by Lindsey Iler
I nod, hoping he understands he’s doing me a huge favor. Of course, it’s his job, but I need someone else around. This life we are living feels unpredictable and unsteady, as if a single gust of wind could knock us over.
“What about the other girls?” I point to inside the car.
“They have their own security, but for tonight, it’s just me.” He smiles.
“There’s no getting rid of you, is there?” I smile back.
“I’m afraid not, ma’am.”
“Will you quit calling me ma’am?”
“As you wish.”
With little words, Victor and I now have an understanding of each other. He has a job to do, and whether I like it or not, he’ll be here.
I nod and slide into the car with Amilee and Emerson, who stare at me with confusion.
“Girls, this is Victor,” I say as our driver gets behind the wheel. “He’s our bodyguard.”
“Ugh,” Amilee groans. “He’s our babysitter, you mean? And how’s this going to work? Won’t it be a bit strange that some dude is lurking around every corner? I thought we were supposed to stay under the radar?”
“Apparently, he’ll be present but unseen.” I pat his shoulder. “Right, Victor?”
“Correct. Don’t you ladies worry. I’m only going to be around for your safety. As I told Lennox, you won’t even notice I’m around.”
“Whatever,” Emerson scoffs.
*****
The party is exactly what I expect it to be. Everything inside our trio has changed, but the outside world is as predictable as ever. Beer cans litter the floor. Music blares through the impressive sound system, and bodies bump and grind on the dance floor.
“Come on, girls, you’re nineteen.” Dylan lifts his Solo cup in cheers. “Let’s get fucked up.” He secretly winks at me when everyone busies themselves with celebration. He knows damn well I will not be getting fucked up tonight or any other night.
Emerson and Amilee sit on the floor, giggling through a chug challenge with each other. Beer drips down their chins, and I hand them a stray napkin from the table beside me.
“Lennox, drink up.” Amilee places her hand on the bottom of my cup and pushes it toward my lips.
“I’m not in the mood.” I set it on the table.
Emerson leans across Amilee’s lap and snags the cup. She chugs the warm beer, tossing the empty plastic to the floor.
“You’re a bore, like a true snoozefest.” Amilee high-fives Emerson.
To them, giving me a hard time never grows old. I take it on the chin because, contrary to what they like to believe, I am different than them. There is no joy in a belligerent night for me.
“Yeah, seriously. I think you’ve earned a drink tonight,” Emerson whispers, reaching out to take another drink from Dylan.
I gape at him as he takes a seat on the arm of the sofa.
“Unlike some people I know, I don’t need to get plastered to have fun.” I roll my eyes, glancing around the room.
Dylan pulls Amilee off the floor and onto his lap, giving me no choice but to share my sofa with them. He tucks her hair behind her ear, whispering something that brings an infectious smile to her face. Envy strikes me as I watch them together. I’m in no place in my life to think about boys. Hell, neither are Emerson and Amilee, but I’m starting to think they don’t feel as heavy a burden as I do. If I’m correct, I’ll be doing the heavy lifting in our group.
I inhale a deep breath, suddenly aware of everyone in the room. Nothing appears out of sorts, but still, dread seeps into my veins, disguised in a deep chill. I shift, hoping to kick off the unfounded feeling.
The mirror in front of me rattles when the front door slams. I search the reflection to find what’s startled me.
“Hey, man.”
I stand, knowing that sultry voice. Emerson squints, watching me. Her expression is right. I’m acting like a lunatic.
With knees trembling, I twist my upper body sideways until I’m face-to-face with Edric. My nose is close enough to his chest to smell the cologne still lingering at the end of the day. “What are you doing here, Edric?”
“How do you guys know each other?” Dylan asks, glancing between the two of us. He reaches out and gives Edric the strangest of handshakes.
Amilee stands from Dylan’s lap, blocking me from Edric. She’s searching Edric for anything to use against me. She knows me too well.
“We don’t really,” I answer.
Edric smirks. His face lights up like a Christmas tree. Dammit.
