“Are you okay? Did I hurt you when I pushed you out of the way?” I asked, turning my head to look at her.
“I’m gonna have a pretty sexy bruise on my stomach, and you knocked the wind out of me, but-”
“I hurt you!” I rolled over and examined her stomach.
“But,” she continued, “I’m so glad you did, or I would be shark food right now.”
“I’m so sorry,” I whispered and looked up at her.
“Stop apologizing. Thank you, Aiden. You saved my life.”
Before I could answer she had my face in her hands and she pulled my lips down onto hers. I exhaled a deep breath while I dissolved into her kiss. Knowing I had almost lost her intensified the love for her coursing through my veins. I didn’t know how I would make it through this life of ours without the ability to protect her, but the taste of her lips reminded me why I had chosen to be human in the first place. I sunk deeper into her kiss and relished the sweetness of her lips.
Her hand moved up my arm and bumped the red-tinged bandage wrapped around my arm.
“Ouch,” I grimaced, and her eyes shot open as she pulled her lips away.
“I’m so sorry!” She cringed and drew back her touch.
“I’m fine.” I pushed through the pain and leaned back down for another kiss. “It’s nothing.”
“You’re not fine,” she argued as she sat up. “You got bit by a shark. A fucking shark, Aiden. That’s not nothing.”
“It’s not a bite. Just a cut. I’m fine.” I slid my hand down the small of her back and drew her toward me. For the first time, she pulled out of my touch. My brow furrowed in frustration.
“Aiden, we’re not doing that now. You’re hurt. I’m hurt.”
“It hurts?” I asked, my frustration now turning to worry.
“A little. I don’t think I have any broken ribs, but I certainly won’t be up for any wild sex for a few days.”
“I’m just so glad you’re all right.”
“Thanks to you,” she said as she leaned in and pressed a soft kiss on my lips.
I wondered now if I should tell her that this may have been the last time that my waning powers would be used to defend her. I wasn’t sure how she would feel about it... and I hadn’t even processed how I felt about it. Perhaps they would come back. Maybe they were just on hiatus... I had expelled a lot of energy when I’d punched that shark. It hadn’t happened to me before, so this was all new. I took a stilling breath and hoped that maybe this wasn’t it for my heroic rescues of the woman I loved. I would wait until tomorrow to see if they replenished and tell her when I knew for sure.
“Do you know what the best thing is for pain when you’re human?”
I shook my head.
“Alcohol.” She waggled her eyebrows. “Lots of it.”
I tipped my head and shot her a look of concern.
“We’re getting hammered. Come on.” Before I could protest, she pulled me to my feet.
“The brochure said there’s a beach-side bar. We’re going. And we’re getting wasted. We just survived a shark attack. That deserves some serious cocktails.”
“I don’t know, Emilia.” I pulled against her a bit, not sure I wanted to partake in the human experience of getting hammered.
Her lip pushed out in a pout. “If Mark was here, he would get drunk with me. But he’s not... you’re my Mark now. So that means you have to get drunk with me.”
I chuckled and gave up my fight. “Fine. I’ll be your Mark.”
“Yay!” She clapped her excitement.
I followed her down the docks and we turned onto the beach. It felt spectacular between my toes. The warm white sand moved beneath me, massaging my bare feet with each step until we reached the thatched bar on the side of the beach. The salty air mixed with the fruity aromas of beach cocktails and coconuts. Island music played from the speakers above the bar and blended with the sound of lapping waves and the wind blowing through the palm trees above us.
“Welcome,” the young bartender said in his thick island accent when we slid onto the rattan stools. “What can I get for you two?”
Emilia looked to me, but I just shook my head and shrugged my shoulders. “You know better than I do. What are we having?”
She pursed her lips tight and her nose wrinkled while she decided. I loved how her face looked when she was deep in thought.
“We’ll do two rum runners, please,” she said decidedly.
“Two rum runners coming right up,” he said and spun around to go make our drinks.
“Rum runners?” I asked with a raised brow.
