Tempting Nora (28 page)

"
Okay," she finally said, even though it was difficult.

As she stared at the ground, trying hard to get her thoughts in order, Gideon grabbed her chin and steered her face toward his.

"Look at me," he said.

She
gulped and looked straight into his face.

In that split second, something
changed. His caramel eyes became dark, darker than even Kali's. The right side of his face was being devoured by squirming maggots. He wasn't wearing any clothes and his golden skin was dripping with blood. Flies swarmed around his form, drinking his sweat. Even a putrid stench hung around him like a thick coat, making her eyes water.

"
Save him,
" a man shouted in her mind.

She was so alarmed that she backed up straight into
the cement bench. One second she was reversing at high-speed, the next she was hurtling toward the ground for the second time that day. And there wasn't going to be soft sand to break her fall. She squeezed her eyes shut, bracing herself for impact, when she felt warm arms envelope her, stopping her from falling. After her eyes snapped open, she stared straight into Gideon's face.

His
injuries were gone.

She gasped in shock, not even caring that the only
thing stopping her from hitting the cement was Gideon's powerful arms. She ran her fingers along his cheek. There were no maggots, no sores. She searched his eyes, grateful to see no agony in them either. No, all she saw was poignant concern for her wellbeing. And he had a good reason to be worried. She'd almost cracked her head against the cement.

As she trembled, Gideon lifted her up so she was standing on her own two feet
. Unfortunately, the moment he released her, she almost tumbled to the ground again. He seized her before she could fall and held her close, keeping her from injuring herself. When he embraced her, she didn't endure unquenchable need due to his muscular body like she usually did. All she felt was terror stronger than she'd ever known before.

"What happened?" Gideon asked, stroking her
back.

"Your face," she stammered. "Something happened to your face."

"My face?" He clapped a hand to his cheek.

"
You're fine now," she said. "But these bugs were all over you and you were bleeding. There was even a man talking to me in my head. He asked me to save you."

At that moment she realized how
insane she sounded. She was babbling about a voice in her head. There was no way she could expect him to believe what she'd heard was real. She shuddered against Gideon, unable to control herself. Everything hurt—her mind, her heart, her soul. She couldn't believe that just hours ago she'd been rolling around in the sand with Gideon as if everything was fine.

Am I turning out just like my mom? Is this what she went through?

The thought was enough to make her knees turn to liquid again. Once her mom had been struck by mental illness, the disease had continued to worsen. Would the same thing happen to her? Nora gasped and wobbled, making Gideon clutch her so tight that her ribs ached. She didn't want to be like her mom. Not now, not ever. She'd always vowed she'd never walk in her footsteps.

"
Why is this happening to me?" she asked. "I think I'm going insane on top of everything else."

To Gideon's credit, he didn't as
much as hesitate.

"You aren't going insane," he said firmly.

"I'm not?" It sure felt like she was.

"You've just experienced a shock, that's all," he said. "
Kali must have startled you so much that your brain went haywire. Everything's fine."

"You really think so?" she asked.

"Yes," Gideon said.

But the man didn't meet her eyes.

****

Hours passed
and night fell, but Nora still didn't feel better. She sat across from Gideon in the middle of a beachside diner, stirring her third cup of coffee with a spoon. Her emotions warred in her mind, vying for a dominant position. She was terrified, depressed, nervous, and angry all at once. The negative emotions melded together, forming a putrid soup that scalded her heart. She longed to feel numb, but unfortunately, she couldn't control her feelings nor shoo them away.

"Are you feeling any better?" Gideon rea
ched across the table and laid his hand on hers.

"Not much," she said, even as she accepted
his hand.

"Give it time." He squeezed her
fingers, his eyes sad.

"It's time that I'm scared of," she said.

"Really?" Gideon examined her. "Why?"

She chewed her bottom lip, half wishing she hadn't said anything.

"Come on, Nora," Gideon urged. "It's me. You know you can trust me."

Sighing, she
nodded.

"Right now I'm here with you," she said. "But what about tomorrow? What if Amon hurts you? What if everything falls apart? People keep saying
that time makes things easier, but that wasn't the case with my mom. Every day that passed she went steadily crazier. Who knows what's going to happen to us? To
you
? I hate not knowing and wondering what's going to happen next."

"I notice
you seem to be more concerned about me than you," Gideon said.

"
Is that really so surprising?" She raised an eyebrow.

"I suppose." Gideon shrugged. "I've found that peop
le look after themselves first."

For a moment she just watched him, noting the seriousness of his
expression.

"I guess
it depends on the person, but if I love somebody—
really
love somebody—then I'll always think about them first," she said. "I'd rather suffer myself than have the person I care about be in pain. To me, that's what real love is. It's about caring for somebody so much that you're willing to put their needs above your own. I think that's why hallucinating that you were hurt rattled me even more than Kali did. You were the one who was hurt, not me. I couldn't handle looking at your face and seeing pain in your eyes."

"Then we must really be in love with each other." His eyes burned as he gazed at her. "I'd rather be tortured for all eternity
than let something happen to you."

Black feathers
appeared out of nowhere and covered the table.

"Darn it all,
it's those feathers again!" She slammed her hand on the table and stared at the ceiling. "Please tell me that I'm not imagining this too."

