Contingency (20 page)

I turned my head to the side and saw a fading bruise on my jaw. I frowned at my reflection, the bruise looked nearly healed. I unbuttoned my white night gown to examine the wound above my heart. I gasped when I saw the two inch scar was barely pink around the edges. It looked weeks old. If the only consequence for consuming vampire blood was super fast healing, well then, I had nothing to complain about. I closed my eyes as I brushed the tangles from my hair, it felt good to do something so normal.

When Aldwin came back to check on me I asked him to have a dinner prepared for several people. He argued that I needed my rest, but I got my way. I wanted to see everyone--to make sure they all looked healthy--and to show my appreciation for everything they had done for me. After I had soaked about thirty minutes too long in my bath, I dressed in a loose fitting black Roman inspired dress and decided to defy popular fashion and wear my hair flowing down to the center of my back. I only wore my sgian dubh in my boot and my stone pendant. I had lost my smaller dirk and the butterfly cuff bracelet.

When I made my way down stairs a slight flutter in my chest alarmed me and my eyes were instantly drawn to the door just as someone used the knocker. Zachary appeared and opened the door to admit Soren. His eyes found mine instantly. I made my way down the last few steps to meet Soren for the first time since the night of the battle. I had so much to say to him, so much to be thankful for.

He looked so intently at me that I unconsciously put my hand over my heart. I stopped directly in front of the vampire and he held out his hand for mine. He brought my hand to his lips and kissed it, while his eyes never left mine.

“I’m glad to see you looking just as beautiful as ever.” His eyes roamed over my hair and over my black gown, as if he were soaking in my features for future reference.

“I felt you right before you knocked.” I whispered, watching his face for a reaction.

“Did you?” he asked without so much as a hint of what he thought about the situation.

I reached up and touched his cheek tentatively. He grabbed my hand and rubbed his cheek against it like a cat rubbing its body against his owner. He closed his eyes as if the contact brought him pain. “Soren, I can never thank you enough for saving my life, I will be forever in your debt.”

He looked into my eyes and then tucked my hand into the crook of his arm and murmured. “There is no debt, Sage. My reward is having you on my arm and in my life for however long we have.” I frowned over his choice of words, but Soren led me into the dining room where Aldwin, Travis, Dwennon and his mate all waited to celebrate our victory.

Chapter Thirty-Two

The night was filled with friends laughing and making plans for the future. Even though there had been deaths on both sides of the fight, we had been victorious. Only a few rogue preternaturals escaped, and Dwennon was confident they’d be found and taken care of. We all enjoyed each other’s company until late into the night before everyone began going home.

A profound sadness was tugging on my heart and I wondered where the feeling was coming from. I felt like I’d found the place where I belonged. I felt at home. When I saw Soren to the door, I realized that the melancholy I was experiencing was coming from my brooding vampire. I reached out my hand to stop him, to ask him what was bothering him. He jerked his arm away from me abruptly and muttered something about the bond being a nuisance. I let him leave without smacking some sense into him, but I promised myself I’d talk to him the next day.

I leaned against the front door after the last guest had left and yawned into the back of my hand.

Aldwin walked over to me and he flashed a crooked grin at me. “You are dead on your feet. Up to bed, Miss Hannigan.”

I raised a challenging brow at him and crossed my arms over my chest. “Make me." I thrust my chin out. The challenge had been thrown down.”

I shrieked as Aldwin pinned me against the door and then scooped up into is arms before I could even pretend to have had a fighting chance. I stuck my bottom lip out in a pout. “No fair, I’m wounded. It wasn’t an even match.”

His laugh boomed off the walls and warmed my heart. “You never had a chance, Sage,” he boasted. He carried me all the way into my room and gently sat me back on my feet.

I threaded my hand through his thick ebony hair and felt a thrill shoot through me when his body shivered ever so slightly. I got up on my tip toes to gently kiss him.

