Eternal Promise: (The Cursed Series, Book 5)

by Kara Leigh Miller

  “Trent!” Little Frank screeched, snapping me from my thoughts.

  He wrestled himself from Larissa’s arms and ran as fast as his tiny legs would carry him, straight toward Trent. Apparently, I’d been replaced as Little Frank’s favorite person.

  Trent scooped Little Frank into his arms, tossed a wink in my direction, and walked away, completely enthralled with whatever Little Frank was jabbering about.

  I shifted my attention from the wedding arrangements to Trent, who was now sitting cross-legged on the ground while Little Frank climbed on him like he was a jungle gym. Little Frank jumped on Trent’s back and wrapped his chubby arms around Trent’s neck. He pretended to choke and fell over, which caused Little Frank to giggle. Then Trent fake tackled Little Frank and tickled him until his face was beet red.

  “No, no,” Little Frank said, pointing at Trent with all the fury a two-year-old could muster.

  Trent held his hands up in surrender, his lips twitching with a barely contained smile. His hair was messy, and his eyes were such a vibrant blue, shining with joy and humor.

  My breath caught at the sight of him like that. God, he was handsome, and so incredibly perfect. How on earth had I gotten so lucky to find him, to have him love me like he did?

  I had no idea how long I stood there watching them, but I was completely swept up in the way they played together. Trent was so calm and patient, and he looked like he was genuinely having fun.

  “That has got to be the sexiest thing I’ve ever seen,” Whitney said, nodding at Trent and Little Frank.

  “Whitney!” I laughed and sliced her a disbelieving look.

  “What?” She shrugged innocently. “I’m just saying… I can totally see why you sold your soul so you could have his baby,” she said.

  “I didn’t sell my soul,” I said with exasperation and turned my attention back to Trent.

  He and Little Frank were now huddled over something in the tall grass. Trent reached for something, then straightened and opened his hand.

  A small frog sat in his palm. Little Frank stared at, and when he reached for it, the frog jumped out of Trent’s hand. Little Frank screamed with delight, then laughed before he started hunting for the missing frog.

  “You’d better hope you two have a son,” Whitney said. She leaned against the tree, too, arms crossed.

  “Why?” I asked.

  “Because if you give him a daughter, she’s going to wrap him so tight around her little finger he’ll be having tea parties and playing dress up.”

  I could totally picture that happening.

  “You think he spoils you?” Whitney shook her head. “You haven’t seen anything yet. Trust me. I used to be Daddy’s little girl. All I ever had to do was bat my eyelashes and pout, and he gave me everything I wanted.”

  “I don’t care what we have as long as it’s healthy and safe,” I said.

  There was a certain amount of risk involved with having a baby under normal circumstances, but what Trent and I were trying to do wasn’t normal. Not even close. The risks and consequences were a million times more severe.

  “Chloe. There you are,” Isach said, coming to a stop in front of me.

  One look at him and I knew something wasn’t right. His hair was sticking up in all directions, his face was flushed, he was panting, and his shirt was twisted. I straightened, my stomach knotting.

  “What’s wrong?” I asked.

  “Ivy,” he said around a gasp. “I just saw her leaving my house. She was talking to my father.”

  I could feel the color drain from my face, and my ears rang. “Ivy was talking to Rector?” I asked slowly, praying I had misunderstood him.

  Isach nodded and dragged his hand through his hair. “I have no idea what’s going on—I only heard bits and pieces—but it sounds like Ivy is making a deal with my father.”

  Bile rose in the back of my throat, and dizziness swept over me. Trent had told me repeatedly that we couldn’t trust Ivy, and I’d pushed and pushed, concerned only with getting what I wanted. But he’d been right.

  “What kind of deal?” I asked.

  “I’m not sure, but I think she’s trying to help him get his soul back.”

  I momentarily closed my eyes and swallowed hard against the rising nausea. Ivy was double crossing us. She was going behind our back and working with Rector Zoya of all people. Why would she do that? What did she have to gain by helping him? I was still the only one who could break the curse and restore the magical balance. Unless…

  Was she bargaining with him—his soul in exchange for him ending the curse? Was Rector her back-up plan in case I changed my mind?

