I remind myself that everyone is here to help me piece my life together. I concentrate on taking deep controlled breaths to keep my temper at bay.
His eyes never falter as he continues to lock eyes with me. My mouth feels dry, as if I’ve not had a drink of water in days. Something about him is familiar, like those déjà vu moments. The room is void of noise except for the pounding of my heart. He is handsome, I admit to myself. He’d be my type of guy if I were his type of girl. He looks more like a popular girl’s boyfriend, not like anyone who could be attracted to me.
“Can I have five minutes alone with you Jess?” He asks in an intimate way.
If five minutes will satisfy his uncontrollable urge to drive me crazy, so-be-it. “I guess, but know that Clark will be here soon. I can’t imagine what difference you think you’ll make.” “Jessie, please say yes.” There’s that voice again, inside of my head. I squint at him quizzically, wondering if he knows he’s talking in my head.
“Whatever, I’ll give you the five minutes.” I turn and face my dad and tell them they can go.
Caleb mouths the words thank you to me.
“You look pretty, are you feeling better?”
“I feel fine. As a matter of fact, I never felt bad, only tired and confused.” It’s impossible to deny that I’m attracted to him. He sits down next to me on the loveseat. My thoughts begin to tumble around in my head. “Jessie, I mean it when I say I love you. I love you, I love you, I love you.” His hand reaches across and he strokes the side of my face, I catch myself closing my eyes at his touch.
“I feel the electricity Jess, and from the look on your face, you do too.” His hand slowly goes behind my neck. No matter how hard I try to find the words to stop him, my body begs for more. My thoughts are jumbles of craziness. Why am I reacting this way? I suddenly feel exposed, my head and heart are conflicted.
“Honestly, I don’t know what I feel. I don’t know, really I don’t.” My voice cracks as I speak and my eyes sting with tears.
“Because we belong together Jessie, because I’m the peanut butter to your jelly. Close your eyes, please.” His hands glide across my bare shoulders and I feel him scoot closer to me. Instinctively I expose my neck to him for kisses I’m dying to feel.
I try mentally to deny this moment as it blazes words into my heart, and then slowly trails up to my lips. Every single ounce of my self control is gone. His lips gently press to mine, and I feel it…dangling me from a string from my heart. Every nerve ending is screaming in pleasure. My body scoots closer to him until neither air nor indifference can get through. My lips part and like a tsunami of emotions, my heart bursts open with love. Tears well up in my eyes as the realization of everything hits me at once. I pull away and put my hands over my face, trying to hide my shame. Our one kiss brought forth his memories of me turning on him in the hospital. His broken heart as I shunned his love. My hand trembles as I reach up and touch his face.
“Caleb, how can I ever make it up to you? I’m so sorry.” My heart aches with the pain that he has felt over the past week. “I never meant to hurt you. Will you ever forgive me?” I cry into his shoulder. I feel him sigh; it occurs to me in that minute that maybe he can’t forgive me.
“Shhhhh, Jessie, there isn’t anything to forgive. You didn’t know what was happening.” Caleb put his hand under my chin and lifted it up. “He never did anything to disrespect you did he?”
I shake my head back and forth. “No, he was fine. I’m glad I don’t have to learn to surf now though.”
“I love you.”
“I love you too,” I say.
Without warning, Amber comes storming into the room. “Holy crap, five minutes and you’re playing tonsil hockey like pros. Please tell me that you’re back to the sweet Jess and not uber bitch Jess.”
The three of us burst out laughing.
“Your date is here, have fun with that. I think he knows something is up; he came in and started yelling at grandma about breaking the bond. Well, it didn’t last long…between Mrs. Ward and Ms. Gayle, he has been put in his place. He said he won’t leave until he sees you, good luck.”
Caleb takes my hand and his light pulsates through our touch. Like water through pipes, his love rushes through every cell of my body. “I’ll go with you. I don’t mean to be mean, but I will enjoy it a little.”
I smack his arm before hooking mine through his. “Let’s get it over with.” I say as we start for the door. And like that, we’re back to us.
“Oh snap, I’m going too. He’s such an ass, I’m going to get it all on video!” Amber says as she bounces around in circles around us.
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Chapter 19
The love of heaven makes one heavenly ~ William Shakespeare
I can’t believe I have to wear this stupid uniform. I smooth down the white blouse as I tuck it into the pleated skirt. “Mom, do I really have to wear this dumb flat tie? It’s seven hundred trillion degrees outside and I will die before the end of the day.”