“Sage, you are injured. I don’t want to hurt you further.” His husky voice cut through my haze of desire and I looked into his concerned gaze and knew beyond a shadow of doubt that I wanted him more than I had wanted anything else in my life.

“Aldwin, I need you tonight. Please don’t deny me again.” His eyes widened slightly and my nostrils were filled with the scent of him. Instead of saying anything he lowered his mouth to mine and answered me passion for passion.

He broke away reluctantly and rested his forehead on mine. “I need to tell you something... before we...” I put my finger across his lips and breathed in the scent of honey and spices.

“Whatever it is won’t matter to me. Tonight is just about us. Save it for tomorrow.” I said breathlessly. He seemed a bit torn so I made the decision easier for him.

I turned around and looked over my shoulder at the man who made me feel complete. “Undo my dress for me, please?” His pupils dilated and I hid a small smile. His hand brushed my hair over my shoulder and I felt his breath a second before he kissed my neck. I groaned out loud. His fingers expertly unbuttoned the back of my dress, lowering it down past my shoulders and just above my breasts. His mouth skimmed the back of my neck and then he kissed the sensitive skin where the mark of Amerach was. I hissed in a breath at the contact, feeling a sizzling current travel throughout my body. Aldwin groaned as I let the dress drop to the ground. I stepped out of the puddle of fabric and turned to face him, feeling suddenly unsure of myself.

I reached over and tugged at the fabric around his neck and Aldwin took the hint and disposed of his shoes, tie, and vest. I smiled and crooked my finger at him. His eyebrows rose but he didn’t deny me. I reached up and slowly unbuttoned his shirt, exposing more and more of his muscular chest. When I pulled the fabric off and he stood shirtless in front of me, a jolt of red hot desire shot through me.

I kicked my boots off and sat my sgian dubh on the bedside table. With my back still to Aldwin I started unclasping the hooks at the front of my corset, I held onto it for a moment longer, I had never been completely bare in front of a man before. I took a deep breath and let the corset fall away. With my arms crossed over my chest I turned to face him.

Aldwin stepped forward and lifted my chin gently with his finger. “You are absolutely beautiful.” I released a breath as his mouth descended to mine again, saying what words never could, and wiping away all my inhibitions.

Later that night my head lay on his bare chest and I listened to his even breathing while he slept. I wondered why I hadn’t said what had been in my heart since I had woke up with him asleep next to me earlier that day. I shifted to look at his face and knew more certainly than anything in my life that I had begun to fall in love with him. I smiled to myself. My heart was swollen with love and happiness. I dislodged myself from his embrace and turned over to sleep on my side, I smile split my face when Aldwin unconsciously adjusted himself to wrap around me from behind. I fell asleep in a cocoon of warmth and contentedness with a smile still on my face.

I wish with all my soul that I had slept dreamlessly.

Chapter Thirty-Three

The forest was familiar somehow. An owl hooted in the distance and the faint ticking of a clock echoed in the darkness that surrounded me. I glanced around the forest, sure I was missing something. I was certain I had been here before. My heart began to race, this place made me uneasy, and I didn't want to be here. A breeze blew and I caught a whiff of spices, herbs, and...honey. My heart filled with joy and I was sure I could almost lift off the ground from the power that coursed through me. I shook my head and tried to connect all my thoughts. Why would that scent make me feel this way?

I walked down an overgrown path, wondering where it would lead. I kept trying to place the tantalizing scent that lingered in the air around me. A man stepped onto the path that I was walking on and I stopped to contemplate pulling on the thread of power I felt nestled inside of me. His gaze met mine and my heart fluttered wildly when his gold rimmed eyes penetrated the darkness that surrounded us. I knew those eyes. I raised a hand to him but he just scowled at me with those beautiful eyes. Brooding vampire. I touched a hand to my temple and wondered where the thought had come from.

