Gods and Mortals: Fourteen Free Urban Fantasy & Paranormal Novels Featuring Thor, Loki, Greek Gods, Native American Spirits, Vampires, Werewolves, & More (196 page)

T
he graduation ceremony
was only scheduled to last an hour, and even that was too long. My graduating class was not very big, only a few dozen eager young minds. My foot was tapping anxiously on the floor. Barely a month after my dad died, I was being forced to sit through a ceremony he should have been here to see. If my mom hadn’t pressured me to come, I think I might have skipped it. They mailed home the real diplomas anyway.

I waited for my turn to walk, thinking, like I often did lately, about my dad’s letter. Part of me wanted to tell Claire about it right away, but another part of me had been afraid to tell her. I didn’t need Claire worrying about me or trying to uncover any more mysteries for me right now. She worried about me too much already. After the funeral I tried asking my mom about it when Claire had fallen asleep on the couch.

She was the one who gave me the box and letter, so I thought she would be able to explain it. I couldn’t have been more wrong. Knowing it was meant only for me, my mom hadn’t read Dad’s letter before giving it to me. When I offered to let her read it, she took the letter gratefully. By the time she finished reading it, though, the way her lips were pressed together so tightly was a pretty good indicator of how much she was going to tell me. I tried to ask her about the things Dad had written, but she refused to tell me anything. The most I got out of her was something she mumbled under her breath about my dad knowing better than to say anything. And that was the end of it. Every time I had brought it up since then she left the room.

That was when I turned to Claire. She had been digging around in Tewa writings for months. I thought she might have some idea about what the letter might mean. Unfortunately, stories about Badger beating Coyote in a contest, or why rattlesnakes have rattles had not prepared her for the confusion of the letter. She was as lost as I was. Not to mention more worried than ever. I wanted to try and figure something out, but with the extra work at the ranch, finals, graduation, getting ready to follow my dad’s advice, and everything else, I really didn’t have much time to put into it.

Brooding in my thoughts, I almost didn’t hear my name called. I quickly banished the letter from my mind and stood up. I walked across the stage without fanfare. A few people clapped, probably my mom and Claire, as I shook the principal’s hand. I carried my fake diploma across the stage and returned to my seat. My impatient foot tapping started again. Claire was waiting for me. Thinking of Claire let me put everything else away and shut out the questions that seemed to have no answers.

Finally the ceremony ended, caps thrown in the air, family rushing forward. My mother reached me first, wrapping me in a hug and bringing tears to my eyes at the mention of how proud my dad would have been of me. Claire hugged Cole and politely congratulated the other graduates she knew, which was pretty much everyone, even Dana, but her eyes never left mine for long.

Slowly we made our way to each other. Claire’s hand slipped into mine and I pulled her close. I felt so much better with her around. “Congratulations, Uriah,” she said, trying to speak over the noise. Leaning close, as if to hear her better, I stole a quick kiss. “You can do better than that,” she said with a smile. “This is a celebration.”

I felt his hard eyes on my back immediately. His patience with me after my dad died had waned pretty quickly. He was back to his grating, obnoxious self all too soon. Thomas was hardly the only reason I was forced to scale back my affection for Claire, but him glaring at me constantly certainly didn’t help. I refused to meet his gaze, but Claire understood my hesitation and turned a glare as fierce as Quaile’s on him. It lasted only a second before her sweet smile enveloped me once again. I would do anything for her, even if meant dealing with her father later.

Scooping her up in my arms, I pressed her lips against mine, kissing her with only a portion of the tidal wave of passion I was longing to release. The taste was intoxicating, and threatened to overcome me, but my awareness of my mother standing nearby as well, was enough to make me pull back. Releasing Claire’s legs, I gently set her back on the ground, but was forced to catch her arm as she stumbled a little. Usually, I was the one trying to stay on my feet after kissing her.

Claire stared at me, her eyes hungry for more. I had never kissed her like that before. Always careful with my emotions before Dad died, before I knew something worse than the pain touching Claire brought, I had not wanted to push myself, or Claire. Not to mention I was still scared of angering Thomas. Every time he looked at me he seemed to be reminding me of his threat to call the police if he had reason. I knew he would follow through on his promises, but being raised by my parents was an equally real barrier that kept me from unleashing my desires.