  “Okay, enough,” Whitney said to Isach. “Obviously, this is very bad news, but your timing is atrocious. Chloe is getting married tomorrow, and nothing is going to ruin that, so not another word about this until after the wedding. Got it?”

  Isach blinked, clearly stunned by what Whitney had said. I was, too, but I was also grateful. The last thing I wanted to deal with was Ivy and Rector when I should be focusing on marrying Trent.

  “Sorry, Chloe,” Isach said with a frown.

  “It’s okay,” I said.

  “No, Whitney’s right. I shouldn’t have said anything. I’ll keep an eye on things tonight, see if I can find out anything else, but I promise not to say another word about this until after the wedding,” Isach said.

  Trent walked over, Little Frank on his hip.

  “Low-ee!” He reached for me, and I took Little Frank from Trent’s arms.

  “Hey, buddy.” I smiled.

  Little Frank squeezed my cheeks and puckered his lips against my nose. “Trent lost the froggy.”

  “Oh yeah?” I glanced at Trent, who was smiling. “Does Trent need a time out?”

  “Yeah.” Little Frank nodded. “Trent time out.”

  “Nice, you got me in trouble,” Trent said, winking at me in that special way I liked so much. “So, what’s going on over here?”

  My gaze darted to Isach, then Whitney. Even though I agreed with them to basically ignore this problem until after the wedding, I couldn’t lie to Trent about what was going on. That wasn’t fair.

  “Tell him what you told us,” I said to Isach.

  Then I carried Little Frank over to Larissa. She took him and thanked me, then returned to whatever conversation she was having with Aunt Beth. It was nice to see them getting along so well.

  I lingered at the table with my mom’s picture. I’d give anything to have her here right now, to see her smiling at me, tears in her eyes, as I walked down the aisle tomorrow. Despite everything, I knew she’d be proud of me, and she’d be thrilled I was marrying someone as wonderful as Trent. I kissed my fingertips and pressed them to the urn.

  I miss you, Mom.

  Wandering back over to Trent, I heard him say, “I’m going to kill her.” There was pure venom in his tone. His hands were clenched into tight fists.

  I took hold of his hand, uncurled his fingers, and slipped mine through his. “You’re not killing anyone,” I said quietly. “We have no idea what’s actually going on.”

  Trent gave my hand a gentle squeeze. “I know, but like it or not, we need her, Chloe.”

  “Actually, you don’t,” Isach said.

  “Yes, we do. She needs to unlink us when Trent changes me,” I said, careful to keep my voice low.

  “The linking spell she used is Magic 101. Every witch on the planet knows how to do that spell.” Isach waved his hand dismissively. “I can unlink you when the time comes.”

  My eyes widened, and my mind raced with too many jumbled thoughts. “But…”

  “The link is part of the bond transfer,” Trent said.

  “No, it’s not.” Isach crossed his arms and shifted on his feet. Then he moved closer to me. “Can I?” he asked, nodding at my neck.

  I moved my hair from my neck and tilted my head. Isach placed his hand over the bite mark and closed his eyes. I winced slightly, not because Isach was hurting
me, but because a sudden intense heat radiated from the mark and spread across my throat.

  Trent’s hold on my hand tightened, and his eyes narrowed as he watched Isach.

  “That’s what I thought.” Isach dropped his hand from my neck. “Transferring the bond was something completely separate from the linking spell.”

  “Why would she do that?” I asked. “She made it seem like the link was a result of transferring the bond.”

  “Because she’s a liar,” Trent snarled.

  “Because she’s using you as insurance,” Isach said. “It’s brilliant, really.” He grinned as if were impressed with Ivy’s cunning. “She knows how much Chloe loves you, so if your life is linked to hers, Ivy’s guaranteed Chloe won’t do anything stupid to try to get out of the deal you made.”

  I released Trent’s hand and rubbed my temples. “Whatever. It’s done, and we can’t take it back, so…” I sighed. “If Isach can unlink us, we don’t need Ivy. For anything.”

  “No, but I do.” Isach frowned.

