“The steel books contain all the knowledge and history of our worlds, including all the various types of paranormals,” Asher explains. “They’re also locked up in Planet Steel and, like I said, nearly impossible to get to.”
“Nearly, but not impossible,” Arrow insists, propping his boot onto his knee.
“It’s too dangerous,” Asher insists. “Remember the last time you were in your world.”
For a flash of an instant, fear sparks in Arrow’s eyes.
My heart constricts in my chest. Out of the three of them, Arrow has been the kindest to me.
“If it’s dangerous, maybe he shouldn’t go,” I chime in. “Maybe there’s a better, less dangerous way to find out what I am.” Although, I’m still not even sure I believe this whole idea that I’m not human. I’ve never shown any signs of magic. And other than my ability to steal, and apparently, occasionally reflect fey magic, I’ve never been extraordinary at anything.
“You’re worried about him?” Asher asks me, brushing strands of my hair away from my shoulder.
I shrug. “Why wouldn’t I be? He seems nice, and I don’t want him to die just so we can figure out if I’m some strange creature.”
Asher’s lips quirk. “The little smartass thief has a kind heart.”
“So, I’m kind, a smartass, a thief, and blunt. Good to know you’re keeping track of all my lovely traits.” I dazzle him with a smirk. “I must be super fascinating.”
“Perhaps.” He absentmindedly plays with my hair.
I want to duck away from him but, since East is hovering close to my other side, there’s nowhere to go. And Arrow is sitting right in front of me. I’m surrounded by them again. Surrounded by paranormals. Yet, for some crazy reason, fear isn’t spiking through me.
“I won’t die.” Arrow holds my gaze. “It takes a lot to kill a cyborg.”
I open my mouth to protest, but East talks over me.
“I’ll go with him,” he says. “Between the two of us, we should be able to pull it off. Although, we’re going to be late for our next tour stop.”
“You guys are still on tour?” I shiver as Asher’s fingers graze my shoulder. Why in the weirdo genies does he keep touching me?
“We’re almost always on tour.” East winks at me. “If you’re lucky, maybe we’ll let you come see us play. I know how much you love our music.”
He doesn’t give me a chance to protest, jumping right into planning how they’re going to steal the steel books. It doesn’t really matter anyway, since the truth is I do like their music. May even like them a little bit, too. But my feelings are conflicted.
Is it wrong to like paranormals? Especially paranormals who know the genie who took my parents away from me? I don’t know the answer. Maybe I never will. All I can hope for is that I’ll at least get revenge for my parents’ deaths.
Chapter 11
It’s not until I’ve wandered back to my room that a random thought occurs to me.
Asher never explained how he knew me.
Sure, he told me that his father cursed him with the same curse he put on me, but that still doesn’t explain why he thought I looked familiar.
Damn evasive genies.
Needing the answer, I abandon changing and head back to the living room to demand some answers. Again, the sound of voices makes me pause before I reach the end of the hallway.
“So, she’s the girl your father showed you?” East asks. A pause drifts by, and then he says, “I can’t believe it.”
I press my back to the wall and listen, surprised they’re talking about me since they’re aware of my little eavesdropping habit.
“Actually, I can believe it,” East continues over the lovely sound of guitar strings being plucked. “She’s sort of perfect for you, in a weird, twisted way.”
“My father always did love fucking with me,” Asher replies tightly as music flows through the air.
“Aw, don’t pout, Ash,” East teases. “Deep down, you know you’re not disappointed. I saw that look in your eyes. You like our little questionable human.”
“No, I don’t,” he snaps as the guitar strumming stops. “And even if I did, I couldn’t admit it. She’ll die if I do.”
“Only if you fall in love with her.”
“According to the curse my father showed me, I will. And then I’ll have to hold her in my arms while I watch her die.” Asher hastily clears his throat as he starts to choke up. “Just like I watched my mother die.”
A wave of pain, sadness, and anger tears through me, nearly ripping the air from my lungs.