Holding back was difficult enough, normally. I realized, now, how much harder I had just made things for myself. I wanted more. Just having her near me made it almost too hard to resist the soft curves of her body and eager eyes. “I’m so sorry, Claire,” I whispered.

“Don’t be,” she said quietly. “Don’t be sorry for that.” She took a deep breath and squeezed my hand tightly. “Let’s just get out of here. Tyler and Lana should be ready to go by now.”

The last few seconds had completely erased our plans from my mind. Irritation swept over me once again. Tyler and Lana were our best friends, but I had wanted to spend the evening with Claire, only Claire. Of course Thomas had refused. I hadn’t been able to change his mind because he darted away as soon as he said no. It was hard to convince someone of something if you couldn’t even find them.

“Santa Fe will be fun, Uriah, even if we have to go with Tyler and Lana,” Claire said.

I squeezed her hand. “I know. Let me tell my mom goodbye first.” Claire nodded and pushed me gently in my mother’s direction. My conversation with my mom was brief, ending in a hug and a plea to be careful, and then I was back at Claire’s side.

Once in the hallway, I stripped off the graduation gown and tossed it on a table. The gowns were cleaned and used again by the next set of graduates. The cap was mine to keep. Tucking it under my arm, I pulled Claire along the linoleum lined tunnel and out the door.

“Claire, Uriah, you guys ready to go, or what? We’ve been waiting out here forever,” Tyler complained.

Rolling my eyes, I said, “Graduation only ended five minutes ago. Didn’t you even say goodbye to your families?”

“It’s not like we’re not coming back,” Lana said.

Actually, she and Tyler weren’t coming back, at least not for good. Both were heading south to Las Cruces for college. I should have been joining them. At one time I was excited to go. Things can change quickly, though. It had not been easy telling Mom that I wasn’t going, but she looked more relieved than disappointed in all reality.

“Get in the truck,” Tyler said, opening the tiny extended cab’s door with a flourish.

I hated sitting in the back of his truck. It was not designed for someone my size. Claire pulled me to the car. “Hurry up,” she chided, “before my dad changes his mind about letting me go at all.” Remembering what I had just done right in front of him was enough to kick my feet into a higher gear. I was sure he would step out of the auditorium doors at any second and grab Claire. We were on our way in less than a minute.

I spent the next forty minutes scrunched behind Tyler. The only consolation was that Claire was pretending to be just as uncomfortable, turning so her body was nestled snugly against mine. By the time we reached Santa Fe, I was actually reluctant to leave the cramped seat. My growling stomach urged me to unwind myself.

As we waited for our table in the foyer, I watched Claire, finally seeing her in full light. The silk dress she wore was a deep blue, shimmering with every slight movement. She had teased me with the dress for weeks, not letting me see it, only telling me that it was special, just for my graduation. It was special, not because the fabric detailed every curve of her body, or because the color was a beautiful contrast to her light brown skin, but because she wore it only for me.

Because of her father’s constant reminders that her beauty would win her a wealthy husband if only she would leave me behind, Claire rarely dressed up anymore, preferring blue jeans and t-shirts to the dainty dresses most of the other girls liked to wear. I loved her sense of style. It was much more suited to fishing on the river bank, but still, I couldn’t take my eyes off her.

The fact that she had done this for me made it hard to resist carrying her out of the restaurant right then. Claire turned and caught me staring at her. She grinned, clearly enjoying the effect she was having on me. I put my hand under her chin gently and raised her face. “You look beautiful,” I said, though it was a significant understatement.

“Do you like the dress?” she asked.

“I do.” I wanted to tell her just how much I liked it, but I kept those thoughts to myself.

“Our table’s ready,” Lana chimed.

I groaned, despite my appetite, and followed them to the back of the restaurant. We slid into a secluded booth. Laying her hand gently on my knee Claire tucked herself under my arm. I held her close and tried to remind myself that we weren’t alone. Thankfully the food arrived quickly.

Dinner was great. I hardly noticed the food, but every second was engraved in my memory. When the dessert plates were brought out, my palms started to sweat. Tyler glanced at me knowingly. Claire, always perceptive, asked if I was okay. Tyler rescued me by changing the subject, describing the apartment he and Lana were going to rent down in Las Cruces.