Gideon winced and stood up.

"I think we should go home now," he said. "I've been putting it off, but I think it's time to have our talk."

"
Why are you so scared to talk to me anyway?" She noted his face was already pale.

"I'm
worried that after tonight you aren't going to love me anymore," he said so quietly that she almost didn't hear him.

Her palms became clammy at the sight of his depressed face. She longed to comfort him, even though she was just as terrified by his
expression as she was saddened by it.

"I don't think it's possible
for me not love you," she said. "Once I love somebody, I love them for good."

Even though she said the words, Gideon gave her a sad smile.

"We'll see." He shrugged and tossed money on the table.

The two of them
headed outside hand in hand. Darkness cloaked the beach, making Nora quiver. After everything that had happened today, she wasn't sure she was ready to walk at night. As she ducked her head, Gideon wrapped his arm around her shoulders, drawing her closer and protecting her. As she walked at his side, her fears lessened and she found herself breathing normally again. Gideon wasn't a giant, but being with him made her feel safe and secure. She realized that this was yet another reason why she longed to be with him forever.

As
she wrapped her arm around his waist, Gideon looked up at the sky and pointed.

"I think this is the first t
ime in ages I've seen the stars," he said.

Normally the smog that came from the city
made it impossible to see anything. Shocked, she looked up. Sure enough, hundreds of stars twinkled above her, giving light to an otherwise bleak and frightening world. Even she found herself smiling.

"Since it's such a rare occasion
to see the stars, I think we should make a wish," Gideon said.

"I agree.
" Who knew when she'd have the chance again?

"You go first," he said.

Nodding, she focused on a star and thought,
I wish that Amon will go away and everything will be fine.
She glanced at Gideon expectantly.

"I'm done," she said.

"What did you wish for?" he asked.

"
If I tell you, it won't come true." She frowned at him.

"Ah, that's no fun," he said. "I
'm going to tell you what I wish for."

"
I don't want to know." She released him and clamped her hands over her ears, singing, "La, la, la."

"Oh no, you don't." Laughing, he pried her hands away from her ears.

"I don't want to hear your wish," she said, even as she smiled.

"You do too." He forced her
arms down to her sides.

"No, I don't." She shook her head.

"Yes, you do." He tightened his grip on her wrists. "I wish that I can protect you always. That's what I want."

The words made her blink. She
'd thought he'd say something inappropriate, but the man had shocked her by saying something heartwarming instead. When she came to a stop, Gideon paused right alongside her. She rested her hands on his shoulders, grateful that it was dark so he couldn't see her blush.

"
Is that really your wish?" she asked.

"Of course." He
placed his hands on her hips.

For some reason she thought she might cry. She knew it was ridiculous, but she couldn't help it. She ran her thumb along
Gideon's neck, feeling his warm skin against her finger. The man was real and all hers.

"How did I get lucky enough to
land you?" she asked.

"Lucky?"
He studied her. "I think you're unlucky. I've brought you nothing but pain since I arrived. First I hassled you, then Amon showed up."

"Are you kidding?" She
shook her head. "No matter how scared I am right now, I'm glad you came into my life. I know how crazy it sounds, but I never realized how lonely I was until I met you. On top of that, I feel like I never knew who I really was until you arrived. I hid parts of myself because of my mom, but you pried open the gates to my heart. You may annoy me—"

"Hey," Gideon said grumpily.

"—but you're still the most amazing man I've ever met." She glanced at his lips. "I should thank you for waking up a part of me that I didn't even know existed."

"I owe you a thank you as well." His eyes were bright, brighter than even the most
luminescent star in the sky.

"You do?" she asked.

"Yes." Gideon nodded. "I've spent years feeling so angry that I couldn't even recall what love felt like. I was miserable and all alone, yet I was always so convinced of my own self-righteousness. Then one day you waltzed into my life. Because of you, I started to remember so many good things—kindness, hope, faith, forgiveness. You even showed mercy toward a woman who you had a big reason to hate. Somewhere along the way, you made me remember how to love again. I owe you a big thank you for that. It's a horrible thing, forgetting all the good things in the world, especially love."

"I
just hope you won't forget again." She traced his chin, enjoying the feeling of his facial hair against her fingertip.

"As long as you're around, I won't," he said.

She gazed into his face and the yearning returned.

Before she could tell him how much she wanted him, Gideon scooped her up. She wasn't sure what made her do it—maybe it was frenzied passion or just instinct—but she found herself wrapping her legs around him, drawing him closer. He walked over to the sand and laid her down just as he had earlier that day. This time, though, there were no onlookers. It was just her and him. His lips worked over hers, making her squirm on the sand. For the first time, she opened her eyes as he kissed her, enjoying watching the stars that glistened in the sky as his fingers snuck under her shirt.

I feel like I'm in heaven,
she thought, hearing the distant sound of the lake lapping against the shore.

As Gideon kissed her, she
tried to inhale his sweet breath. She wanted to know Gideon inside and out. If it was possible, she would have crawled inside of his soul just to know every inch of him. Desperate to have him closer, she wrapped her legs around him once more as she ran her hand along the side of his face. Somehow she kept expecting to feel an injury, even though there was none. She was so grateful to see him unmarred that she sighed, causing Gideon to pull away.