Immortals (Runes book 2) (29 page)

“The favor doesn’t involve reaping the souls of my friends, does it? You know, Cora, Eirik, and the people I ‘saved’ during the last meet?”

“No-oo.”

“Good, because I’d never forgive you if you were here to reap their souls and didn’t tell me.”

“I know.” He turned off the lamp once again and pressed a kiss to my forehead, cradling me close. “Now go to sleep.”

I couldn’t help thinking that his favor had something to do with me. It might explain what Andris had meant by Torin was still sacrificing so much for me while I was clueless. Maybe I’ll ask Andris.

17.
 
WATERFALLS

I woke up, turned, and reached for Torin, but the other side of the bed was empty. His scent lingered on the pillow and sheets. I burrowed where he’d slept and smiled like an idiot. Torin St. James loved me. He might not have said it, but deep inside I knew that he did.

Stepping away from the bed, I rushed to the window and pulled up the slats. He was seated on his window seat as though waiting for me, a mug in his hand.

“Good morning,” I said.

He beckoned me with a finger.

Shaking my head, I indicated my pajamas. I refused to walk across our lawns in my uglies.

He put his mug down and disappeared from sight. In seconds, he walked through the portal and into my bedroom, runes still on his skin. I flew into his arms for a morning kiss. He tasted amazing, coffee mixed with mint and his unique taste, which I loved. The extra zing came from the runes, and I wondered if my senses would be hyped too when I had runes.

“This is how you say good morning,” he whispered.

I loved it. “I could get used to this.”

“You’d better.”

He kissed me again, longer, deeper. When he eased off, he studied my face. “Do you want to do something fun today?”

“Depends. Will you be there?”

He chuckled. “Yes. Remember the waterfalls you said we visited?”

I nodded. “Multnomah Falls.”

“Let’s go there today.”

It might trigger some of his memories. To be honest, I’d already given up on him remembering anything. It didn’t matter anymore. We were creating new memories. “Okay.”

He dropped a kiss on my lips. “Hmm, someone is cooking bacon and pancakes.”

“Blueberry pancakes, Dad’s specialty.” He must be feeling better to be up and about. “Do you want some?”

He laughed. “No, I’m good.”

“Come on. Sundays are breakfast-in-bed for my parents. Dad brings a tray upstairs, and the two of them disappear in their bedroom for hours while I eat downstairs. Alone.” I pouted.

He pinched my nose. “Cute, but no. You and I will share many breakfasts together, and I’ll cook them just for you. Now go spend time with your father. Your mother is still asleep.”

“How do you know? Never mind. Heightened Valkyrie senses.” I watched him walk back through the portal. He was still wearing the gray sweatpants and white tank top from last night. Even in wrinkled clothes, he managed to look good. I waited until he reached his room and turned before asking, “When are we leaving?”

“In a couple of hours. Dress warmly. I don’t want you to catch a cold.”

After the portal closed, I left my room and bounded downstairs. Dad stood in front of the stove flipping pancakes. After the scare of last night, I was happy to see him looking so well-rested. He saw me, smiled, and lowered the volume of the TV.

“Morning, pumpkin. Ready for my special blue-berry pancakes and extra crispy bacon?”

 
“Absolutely.” I gave him a hug and stepped back. “How are you feeling?”

He gave me a sharp glance. “Fine. Why do you ask?”

I didn’t know whether to bring up last night or not, so I went with, “You ran far and it’s been a while, and then you made dinner.”

Dad chuckled. “You think a few miles and whipping up a few dishes would tire me? There’s still energy left in these old bones.”

“You’re not old,” I protested, remembering how he’d looked lying on the floor. Like a rag doll.

“Want to count the gray hair you put on my head?”

“I’m a model daughter,” I said and grinned when he laughed. “Can I help with anything?”

“Pour me another cup of coffee then start on your mother’s tea.”

“Is she still sleeping?”

“Like a baby.”

I replenished his coffee, poured myself some, and added vanilla creamer to mine. He’d already set the tray for two, and a single rose lay in the middle. It was sweet the way he doted on Mom. I glanced out the window, wondering what Torin was doing. If Dad noticed the way I kept glancing out the kitchen window, he didn’t say it.

The weather map popped up on the TV screen. There was a fifty-percent chance of rain, but I didn’t care. I couldn’t wait to go to Multnomah Falls with Torin. Hopefully, we’d take the Harley. Rod. The name was perfect for the powerful machine.

“Take the tray upstairs,” he said when he was done.

He usually took it upstairs himself. “Aren’t you coming?”

“Right behind you, sweetheart.”

I carried the tray upstairs, propped it against my stomach, and knocked on their bedroom door, but there was no answer. Careful not to make too much noise and wake up Mom, I turned the doorknob, pushed the door open, and peered inside. She was still out. I placed the tray on their bedside table, tiptoed back to the door, and carefully closed the door behind me.

Voices drifted from downstairs. I recognized Torin’s voice. He must have decided to join me, or came to cancel our date. I hurried to the kitchen. As though he sensed my presence, Torin looked up and smiled. His hair was wet, and he’d changed. I still wore my ugly pajamas. Life just wasn’t fair.

“Hey,” I said, my eyes volleying between him and Dad. “What are you doing here?”

“Don’t be rude, sweetheart,” Dad said. “Torin came to ask if he could take you out for the day.”

That was bold and noble, but I could tell Dad wasn’t too thrilled. “Oh.”

“Well, I better go and wake up your mother before her tea gets cold.” He smiled, but his eyes looked troubled. He patted my shoulder as he walked past. I turned to watch him walk away. For some reason, he looked like he’d aged in the last few minutes. Was dating a Valkyrie such a terrible thing, especially one as courteous as Torin? He had done the right thing. The noblest thing. Guys didn’t ask fathers if they could date their daughters. Not in this century anyway. On the other hand, Torin came from another time and hadn’t forgotten his noble upbringing.
       

