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Cora looked at
Jack and he saw fear brush over her face. Her eyes were already
asking him the question. Jack looked at Clay, silently asking him
if he was ready for the shit storm that may come from this. Clay
nodded.

“
Okay,” Jack
took a deep breath.

“
I don’t like
how that ‘okay’ sounds,” Ayden said.

“
When Alastair
was last here and things kicked off, he took Clay and I back to
what is probably my second home by now. Alastair had to think
outside the box, because whatever he does, it doesn’t work with me.
Taking Clay was his next option.”

Jack could
also see understanding dawn on Tabitha’s face. Her temper made the
glow around her body intensify. Jack was sure she wasn’t aware her
element consumed her fully.

“
Alastair used
Laura, but this time she spoke. The Corenthio Coven has never
spoken before. She asked after Cora, and you, Ayden. It just felt
so damn real, I struggled to come to terms with it
myself.”

“
Okay,” Ayden
stated calmly.

“
Okay?” Clay
repeated, unsure of Ayden and his temper.

“
Alastair
doesn’t know that Tommy has been to see us. That is where Alastair
fails, I know where Laura is. I trust that she is safe. This is
where Alastair loses the power he thought he had over us,” Ayden
told them.

“
You are okay
with this?” Tabitha asked Ayden.

“
I’m never okay
with anything Alastair does, but he can’t hurt us with this
anymore. We know different.”

Jack breathed
a sigh of relief just as the phone rang again. This time he stood
to answer it.

“
There will be
a very important meeting that will take place in Edinburgh. No
date. You will wait for us to tell you,” Tavish said and then he
hung up the phone.

Jack relayed
the message to everyone.

“
This can’t be
good,” Evelyn voiced her concerns. “Alastair doesn’t do this, he
must know something.”

“
Let us not
worry about the meeting. This is the reaction Alastair wants, he
likes the control he has over people. I refuse to give him
that.”

Everyone
nodded, but Jack knew that they would worry. They would worry until
Alastair was cold and very much dead in the ground.

13

NEW YEARS EVE

Jack walked
into the living room dragging her small, overnight suitcase behind
him. She looked at the case, then into his eyes, and then back at
the case again. What was he doing? Why was he smiling like that?
This was short notice. Where were they going?

“
Jack?” Cora
hesitated. “Why do you look like you have been up to
mischief?”

“
Ember, we are
ready.” Jack turned to Ember, ignoring Cora’s question.

Ready for
what? Where were they going on such short notice.

Everyone was
sat in the living room watching TV. Everyone was here to watch the
countdown. Where could they possibly need to go? No one else moved
as they watched the two of them. They knew.

Ember
reappeared and smiled at Cora.

“
Come on,
beautiful.”Jack took her hand and led her to Ember who wrapped her
arms around the two of them. “Happy New Year, everyone,” Jack
announced.

Tabitha and
Clay smiled as everyone else responded.

“
What? Wait?”
Cora called the second the floor dipped and then she was stood in a
different room. A hotel room.

Well, it
wasn’t really a room, it was a suite. A very beautiful suite at
that. How? When had he done this? Jack needed to answer her
questions.

“
Have a lovely
evening,” Ember told them and kissed Cora’s cheeks before
disappearing.

“
What the
hell?” she asked, turning to face Jack.

Why was
everyone communicating in a code she didn’t know? Why had everyone
known before her?

Jack was
smiling and already unpacking things. “We need some time to
ourselves, next year is going to be a big year for us and I want to
see it in properly.”

“
Oh...”Realisation hit her and suddenly, her mouth went very
dry.

They were
alone.

Cora felt too
hot as her heart hammered with nerves.

Cora looked
around the room to take her mind off the thing that had already
consumed it. They were stood in a living area made up of cream and
beige sofas. There was a large table in a separate room,
partitioned by a floor to ceiling window. She couldn’t see where
they were because of the closed blinds.

She turned and
saw the beginnings of a bedroom that was the size of the shop back
home. The bed was lost amongst the mountain of pillows.

“
Wait...where
are we?”

Jack’s arms
slid around her waist, pulling her into him. He used that move a
lot at home, but now, now they were fully alone,
alone
, it had a different
meaning. Her pulse jumped, making her stomach flutter nervously.
She was suddenly aware of where his hands were. Aware of the need
that ached inside her. A need that had spiked since finding
themselves alone.

“
Sydney,” he
whispered as his lips brushed her ear.

“
Australia?”
Cora gawped at him.

Jack laughed.
“Yep, now the bath is already done, you have Ember to thank for
that. The candles are lit and the wine is on the side,” Jack
ushered her in to the bathroom.

They had to
walk through the bedroom and now she could truly appreciate how big
the bed was. She was sure she would have to use steps to get up
onto it. Jack turned her to look at the bathroom.

“
Oh. My. God!”
Cora gasped.

Candles
created a glow that brushed up against the red rose petals that had
been scattered everywhere. The scent overwhelmed her. The bath, the
size of a car, glowed due to the lights that were used inside it.
The coloured lights dancing against the bubbles looked like a water
disco.

“
It is about
time you relaxed,” Jack murmured as his hands pulled her hair free
that was held within her bobble and pushed his fingers through it,
allowing it to tumble to her shoulders.

That one move
was already making her breathless. She let her head fall back,
giving Jack room so his lips could trail soft whispers up her neck.
His hands remained on her stomach. Thank God the bump was still
small-ish.

“
Enjoy your
bath,” Jack whispered, leaving her in the room on her
own.

After shedding
her clothes, she lowered herself in the water and
sighed.

“
Is it good,
babe?”

