Rising Covenant (Living Covenant Trilogy Book 1) (9 page)

“Where is the book?”

“What book?” I feigned ignorance.

“I thought we were laying our cards on the table.” The man arched a challenging eyebrow.

“Oh, that book,” I said, rolling my eyes. “That book has been destroyed. You don’t need to come looking for it again. We burned it.”

The man snorted. “You can’t burn The Archimage.”

Well, that was an interesting little tidbit. “We didn’t use regular fire.” That sounded convincing, right?

The man shifted. From his position across the river – he was about thirty feet from me – he appeared to be considering rushing me. I knew there was plenty of space between us to save myself should it become necessary. I wasn’t worried.

“We want the book,” the man said.

“I want a peaceful afternoon.”

“Bring me the book.”

“Either go away or I’m going to make you go away,” I threatened. “I’m not messing around. I wanted three hours of quiet. Was that too much to ask?”

“Give me the book.”

“Bite me.”

The man studied me for a moment, his eyes darting about as he tried to determine whether I was alone. I opted to help him.

“I don’t need anyone else to burn you alive,” I said.

That did it. The threat was enough to cause the man to take a step back so he was better hidden in the tree line. “We’re not leaving without the book.”

“Then you’d better get used to squatting in the woods, because you’re never getting the book,” I said. “Now … go away. I’ve had just about enough of surly werewolves for one day.”

I
stubbornly enjoyed
the rest of my afternoon at the river. I remained alert during the walk home, and when I crossed the property line I punched in the code on the fence keypad so the security system engaged.

I was back in my prison.

Paris was busy on her laptop at the kitchen table. She lifted her eyes, offering me a smile, and then turned back to her task.

“What are you doing?” I asked.

“James and I have managed to translate most of the Latin in the book, but until we figure out what that other language is we’re stuck,” Paris replied. “James ran into town while you and Aric were out on your walks, by the way. He picked up shrimp, scallops, crab legs and a bunch of other stuff. I figure we can start cooking dinner in about an hour.”

“That sounds like a nice change of pace,” I said. “I’m used to eating red meat in this house.”

“He picked up steaks for Aric and himself, too.” Paris’ smile was rueful. “You can’t help what you love.”

“Ain’t that the truth,” I muttered. “I’m taking a shower. I’ll help with dinner when I’m done.”

“Are you sure you want to do that?” Paris wrinkled her nose. “Seafood can be tricky.”

“I’m fully capable of cooking,” I snapped. “I don’t care what Aric has been telling you.”

“You forget, we shared the same roof for three years and lived down the hall from each other a fourth year,” Paris countered. “The only thing I saw you cook that entire time was canned soup.”

“I happen to love Campbell’s tomato soup.”

“Yeah, I think it’s good you found a man who not only likes to cook but also loves to dote on you,” Paris said. “Aric said he’s handling all of the seafood, and if you’re a good girl you can cut the cake.”

I brightened. “There’s cake?”

“James bought a chocolate cake and a tub of ice cream.”

“Well, my day is looking up,” I said. “Is Aric in the bedroom?” I considered not telling Aric about my encounter with the lone wolf, but I knew that would be a mistake. Aric would never forgive me if he found out the truth, and the last thing I wanted was to betray him. I was resigned to telling him what happened, but I wanted to do it without an audience.

“I think so,” Paris said. “He came back about twenty minutes ago. He was sweaty, but he looked a lot more relaxed.”

“Good. We’re not used to all of this togetherness.”

“You live together,” Paris pointed out.

“We still spend time apart. We were really close to screaming at one another this morning.”

“I’m glad you got what you needed,” Paris said. “Hopefully we’ll be able to make some headway on the book so you won’t be trapped here much longer.”

“That would be nice,” I said, moving toward the hallway. “Where is James?”

“He mentioned something about taking a shower before dinner.”

I was going over how I was going to approach Aric in my head when the sound of voices from our bedroom caught my attention. I slowed my approach to listen. What? I like to eavesdrop. I can’t help myself. Move along.

“Do you think it was wise to let Zoe out on her own this afternoon?” James asked.

“I’m not her keeper, Dad. She needed some time to herself. Heck, I needed some time to myself. We’re not used to living in a locked sardine can together.”

“What if something happens to her?”

“I will know if something happens to her,” Aric said. “I’ll … feel it.”

“You honestly think you have a psychic connection to her, don’t you?”

“I know that when the werewolves attacked I felt her fear … and then I felt her determination … and then I felt her anger,” Aric replied. “I felt her. I didn’t hear her. She was inside me.”