  My shoulders slumped. I’d forgotten about that—Isach would be cast out of his coven when they realized he’d betrayed them, and if he didn’t join Ivy’s coven, his magic would fade, and he’d eventually lose his mind.

  “And we’ll deal with all of that,” Whitney said. “After the wedding.” She pinned all of us with a hard stare. “Don’t make me say it again.”

  Isach chuckled nervously. “Point taken.” He turned to me. “Abby said you have to call her before you go home.”

  “I will.”

  With a nod, Isach left, and Whitney rushed off to correct the delivery men on the chair placements. I rested my forehead on Trent’s chest and blew out a breath.

  “Everything’s going to be fine,” he said.

  “I know.” Resting my hands on his waist, I glanced up at him. “But I don’t want to think about any of that right now.”

  A slow, seductive smile curved his lips, and then he was tugging me away from the wedding chaos.

  “Where are we going?” I asked.

  “To time out.”

  I slipped my hand from his. “Um, no,” I said. “We have one more night. Let’s not mess this up now.”

  On my birthday, we’d agreed no more sex until our wedding night, and we’d kept that promise to each other. Though, it hadn’t been easy. More than once I’d been ready to say, “forget it,” and give in to our urges, but I hadn’t. And I wasn’t going to now, either. No matter how badly I wanted to.

  Trent groaned and rubbed his hands over his face. “This is literally killing me,” he said.

  “No it’s not.” I laughed.

  Though, I knew the feeling. I’d never wanted anyone as much as I wanted him over the past few weeks, but it was going to be worth it.

  “Good thing tonight’s the last night I have to go without you,” he said, wrapping his arms around me. “Because I miss you so much.”

  Tonight was the last night we’d ever be without each other, because tomorrow, we’d be married and living together, and there wasn’t anything that would keep us apart ever again.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE:

  Cold Feet

  AFTER A VERY LARGE AND VERY loud family dinner, I was in the kitchen helping clean up the mess. I was much too anxious to just sit still, and if I didn’t do something, I was going to lose my mind.

  “This is going to be a beautiful wedding,” Larissa said as she filled the sink with warm, soapy water. “You and your friends did an amazing job.”

  “Thanks,” I said. “But really, all the credit goes to Whitney.” I smiled at her over my shoulder. “You should seriously think about becoming a wedding planner or something.”

  “I’ve actually been considering it,” she said.

  “Ladies,” Sean said, carrying in a stack of dirty plates. “You really don’t need to clean up. Me and the boys can take care of this.”

  “It’s fine, Sean,” I said, taking Larissa’s spot at the sink and sticking my hands into the water. “I don’t mind.”

  “If you insist,” he said. He set the plates beside me on the counter. “Be sure to come talk to me before you leave tonight, okay?”

  Instantly, my stomach knotted. What could he possibly want to talk to me about? Was he going to say something about how tense things had been between me and Colt? Or how Jax and Trent were still fighting because of me? He wasn’t going to say he no longer approved of me marrying Trent, was he?

  I cleared my throat. “Sure,” I said, forcing a smile.

  He left without another word, and I blew out a shaky breath. I hadn’t spent a ton of time with Sean, but when I did, it was always filled with some pretty heavy conversations. Just once I’d like to be able to talk to him about something normal and boring.

  “Trent’s father is hot,” Larissa said, setting a handful of silverware on the counter.

  “Larissa!” I said with a shocked laugh.

  “What?” She shrugged. “He is. He’s young, too. I can’t believe he’s old enough to have three teenaged sons.”

  “I was thinking the same thing,” Aunt Beth said. She tied up the trash and set it near the back door.

  Originally, Sean had pretended to be Whitney’s father, and Aunt Beth had spoken to him on the phone, so when I had to introduce her to Trent’s father, we spun yet another lie that both Whitney and Trent’s fathers were named Sean, just spelled differently. I hadn’t been able to sell the lie to Aunt Beth, but Whitney had, thankfully.

  “He’s their adoptive father,” Whitney said. She stood next to me, one hand propped on the counter.

  “That certainly makes a lot more sense,” Aunt Beth said with a thoughtful nod.