Another man stepped onto the path a bit further down and I squinted to see if I could make out his features. The longer I stared, the hazier the air around the man became and the scent that hung in the air thickened, coating my tongue. I started walking toward the men and both turned away from me to walk further down the path and away from me. I walked quickly and soon caught up with the first man. He immediately reached out and took my hand. It seemed so natural that I didn’t question it.

I tried to call to the man on the path in front of us but nothing came out of my mouth. I started to run and the vampire holding my hand ran with me. No matter how quickly we ran, though, the man in front of us never got closer. We ran around a bend and came to an abrupt halt at the edge of a large pool of water that had the full moon reflected in its inky surface. The man we had been trying to catch stood on the other side of the pool, his face half hidden by shadows and half hidden by the aura that surrounded him.

The vampire clasped my hand as I walked to the very edge of the pool’s surface. The man across from me mirrored my movements. I reached out my hand to him even though I knew the chasm was way too wide for our hands to meet. He held his out and I felt a gap in my heart, knowing I was not able to touch him. I took a step into the water and the vampire came with me, the man also took a step in. I smiled and wondered how deep the pool of water was. When we had all taken a couple more steps I realized that we would all be in over our heads by the time we reached one another. I looked back at the vampire holding my hand and wondered how far we would be able to go or even if the waters were safe. We were all standing in the water up to our waists and I didn’t know what to do next. There was just too much space between us.

The man I felt a connection to took a step forward and the water sloshed up to his chest, I tried to cry out once again, but no sound would escape my lips. Panic started building in my chest, this was all wrong. I yanked on the vampire’s hand but this time he didn’t budge, I jerked my hand, but I couldn’t free it from his grasp. I dove forward unable to break free, when the man took a step that brought him in deep waters that sloshed up to his neck.

I screamed a wordless scream, but the vampire held me by my waist, keeping me from helping my mystery man. When the man lunged forward again and was swallowed up by the icy black waters, I felt a part of my heart plummet with him. I kicked, hit, and tried to get away, but the vampire held me tightly in his arms. When my body was too tired to fight and my heart was filled with nothing but loss, the vampire embrace me gently like a lover and then dragged me under the murky depths of the water. As I sunk to the bottom of the pool of water, a single shimmer of silver snagged my dimming vision. I reached out and grasped the hilt of a dagger. Mine, I thought.

Chapter Thirty-Four

I sputtered and coughed up a nasty amount of water, my eyes stung and my nose was burning from water leaking out of it. I grabbed a sheet off the bed and wiped my face, pushing the sopping wet hair out of my face. I stopped in mid motion as the sounds and sights around me came rushing in.

No! My heart skipped a beat and threatened to stop all together. I almost wish it had. Anything would have felt better than it breaking into a million pieces. I vaguely recall sitting my sgian dubh, which I had in a death grip, next to the lamp on my bedside table. I stood up, on auto pilot, walked over to the window and pulled the curtain back so I could look out. Cars swarmed the streets, horns honked, people on the corner talked loudly, and I could hear a television blaring loudly through the wall from an apartment next door.

I walked into my bathroom and looked at my reflection in the large mirror hanging over my bathroom sink. I still had a faded bruise on my cheek and an almost healed scar above my heart. Too bad my inner scars wouldn’t heal that fast. My heart constricted when I thought of the night I had just spent with Aldwin, of all the things I never got to tell him and how the night we had just shared had really happened a hundred years ago.

I grabbed onto the sink, my knees shaking, and stared at the stone pendant hanging around my neck. I loathed the day I’d picked it up at the antique book store. I fingered the mark of Amerach remembering how Aldwin had so lovingly kissed it. A tear leaked out of the corner of my eye as I grabbed a large glass bowl of sea shells off of the counter. I smashed it into the mirror shattering both into thousands of tiny pieces. I stumbled into my bedroom, wrapped my cut hand in a sheet, and curled up into a ball, letting sobs wrack my body.