Ties That Bind: a New Adult Fantasy Novel (The Spire Chronicles Book 2)
Page 22
He let out a relieved exhale. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” I kissed his cheek, smiling when he turned his head to capture my lips instead. “How did things go with Tom?”
Alex sighed heavily and rolled onto his back, covering his face with his hands. “I still can’t believe he was a part of that. It doesn’t matter if you need money, there is no excuse for what he did to those people. I really looked up to him,” he added after a beat, his voice quiet. “He never let anything get him down. Why didn’t he tell me things had gotten so bad? I would’ve helped him out.”
“Sometimes our pride makes us do stupid things. Or stops us from doing smart things,” I said. “Trust me, I’m an expert.”
“You’d never do that,” he said, bringing my hand up to press a kiss against my palm. “Never.”
“It’ll get better.” Smart, Morgan, give him some generic platitude. Maybe instead of cauterizing my tear ducts I should sear my mouth shut. “I know that doesn’t really help, but…”
“I’m glad you’re here,” he said, pushing himself back up to look at me. His deep blue eyes made me feel like I was drowning in their warmth, but I couldn’t bring myself to look away. I guess the waters had calmed after all.
I licked my lips, ducking my head away. “About before, what I said about your parents–”
“It’s okay.”
“No, it’s not. It was completely inappropriate to even–” My words were cut off with a surprised “oomph” as Alex pulled me down for a kiss.
Our teeth clacked against each other, but the discomfort was quickly forgotten as we got lost in more pleasant sensations. He let out a sexy groan and slid his hands down to grip my ass while I swung a leg over his hips to straddle him.
“I’m supposed to be working,” I said against his lips, pulling away with a goofy grin. “You’re very distracting, Mister Campbell.”
He gave me a firm squeeze and a completely unapologetic grin. “Sorry.”
I rolled my eyes but laughed. “I’m sure. Now, why don’t I get you some of that food stuff you’ve been forcing on me all week?”
He snorted. “Are you ever going to stop guilting me for trying to take care of you?”
“That’s a weird sentence.” I wrinkled my nose. “Besides, if I can make you feel guilty about it, maybe you’re doing it wrong.”
“Should I stop making you dinner, then?”
“Only if you want to eat take-out for the rest of your life.”
“If McDonalds ever starts delivering, you’d never leave your house.”
“If they start delivering, no one would leave their house.”
He scoffed and held me tighter, kissing my cheek. What a prude.
“Have you spoken to Rowan?” I asked. “I tried calling her last night but didn’t get an answer.”
“She was there with Tom’s escort, actually.” He rolled us onto our sides.
“What?” I sat up but was pulled back down. “She didn’t tell me she was coming. I can’t believe I missed her – it’s like she’s deliberately avoiding me.”
“I’m sure that’s not it. From what I heard, it was a last minute decision to have her come along. She asked about you. I said you were doing well, even with your father.”
“How did she look?”
“Like a cat,” he said flatly. “She seemed fine, though she wanted me to remind you that you’re back on active duty in two weeks.”
“Right,” I groaned. “New York City, where the drinks are cold and the women are probably demons or vampires that want to drain you of some kind of bodily fluid. Not very pithy, but it is more accurate.”
“I’ve never actually been to New York.”
“Freakin’ heathen.”
“Is it any different than other cities?” he asked, nudging me with his knee.
“It’s New York.”
“And?”
I glared at him. “You’re fucking with me right now, aren’t you?”
“A little.” He grinned.
“Well,” I huffed, “all cities are different. It’s kind of amazing to see how a community – a whole supernatural world – can exist without humans noticing; a city within a city.”
“Yeah,” he said with a faraway voice. “When I found out all that stuff was real – that werewolves and fairies and all those things weren’t just stories… I don’t know. It was a pretty big revelation for a kid.”
I kissed him and pulled the blankets over us. The food could wait. “I grew up with all of this, so I have no idea how it would feel. You’ve adjusted well, though.”
“I have had over twenty years to adjust.” He smiled warmly and pointed at the brown paper roll. “Did you open the package yet?”
“No, what is it?” I reached for it, pulling the string tying it together loose. “Will it kill me?”
“Probably not,” he said. “Then again, you seem to attract bad luck, so–”
I smacked his chest, curling my hand into a fist over his heart as I saw what was inside. “You…”
“I passed by a flower shop on the way back and thought of you. Remember the first conversation we ever had?”
“About nightshade,” I said fondly. “I wouldn’t really call it a conversation.”
“Banter?”
I gave him a coy smile. “Foreplay.”
It wasn’t nightshade in the paper. It was single white rose entwined with a bushel of hydrangeas, their delicate petals forming a pastel mural against the plain brown wrapping. I wasn’t fond of getting flowers as gifts (I hated watching them die), but right now, I couldn’t think of anything better. Leaning forward, I took a deep breath, sighing happily at the pleasant scent.
“You know,” he said, “I can’t get food with this blanket over me.”
“Food or me?” I gave him a cheeky grin until he made a show of debating over it, then I frowned and smacked him on the chest again. “Jerk.”
“You love me.”
“I lied about that,” I said with a pout.
A sexy, smoldering grin spread over his face like warm honey and he climbed on top of me. “I guess I’ll just have to change your mind.”
Author’s Note
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Books by Ashley Meira
The Spire Chronicles
1. Hunter, Hunted
2. Ties That Bind
3. King’s Gambit
And more books coming soon…