Mom shakes her head back and forth as she has done every time I flip out about clothes. “Jessie, you have three minutes before Caleb is here. You know as well as I do that he’ll be on time. If I were a betting woman, I bet he’ll think you look cute. You rock a school uniform like nobody’s business. I’ll see you at dinner,” she says and kisses me on the cheek.
Like clockwork, Caleb pulls up at exactly seven o’clock. “Bye! I’ll be home by five. Mom, did you sign the work permit? The bakery said if I bring it by after school today, I can start on Wednesday.”
“It’s on the table, have fun.” Grandma says as she tucks her yoga mat under her arm.
I skip to the car with my backpack flopping on my back and my ponytail bouncing up and down. “Good morning!” I say and lean over to kiss him.
“Good morning to you too. You look kinda cute in that uniform. Nothing says sexy like a girl in a pair of knee-high socks.”
“Oh no you didn’t. You wait until you have to wear your sweater vest, I’m sure Jersey will find you adorable…when I post it all over Facebook.” I laugh a little too loud, but it feels good to have the weight of the Clark incident behind us. “I had a text when I got up this morning from Mrs. Ward, it said we need to meet in her office before class.”
“That can’t be good, I had the same text. Amber said she has some news she wants to share with us. She said she’d meet us in the parking lot. I wonder what she has up her sleeve.”
We pull into the parking lot just in time to see a bright yellow and black Jeep Wrangler pull in. The stereo is blaring and the multi-colored hair can only belong to one person…Amber. She practically runs me over as she parks next to us.
“Wow, nice wheels! How did you score a Jeep?” I ask.
“My dad got a settlement from the accident and he bought me a car with part of the money! I wanted to stop by and see you last night, but that freakin’ owl swooped down on me by my house. I figured we don’t have good mojo with owls and it was an omen to wait until this morning. Did you get the text from Mrs. Ward? Maybe she is leaving us or something.” She leans over and kisses the Jeep and proclaims her love to it.
“You’re edging over to the dark side of crazy Amb, send us a postcard when you get there,” I tease.
The principal’s office is full of antique hour glasses. The three of us take a seat at a round table in the corner of the room. Amber never missing a chance to drink coffee grabs a Styrofoam cup and fills it with black sludge. After her first sip she curls her lip and makes a gagging noise. “That is disgusting. No wonder she doesn’t smile much, she can’t.”
The clicking of the door behind me makes me jump. “Good morning, glad to see you all received my text this morning. It seems as though you disturbed the Underworld when you vanquished Erebus. He’s been the consort to Nyx for many years…and well…she went ballistic over his visit here. I don’t want to bore you with too many details, but the fact is… she is coming here for you Amber. She wants to k
now what you have that she doesn’t. I’m afraid I need to put you into hiding. I’m going to offer the three of you the same opportunity. It will ensure that you won’t be separated from each other, but you will have to leave your family. The school I’m sending you to is quite lovely, but it will require secrecy and determination for the plan to succeed. What would you like to do Amber?”
“What would I like to do? I’d like to vomit black sludgy coffee all over the place. I’m being hunted by yet another mythological person. Where is the school? Let me guess, Timbuktu.”
“Far enough away to keep you safe close enough that you’ll be in the same time zone.” Mrs. Ward says as she pours herself a cup of coffee from a thermos. “Don’t ever drink the coffee here, my secretary is no Starbucks.”
I fidget with the hem of my skirt, not knowing if I should laugh or cry. This is not good. I can’t leave. She’s Fate, why can’t she freakin’ protect us. She’s a terrible mythological person. I wonder if she was the understudy or something. I’m saying no.
“We were able to handle Erebus, we can handle Nyx,” Caleb says.
Amber gives a high-five to Caleb, he grins at her as he shakes his head back and forth.
Do you think it would be wrong if I kiss you in the principal’s office?
“Promises, promises.” Caleb thinks back to me.
She picks up her cup of coffee and raises an eyebrow at us. “I was hoping you’d say that. Here’s your class schedules. Welcome Miss. Lucente, we’re going to have a smashing school year.”