Asher’s father didn’t just curse him? He showed him how the curse was going to play out? That he’d fall in love with me then watch me die? Like he watched his mother die?
“We’re going to change the outcome,” East promises. “I swear we will.”
“I just don’t want … to see her die.” Asher’s voice wavers. “I already feel … different about her.”
“But different isn’t love, so we still have time,” East reminds him. “Although, we should probably be more careful about what we say. She can hear different pitch frequencies. Just another thing that makes me question if she’s human.”
Silence briefly stretches between them, and then the music begins playing again.
“So, I think we should start working on some new songs,” Asher says, and then they jump into a conversation about the band.
I tiptoe back to my room, my legs shaking as I shut the door. My mind races a million-faerie wing flutters a second as I sink to the floor and process what I heard.
Asher is going to fall in love with me, and then I’m going to die.
I’m going to die.
I’m going to fall in love.
I gulp, unsure which one frightens me more.
I can’t let that happen. Can’t fall in love, with anyone, let alone a genie.
I’ll find a way to stop this, I vow to myself. Somehow.
Deep down, I understand I may not have any control over the outcome. Love isn’t always controllable. I may not want to fall in love, and I can fight it with every breath I take, but in the end, I could lose. And then I’ll lose everything.
Chapter 12
Genies are so annoying. Huge pains in the asses. Faeries aren’t that fabulous either, at least not as much as they seem to think they are. Cyborgs are cool, but they do like to participate in dirty, little lies that could hurt someone.
I know I sound like a straight-up bitch, but I’m going through some stuff, okay? Like how I just discovered I may not be human. Or a normal human anyway. And that the genie who made my parents vanish and cursed me to never be able to fall in love also cursed his own son with a similar curse. Only, he gave Asher the great pleasure of seeing who his demised lover will be, and apparently, the lucky dead girl walking is moi.
Le sigh. I don’t understand how me, hater of all genies and most paranormal creatures, is supposedly going to fall in love with a genie then die in his arms.
Sure, Asher isn’t as awful as his father or other genies I’ve crossed paths with, and I feel terrible for what his father has done to him, but he still has a way of working underneath my skin. Like, for instance, right now.
I already woke up in a really bad mood. Then the moment I stepped foot into the kitchen, my irritation grew the instant Asher opened his mouth.
“Are you going to make me do this every time I want to eat?” I huff an exasperated breath. “If so, you seriously have control issues.”
He’s standing on the opposite side of the kitchen island, wearing a pair of black jeans that hang low on his hips, with chains dangling from the pockets. He may be completely irritating, but I have to admit he’s sexy.
Dammit, why do genies have to be so sexy? It’d make my despising him so much easier if I wasn’t attracted to him.
Asher slants forward, resting his arms on the glass countertop filled with mini water fey blowing glittery bubbles. “All you have to do is say please. I don’t se
e what the big deal is.”
“It’s not a big deal. I just wanted to point out that you’re a control freak, just in case you weren’t aware.”
“Oh, I’m well aware.” He plucks up a piece of sausage from the plate in front of him, sticks it into his mouth, then licks his lips clean.
My mouth salivates, but I refuse to say please. I refuse to let him win.
Yesterday when he did the same thing to me, I quickly caved. Today, though, I’m feeling pretty stubborn, mostly because of what I found out last night about Asher’s curse. Between his curse and mine, I highly doubt I’m going to fall in love anytime soon, which makes me feel super sulky.
Sure, I already knew I couldn’t fall in love, but now it seems even more impossible.
“You seem particularly moody this morning.” Asher glances down at his handheld device. “Any particular reason?”
“Um, yeah, because an old, douchebag genie refuses to let me eat breakfast.”
When his gaze snaps up to mine, I offer him a sugary sweet smile.
His eyes darken as he sets the handheld device down. “You know, that’s twice you’ve called me old. Most genies would’ve gotten rid of you by now.”
“It’s a good thing you need me then, isn’t it?” I casually slide my arm across the countertop toward his plate in a lame attempt to steal a piece of sausage.
