

Yeah, that sucks.

Guess who is moving to Washington next semester.

NO WAY! We should be roommates.

That would be crazy!

Ok I have to jump in the shower. I’ll talk to you once I get back in Alaska.

Bye.

Keegan held the phone tight to her chest with a huge grin across her face. She jumped in the shower and got dressed in record time.
I’m glad I left so many of my clothes here instead of taking them all to Alaska
, she thought as she shimmied into a pair of faded jeans. She pulled on a pale blue sweater, and then quickly applied some mascara and blush. One last look in the mirror, and she ran back downstairs to Rourk.

He was sitting on the couch with her father. He jumped to his feet when she appeared. “You look great.”

Keegan felt her cheeks flush. “Thank you. Are you ready to get out of here? Do you want to go to your house and get changed?”

Rourk looked down at his day-old clothing and shrugged. “I guess I should.”

Keegan looked over at her father. “Tell mom, we are going out and we’ll be back later tonight. I doubt we’ll be home for dinner. We have a date tonight.” Keegan wrapped her arms around Rourk’s waist and squeezed him tightly.

“Have fun.” Her father turned back towards the TV.

Keegan grabbed a coat from the closet. “We’ll drive to Nashville to get the computer. The stores are better, and they have better restaurants.”

“Whatever you want is fine with me.”

When they walked into Rourk’s house, Keegan was surprised how comfortable and homey it felt. “Have I been here before?”

“Yes, when you picked me up to go away for the weekend. To the cabin. I’ll be right back.”

Keegan was amazed at how quickly Rourk showered and changed.
Must be nice to be a guy
, she thought.
They don’t have to worry about make-up or what to wear
. He was even sexier than normal fresh out of the shower, with his hair still damp and his shirt sticking to his chest. She couldn’t keep her eyes off of him.

Rourk ran his hand through his hair subconsciously. “Is something wrong?”

Keegan waved a hand in front of her face. The room felt hot. “No, I just can’t believe you’re mine.”

Rourk laughed. “I can’t believe you feel that way.” Rourk strode toward her and wrapped his arms around her. He pulled her tightly against him and bent down to inhale the scent of her hair. She had a woodsy sent about her that he found very sexy.

“We better get going. We have a long day of shopping ahead of us.” Keegan grinned, squeezing him tight around the waist.

“Then we should go.” With a smile, Rourk took her hand and lead her out the door.

They merged onto the highway and passed beneath a large green sign for Nashville. Keegan was glad to see traffic wasn’t bad at all, so it would be a quick drive. She loved going shopping.

“What kind of music do you like to listen to?” Keegan asked as she changed the stations.

Rourk shrugged. “I don’t really have a favorite. Whatever you like is fine. I don’t normally listen to music.”

Keegan was aghast. “We are really going to have to lighten you up. Ok, well, what do you like to do with your free time?”

Rourk chuckled, then said, “I enjoy hiking, reading, running, shooting, training. You now the usual things.”

Keegan crinkled her nose. “You sound like my brother. He’s so boring.”

Rourk laughed loudly. “I’m sure I’ll have more excitement in my life now that you are part of it.”

Keegan grabbed his hand and lightly traced her finger in circles on his skin. “I sure hope so.”

They talked during the hour drive. Though, looking back, Keegan realized she did most of the talking., which seemed to be fine by Rourk.

When they got to the mall and found a parking spot, Keegan hopped out of the truck and said, “Ok. We have to go to the Apple store. My father will never let me live it down if you don’t get a Mac.”

“I’m clueless about computers,” Rourk said honestly. “You can pick it out and I’ll pay for it. I trust your advice.”

“Sounds good to me.” Keegan hurried forward, excited to get to the mall. She realized Rourk wasn’t beside her, and twirled around. He was lagging behind, with his hands shoved in his pockets.

“Hurry up, slowpoke!” Keegan called, laughing.

Rourk shook his head, amused, and lengthen his stride to catch up with her.

For hours, Keegan dragged him into countless stores. Rourk spent at least a month of his military pay. He didn’t mind at all.

Chapter 6

T
oday was their last day together at least for a few days.

Keegan’s felt sick to her stomach at the thought of leaving him. It didn’t seem fair; they had just found each other.

As if he could read her mind, Rourk reached over and ran his hand through her hair. “It will only be a few days. I’ll be coming to see you Friday night and we’ll have all weekend together.”

Keegan pouted. “That’s so far away.”

Rourk laughed. “It’s not that far away. It’s nothing compared to the year we spent apart.”

Keegan’s face fell and guilt flooded her. “I feel horrible that you were miserable for a year while I was out having fun with my friends.”

“There is nothing to feel sorry for, Keegan. You didn’t know. We can’t change what the black magic did, we can only move forward.” He kissed her gently on the lips. “It’s the way of the elf. We weren’t supposed to meet until we turned eighteen, anyway.”

Keegan laid her head against him. “I guess you’re right. It still sucks though.”

Warrick ran into the room giggling and breaking their sorrowful silence. Keegan smiled and scooped him up. “You’re going with me tonight. You better not throw a fit on the plane.”

Her little brother stuck his tongue out.

Keegan laughed and put him back down. “Go play with your blocks or something.”

As Warrick ran away, headed for the toys, Rourk stared after him with a smile. “It must be pretty neat to have siblings,” he said.

Keegan heard the wistfulness in his voice. It had never occurred to her that Rourk was an only child and that it could be a lonely thing. To lighten the mood, she rolled her eyes. “That’s one way to put it. Although, I have to admit it would be odd to be an only child. You must have been lonely growing up.”

“I didn’t know any better. Being alone was normal to me.”

“Keegan, Rourk, come have some breakfast.” Her mother peeked out of the kitchen. There was a streak of flour on her cheek that made Keegan laugh.

They walked to the table hand-in-hand.

“Are you packed? We have to leave by 3:00.” Her mother stood at the stove, scooping the last remnants of scrambled eggs from the skillet. She looked at Keegan.

Keegan reached over and pushed some eggs on her plate. “No, but I’m only bringing my backpack so I don’t really have much to pack. It will just take a few minutes.”

“Do you mind if I drive you guys to the airport?” Rourk asked before taking a sip of his juice. “I’d like to spend as much time as possible with Keegan.”

Emerald’ eyes twinkled as she glanced over at him. “That would be nice of you. I’m sure Keegan won’t object.”

Keegan felt her face turning red. “Are you sure you need to come with me mom?”

“It’s better to be safe than sorry. We’re not sure how the distance will affect you. I have to run to the store today and get a rose quartz necklace for you. I’m going to charge it with healing energies and hopefully that will ease some of the discomfort.”

Rourk finished chewing his toast, then said, “Having a healer in the family comes in handy.”

“Yeah, especially when Keegan was little. She was quite the daredevil. I lost count of how many times I had to fix her up after one of her stunts.” Her mother had a faraway look—a slight smile on her face as if she was visualizing a memory.

“I can picture that.” Rourk squeezed her hand across the table.

“Come on Mom, I wasn’t
that
bad.”

“Whatever, Keegan.” Emerald turned to lean against the counter and crossed her arms. “Then where did all the scars on your legs come from?”

Keegan looked down at her plate and shrugged. “Ok, maybe I was that bad.”

“Where did you get that scar?” Rourk touched a long gash on her shin. His finger made her shiver.