“
You have no
idea.”

Jack laughed
from the other room, leaving her to her own thoughts whilst she
enjoyed the fragrance of the oils and the heat dance over
her.

Cora’s eyes
were drooping when Jack called her. “The food will be here soon.
You can find your new clothes hanging in the cupboard.”

She dried
herself and quickly padded over to the cupboard and found a dress.
One that Ember had bought, Cora was sure. The two tone dress worked
well in hiding her bump. The black strip that sat across her
stomach split the white of the bodice and the deep orange of the
skirt. She would remember to thank Ember at a later
date.

Cora fussed
with her hair and tried to do something with her eyes as quickly as
possible. Pouting in the mirror, she gave in. It was the best she
could do. She headed out, feeling the nerves and excitement dance
in her chest.

The table was
lit with many candles and a bouquet of roses sat in the middle.
Jack was stood, watching her approach. His white shirt was open,
two buttons undone, revealing a chest that made her heart stutter.
The dark jeans and bare feet made her mouth go dry. They’d wanted
this night to happen for so long, Cora felt like she’d hyped it up
a little too much. Now it was here, she was as nervous as hell.
What if it wasn’t what she expected it to be? Why was she being so
stupid about this? She’d seen sex in TV programmes; she just needed
to stop over thinking everything. Which seventeen year old didn’t
obsess about sex? Girls were nervous. Boys wanted to experience it
full stop. She was well over 400 years old which meant she had
every right to feel this nervous.

“
Your dinner
awaits, Madam,” Jack said with a wicked grin.

“
Did you cook
this one,” she smiled. As she walked to him, she felt some of the
tension lift. He could do that with just his smile.

Jack pulled
her chair out for her. He leant into her so that she was enveloped
in him. “You look gorgeous,” he murmured against her
ear.

Heat rushed
into her cheeks. Still, even now, he could make her
blush.

She leant into
him, her lips brushing against his, feather light at first until
she felt him respond with a new urgency.

“
Change of
plan,” Jack whispered.

“
What?” she
giggled.

“
I’m not hungry
anymore,” he mumbled against her lips as he helped her stand and
pulled her back against him. His hands rested on her stomach as she
moved her head to the side and he brushed his lips against her
neck.

Through his
shirt, she felt his taut body respond and couldn’t hold back the
shiver. So, they were actually going to do this? The blood buzzed
in her head taking away any of her thoughts.

“
Why do you
taste so good?” Jack murmured as his lips continued their
journey.

“
Whatever was
in the bath...” she gasped.

“
Hmmm...” Jack
turned her so that she faced him. His lips travelled up over her
chin before reaching her lips.

She was
struggling to breathe and she was aware that he was moving her back
towards the bedroom. Her heart was beating so fast she was sure it
would burst from her chest.

He deepened
the kiss, pushing his hands through her hair. Her hands slid down
from around his neck and came to rest on his shirt. She could feel
the rapid beat of his heart through the thin material. He pulled
back from her and she could hear how breathless he was.

They stood at
the foot of the bed. His eyes held hers and in them she saw
herself; she saw her soul mate, the love of her life. He rested his
forehead against hers. “You’re so beautiful,” he
whispered.

As their lips
met again, electricity shot through her body. Heat rushed into her.
He lowered her onto the bed, hovering above her. Her fingers were
shaking slightly as they began sliding the buttons open on his
shirt.

Her finger
brushed against his chest and she heard his sharp intake of breath.
A whisper of her name. She smiled, knowing he was as nervous as
her, that he wanted her as much as she wanted him. She slid his
shirt over his shoulders and let it fall. His eyes watched her as
she leant into him and brushed her lips against his shoulder. She
felt confidence bloom in her chest as she pushed up and rolled him
over, so she now towered over him.

He smirked,
his low lidded eyes staring at her. “I always love a strong
woman.”

Cora giggled,
enjoying her new found confidence. She kissed him and then allowed
her lips to move down his throat. Jack moaned, making her heart
trip over itself. She felt Jack slide down the zip of her dress and
felt his fingers gently push it aside. She pushed aside her
insecurities, knowing that Jack loved her, but never had she felt
this self-conscious before. Her hair fell down against her bare
back, making her shiver.

Jack sat up,
holding her in his lap as his lips took hers. He held her, tongues
duelling as he slid off the bed to stand. He continued to hold her,
allowing her to wrap her legs around his waist. His lips moved with
hers, her head spun, her lungs no longer worked. All she could
taste was Jack.

He pulled
back, gasping for breath. One look at her face made him smile. She
knew her cheeks were flushed, her lips plump from his rough kisses.
Yet she wanted more, and he knew this.

He laid her
back on the bed, his frame towering over her. Her hands brushed
against his cheeks, a moment of calm before she saw the fire burn
in his eyes and his lips crushed hers. She lost herself in him as
she relished the soft caress of skin against skin.

*

They lay in
the bed, wrapped up in the sheets with her head against his chest.
They took turns eating out of a huge ice cream pot. After they’d
decided to eat all of their meal in the bed.

Jack stroked
her arm, sending crazy energy flying around her body. She’d never
felt like this. She’d expected pain, to feel uncomfortable. After a
jolt of pain, the rest had been easy. Jack made it feel easy. He’d
been amazing...loving...gentle...The love that had surged into her
heart and consumed her was on a whole new level.

“
It is nearly
time,” Jack whispered.

“
Hmmm?” Cora
sighed.

“
Come on,” Jack
laughed as he grabbed their sheets, making her squeal as she
lurched for them. He laughed. “I’ve seen your sexy ass.”