Eyes Ever to the Sky (A Sci Fi Romance) (The Sky Trilogy) (23 page)

“
Calm down, buddy,” Nomad said, putting a hand on Borrin’s massive bicep. It felt like gripping a scaly Arnold Schwarzenegger. The beast flexed, muscles bulging under Nomad’s hand, but he obeyed, his breath pulsing slower. The cloying scent of desire faded. “Good,” Nomad said, dropping his hand. “Next, we’ll work on your breath.”

In the distance dogs bayed obnoxiously. Gods, he hated dogs. He shook his head as he watched the police bumble their way through the trees. A portly human took a tumble over a log and Nomad struggled not to laugh out loud.

Beside him, Borrin tensed. Nomad needed to get him out of here before the beast lost control and made a mess of that search party.

“
Come on,” Nomad said, pulling a bag of Fritos out of his pocket. He took a bite, letting the salty flavor dance over his tongue. Then he nodded to the interior of the trees. “Let’s hit the road.”

Borrin stiffened and uttered a throaty whine, curved fangs glistening with saliva. He wanted to feed and had been promised the girl. Poor Hugh. He was not going to take that well.

“Not yet,” Nomad said, walking into the forest. His eyes traced to where Hugh had run off with the girl. Nomad could still smell her strawberry shampoo. He'd warned Hugh not to get her involved. Now, he had no choice.

“
Don't worry, buddy,” he said, tugging the beast into the dense trees. “You'll get your chance.”

CHAPTER TH
IRTY-ONE — HUGH

Thursday 11:27 p.m.

Hugh ran for miles. With Cece clutched to his chest, her arms around his neck, her hair fluttering against his face, he could run forever.

When he’d put enough distance between them and the cops, Hugh skidded to a stop. A few feet away, a small cliff dropped off into a moonlit valley, shimmering like a Renaissance painting. Cutting through the valley, a river burbled as the water tumbled over the rocks. Tall pines lined the hills, their dark bows bobbing in the breeze. Hugh strained his ears for a single man-made sound and found none. The forest sounds were soothing: the gentle drone of insects, the wind stirring the pines and the peaceful trickle of the river. He let out a tense breath and gently lowered Cece to the grass.

Once she was sitting comfortably, he bent down to examine her ankle. He gingerly touched the puffy joint. “I think it's just a strain, but I'd stay off it for a couple of days.” He lifted his eyes to hers.

“
You ran so fast.” She was staring at him, eyes wide, mouth open.

He gave a weak smile and shrugged. “I'm training for the Olympics?”
                           

She shook her head, her mouth still gaping.

He sighed and sat on the grass beside her. An owl cut across the field and swooped down on its prey. “I'm going to tell you something crazy.”

She nodded, staring at him bug-eyed. “Tell me.”

He scooted a little closer until their arms were nearly touching. The breeze slipped over his skin, making him shiver. “Are you going to freak out?”

She shook her head. “Never.”

He moved his hand until it was inches from hers. “I'm not normal.”

She rotated her hand in a hurry-up motion. “Keep going.”

“I...” He lifted his eyes to the giant round moon in the sky. “Oh God, I'll just say it.”

“
Say it,” she said. Her eyes were locked on him, waiting.

He swallowed hard. “I'm not from around here.”

Cece shook her head, her mouth tightening. “Quit beating around the bush. You ran like… You ran as fast as a car back there.”

Hugh sighed. “What I meant to say was I'm not from
here
.” He pointed down. “Here as in Earth.”

Cece sucked in a breath. She looked up at the sky, then back at Hugh. “What do you mean?”

“I mean…” He clutched his hands together and tried to find the words. “I mean I'm pretty sure I'm from another planet.”

“
Another planet? Like…up there?” She pointed up toward the moon, her finger trembling slightly.

He shrugged and nodded. “Yeah.”

“Really?” She drew her knees to her chest and hugged them. “I…I don’t know.”

“
Yeah, me neither,” he said, chucking a rock out over the ravine. It sliced through the air and sailed for a quarter mile before falling out of sight. “And also, I have powers.”

She laced her fingers into the dry grass and gripped it like an anchor. “What kind of powers?”

He ticked them off on his fingers. “Flight. Super strength. Super speed. Healing. That's all I know.”

“
That's
all
?” Her voice rose.

“
Oh, and I lied before about all that blood.” He flicked his eyes to her face to watch her reaction. “It was mine. The cop shot me and then I healed. Sorry I lied. I just didn’t know how to tell you.”

Cece snorted. “It’s okay,” she said, shaking her head. “I wouldn’t know how to tell someone that, either.”

They sat for a moment in silence. In the valley, a coyote howled. The silence was killing him. What was she thinking? Would this end it between them? “I’m sorry, Cece.”

She looked into his eyes. “Hugh, why are you apologizing?”

Hugh shrugged. “I don't know. I don't want to be different. I don't even know where I came from.”

Cece's face softened. “What did Nomad say?”

“He told me I was an alien scout sent here to do reconnaissance and report back.”

Her face tightened. “Report back to who?”

Hugh shrugged. “We didn't get that far.”

“
What about the killings? Did he know who did them?”

Hugh looked out over the river. It tumbled over the rocks below. “He knows.”

“Is he going to stop them?” She twisted the ends of her hair between her fingers and looked up at him.

He dropped his eyes. “I don't think so. I don't really know what's going to happen next.”

She dropped her eyes to her hands. “Are you going to meet up with him again?”

“
No. I don't think he was real happy with me when I left.” Hugh twisted a few strands of grass around his fingers. Nomad. Every time he thought about him, he wanted to take Cece and run far, far away. And yet, there was another side of him that wanted to pepper Nomad with questions to untangle his past. How could he have both?