  I gave her a grateful smile and resumed washing the dishes, which was probably my least favorite chore ever, but it kept my mind off everything else, and it was monotonous enough that I didn’t dwell on the nerves raging inside of me.

  Abby practically bounced into the kitchen, grinning from ear to ear. “Everything’s all set,” she said.

  “Perfect,” Whitney said.

  “All set for what?” I asked, glancing between them.

  “Your bachelorette party,” Abby said.

  My jaw dropped. “I didn’t realize I was having one of those,” I said. “It’s really not necessary. I was just planning to go to bed early tonight. Kinda got a big day tomorrow.”

  Everyone laughed.

  “Every bride-to-be needs to have a bachelorette party,” Larissa said. She nudged me out of the way. “Go on. Beth and I will take care of things here.”

  “Thanks.” I gave Larissa a hug, then Aunt Beth. “I’ll see you both tomorrow.” I turned to Whitney and Abby. “Let me say goodbye to everyone, and then we can go.”

  As I was leaving the kitchen, Trent, Jax, Colt, Wyatt, and Isach blocked my escape. “Going somewhere?” Trent asked, brow raised.

  “Bachelorette party,” Whitney said. “Now move, or we’re going to be late.”

  “I was actually just coming to look for you,” I said, ignoring Whitney’s bossy tone. She could wait a few minutes. I’m sure whatever she and Abby had planned wouldn’t be ruined if we were five minutes late.

  “Dad sent us in here to clean up. Said it was impolite to make our guests do all the work,” Trent said.

  “Okay, make it quick,” Whitney said to me, then grabbed Abby’s arm and dragged her out of the kitchen, whispering and giggling.

  Trent took my hand and led me out onto the back porch. “So,” he said, hooking his fingers through my belt loops and tugging me closer. “Tomorrow’s the big day.”

  “You sure you’re ready?” I asked, wrapping my arms around his neck and leaning closer. “Because if you want to change your mind…”

  He flashed a gorgeous smile. “You can’t get rid of me that easily.”

  “Good thing I don’t want to get rid of you, then, huh?” I met his lips in a slow, languid kiss that held the promise of our future, and a fresh wave of excitement and nerves sw
ept through me.

  Easing away from the kiss, he rested his forehead to mine. “You should go before I decide to kidnap you for the night.”

  I laughed. “Isn’t that bad luck? Spending the night together before the wedding?”

  He shrugged. “Maybe, but I’m willing to tempt fate if it means having you with me tonight.”

  I wiggled out of his embrace and patted his chest. “Sorry, but you’re just going to have to wait until tomorrow.”

  Groaning, he took my hand and kissed my palm. “Fine. Go have fun with your friends. I’ll see you at the altar tomorrow.”

  I couldn’t contain the smile that spread across my face. “Love you,” I said, then slipped back inside.

  Isach and Wyatt were busy washing dishes while Jax sat at the table with Larissa and Aunt Beth, the two of them red-faced and laughing. Was he seriously flirting with them? I shook my head.

  Trent stepped in behind me, his hand settling on my lower back for a brief second before he joined his brother at the table. So much for all of them cleaning up. I spun on my heel, intent to find Sean, then Whitney, but I barely made it out of the kitchen before Colt intercepted me.

  “Can we talk?” he asked.

  I narrowed my eyes. I hadn’t actually had a one-on-one conversation with Colt yet, and I wasn’t sure I wanted to. Not when all he did was make snide comments and accuse me of doing things with Jax. But I’d be lying if I said my curiosity wasn’t piqued.

  “I guess,” I said.

  He nodded and led me out the front door. “Look, I know I haven’t been very nice to you,” he said, pacing the length of the porch. “But you have to admit, this entire situation with my brothers is weird.”

  “Believe me, I know,” I said. I moved to lean against the railing, my body facing the door. “But you have no idea what really happened, Colt, but I promise you, I never wanted to hurt either of them.”

  “I know.” He sighed and stopped pacing. “I’ve been watching you.”

  “Yeah, I’ve noticed. You’re not exactly subtle about it,” I said, crossing my arms.

  He chuckled. “I made a mistake staying away from my family for as long as I did, but I’m here now, and I don’t plan to go anywhere.”