“So, Edric, is it?” Amilee reaches her hand out for him to shake, and he takes it.
“Yes, and you are?” He releases her and tucks his hands inside his pockets.
“Well, I’m Amilee, and this is Emerson.” She turns back to point her out. “As Lennox’s best friends, we handle the screening process of all the boys who come sniffing about.”
“A lot of boys come sniffing, then?” He leans around Amilee to check me out. His eyebrow perks up, teasing me.
“None that make her bark.” Emerson adds her flare to the conversation.
“Oh, I know! Let’s play a little game.” Amilee claps like a toddler before planting her palm on my chest and pushing me onto the couch.
“What do you have in mind?” Edric asks, not backing down.
“You want one?” Dylan yells, passing across the room to the bar. He holds up a beer, but Edric shakes his head. Maybe we have more in common than I think. “Oh, and Edric, don’t fall into these girls’ trap. You’ll never escape.”
“A little challenge never scared me away, so do your worst, ladies.” Edric steps past Amilee and sits in the lone spot beside me. “What’s it going to be?”
“Spin the bottle?” Emerson scoots forward, resting her chin on my thigh, and raises an eyebrow, daring him to protest. “Nah, that’s not going to work. You two drip sexual tension.” She glances at me, and I shake my head. I’ve grown use to these girls’ games. Edric has no idea what he’s up against. “How about truth or dare?”
Amilee takes her spot on the floor. “That’s it.”
“If that’s your poison, then let’s go with truth.” Edric checks my best friends with his animosity. His glance cuts to me, and he winks.
“Oh, this is going to be fun.” Emerson’s attention bounces around our group, and when she finally zones in on Edric, she smirks. “What’s your dream date?”
Edric’s lips flatten into a thin line. “Seriously?”
“He must have commitment issues.” Emerson knocks the back of her hand against Amilee’s leg, giggling.
“No, no commitment issues. Figured you girls would pull out the big guns. Not some middle school theatrics,” Edric says, draping his arm across the back of the sofa.
I shift into him without realizing, and he smiles.
“Then answer the question, sweetheart,” Amilee probes. She tosses her hair over her shoulder, using the easiest and most effective weapon in her arsenal. Beauty can bring down nations, and Edric can’t be the exception. No one is an exception when it comes to Amilee.
“It all depends on the girl.” He breaks Amilee’s spell. His dark eyes burn into me, and my heart spins. “Now, a girl like you, Amilee? I’d do something superficial like dinner and a movie. You’d expect something fancy, so I’d deliver on that. At the end of the night, we’d kiss on the doorstep because that’s what society says you should do at the end of a date. You’re about as basic as they come.”
“Excuse me?” Amilee huffs, but Edric holds a hand up, silencing her.
“And you, Emerson?” He stretches his arms above his head, then places one around my shoulders. “With you, we’d probably do something a little more entertaining than the boring Italian dinner. You’d demand more because your daddy raised you to believe you deserved exceptional. And I’d give it to you, because, although you’re the quieter one in this crew, you have a secret slutty side and you’re dying to let the little freak out.”
“What?
” Emerson’s jaw is slack. She’s stunned stupid. I’ve never witnessed anyone push her off her game.
“And then, there’s you.” Edric turns to me, his expression softening when our knees touch. “You’re the feisty one. But you’d never know, because you tamp down your fire because you think you have to. Whether that’s because the people around you have made you feel that way, or it’s your way of survival, none of that matters, though. Because, when you’re with me on this ‘perfect date’?” He throws up condescending air quotes. “You’d have no doubt how bright your flame burns.” His finger twists the ends of my hair.
Holy shit! I gulp down the massive boulder in my throat. How does a few words formed into a handful of sentences, twist me into a giant bundle of wrecked nerves? If anyone listened hard enough, they’d be able to hear the beats of my heart.
“We’d do something you wanted to do. I wouldn’t try to impress you with some ridiculous notion of perfection, because that isn’t what you are looking for.” He leans forward, biting the corner of his lip, and I find myself mirroring the gesture. “No, a girl like you, she demands superior, unimaginable, and I’d give that to you, because even when you try to hide those bits of yourself, or duck behind Tweedledee and Tweedledum, I see you.”
