Genesis (29 page)

He flashed his sun god smile and placed
a hand at my lower back. At least my dress covered that much of
me.

The other lords met us in route, all
decked out in high fashion couture. Most of them filed in line
behind us, but Heath walked ahead of us as if taking point. My eyes
followed the line of his braid to his gently swaying hips. Man,
those pants should be framed and mounted in a museum. Needless to
say, they hugged him in all the right places. He shot a look over
his shoulder and caught me ogling. I glanced away. He
laughed.

We reached the wall of people. There
was no way we were getting through them, but to my surprise they
stepped aside as we moved forward yet just as quickly closed the
space once we were past them.

My lungs tightened. So many bodies this
close suffocated me. Breathe, I told myself. I had to
breathe.

My heartbeat washed out all other
sound. A hand rested on my shoulder, and I turned to see Taylor
step closer.

He leaned into me. “There is enough
air, Rayla. Fight the feeling. Do not show weakness to these
people.”

I stiffened my spine and smiled at him,
leaning in as if I was going to kiss his ear. “Thanks for the pep
talk, but right now I need a little more than that.”

Without warning, his lips brushed my
cheek then my mouth and suddenly my lungs expanded greedily. Before
he could step away, I caught his hands and gave him a peck. “Thank
you, Taylor.”

He offered a short nod and fell back in
line. Surprisingly no one gasped at my behavior; no one even looked
like they had seen what just took place.

After what seemed like forever, we came
to the edge of a sunken theater. It was at least as big as the
Colosseum back in Ignis, but I would have never known it was here
if I hadn’t been this close.

Dancers flitted and floated across the
stage below us, trailing colorful ribbons behind them, making the
floor come to life. Soon music cut through the noise of the crowd,
unlike any I had ever heard. It matched the ethereal dancing, and I
couldn’t quite tell if the dancers were following the music or the
other way around. I didn’t even want to blink, worried I would miss
something spectacular.

We descended the stairs slowly because
I wouldn’t go any faster. I probably made a few people mad by being
in their way, but I couldn’t bring myself to care. One of the
things I had promised myself before I left for college was to catch
some shows on Broadway. Well, if I ever made it to New York, I
doubted anything they had to offer could live up to this.
Anticipation hung in the air like a charged storm ready to release
a show. My nerves responded, sending me into a emotional
frenzy.

When we finally reached our seats, I
let Luke guide me down. Only after she spoke did I realize I was
sitting by the queen.

She leaned toward me and clasped my
hand. “Do you like it?”

“
I’ve never seen anything so
beautiful.”

She patted my hand. “This is the
preshow. You just wait.”

I nodded, not wanting to talk anymore.
Thankfully, she laughed and sat back.

From this distance I could see and hear
everything. So many things wanted my attention, but I settled on a
scene where two men struggled for the same woman. She writhed
between them, twisting and turning from one to the other. I knew
exactly how she felt.

Someone was watching me. I followed the
pull to the source. It wasn’t Luke like I expected. It was Heath.
His tawny eyes glowed with an intensity I had never seen in him, or
anyone else for that matter.

I smiled, but he just kept staring. I
would have said it was creepy. It should have been creepy, yet in
this gargantuan theater full of more people than I could imagine, I
could only look at him. I let my eyes travel the line of his cheek
to the up-tilted corner of his mouth. Oh, that mouth.

“
Rayla?” said
Luke.

“
Mmm?”

“
You’re missing the show.
It’s about to start.”

I pulled my gaze away from Heath and
made myself look at the empty stage. The music intensified making
my stomach knot up until a crash of thunder startled me. Fog rolled
across the stage and writhing figures shrouded in white emerged
from the eerie depths. For a minute I forgot I was looking at
dancers. They moved so gracefully they appeared to be an extension
of the smoke.

A young woman came into view wearing a
billowy gown that would have made any bride envious. Her blond hair
trailed behind her with bright white blooms braided into her mane.
Seemingly searching for a way out, she wandered the expansive
stage.

The music grew darker as the mist
thickened around her. Her fear was almost palpable, but wait, just
then a light appeared in the distance. It cut through the fog,
banishing it to the nether realms as it marched closer to the
trembling girl. She reached her hand longingly toward the
light.

But it wasn’t a light; it was a man—a
man who held a striking resemblance to the one sitting next to me.
I leaned closer to Luke.

“
Who is that?” I
whispered.

The frigging queen actually shushed me.
When I turned back to the play, other men had come for this girl.
Four other men to be precise.

Subtle.

I cleared my throat and was shushed
again.

Oh bother. What was the point in
telling me my own story?

What started out as amazement toward
these people had swiftly turned to annoyance. I suddenly wished I
could go to bed. It was late and I still hadn’t spent any time
training with Luke.

My mind continued to wander and even
though I probably wouldn’t admit it to anyone else, I closed my
eyes a few times. I didn’t want to see the ending of this
play.

“
What is the matter, my
lady?” Taylor asked. He had been seated by Luke which I was sure
was deliberate.

I pointed to my head and made a
face.

“
Headache?” he mouthed after
he got more shushes.

I nodded.

Luke touched my temple and I nearly
flew out of my seat. That was where the angel had touched me in my
dream, so why did it kill in real life?

“
Did you hit your head?”
asked Luke. All thought of the play fled his worried
face.

“
No.”

“
You have a rather large
bruise forming.”

The queen took notice. “We have been
preparing for this for a very long time, young lady. I think you
can sit through a few more minutes.”

