by Raine Thomas
Then he swallowed hard and looked away. “Sure. Sounds good,” he said.
And she suddenly knew with a great deal of surprise and certainty as he turned and walked out that there was much more that he wanted to say, and that it wasn’t at all along the lines of him thinking of her as a freak.
Chapter Four
Heaven help him, he was making a huge mistake escorting Amber to the pool party.
Gabriel eased the ZX into the makeshift parking area beside Devon Brewer’s house while praying he could keep his tongue in his head. Amber sat quietly beside him, gazing out the window and seemingly oblivious to his inner turmoil. He knew he had made a complete fool of himself when he first saw her in her swimsuit. She had looked at him like he was demented as he stood there without speaking. But for the life of him, he hadn’t been able to command his brain to return to its fully functioning state once he saw how undeniably hot she looked.
Unfortunately, her ensemble had only gotten sexier when she tied the cover-up/skirt thingy Mrs. B had given her around her slim waist. The slit up the side just drew even more attention to her well-defined legs and backside. And, dear Lord…those black, strappy sandals. How footwear from Walmart could be so provocative, he truly had no idea.
Combine all of that with the stylish new haircut and some judiciously applied makeup and he was pretty sure his libido had hit the stratosphere.
The fact was, he’d had many years to learn how to control himself when it came to his feelings for Amber. He was being put to the test today, yes. But what concerned him more was the reality that she was about to open the eyes of the many males of Newnan High School. It would almost certainly generate attention toward her that would make her highly uncomfortable, and it would be entirely his fault.
“Nice digs,” she said as he cut the engine.
Devon Brewer’s family lived in the Platinum Point Historic District of Newnan on nearly two acres of property. The house was Victorian in style with beautifully landscaped gardens and a magnificent pool complete with a natural stone water slide, making it ideal for the party.
“Yeah,” he agreed before he got out of the car.
After six years together, Amber no longer attempted to open doors for herself if she was with him. He enjoyed being the gentleman. Mrs. B had instilled those manners in him from the time he was old enough to understand them. He walked around the car and opened Amber’s door for her. When she shifted and one of her long, sandal-tipped legs emerged, he forgot to breathe.
“Well, guess it’s time to get this over with, huh?” she asked as she stood beside him, adjusting her sunglasses on her nose and tightening the knot on her cover-up.
“Am.” He paused, then sighed. “I’m sorry I dragged you into this.” When she looked up at him with raised eyebrows, he added, “I know you’d rather be anywhere else. I thought it’d be nice—”
“Oh, stop beating yourself up,” she interrupted, elbowing him in the side. “Geez, you’re such a martyr. If it wasn’t for you, I’d be a hermit. A happy hermit, maybe, but a hermit’s just one step away from a Scary Cat Lady. So you’re merely doing your part to keep me from ending up the subject of a CSI episode where I get eaten by my own pets.”
He stared at her for a minute. Then he burst out laughing. And just like that, the tension was gone. Swinging a companionable arm around her shoulders, he started toward the house.
“The Happy Hermit would make a great pub name,” he said as they followed the sounds of the party, maneuvering past the other vehicles already in the parking area and walking around to the back of the house.
“Hmm. Not bad. Not as good as The Toasted Ferret, though.”
Because he held his arm over her shoulders, he felt the tightness building there as they got closer to the party. Careful to keep his tone level, he said softly, “You’ll let me know if you experience anything?”
Her shoulders somehow tensed up even more. She nodded. It was the only direct reference he’d made to the surge she experienced the day before. But he definitely remembered the incident from three years ago, and he could safely say he wasn’t looking forward to going through that again. He hoped by being vigilant that they could avoid it.
Whatever it was.
The noise grew much louder as they entered through the back gate. A number of colorful lounge chairs had been positioned in the shade of an arbor by the back patio, with at least twice as many situated around the pool out in the hot sunshine. Tables for drinks were strategically placed to prevent spills around the pool deck. Two large propane grills hissed with the sound of cooking meat, filling the air with mouth-watering aromas that managed to blend perfectly with the scents of suntan lotion and freshly-mown grass. It seemed every teenage boy and girl in Coweta County had put in an appearance, and with loud music pumping through a fancy sound-system and voices raised to compensate, even the great outdoors managed to feel like some energetic teen’s dance club.