Edric stands. Just like that, he’s finished. No other words and no explanation for why he’s unloaded such a confusing and yet, beautiful explanation of who I am.
“Thanks for the invite, Dylan.” Edric shakes Dylan’s hand in passing and then disappears into the crowd.
“What the fuck!” Emerson squeals.
“What an asshole!” Amilee adds to the pile of hate.
Not me, though. I stay quiet, forcing back the smile my heart and mind are desperate to release.
His words were well thought out, like he’d planned them. I’ll never admit it out loud, but the truth in the underlying message for each of us is heavy. How does someone who doesn’t know any of us, hit the nail directly on the head?
“Dylan, how do you know him?” I twist to face him, anger simmering over Edric’s tiny outburst. Or maybe I’m not angry. I don’t know what I am, but I’m something. He had me under a trance as he spoke.
“He moved in next door,” Dylan explains.
“His family lives there?” I glance toward the window, straight at Belvedere Manor, Edric’s rundown house. Chipped paint and broken gutters show its vacancy in the recent years.
“I know.” Dylan chortles. “The place is a dump, but apparently, they’re fixing it up, which makes them saints to my parents. The thing is an eyesore. Dad almost bought it himself to renovate and resale. Demolition isn’t an option since it’s one of Belle Meade’s historic properties. Did you know there’s a rumor witches lived there at some point?” His stare is far off. “Several sacrifices were done in the attic. There’s so much about this town I didn’t know about.”
“You have no idea,” I whisper under my breath as I stand.
“Hey, where are you going?” Dylan asks.
“Just need some fresh air,” I lie.
Instead of heading straight outside, I beeline to the kitchen. Edric’s nowhere to be seen. Deep down, I know I shouldn’t be searching for him, but curiosity gets the best of me. Several people attempt to stop me, but I offer a dismissive wave and keep going.
The cool air rushes over me as I walk onto the back porch. The lawn is littered with partygoers, but not the one I’d like to see.
“Searching for someone?” Edric’s strong voice says from behind me.
My bones rattle at the assault of his intrusion.
“Do you always lurk in the shadows?” With a hand pressed to my chest, breaths come easier and easier.
“It’s not the shadows we should fear, Lennox. Sometimes, it’s who stands beside us in the light that we should truly be afraid of,” Edric says. His voice is low, a quiet warning.
“What does that even mean? Do you usually speak in cryptic messages?” Perhaps I’m still flustered from his words inside.
“You didn’t like what I had to say?” Edric circles me.
“You don’t know me.” My hands rest on my hips, stopping me from reaching out and touching him. Is it possible to be hypnotized by the way his hair moves as he takes small steps around me? My body gravitates toward him in a way I don’t understand. “So, what the fuck was that in there?” Smooth, Lennox. Maybe anger will throw him off his game.
“Was it the words I used, or how they made you feel that bothers you most, Lennox?” He smirks before walking down the steps to the lawn.
“Why don’t you tell me how you knew my name the other night? Huh, how about that?” A change of subject is sure to throw him off my frustration. It wouldn’t take a genius to see I’m affected by him.
“I asked around.” He shrugs.
“But why?”
“That wasn’t my first time seeing you. The first time I saw you walking out of the bookstore, I asked around about you. Is it a crime in Belle Meade to see a beautiful girl and want to know her name?”
“No, no crime.” His compliment makes me uncomfortable, and heat creeps up my cheeks.
“So, Lennox, tell me about yourself,” Edric asks, staring at me over the deck railing. His forearms are exposed when he pushes up the sleeves of his dark blue Henley. A bit of ink creeps out, and I’m curious about what else he has hidden under there.
“There isn’t much to tell.” Actually, there is a lot to tell, but if I spew the truth, he won’t stick around for long. Belle Meade Angel doesn’t exactly scream normal. Quite the opposite.