“That is either incredibly romantic or ridiculously co-dependent,” James griped.

“I don’t care what you think about it,” Aric said. “She was going stir crazy. She was ten minutes from dragging all of us around the bend with her, starting with me.”

“She’s not back yet,” James pointed out.

“She’ll be back soon.” Aric’s voice was firm. “She promised not to cut it close.”

“I hope you’re right,” James said. “We need her. You can’t have your little talk with her until she does what needs to be done. You know that, right?”

What did that mean?

“Don’t tell me my business,” Aric said.

“You’ll have to tell her what’s going to happen at a certain point,” James said. “I think we should wait until she’s accomplished what we know she has to do. That way, if she goes off the rails when you tell her about … things … we’ll still be in a decent spot.”

“Don’t get involved in this,” Aric growled. “I … .”

I’d had about all I could take. I threw open the partially ajar door and stormed into the room. “What are you two talking about?”

James jumped when he saw me, his face draining of color. “Were you listening?”

“Of course she was listening,” Aric said, unruffled. “It’s what she does. We were talking about the book.”

“You weren’t talking about the book,” I snapped. “You were talking about the thing.”

“What thing?”

“The thing you asked him to bring when you called him the day after the attack,” I replied, letting my anger get a foothold. “The thing that’s going to upend our whole world. That thing!”

“You were listening then, too? You have ears like a wolf,” Aric muttered.

There was no way I was going to let him turn this around on me. “I want to know what the big secret is, and I want to know right now!”

“There is no big secret,” Aric said, his voice calm. “We’re only talking about a few things that aren’t important at this exact moment in time. There’s no reason to have a fit.”

“I am not having a fit.”

“You could’ve fooled me,” Aric said. “How was your walk?”

“I ran into a werewolf down by the river,” I replied, relishing telling him the truth because I wanted him to feel as unstable as I did. “He demanded the book. I told him we burned the book. He said it wasn’t possible, so I told him we didn’t use regular fire. Then he warned me that they weren’t leaving without the book and disappeared into the woods.”

“What?” Aric roared. “Why didn’t you call for me?”

“I was perfectly fine.” I crossed my arms over my chest and narrowed my eyes. “What is the thing that you don’t want to tell me until I’ve done whatever job James wants me to do?”

“Stop eavesdropping on half of conversations and focus on the wolf,” Aric ordered. “Did he touch you?”

“He was terrified of me. He didn’t say it, but I could see it. Tell me about the thing.”

“There is no thing, Zoe!” Aric was enraged. “Stop digging into things that you shouldn’t be worried about.”

James held up his hands and stepped between us, trying to end the argument before we really got going. He had no idea it was already too late. “Zoe, Aric and I were talking about the prospects of his … uniting … with an individual and how that will affect his status in the wolf community.”

What did that mean?

“Thank you so much, Dad,” Aric snapped.

“I was trying to help.”

“It’s none of your business!”

I rolled James’ statement through my head, my heart tumbling as I realized what he said. “That’s why.”

“That’s why what?” Aric asked, jerking his eyes back to me.

“That’s why you never wanted to marry me,” I said, my voice dull. “You can’t, because of the pack. I never even considered that.”

“What the hell are you talking about?”

“You have to marry a wolf, don’t you? You didn’t want to tell me until I handled this threat because you don’t want me to do something stupid. You didn’t want to tell me before because you weren’t ready to give me up.” Things were starting to slip in place. “Things are different now. You’re either ready to give me up or you’re going to suggest some compromise in which we can see each other on the side when you’re not with your wolf family. That’s the thing, isn’t it?”

“Are you crazy?” Aric’s vehemence took me by surprise. “What are you even saying?”

“It’s fine,” I said, tugging on the limited strength I had in reserve as the rest fled my body. “I should have realized … I … it’s fine. I … you have rules to follow. I can find someplace else to live.”

“Zoe, you are an idiot!” Aric slammed his fist into the wall and didn’t bother to check to see if his knuckles bled. “I’m not marrying a wolf and starting some family and hoping that I can keep you on the side. What is the matter with you?”

“I … you’re not? Then what is the thing?”

“The thing is your engagement ring,” Aric snapped, opening the safe and rummaging around inside. He withdrew a small jewelry box and threw it at me. “That’s the thing, you moron!”

My hands trembled as I opened the box, and my breath caught in my chest at the sight of the huge diamond. It was a simple emerald cut, although the stone had to be at least two carats, and it nestled in a plain, white gold setting. “I … but I thought you didn’t want to marry me.”

When Aric spoke again, his tone was softer. “Why would you think that?”