As my fingers graze the edge of the plate, he moves it out of my reach.
“Say the magic words, little thief, and I’ll give you the best breakfast that’s ever passed across those pretty lips of yours.”
I mentally roll my eyes at his cheesiness. Between him and East, I’m on cheesy overload.
“The best breakfast I’ve ever had?” I draw my hand back to my lap. “That bar isn’t too high since most of my breakfasts came from dumpster diving.”
Curiosity sparkles in his eyes. “What’s dumpster diving?”
“Digging food out of a dumpster.”
His face twists in disgust. “You’ve eaten food out of a trash can before?”
My jaw ticks, but not necessarily because of him. “Starvation sometimes leads to having to take drastic measures. like digging food out of a trash can.”
“I’m sorry you had to go through that.” He almost sounds genuine.
“Why? It wasn’t your fault.” I eyeball his food again, on the verge of giving in and begging.
I’m so hungry.
“Perhaps.” He wavers his head from side to side. “Maybe it is, though. I mean, my father took your parents away from you, which led to you living on the streets, right?”
My chest constricts at the reminder. “I was dumpster diving when my parents were still around. Not that much, but … Starvation is—was pretty unavoidable. And I’m sure it’ll still be after I steal these objects for you and my life goes back to normal.” I wait to see if he’ll divulge why he’s said more than a handful of times that he feels like he knows me. See if he’ll admit he’s cursed to fall in love with me, only to watch me die.
I doubt it. No, the only way to get the truth around here is to listen in on conversations. And with East and Arrow about to endeavor to the planet Steel, Asher will have no one to chat with, so my resource for getting information will be long gone. Probably doesn’t matter anyway. Ever since they discovered I have the ability to hear other pitch frequencies, they’ve started being careful about what they say.
“When your life goes back to normal, huh?” A pucker forms between his brows.
“What? Is it not going to?” I challenge. “Because we made a deal that after I stole these objects for you, you’ll set me free, remember?”
“Of course I remember. In fact, I’m counting down the days until our bargain is completed.” He smirks when I glare at him. “However, I wouldn’t be surprised if you got so attached to us that you wanted to stay. Humans can be rather clingy.”
“Well, according to you guys, I may not be human.” I grin haughtily. “So, I guess that doesn’t apply to me. It’s probably why I had such an easy time turning down you guys’ offer to come back to your world jumper vehicle when we were back at the arena.”
“Doubtful. I think you just wanted to make sure the vehicle was empty so you could try to steal my lamp.” His pierced, pale blue lips kick up into a smirk. “And other creatures can be clingy, too. I’m betting you’re one of them.” He reclines against the counter behind him, crossing his arms and grinning as I flip him the middle finger. “What? It’s true. I can’t tell you how many times a groupie has fallen in love with the band and wanted to come on tour with us. It’s pretty pathetic, if you ask me.”
“I’m not a groupie or a fan of paranormals, so I doubt that’s going to be a problem,” I quip, sneaking a glance at his plate of food. “Plus, I find you guys super annoying.”
He’s far enough away that I might be able to snatch the plate and run, if I’m sneaky enough. Well, unless he blasts me with a curse. But from what I’ve seen, Asher doesn’t possess normal genie cruelty. And as far as I can tell, he loathes using his magic.
“If you say so.” Doubt twinkles in his smoky eyes. “You’ve only been with us for a couple days, though.”
“Yeah, so?” I arch my brow, carrying his gaze in an attempt to distract him as I discreetly slide my arm across the countertop.
“So, you’ll more than likely be with us for at least a couple months, which leaves a lot of time for your feelings to change.”
“Ha, I highly doubt that’s going to happen. And why the hell would you even want my feelings to change after what you found out about me …” My eyes suddenly pop wide. “Wait. Back the hell up. A couple months?” I shake my head, pulling my arm back. “No, no, no, no, no. There’s no way I can be stuck on this world jumper vehicle with you guys for a couple months. I’ll lose my mind! We have to find a faster way to do this. Like, how can we shave off some time?”