“Fruity and delicious. It’s like vacation in a glass. You’ll love it.”
“I’ll take your word for it.”
When the bartender returned, he placed the two colorful drinks in front of us. A piece of pineapple clung to the rim and a small pink umbrella stuck out of the top of the glass.
“Start us a tab please?” she asked him, and he responded with a smile and a nod before moving off to give us our space.
I started to pluck the umbrella out from my drink, but Emilia stopped me with a look.
“Ah ah! You’re my Mark right now. And Mark would never take that umbrella out of his drink. In fact, I’m surprised he doesn’t insist on one in everything he drinks.”
I chuckled and slid the umbrella back into my glass before raising it up to hers. “Cheers. To Mark.”
“To Mark.” She smiled and clinked my glass before taking a long swig.
When I lifted the cocktail to my lips, I was taken aback by the fruity smells. I took a small sip and my eyebrows shot up to my hairline.
“Bad? Good? I can’t tell what’s happening in there,” she asked, circling a finger at my head.
“Do they make this by the gallon?” I smiled and then took a big drink. “It’s the greatest thing I’ve ever tasted.”
“Yay! We’re getting drunk on rum runners!”
“I don’t think I’ve ever been drunk.”
“Really? Not even before you turned?” she whispered, making sure the bartender didn’t hear.
I shook my head and took another sip. “No. We had ale and wine, but I never really drank a lot. It dulls the senses, and I didn’t want to get caught off guard.”
“So, you were always that serious, huh?” she teased.
“Yep. But not tonight. Today I’m Mark and he is never serious.” I held her eyes while I downed the rest of my glass, slamming it back on the bar with a long sigh.
“Holy shit,” she stammered. “I need to catch up.”
I laughed while she slammed her drink and pushed it across the bar clanking it against mine.
“Bartender? Can we have two more?”
“Of course,” he answered.
“Wait!” she shouted before he could turn away. “What’s your name?”
“Jonas.” He smiled.
“Jonas, I’m Emilia and this is Aiden. We almost got eaten by a shark today, so we’re planning on getting wasted if that’s all right with you?”
His grin grew and he nodded. “No judgements here.”
“Good. Then I will need two shots of Jägermeister.”
I saw the surprise on his face before it grew into an appreciate nod. “Coming right up.”
“Jägermeister?” I asked her. “What is that?”
“It’s the absolute best medicine for sore bodies and injuries. After a few shots of Jäger, you won’t feel a thing.”
Jonas returned with the dark bottle sporting a deer with an impressive rack. He placed the little clear glasses in front of us and poured out the dark liquid.
“We’ll need two rum runners to chase this down,” Emilia said. “It’s his first Jäger,” she added in a whisper.
Jonas shot a grimace at me. “Good luck.” He laughed and walked away with the bottle.
“Well, are you ready?” Mirth danced behind her eyes when she grabbed the glass and raised it toward me.
“You’re making me nervous,” I
said as I picked up my own. “And why is he looking at me like that?” Jonas eyed me with anticipation while he mixed our rum runners.
“Just drink it all at once.”
I started to sniff it, but she stopped me with a stare.
“No sniffing! Just slam it!”
“What have I gotten myself into?” I laughed.
“To us.” She clinked her glass to mine and a little of the brown liquid sloshed over the side.
“To us.”
Holding her eyes, I tossed the Jäger down my throat. My face puckered and contorted while I spit and sputtered my response. I could hear Jonas laughing from across the empty bar, and Emilia soon joined him.
“Why would you do that to me?” I continued spatting, trying to get the last of the foul-tasting alcohol off my tongue.
“Chasers! Here drink this!” Jonas appeared in front of me, sliding the rum runner into my hands. I tossed it down my throat hoping to remove the bitter taste from the shot. The fruity liquid dulled the taste and by the time the ice cubes clinked that the cup was empty, it had finally diminished.
Emilia bit her lip, her face pulled tight in anticipation. “Are you recovered?”