“Because we’ve been living together for five years and you never asked.”

“I wanted to ask you to marry me the day you graduated from college,” Aric replied. “My father talked me out of it.”

I scorched James with a look. “Why?”

“I think I’m going to leave you two alone,” James said, slinking toward the door.

I didn’t bother to watch his escape. Instead, I focused my shaky attention on Aric.

“Dad said you weren’t ready to get married,” Aric answered, sighing as he perched on the end of our bed. “I told him I was going to ask you anyway, but he told me if I did ask you and you said no we would never get our relationship back on track. I was afraid, so I waited.”

“I … but … .”

“Would you have said no?” Aric’s eyes were keen as they bored into me.

“I don’t know,” I answered honestly. “That seems so long ago. I can’t ever see myself saying no to you, though.”

“Then I’m really sorry,” Aric said. “I should have followed my heart – and my gut – back then.”

“That doesn’t explain why you didn’t do it later.” I wasn’t ready to let go of all of my suspicions. If I did that, I would have no one to blame but myself.

“What my father said kept haunting me,” Aric explained. “I love you so much, but I was worried you would say no and we would never be able to get back what we lost if you did.”

“Oh.”

“The other night when Paris started grilling us about it, I realized that I was being an idiot,” Aric said. “For the first time, I saw your face and realized you wanted it, too. There’s nothing in this world that can tear us apart. I believe that. Marrying you will only make us stronger. That’s why I asked Dad to bring the ring. I hid it in the safe because I didn’t want you stumbling across it one day when you were snooping.”

“I don’t snoop.” There wasn’t a lot of energy behind the words. “I thought … .”

“I know what you thought,” Aric said. “You’re an idiot. I don’t want anyone else. I won’t settle for anyone else. You’re it for me.”

“What about kids?”

“What about them?”

“I’m not sure I ever want them, and even if I do at a certain point … they won’t be full wolves,” I said.

“Zoe, I don’t care about that,” Aric said. “If it’s only you and me for the rest of our lives I’ll be happy. I’m not working myself into knots about kids we may never have when I already know I can’t live without you.”

I took an uncertain step toward him and he opened his arms so I could sit on his lap. He pushed my hair from my face so he could watch me, while my eyes remained glued on the ring.

“Why didn’t you tell me you wanted to get married?” Aric asked after a few moments. “That would have saved us both some grief.”

“I thought you would ask me if you wanted it.”

“Why else?”

“For the same reasons you didn’t ask,” I admitted. “I was terrified you would say you didn’t want to marry me, and then we could never return to the life we built.”

“You’re a smart woman, Zoe Lake, but you’re stupid a lot of the time,” Aric said. “From the moment I saw you, you’re all I’ve ever wanted.”

I rested my forehead against his cheek as I fought to contain my tears. “I love you.”

“I love you, too. You’re still an idiot.” Aric shifted so he could kiss my forehead.

I lifted the ring. “Does this mean we’re engaged?”

Aric took the box me from and shifted me off of his lap. I thought he was going to get down on one knee right there and put us both out of our misery. Instead, he snapped the box shut and shoved it back into the safe. “No.”

My heart stuttered. “What?”

“We’re not engaged,” Aric said, closing the safe door and twirling the dial.

“You don’t want to marry me? But you just said … .”

“I’m going to marry you, Zoe,” Aric replied, his eyes serious. “You’re not getting that ring now, though.”

“Why not?”

“Because you ruined my proposal,” Aric said, his face twisting. “I had a big night planned. You eavesdropped, and you ruined it. Now you have to wait until I can surprise you.”

“You’ve already told me your plans,” I protested. “I want my ring.”

“You can’t have it until I have my big proposal moment,” Aric shot back, immovable. “I love you, and I’m sorry you’re upset, but you’re not taking that from me.”

“But … .”

“I love you more than anything in this world, Zoe,” Aric said, moving in front of me so he could grab the front of my shirt and lift me to the balls of my feet so we were eye to eye. “You’re not getting your ring until I get my big proposal moment, though. I can’t have that until this is taken care of. So, until then, you’ll have to settle for my love and the promise that I’ll make a big deal out of it when I propose.”

Aric kissed me softly and then lowered me to the ground.

“But … .”

“Are you ready to make dinner?” Aric asked. “I’m starving.”

“I want my ring.”

“You’ll get it. I promise.” Aric moved toward the door. “You’re not getting it tonight, so you might as well let it go.”

“This sucks!”

“Just think how happy you’ll be when I embarrass you with my proposal and you finally get to wear the ring,” Aric suggested, walking through the door.