“You came to ask my dad to date me?” I asked.

Torin studied me intently as though thinking over what to say. Then he shrugged, a sheepish expression softening his chiseled face. “Would that be so terrible?”

I laughed and took his arm. “No. It’s perfect. What did he say?”

“You are his little princess and if I hurt you, he’ll hunt me down like a rabid dog and decapitate me.”

I giggled. “My father is not that blood thirsty.”

Torin chuckled. “No, he’s not. He looked me straight in the eyes and said, ‘No man, Valkyrie, or deity will ever be good enough for my little warrior, so treat her with the respect she deserves, young man, or I’ll be the soul that refuses to be reaped.’”

That sounded like something my father would say. “He knows about left-behind souls?”

Torin shuddered. “He knows I can’t stand them and was taunting me.”

“I’m sure he was just shocked by your gallantry.” I tugged at his arm and added in an exaggerated British accent, “Welcome, Sir Torin St. James. Your breakfast waits.”

“Your accent is atrocious,” he said, trying hard not to laugh.

Breakfast was fun and took longer than my usual five minutes. I hated to see him leave, but the thought of spending the next several hours with him had me racing upstairs to shower and change. I dressed warmly in a three-quarter-sleeve top, long pants, and knee-length boots. I grabbed a pair of gloves and hurried upstairs. I couldn’t wait to learn how to create portals so I could just slip into his room in a matter of seconds.

Outside, the skies were overcast, but it hadn’t started to rain yet.
Mrs. Rutledge was doing something on her porch. For once she didn’t cross herself or run back into her house as though I was Hel’s spawn. She even smiled and nodded. I gave her a tiny smile. She must have decided I wasn’t evil anymore.

I headed next door, aware she was still watching me. The garage door was open. Were we taking the SUV? I hoped not. Torin appeared from the other side of the SUV where he kept his Harley, a helmet under his arm. My helmet. I recognized the red lightning bolt on the side.

“This is—”

“Mine,” I said. “You remembered?”

A spasm of an emotion I couldn’t define crossed his face. “No. I guessed.” He came to stand in front of me and carefully slipped the helmet on my head. The first time he’d done it, I’d been nervous about riding with him. Nervous, but excited.

“What’s funny?” he asked.

“Just remembering the first time we rode on your Harley.” His eyes grew stormy as he tucked my hair under the helmet. This time, I recognized the regret in his sapphire eyes. Any reminder of the past bugged him. “Never mind.”

He tilted my chin, rubbed his thumb across my lips, ruining a perfectly applied lip gloss then kissed me. It was a total invasion of my senses and though I welcomed it and gave as good as I got, I knew something was wrong. When he lifted his head, he was frowning.

“It doesn’t matter that you don’t remember, Torin,” I said.

Blue eyes studied me. “It does to me. I feel like I’m competing with myself. My other self.”

“But—”

“I know it sounds insane, but the memories the Norns took are part of our shared experience, Freckles.” His eyes flashed with determination. “I want them back. All of them.”

They meant that much to him? I reached up, pushed the lock of hair from his forehead, and caressed his face, my eyes smarting. “Okay. Then we’ll do everything we can to get them back.”

His eyes narrowed “Are you crying again?”

“No, I’m not.” I straddled the bike and sat. “So Andris decided to give Rod back?”

He chuckled. “I told you he was testing me. He can be an ass, but he’s not bad. He knows Rod and I are inseparable.” He sat, took my arms, and wrapped them around his waist. “Hold on tight.”

“Do you know where we’re going?”

“Andris showed me the map on his laptop. It’s all in here.” He tapped his head.

I rested my cheek against his back. He cranked the engine and pulled out of the garage. I thought I saw Dad at our kitchen window, but I could have been mistaken. Mrs. Rutledge was still outside. She waved.

Like before, Torin went at a regular speed until we hit I-5 and headed north. Runes appeared all over his body, and he picked up speed until the scenery became blurry. Twenty minutes later, he slowed down near the sign to Multnomah Falls, the tallest waterfalls in Oregon, and exited the highway.

He parked, but before we could start toward the falls, he murmured, “The water falls over two cliffs and into a wishing pond at the bottom of the second drop.”

“Yes.”
Please, let him remember.
I tugged his arm. “Come on.”

He looked around as we retraced the route we’d taken the first time we came to the falls. The leaves had completely changed color now that fall was in full swing. We took the paved trail to the bridge. At the guardrail, he wrapped his arms around my waist, pulling me closer, and we soaked in the view. Then we went to throw coins in the wishing pond.

He grabbed my wrist when I was about to toss a coin. “You only make one wish or you dilute the first one. I don’t know where I heard that, but it’s profound.”

I leaned sideways and glanced at him over my shoulder. He was remembering. “My dad said it, and I told you when we first came here.”

“It’s weird how I remember that, calling you Freckles, and that you told me your name was Raine with a silent E, yet I still don’t remember when you said them.”

Feeling his frustration, I wrapped my arms around his waist as we walked back to the lodge. I wish there was something I could do to make him remember everything. We took the stairs to the second floor. The restaurant wasn’t packed, so we found a nice window table with a panoramic view of the falls.

“We serve Sunday brunch until two o’clock,” the waitress said, handing us the menu.

Their menu was extensive. Instead of egg-based dishes, Torin went to the kitchen to talk to the chef. He convinced them to serve us food from their regular lunch menu—prime rib with roasted potatoes and asparagus for him and a chicken potpie for me. I was impressed.