“Hey, Gabriel!”
Looking to the left, he spotted his friend Ethan waving at him from a group standing beside a volleyball net. Ethan was a good guy and fun to hang with. Gabriel gave him a grin and a wave. His grin faded a bit when he realized that Ethan and the group around him were now staring at Amber.
“Come and play a game, man,” Ethan encouraged.
Just as he opened his mouth to say he wasn’t interested, a female voice said, “Yeah, Gabriel. Go play. That way I can hang out with Amber for a while, just us girls.”
He glanced next to Amber and caught the friendly gaze of Alicia Stephens, the sociable cousin of their BJ’s co-worker and fellow senior, Cornelius Stephens. They had all hung out as a group a few times over the years. She and Amber got along relatively well, probably because Alicia liked to talk and Amber listened to her without comment or complaint.
“We just got here—” he began.
“Which means you’ll be here for hours yet,” she interrupted. “Go on and leave us be.”
Amber tilted her head to look up at him. “It’s cool. Go play. I’ll sit with Alicia for a bit.”
He didn’t even get the chance to ask if she was sure. Alicia promptly snatched Amber’s arm and pulled her over to a couple of open lounge chairs by the pool, chattering away the entire time.
Unable to stop himself and feeling guilty for it, he watched the movement of Amber’s hips and backside as she walked away. Only when he turned back to his friends around the volleyball net and realized their interested gazes were also on her did he get irritated. Deciding there was little he could do about it, he walked over to join the game.
“So, who’s the chick?” Ethan asked when Gabriel approached. There were many ears tuned into their conversation.
Gabriel raised an eyebrow. “What—seriously?”
“Yeah, man.” Ethan glanced back at Amber. “She’s smokin—” He cut himself off. Tilted his head. Stared harder. “Holy—is that—?” Now he looked stunned. “No way.”
Ignoring the comments around him, Gabriel glanced to his right and spotted Jason Harrison among the would-be volleyball players. Giving the other guy a nod, he said, “Hey, Jason, can I run something by you?”
Shrugging, he said, “Sure.” He looked wary, though.
They stepped away as the others began selecting teams. Staying within sight of Amber but out of hearing range of anyone else, Gabriel stopped beside a neatly-pruned rose bush. When Jason stopped beside him, he said without preamble, “Michelle dropped by yesterday.”
Jason frowned. His eyes were less friendly than usual, as was his tone. “Yeah. She already told me.”
“Told you what, exactly?”
Jason’s face flushed. Crossing his arms over his chest and shifting his gaze to Amber, he muttered, “Amber told Michelle she, uh, didn’t want to come to the party with me.”
“Michelle said that, did she?”
Perhaps gleaning something from Gabriel’s tone, Jason caught his gaze. He hadn’t been class valedictorian for nothing, and realization
was quick to enter his eyes.
Gabriel continued, “I imagine she said that Amber laughed at the idea of coming to the party with you or something?”
Jason uncrossed his arms, running one hand across the back of his neck. “Essentially. She said Amber told her that she wouldn’t go out with me if I was the last guy alive—crap like that.”
“You know Amber,” Gabriel said, indicating their years together on the high school track team. “You know she isn’t like that. Everything you just said is complete B.S.”
Jason nodded in understanding and looked again toward Amber. “Damn. What a bitch.”
Knowing he meant Michelle, Gabriel smiled dryly. “You have no idea.”
“Guess I should’ve known better, considering the source. I imagine you didn’t ask her to ask me to get Amber off your hands, right?”
Gabriel just raised an eyebrow.
“Yeah. Figured. Well, screw it. At least I know. Thanks, man.” Now, he grinned. “Come on. Let me at least kick your ass at some V-ball if you get the girl.”