Claire was swept up by their enthusiasm, no doubt wishing she was just a little bit older. Born two months sooner and she would have been celebrating her own graduation along with us. I was thinking of my future as well. All too soon the dessert plates were cleared and we were on our way out of the restaurant. The day’s heat had cooled into a pleasant evening. Claire drifted into my arms, kissing my lips lightly before turning back to our friends. “So, what are we going to do now?”

Tyler pulled Lana into a bear hug. “Lana and I are going to watch a movie. You and Uriah…” Tyler left the sentence hanging, giving me a much too obvious wink. He was not the most subtle person in the world. This would be the last time I asked him for a favor. “Maybe we’ll meet up at Fusion later? I heard they’re doing an all-night graduation party, so underagers are welcome.”

“Yeah,” I said, ready to be rid of Tyler, “we’ll see you there later.”

Tyler pulled Lana down the street, glancing back with a ridiculous grin. I rolled my eyes, irritated that I would still have to ride home with him.

“What was that all about?” Claire asked.

“Nothing,” I said. “I just asked Tyler to leave us alone for a while. I haven’t seen you all day, and I wanted some time with just the two of us.” Claire’s warm smile washed over me. Normally that was all it took to calm me down, but not tonight. The slight tilt to her lips made me wonder if she knew. “Let’s take a walk,” I said quickly.

“Okay.” Claire took my hand and leaned in close to me. “Where do you want to go?”

“I don’t know. Let’s just walk for a while.”

Santa Fe’s streets were busy with summer tourists. Filled with galleries, museums, and artists, Santa Fe attracted people from around the country. We walked, admiring the artwork in the galleries and listening to the myriad of street musicians. Claire followed my wandering lead without question.

Slowly we left the busier streets behind, moving away from the showier side of downtown and into the everyday storefronts of regular businesses. Claire glanced up at me, wondering at my choice, but said nothing.

There was the sign. “You know,” I said, “I was here in Santa Fe a few weeks ago.”

“Really?”

I had expected the surprise in Claire’s voice. It hadn’t been easy to not mention the trip before now. We had spent almost all of our free time together in the last month, and even when we were not together it was rare that we didn’t know where the other one was.

“Yes. I came here to pick up a gift for you.”

“A gift for me? Why? It’s your graduation, Uriah, not mine. You can give me a gift next year,” she said. Her gift to me had been waiting for me when I woke up that morning. Actually it was from her family, all except her father, of course. The laptop computer was a complete surprise, but a welcome one. I really did need one for my classes, and money was tight enough with the cost of tuition. I hoped her gift would be a surprise, too.

“I didn’t want to wait another year to give you your present.”

“What is it?” she asked, her brow creasing with worry. She knew I had spent a good portion of my savings on school.

“The man at this store thought you would really like it, and so do I,” I said, hoping she would understand the hint I was giving her.

“This store?” Turning her head she stared at the store window. Her eyes widened. “The man at
this
store?”

“Yes.”

“The man at
Sandoval Jewelers
thought I would like my present?”

Claire gasped as I bent down on one knee. The silver band I presented to her wasn’t grand, but Claire wouldn’t have liked it if it had been. The princess cut diamond sparkled almost as much as Claire’s tear filled eyes.

“Claire Brant, will you marry me?”

Her hand flew to her mouth and she started hopping up and down. “Yes! Yes! Yes!” she said, her excitement bubbling over. “Of course I will, Uriah.” She held out her hand and I slipped the ring onto her finger. She held it up, staring at it as tears splashed on her hand. “It’s beautiful. I love it. I love you!”

Relief swept over me. It had been two weeks of torture carrying the ring around, wanting to give it to her the moment I bought it. Rising to my feet, I swept Claire into my arms and kissed her fiercely. The kiss in front of her father was nothing. Our lips moved together, my fingers winding in her hair, pulling her closer.

Only the not so quiet snickering of a group of tourists kept me from going any further. I pulled away, leaving a pout on Claire’s face.
Please don’t tempt me
, I begged silently. The cautious regard I had always had around Claire was now way beyond my reach. Suddenly, Fusion’s graduation party sounded like a good idea. I needed other people around me. I pulled Claire along the street, making my way back to the busier section of town. If I was alone with Claire much longer tonight, I wouldn’t be able to keep my promise to her father.