I set the glass down and gestured for Jonas to grab me another. “Barely,” I answered, wiping the remnants of my drink off my lips. “Emilia. That. Was. Horrible.”
A laugh shook her shoulders, and she reached out and touched my hand. “It’s a rite of passage. Everyone has to do a Jäger at least once in their life and make that face. But don’t worry, they get better. It’s an acquired taste.”
“Again?” My eyes popped with the thought of tasting that horrifying liquid again. “No way. One is enough for me.”
“One and done? No way. Mark would never. Jonas? Two more?” she called.
“Coming right up!” he answered back.
She waggled her eyebrows. “Trust me. You’re gonna be begging for more of them after a few more.”
“You’re killing me.” I laughed, shaking my head. “It’s a good thing I love you and I’m powerless to deny you.”
Powerless. The memory of being powerless flashed through my mind and I felt that drop in my stomach again. I tried quickly to focus my hearing, but still nothing.
“I love you, too.” She snapped my attention back.
When Jonas arrived with the shot, I already felt a little warm buzzing flowing through my body from the first one. It wasn’t unpleasant, and it softened my anxiety over my current situation. Perhaps Emilia was right... getting hammered was just what I needed tonight.
We clanked our glasses together and I let the bitter liquid rush through my mouth again. My face puckered, but it was better the second time.
“Jonas?” I called. “Two more.”
Emilia squealed her delight and tossed her arms around my neck.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Aiden
THE POUNDING IN MY head drummed me awake. “Good God,” I muttered as I fought to open my eyes. It took a second for them to adjust so I could make out the shapes in the pitch-black room. Another strange thing I struggled to adapt to... the absence of my superior night vision.
With a grunt I pushed myself to sitting. Memories of our rum-filled day flashed through my mind and I cringed thinking about how many of those little brown shots I’d had. A half dozen at least. After being so against them at first, in the end Emilia was the one trying to stop me from ordering more. We’d laughed our way back to the bungalow while the sun set, and I’d realized she was surprisingly strong the way she supported my weight as we stumbled back. Her tolerance for alcohol had also been impressive. She’d, as Jonas put it, drank me under the table.
I smacked my lips together trying to rehydrate my dry mouth. Rubbing my head, I turned to check on her before getting up for water. I furrowed my brow when I noticed the place beside me looked empty. Squinting my eyes, I looked closer thinking it was just harder to see her without my night vision. The clouds moved and the full moon lit up the room. Now there was no mistaking it... Emilia wasn’t in bed.
“Emilia?” I called out, pausing to listen for her response. Maybe she was just in the bathroom.
I stood up and walked across the glass floor and stopped when I saw the bathroom door ajar and no sign of Emilia inside. My pulse quickened as I looked around the room and then moved out to the deck.
Nothing.
She was nowhere.
“Emilia!” I called again, desperation trembling in my voice.
The weight of the silence answering me felt like a giant hand crushing my heart. I tried to get my hearing to work, focusing all my energy to listen for her.
Nothing.
That helpless sensation I had felt in the ocean consumed me again. I stood alone on the deck, searching the emptiness with only the sounds of my pounding heart and the lapping waves to fill the silence.
Trying to calm myself, I rationalized she likely went to shore for food or perhaps aspirin to combat our hangovers, though I wasn’t sure why she wouldn’t have just had it delivered. I walked back into the bedroom and saw her cellphone sitting on the dresser. Doom pierced my gut when I saw her Birkin bag propped up on the chair. There was no way she would leave it behind... she loved that bag almost as much as she loved me.
“Where are you?” I whispered as I paced the room. I closed my eyes and pictured her face. Instead of seeing her soft smile and blue eyes lit up with life, a vision of her face twisted in terror flashed through my mind and I snapped my eyes open.
The vision felt real. Like I was seeing her. I closed my eyes again, focusing all of my energy on my connection to her.
I sat back with a start when it happened again. Like the crackling of a fuzzy movie, I saw her face again for only a second. I heard her call out my name.