“Tell me something no one else knows,” he asks, knowing damn well he’s putting me in a position I don’t want to be in.
“Something no one knows, huh?” How crazy would I sound if I tell him I’m an angel? That may need to be saved for another day.
“You know it’s okay to be vulnerable.”
“Being vulnerable makes you weak.” Jesus, I sound so . . .
“Ahh, someone’s a little jaded.” Edric grins, practically reading my mind. “Do explain who’s created such a feisty creature for me to experience.”
“None of your goddamn business.” I don’t like the way he makes me unhinged. My emotions are all over the place. One minute I want to run my hands through his hair, and the next, I want to punch the cocky smile off his face.
“Daddy issues, huh?” he probes. “Typical story.”
“No, it’s not Daddy issues, thank you very much. It’s my mother. She’s a witch.”
“Like an actual witch?” Edric asks. “Rumor has it our house was once occupied by a coven of witches.”
“You don’t actually believe in all of that, do you?” I’m treading on a very thin line, and instead of backing away, I take the steps slowly, one at a time, until I reach the bottom and sit.
Edric squints, inspecting my expression. An instant discomfort covers my skin, like small pricks from the tiniest needle, just enough twinge to remind me it’s there.
“Of course not. That kind of stuff isn’t real.”
“So, why move to Belle Meade? Do you have family here?” I ask, genuinely curious. This way I can avoid my deep, dark secrets.
“No family here. My parents wanted to live somewhere quiet. Sick of the city noise, I suppose. So, they decided not too long ago to pack up my brother and me, and move us here,” he answers.
“Couldn’t you have stayed back? You don’t sound enthusiastic about the move, and clearly, you’re old enough to be on your own.” I glance at him, shocked to see his eyes burning into mine. “What are you, twenty, twenty-one?” I look out onto the lawn, hoping not to get caught in his spell again.
“Yes, I’m old enough to live on my own, but I have responsibilities.” He follows my line of sight and furrows his brow. Is he disappointed he didn’t keep my full attention? “I better get going.”
His dismissal shouldn’t affect me. Still, somehow, it does. For a split second, I want to be offended, but how can I be? I don’t know
this guy.
“Yeah, sure, I’ll see you around, then.” I smile, but his back is already turned.
“Only if I’m lucky, Lennox.” His sultry voice hits me right in the chest. He smirks over his shoulder, and a burn aches in my cheeks. “You still owe me something no one knows.”
Like hell I do.
Chapter Six
Lennox
My anger grows thicker and thicker by the second. The clock hands mock my lack of concentration and willpower. The urge to completely go postal is so strong. Everything within my reach is in danger of being tossed across the room into the wood paneling.
“Lennox, you need to focus,” Mr. Reynolds admonishes.
I twist until I’m face-to-face with the man who has been torturing me for the last four hours. My tongue pulses with pain from digging my teeth deep to halt the onslaught of words I’m dying to set free.
Mr. Reynolds takes a deep breath. “Okay, Lennox, I understand you’re becoming frustrated”—he holds up his hands between us—“but I need you to focus. Amilee got this on the first few tries.”
“Well, perhaps I’m not made for this. Maybe I’m more cut out for, say, college,” I offer, slumping down in the closest chair.
“Come on, Lenny,” Emerson calls out from the far end of the room.
“I didn’t see you doing it,” I bite back.
Behind her, Amilee giggles lucky to be far enough away from my hand that’s tingling to slap the smirk off her pretty, pink lips.
“Okay, fine,” I grunt. “Just give me a minute.”
My eyelids slowly shut, and I take three deep breaths to collect my thoughts. There is no option but to figure this out. Maybe it’s my resistance, or maybe I’m simply not cut out for this life, but nonetheless, the two girls in the corner are counting on me. Letting them down isn’t ever going to be okay, so when I open my eyes, I concentrate, maybe for the first time today.
My hand extended in front of me, I stare as colors and images dance before my eyes. It’s unlike anything I’ve ever seen. Mesmerizing. Hypnotic. It’s full of magic I wasn’t aware existed, let alone, something I possessed.