“You’re sure welcome to try.”
Amber’s gaze moved around the teeming backyard as Alicia rambled. She certainly didn’t want to ruin Gabriel’s good time by keeping him glued to her side throughout the party, but she had to admit that she hadn’t expected to be on her own so soon. She couldn’t avoid a sense of panic as she realized she was going to have to socialize. Her hands trembled slightly as she adjusted her chair and she prayed the physical reaction was merely nerves and not…more.
“I love your hair,” Alicia said. “Where’d you get it done?”
Struggling not to bring her hand to her head in discomfort, she replied, “Lulu’s.”
A puzzled frown darkened Alicia’s pretty face. “Lulu’s? Huh. Don’t know that one,” she said in a tone that indicated she thought she should.
“Hi, ladies,” came a deep voice, and Amber glanced up as a shadow large enough to cover both their chairs fell over them.
Alicia’s cousin, Cornelius, had stopped a few feet away. His impressive build was nicely displayed as he went shirtless with his light blue swim shorts. Although used to defending against aggressive offensive linemen as one of the high school football team’s best players, he couldn’t have been a calmer, nicer guy. Amber had always liked him.
Now, a remarkably bright grin split his dark face as he said, “Amber, girl, you’re sizzlin’ today. Wow.”
She flushed to the roots of her hair. “Uh…thanks.”
“And what about me?” Alicia demanded, tossing her long, dark hair over her shoulder and striking a pose in her hot-pink tankini. Amber thought she could have been a model.
Cornelius made a buzzing sound with his lips. “Please, cuz. Don’t gross me out here.”
Alicia jerked her head and sucked air through her teeth. Well-used to the byplay between the cousins, who loved each other dearly for all their arguing, Amber remained wisely silent.
“I wanted to know if I could get y’all lovely ladies something to drink,” he said.
Alicia grinned cheekily. “I’d love one, thanks.”
“I shoulda known you’d say that. Amber?”
“Uh, sure.”
“Watered down fruit punch or watered down Coke?”
“Diet Coke,” Alicia said. “Girl’s gotta watch her figure.”
Fighting back a chuckle, Amber shook her head. “I’ll have the punch, thanks.”
When he turned with a small salute to go get their beverages, Alicia adjusted her sunglasses and then groaned. “Lovely. Michelle Moron just arrived. Can’t wait to see who she decides to target today. It’s never a party until she makes an idiot of herself.”
Shifting so she could follow Alicia’s gaze, Amber spotted Michelle as she made her way through the yard. She was trailed by her best friend, Cynthia Ridley. Both of them had heads turning in their tiny bathing suits.
“Seems Michelle couldn’t nab a date even with being willing to sleep with anything that walks,” Alicia said. “Guess by that suit she’s wearing, she hopes to change her luck today.”
Amber snorted.
“Does a Kleenex held together with dental floss even constitute a bathing suit?”
That made Amber laugh. Then she realized that Michelle and Cynthia were headed in their direction. Knowing that she was going to be the “target” that Alicia mentioned, Amber squared her shoulders.
“Uh, Alicia, I’ve got to excuse myself for a minute. Be right back.”
Alicia started to speak, but Amber quickly got up from her chair and started walking in the direction of the volleyball game. She didn’t want Alicia involved in this nonsense. And since the tremors in her hands were progressing into her arms, she knew she needed to get to Gabriel. There was no way this was just stress.
“Running to your brother, Hopkins?” Michelle called out then, causing several conversations to cease and people to turn and stare. “Might as well. You’ve got him so cowed he’ll do anything for you.”
Amber stopped walking. Slowly, she turned to face Michelle.
“Well, she is having sex with him,” Cynthia said loudly as they got closer.
“That’s what Gabe told me,” Michelle confirmed as they stopped near Amber. She smirked. “He said he likes that they’re under the same roof so he can have her whenev—”
She stopped abruptly when Amber’s hand shot out and paused mere millimeters from her face. The sound Michelle made was a bit like a duck getting its neck stretched. She jerked back so hard in surprise that her sunglasses flew off her head. Cynthia watched this all with her eyebrows several inches higher than usual and her lips in a round O.