“
You're strangling that grass,” she said, pointing at his hands.

“
Oh.” He released the grass, watching it sift through his fingers. “If you see Nomad, I want you to hide, okay? He's not a good guy.”

Cece nodded. “I kinda thought that.”

“I should've listened to you.”

Cece reached for his hand. When her fingers laced through his own, tingles shot up his arm. His heart sped up.

“You needed to know,” she said, rubbing her thumb over his hand. “I understand.”

He met her gaze. Moonlight reflected in her brown irises. Her dark hair rippled in the breeze. She pressed her lips together and then parted them slightly. She blinked and leaned closer.

He could barely contain the beating of his heart as he pulled her to him.

Their lips met. The softness of her mouth, the sweetness of her tongue overwhelmed him. She tasted like spring. One of her hands locked at the back of his neck. The other gripped his shoulder. He cupped his hands under her chin as her body pressed into his, every curve angling, filling him up. God, he wanted her. 

She pulled away, breathless, her eyes searching his face. A small smile lit the corners of her mouth. “That was…”

“
Magic,” he whispered.

She leaned in, laying her head on his chest as he held her in his arms. He inhaled and took in the scent of her.

“That was better than any kiss I’ve ever had.” She lifted her face to his, tossing a dark strand of hair out of her eyes. “Have you kissed a human before?”

He shook his head, twining his fingers through the hair that brushed her shoulders. “Never.”

She smiled. “Good.”

He looked out over the moonlit landscape.
Hold this moment,
he thought.
There won't be another like it.

CHAPTER THIRT
Y-TWO — CECE

Thursday 11:47 p.m.

“Hey, didn't you say you could fly?” Cece asked, her hand curling around Hugh's arm. She couldn't stop touching him.

He nodded. “Like Superman.”

She pulled back a little. “Really?” Her eyes grew wide.

“
Really.”                            

She hopped up excitedly. “Can you do it? Can you take me?” She'd seen the old
Superman
movie with her mother and how she'd envied Lois Lane. To be
literally
swept off your feet, well, that was romance.

Hugh stood, brushing off the back of his shorts. He shrugged sheepishly. “I'm not very good.”

“Hugh, Jesus,” she said, smiling, “you are a bona-fide superhero. Don't be so damn humble.”

His cheeks flushed. “I don't feel like a superhero.”

“You are,” she whispered. She took his hand and stared into his eyes. The moonlight on his face made him look like a Greek statue. She couldn't believe she was standing here. That he was real.

He hoisted her up in his arms like she was a child. God, he was so strong. Her pulse thudded through her veins as her eyes traced over his strong jaw-line, the stubble on his chin, the curve of his bottom lip.

He gave her one more questioning look as if to say,
are you sure?

She tightened her arms around his neck. “I'm ready.”

He took three huge steps and launched himself off the cliff.

As the wind whistled past and she felt them falling, she thought maybe it was all a mistake, that they'd fall to their death on the hillside below. She gasped and buried her face in his chest as the landscape streaked by. Her stomach lurched. She sucked in a ragged breath. Then they were rising.

They soared over the bubbling river, the waves flashing silver in the moonlight. A white tailed deer bolted from the river's edge and into the dense crop of trees. They soared over the canopy, the leaves streaking along beneath them until it looked like a lush green carpet. Cece smelled the pine, the earthen swell of the land. They rose higher until the trees were just small circles. The river was gone, replaced with stretches of green, small brown rooftops, little cars that trundled after their headlights. Cece wanted to laugh, to scream, to burst this was so amazing. Flying! Dear God in Heaven if her Mama could see her now.

They soared higher. The air that buffeted her was cold now, damp. A shiver ran through her and Hugh looked down, concerned. He started to descend, but she shook her head.
I'm fine
, she mouthed as the wind sucked away her breath. He frowned. She shook her head.
Go higher
, she mouthed. He flashed a worried look, but did as she asked. To fly. To fly away.

They flew through a streak of low hanging clouds and moisture collected like dew on her skin. She tilted her head up and let the clouds kiss her face. Below, the dark landscape was surreal in its brilliance. Lights twinkled like stars below her feet. The river was a thin ribbon, carving its way through the dark.

She began to shiver, but she was enjoying herself too much to tell Hugh to turn around. She gripped his neck and nuzzled into his warmth. The joy was making her lightheaded. But then the lightness turned to dizziness. Her throat began to constrict until it felt like she was breathing through a straw that someone was slowly squeezing.

The air,
she thought as the world grayed.
I can't breathe.

Then the world was gone.

CHAPTER THIRT
Y-THREE — HUGH

Friday 12:01 a.m.

As soon as she went limp in his arms, he knew what he'd done.

“
No, Cece! No!” he shouted into the wind as her arms slipped from his neck. Her head hung over his arm, her eyes closed.

Was she breathing?

He dropped like a stone, descending far faster than he ever had, his heart tearing around his chest. Why had he gone so high? Why?

He hit the ground, burying both legs up to his knees in dirt. Pain rocketed up his ankles and, for a second, he thought he'd broken them, but his thoughts were locked on Cece. He set her limp body on the ground and leaned his cheek over her mouth.

Please be breathing,
he thought.
Please!

Slowly, softly, a breath pulsed on his cheek. He leaned back, digging his hand in his hair. She was alive, if unconscious. Thank God. But then the guilt hit like a punch. He'd almost killed her. He staggered back, resting a hand on a nearby sapling. His body pumped with a sharp anger. Didn't he know better? He'd risked her life for a joy ride. Stupid. Stupid. He grabbed the sapling, tore it from the ground and chucked the sheared tree a half a mile.