by Trisha Lynn
Chapter Twelve
The book store was pretty busy for a Sunday. She was running around helping people find books all morning and putting away inventory whenever she could find the time. At noon, she trotted over to the local cafe to grab something quick to eat and a coffee for Bev. This particular cafe had great vegetarian selections and she could eat most of those without her stomach complaining.
When she stepped into the coffee house she instantly felt a buzzing along her skin, the feeling gave her a small sense of panic and she looked frantically around. No Loki and no bald guy. She saw a few random couples, a few teenagers and a few guys in business suits chatting to each other. Nothing exceptionally odd. When she turned her back to the room and ordered, a shiver ran itself up her spine and the hair on the back of her neck stood at attention, as if someone was staring at her from behind.
Once she ordered, she nonchalantly stepped to the side and took in the room again from the corner of her eye. Her eyes connected with those of a woman probably a few years older than herself. She was gorgeous. Long blonde hair, mossy green eyes, and porcelain perfect skin. There was a strange coldness to her eyes that had Adeila's heart constricting with a small inkling of fear.
So that's the thing that's got him tied up? The King's little delivery boy has his hands full with this little girl?
Adeila's hearing still went in and out all the time, but it was starting to work in her favor most of the time lately, with a little practice. It took her less time when she focused harder. It was the focusing part she usually had a hard time with, but with this conversation it was easy enough. It was the words she heard that had her gripping the counter tighter.
King's delivery boy? She must mean Loki, or was she even talking about her? Maybe this was completely unrelated to her, but what King was she talking about? It's not like a royal monarchy reined in America, and she seemed pretty damn American looking. Did Loki know this woman? What the hell was going on? Maybe, she was just completely paranoid? Yes, she was just being completely paranoid. Of course, this was completely unrelated to her. Why would it be about her? What were the odds, truly?
We'll just see how this pans out with him, and then we'll step in. No need to make this little rabbit spook. Let him do his job for now.
She'd said job with so much disdain, it was hard to not notice it. Adeila collected her things, and glanced at the woman once more. She was still staring at her, but when their eyes connected this time a malicious grin spread across the woman's face. Adeila swallowed and whirled out the door. What the heck?
.~.
The rest of the day she was on edge and jumpy. The rest of her shift dragged by because all she wanted to do was go home and lock herself in her bedroom.
When she did finally get home, her bedroom was not where she went. Instead she went to the deck and sat upon one of the luxuriously pillowed chairs. After almost an hour of her staring blankly at the trees swaying in the breeze she was just getting ready to get up and grab a drink when her phone vibrated on the table beside her and she absently reached for it. For some reason the thought of speaking to anyone or even texting someone had very little appeal to her. Alone with her thoughts was exactly where she wanted to be at that moment.
It was Marissa. Hey, I'm home. Can I come over? Adeila's instant reply was No, I'm swamped with – then she stopped herself, the lie was completely ridiculous, and Marissa would see right through it. She would know something was wrong. So she deleted the message, and retyped Sure! Can't wait to see you! She almost instantly got the reply of OK be there in ten!
Adeila mentally prepared herself for the social experience. One she should be anticipating, but wasn't.
.~.
“So, wait let me get this straight, you slept with your neighbor? Marissa!”
“I know, I know. It's friggin' crazy.”
Well, that explained why Marissa hadn't text her all weekend, not that Adeila had really noticed it much, with everything else going on with her. She also realized that Erik hadn't even texted her since Saturday morning. Odd. It didn't even bother her at all. Now that was sad. She resigned to send him a sweet I miss you kind of text to make up for it.
For the moment, however, she needed to focus on Marissa. Her best friend, who was having sex with the new neighbor’s son at her family's house on Lake Tahoe.
“How the hell did it happen?” Normally Adeila would love the details. Living through her friends' more open and trusting nature, but today she found it extremely difficult to focus on the woes of teenage drama. She wanted to hear all about it, and support her friend but was having a hard time focusing, when her mind kept drifting to her own problems. Now the issues of her impending virginity seemed so minuscule to the problems she faced of going to another realm, being a Faerie princess, doing magic and potentially meeting her “real” parents, who were none other than the King and Queen of an incredibly large and powerful kingdom. Ah, to have the simple teenage problems again. How they seemed so much more dramatic a few months ago.
“So it was late Friday night, and I was getting so bored. I figured you were passed out after work, so I didn't want to bug you. I was sitting on the dock and this kid comes swaggering over. Smoking a cigarette, wearing jeans and a leather jacket. Total bad boy status. Kind of like Loki, but like, I don't know more...You know. Do-able. Yet I don’t know, more dangerous. I don't how to explain it. He was totally hot though. Tall, muscled, but not obnoxious - similar to Loki. He had blonde hair, kind of long for guys these days, but it looked so sexy on him. With these dark reddish brown eyes, like my Dad's brandy, he's so fond of. They had kind of this weird golden like hue through them. His looks are really hard to explain, he was like movie star hot, like Ryan Gosling, but with this dangerous James Dean look.” She paused, cocking her head, then nodded, happy with her description. “So we just kind of started talking. Nothing happened that night, but the next night I sat there again, and boom he shows up. This time he has some silver flask in his hand, and offers some to me. It was like vodka or something. After like an hour, he's kissing me, and well it went from there. We went to his parent’s guest house and did it. He has all these really cool intricate tattoos, kind of like Loki's but like darker, and... Well, different. It was... Oh, Adeila, it was so hot and amazing. I can't stop thinking about it. The shitty thing is he wouldn't even give me his number, said he didn't believe in phones. Said he'd find me when the time was right. Talk about mysterious!”
Adeila couldn't even move, a shiver of dread rolled across her body, and her senses were on high alert. She had no idea what made her so uncomfortable but something about this boy had her body reacting. Her right wrist itched like crazy and she couldn't help but scratch at it, just then her phone vibrated causing her to jump.
Marissa gave her an odd look. “You okay?”
Adeila nodded numbly and looked at her phone. Erik. Hey hope you didn't fall of the face of the Earth! Text or call me.
She put the phone back and took a deep breath. One problem at a time. She focused back on Marissa who was looking at her with concern.
“What was his name?”
“Jake. He didn't give me a last name.” Then Marissa perked up. “Oh, and thanks for letting me borrow those adorable boots and that jade shirt! The guy couldn't keep his hands off me. He said the color brought out the green in my eyes.”
She could only nod. The whole situation was just weird, and so unlike her friend. She was really shocked her friend would do something like that. It just seemed too, well, slutty for her to stoop to. At least Adeila thought it was too slutty. She would never tell Marissa that, but it didn't stop her from thinking it.
“I don't know, I hope he finds me. I told him what town I lived in. It's not that big, maybe he'll come around someday.”
Adeila only nodded. “Maybe.” But she fervently hoped not for reasons she couldn't explain.
Later, after she'd texted Erik back, she and Marissa had eaten some fruit and organic frozen yogurt, and they b
oth stretched out to watch a movie on her bed. It was so easy and comforting she almost forgot all the weirdness that was going on with herself, with Marissa and Loki and faeries and magic. Almost.
Her mind still wandered, like it always did. Then her mind landed on Erik's texts. They were a little strange, almost passive aggressive. Like he missed her, but didn't want to. Like he wanted to know what was going on with her, but yet had his own problems and didn't care. It was really kind of annoying, but she figured it was their growing pains as a couple and tried not to think too much of it. Plus, she hadn't been very attentive herself, lately, so she shouldn't complain. She couldn't help herself though, she did miss him. Missed his smile and handsome face. She looked forward to seeing him the next day.