And there was no doubt in my mind now... it wasn’t a hallucination. I had seen Emilia.
Even when I was a vampire, I had never had psychic abilities. But I was sure it wasn’t just in my head. It was real and happening now.
Emilia is in danger.
And I had no idea how to find her.
Agony tore through me and I roared as I swiped the empty glasses off the table, sending them crashing against the wall. As that powerful energy pushed through me, I felt the flickering of my powers crackling back to life. My hearing picked up a noise before puttering back out. My breath trapped in my chest while I tried to do it again.
Tried and failed.
“Fuck!” I screamed. It tore through my lungs with such a force that my body shook.
Aiden!
There! I heard her again in my mind. I dug down into the rage and the pain and let it rip through me. As that energy coursed through me, my powers flickered in and out like a broken light bulb trying one last time to illuminate the room. I saw flashes of her face, heard my name, and finally... I sensed her. Desperate to get to her, I raced to the door, my senses pulling me somewhere, though I had no idea where. I’d never experienced this before, but I knew I needed to follow the powerful pull that would lead me to her.
I ran down the wooden docks, my urgency pushing me forward while my hearing flickered in and out. Listening as I sprinted across the sand beach, I heard her. And not in my mind this time. I heard her. I stopped and listened, my hearing focusing in until I heard her begging... begging for her life.
Emilia. I tried to find her, but my hearing gave out again. Closing my eyes, I pictured her face, I smelled her sweet skin, and remembered the taste of her lips and the sound of her laugh. My feet moved, and I let them. This new power guided me, and I followed the pull from her down the beach and through palm trees to a winding trail that led to a small thatched hut on the edge of the ocean. I stopped, listening again.
“Don’t!” she cried from inside the hut.
I found her!
A surge of power raced through me as I heard her cry out. My speed flickered on and I used it to crash through the door separating us. Splinters smashed into the walls as I skid to a stop in t
he small wooden hut.
“Aiden!” she shrieked when she saw me. She was tied to a chair, her hands bound behind her back. A stream of blood trickled down her swollen lip. A growl rumbled in my chest when I saw the fear in her eyes.
“Well, well, well,” a sultry voice drawled from the corner. “So, it’s true.”
I snarled and spun to see her stepping out of the shadows. “Leeya,” I growled.
“You’re human. I can smell it on you. I can’t believe it.” Her face puckered in disgust. “How unattractive.”
“Let her go,” I demanded.
“Well, almost human,” she continued, ignoring my command. “You’re not quite there yet, and you’re not going to be.”
“What do you want, Leeya?” I glowered and stepped between her and Emilia. My power had disappeared again, and I hoped she couldn’t sense it. Leeya preyed on weakness and I was anything but strong at the moment.
“I was in Scotland when your little pet Mark arrived and said you’d gone and turned human again.” She crossed her arms, catching some of the long, red tendrils against her body. “I didn’t believe him and needed to come see for myself.”
I fought to control my panic and rage, keeping my voice calm and even. “Well, now you’ve seen. Just let her go and leave us be.”
“Aiden.” She tipped her head, her red lips pushing out into a pout. “I won’t let you throw away eternity for this pathetic excuse of a woman.” Anger flashed like lightning bolts through her dark eyes and then dissipated with a sweet smile. “I get it. I do. You think you love her.” She rolled her eyes. “But you don’t. And I’m not going to let you throw it all away. Throw us away.”
Us? My mind drifted back to Mark’s words along with his disgusted expression. Crazy. Completely. Totally. Batshit crazy. I just never realized how much until this moment.
She stepped forward, and I glanced down at my terrified Emilia before taking one step toward Leeya, hoping she hadn’t sensed my weakness.
Leeya stopped her approach and leaned against the wall. “So, here’s what we’re going to do. You’ve got two choices. There is enough magic in you that you still have a chance to turn back to a vampire... back to what you should be. You don’t have much time, but all you need to do is drink some blood and everything will go back to normal.”
Into The Light (Immortal Hearts Book 1) Page 24