Holding the strike pose as firmly as she could in light of the vibrations coursing through her, Amber said, “Don’t ever talk about Gabriel that way again. Ever.”
The surge grew stronger as her anger and stress escalated, and Amber knew she was in trouble. She felt the snaps of energy starting in her chest, pulsing with the strong beats of her heart. As her panic grew, the crackle of energy grew…an unstoppable spiral that she knew would result in something disastrous.
She had to get out of there. Had to. But she couldn’t move.
And then Gabriel was at her side. He didn’t acknowledge Michelle, but instead reached up and lowered her sunglasses enough to look at her eyes.
“Okay—we’re out of here,” he said, pushing her sunglasses back up.
Cynthia stumbled back two full steps. “What the hell is up with her eyes?”
Alicia and Cornelius approached as Gabriel took Amber’s arm and started for the back gate. Alicia asked with concern, “Is Amber okay?”
“She’s fine,” Gabriel lied as they hurried toward the gate. “Just a slight allergic reaction aggravated by stress. I’ve got her medication in the car. She does better away from crowds.”
“Gabriel.” Amber hardly recognized her own voice. It was croaky and panicked. The vibrations shaking her arms continued to increase in violence. This could not be happening.
“Hang on,” was his response.
They ignored everything and everyone around them as they burst out the back gate and hurried through the parking area. Their car was wedged in among other cars in the Brewers’ makeshift parking arrangement. They’d have to do this on foot. Fortunately, the only people out front were about twenty yards away and thus far had their backs turned.
Oh, God. They had to get away. Had to. Had. To. The pain was starting. God, it hurt.
“Gabriel?”
Her voice was an anguished question now, and would normally have embarrassed her. Only a few seconds had passed since they left the backyard, but the tremors now shook her entire body. Obviously sensing she was reaching a critical point, he bent over and slung her over his shoulder. Then he started running as fast as her added weight would allow.
“Hang on,” he instructed again, breathing harshly and dodging trees as he ran.
She couldn’t breathe. Her body was now outside of her contro
l. She wanted to scream in agony as the surge threatened to overtake her. And even as she knew Gabriel was her only hope, she feared for him. Didn’t want him anywhere near her. She would kill him.
Just as her entire body started convulsing, he burst through a clearing leading to a pond. The sight flooded her with relief even as the pain burst through her chest.
Gabriel!
Her brutalized cry was nothing but a thought, but she somehow knew that he heard it as though it had ripped from her throat. Without pause, he plowed straight forward. They plunged unceremoniously into the pond, and she managed to take hold of her senses enough to wrap herself around him so that their combined weight would drag them further under the water as quickly as possible.
Then the world exploded.
Chapter Five
Ailfrid jerked back, away from the bed he had been leaning over. The movement propelled him into a wooden bureau and had him staggering to regain his balance and breath.
“What happened?” Ini-herit demanded, hurrying over to help keep Ailfrid upright.
“Surge—powerful—” Ailfrid gasped, clutching his head in obvious pain. A trickle of blood dripped from his nose onto the front of his white garb.
Ini-herit placed his hands on either side of the other male’s head. A silver glow shimmered around them and then faded.
“Thank you, archigos,” Ailfrid said, blinking as the pain receded.
Beside them, Knorbis stood with his arms crossed. “Was that stronger than the one three years ago?” he asked.
“Significantly so,” Ailfrid responded. He stood quietly, his eyes flashing dark green. When he again blinked back to full awareness, he said, “And the others experienced this, too.”
Knorbis and Ini-herit exchanged a look. This was a first…as well as a fulfillment of Knorbis’ predictions.
“Can you reconnect with Gabriel?” Ini-herit asked Ailfrid.
Ailfrid looked again toward the bed. “I shall try.”
While he advanced on the bed, Knorbis pulled Ini-herit a step back. “You will have to move up your timeline.”