I turned toward her. “Of course, your
majesty. Forgive my rudeness.”

She patted my hand and turned toward
the stage again. So much for getting out of this. If there was one
thing I had already learned here, it was to never piss off a
queen.

I settled against the seat and leaned
my head on Luke’s shoulder. I felt him watching me throughout the
rest of the play.

Coming as no surprise to me, the girl
ended up picking the shining blonde and the others were cast away,
slinking back into the darkness.

I had one word for this fiasco: cheesy.
They hadn’t even bothered to hide their message.

I stood and clapped with the rest of
the crowd, but if they thought I was going to choose Luke just
because they made up a lame play, they all needed a
lobotomy.

Anger gathered in my throat, but I bit
it off. For once, I would like to be able to enjoy my time in the
realms. Maybe after I picked a bondmate I would find some
happiness, but I clearly wasn’t going to get any now.

I insisted that Luke take me back to my
room after the play was over. The queen wasn’t happy, but I had
done what she asked so who cared what she thought. Certainly not
me.

Luke hovered in the doorway, obviously
waiting for me to invite him in. I made a show of yawning and
covered my mouth.

“
Sorry,” I said. “But I’m
just so tired. Thanks for taking care of my headache.” He’d given
me a concoction that I downed without even thinking much about it
until afterward. Thankfully, it had taken the majority of pain from
me. Now I just hoped it didn’t come with untoward side
effects.

A sad frown settled on his mouth and he
sighed. “Okay, but I’m right across the hall if you need me. I had
hoped we would have a little more time together today. I count the
hours until I can see you again. Do not hesitate to contact
me.”

I nodded and shut the door. The last
thing I needed was a repeat of this afternoon. Luke had to think
the passion between us earlier meant something, but he was wrong.
The more I thought about it the more I was convinced I had been
under an enchantment of some kind. I just wished I knew for sure if
he had been as well, or worse, if he had been the one compelling
me. I hadn’t felt the tug of compulsion, but something had been
off. One thing was certain. I needed to be with more people than
the lords. Tabitha’s warning hit me anew. I had no idea if she was
right, but I sure as heck didn’t want to find out.

I woke the next morning having survived
the night without any bad dreams, or really any dreams at all. For
the first time in a long time, my mind was refreshed and my body
rejuvenated. The only thing that still bothered me was my
questionable injury.

My head still hurt a bit, so I went to
the bathroom to check out my not so little bruise. It was still
where it had been last night, blossoming out from my temple toward
my forehead and cheek. I cringed when I touched the tender edges.
The purple tinge had lightened to a yellow-black. It looked awful,
like someone had clobbered me, but I still couldn’t remember how it
happened. I mean, yeah, it sat in the exact spot my dream angel had
touched, but how could a dream damage my body in real
life?

For all I knew I might have hit into
something when I shot out of bed. It didn’t really matter because
the thing was on its way to becoming just a bad memory.

Figuring out the time of day here was
hard to gauge. The light stayed pretty much the same outside.
Altasia was a beautiful endless city, but somehow I had expected
more. I’d imagined being on a lush mountainside or something like
that, but here the view consisted of clouds and…wait for it…more
clouds. Still beautiful, but where was the water?

After dressing for the day,
which was harder than it should have been due to Luke’s idea
of
appropriate
attire, I poked my head out the door and immediately jumped
back.

A humongous body blocked my view. I
placed my hand on my pounding heart and tapped his
shoulder.

Nicco turned to greet me. “My lady, how
may I assist you?”

I could think of several things, but I
kind of doubted he’d agree to smuggle me out in his luggage. Well,
I took another look at him, good thing to know I’d probably fit in
his luggage if the need arose. “Hey.” I said. “What are you doing
here?”

He gave me a lazy grin. “I should think
that was obvious.”

I wanted to punch him, but I smiled
instead. “That’s not what I meant. I already have more body guards
than the queen of England. Why are you here?”

“
I merely follow orders,
miss.”

I moved so I was right in front of him
and looked up into his nearly black eyes. Something about his eyes
had always brought a hint of recognition, but I still couldn’t
figure out how that was even possible…unless I’d seen him somewhere
before I went to Ignis and not realized it. I didn’t know why I let
it bother me because I would probably never figure it out. “Nicco,
answer my question.”

He smacked his lips together then ran
his hand over his forehead. “Heath thought it would be good to have
a guard posted at your room.”

Huh? “Heath ordered you
here?”

“
No,” said Heath from behind
me. “But I did ask him to come.”

I turned to give him a smart comment,
but my voice died before it started. He was dressed in battle gear,
of some kind. Leather. Black and sexy as anything I had seen on a
man. His armor clung to every hard line of his body, and man, was I
enjoying the view.

He tilted his head to the side and
smiled. “See something you like?”

Nicco laughed. I gave him a sneer over
my shoulder. “Not helpful.”

Heath stopped a few inches closer to me
than I was comfortable with, but I wasn’t about to back away. I
stared at everything but his mocking face.

“
Good morning, Heath,” I
finally said because I didn’t know what else to do.

He laughed. “Step a little closer and
it will become even better.”

I licked my lips and caught his smoky
eyes. “Where is everyone else?”

He inched nearer. “Does it
matter?”

It should, but all I could think about
was shutting his stupid mouth with my lips. Instead, I shrugged. “I
just wanted to know what the plan was for today.”

His smile broadened. A
little bit more, and his dimple would show. “I can think of plenty
of things to do with you, but none of them involve the
others
.”