He searches my eyes for worlds knows what. “With all the stops we have to make, including the planet Water, which takes over three weeks of traveling to get there, a couple months will be pushing it already.”
My expression sinks. “Isn’t there a shortcut?”
“That traveling estimate is with taking shortcuts. The only other way to get through this quicker would be to teleport, and since none of us are witches, that’s impossible.”
My lips tug into an even deeper frown. “Don’t you know any witches?”
He stares at me for an unnerving amount of time before pushing away from the counter. Then he strolls around the kitchen island and comes to a stop unsettlingly close to me. “We do know a few witches, but no one can know what we’re up to, Harlynn. Asking for outside help means dealing with questions and leaving tracks behind, which could lead to us getting caught.”
I tilt my head up to meet his gaze, my hair cascading down my back. “But you told me about your plan. Well, some of it.”
He leans in, his eyes darkening with smoke. “Yes, little thief, but I swore you to secrecy with magic. Plus, you have a lot riding on us succeeding.”
True. If I don’t succeed, or if I try to double-cross these guys, not only will I die, but so will Jason.
“You know, I really wish you’d just tell me exactly what you guys are up to, instead of feeding me bits and pieces.”
He lowers his head, his lips dangerously close to mine. “If I told you, then I’d have to keep you. And from what you just told me, you don’t want that … right?”
My heart thunders in my chest, for various reasons. One reason has a lot to do with how delicious he smells, like cupcakes and frosting.
Dammit, I’m getting so hungry I just might bite him.
A low chuckle reverberates from his chest. “Go ahead.”
I blink. “Huh?”
A cocky grin tugs at his lips. “Take a bite out of me. I won’t mind.”
Oh, my ditzy unicorns, did I say that aloud?
“I didn’t mean that in, like, a sexual way,” I say in an attempt to salvag
e some dignity. “I meant, bite you aggressively so you’ll go away and I can eat.”
Rubbing his lips together, he nudges my legs open with his knee.
“Hey, what the hell—”
In the snap of a magical wish, he’s positioned himself between my legs and has an arm on each side of me, his lips dipping close to mine. “Has anyone ever told you that you’re a terrible liar?”
“No, because I’m not.” Like a boss, my voice comes out even. “In fact, back on the streets, my nickname was Miss Perfect Liar.”
He cocks a brow, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear. “Is that true?”
I steadily hold his gaze, ignoring the flutters going mad crazy inside my chest.
Stupid flutters. They need to chill the eff out and stop getting all excited over stupid genie touches.
“If I’m such a terrible liar, like you implied,” I say evenly, “then you should already know the answer to that.”
He presses his lips together, struggling not to smile. “I guess so.” His gaze descends to my mouth and, holy crazy troll babies, I think he is considering kissing me.
If he does, I’m for sure going to slap him.
I think so anyway …
Okay, okay, I don’t know what I’ll do, and I never get to find out, because East and Arrow stroll into the room and ruin the moment.
“Well, well, well, this looks interesting.” East scans over the distance—or lack of—between Asher and me. His glittery wings are spanned out, and he’s dressed in black pants and a matching shirt, his blond hair a perfectly styled mess.
Asher’s gaze flicks to mine, and then he pushes away from me and turns to East. “Harlynn and I were just arguing about breakfast.”
“Sure you were.” East gives Asher a knowing smile.
Shaking his head, Asher wanders back to the other side of the kitchen and collects his handheld device. “When are you guys taking off?”
East gives me a look that I don’t bother trying to decipher, then he strolls over to the fridge. “Pretty soon. We just need to grab some supplies.”
“Don’t forget to grab some extra faerie dust,” Arrow says as he takes a seat on the barstool beside mine. His arms that are spun of flesh and bronzed gadgets flex as he crosses his arms on top of the counter. “Are you hungry?” he whispers lowly to me.
Chasing Steel: Capturing Magic Books 1-3 Page 9