####
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Acknowledgements
This is my chance to thank all of the people that helped make this book what it is today. I’d like to start with the people that sat still with a straight face and answered my kissing questions. I must thank my beautiful and talented daughter Paris for encouraging me throughout this story. She told me that my kissing scenes are pretty hot for a mom to write (grins - moms know how to kiss too!). I’d like to thank my friend Madalyn Weatherford (17) for letting me ask her questions like… “What’s the best way for a boy to kiss you?” and “What can a boy say to you that will make your heart melt?” I must thank her mom Lorrie Stephens for being my best friend for thirty years (I was -1 when we met) and letting me ask her daughter those questions. I must thank Lorrie and Trevor for opening their home to me and being gracious hosts during my extended stay. Thank you to Aunt Flo for your encouraging words and for loving me. I hope that one of my niece’s will adore me as much as I adore you. My talented niece Shaynee and her handsome husband Richard, they remind me that high school relationships can last forever. Their love inspired The Light Tamer every time I questioned bonding for a lifetime. Thank you, Lilly and Isabella Felton for allowing me to hang out with Sophia & Max (their cat’s) when I was missing my kitties. I’m sure I’ll leave someone out, not intentionally…trust me. The lashing with a wet noodle may commence.
Christina Manning, for your friendship. You’ve always been one of my biggest fans, long before anyone ever read a word I wrote. You’re a wonderful soul.
I’d like to give a special thanks to Bryon for giving me my first kiss. I did it all wrong and I’m glad you didn’t call me out on it. For every boy I ever kissed…thank you. Thank you Mike, for giving me 20 years of kisses to fill up my memory bank. No, the book isn’t all about kissing - but it is about first kisses, and first love, and best friends.
My final thanks go to other authors that have inspired my words. Thank you to Quinn Loftis, we became instant friends and I’m glad to know her. Thank you to Tiffany King, without her, I’d still only have 3 followers on Twitter. She is without a doubt an Indie’s best friend. And as she told me once, she is paying it forward, I do the same. I want to thank Carrie Jones for being a good soul and talented author. She may not know me personally, but she doesn’t treat Indie Authors any different than mainstream - thank you Carrie. A special thanks to author Georgia Cates. I’ve met some incredible people over the last 9 months of my life and they have all helped me grow as a writer. Finally, I must thank my fans. I appreciate every positive word that has been said about The Legacy Series and I am humbled by the words of kindness. Thank you for the reviews that you write. I am asking you to write a review on Amazon - Barnes & Noble and on Goodreads if you enjoyed the book. Happy reading! Xoxo Devyn
The Light Tamer is book one of the Tamer Trilogy
WWW.DEVYNDAWSON.COM
http://devyn-dawson.blogspot.com/
KEEP READING FOR A SNEAK PEAK INTO QUINN LOFTIS NEW BOOK OUT OF THE DARK!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR - stuff you might not know!
Devyn is a pseudonym that Stefanie Dawson uses. When she decided to write young adult books, it became clear that another person with her first name is very successful. Instead of being the Stefanie with an F, she decided to be Devyn. She lives in New Bern, North Carolina with her husband and teenaged son. She has an adult daughter that lives in Raleigh. Devyn is an avid reader and adores animals of all kinds. If you ever meet her, she has an unrealistic fear of bees. In the book, there is a scene about a bee, it really happened to Devyn. She has never been stung or tortured with bees but her fear is very real. To humor her friends and family, she wears bee jewelry.
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Out of the Dark
Book 4 in the Grey Wolves Series
By: Quinn Loftis
What do you do when your Alpha was nearly assassinated and is now out of commission; you've killed a pack member; your mate is dying and beyond your reach; and the house you are standing in has gone up in flames – all in the last two hours?
Yeah, Decebel thought. Hell if I know either.
As the mansion burned and smoke filled the spaces the flames had not, Decebel and the other males in his pack continued to search around, making sure no one was left inside.
Decebel and Fane finally reached the suite where they'd last seen Vasile and Alina. Much to their relief, the Alpha and his mate were gone. Hopefully that meant they'd gotten to safety. Decebel looked into the adjoining room. The dining table there was still perfectly set, food half-eaten, glasses filled. The only thing out of place were the two spilled glasses on the floor – Vasile's and Alina's – surrounded by the poison that had almost killed them.
Just goes to show there's never a dull moment in the life of a Canis lupis.
"I can't smell anyone, but that doesn't mean anything with the fire and smoke," Decebel told Fane.
"We need to get out. Now," Fane urged his Beta.
"Jacque is safe?"
Fane nodded. "She says Vasile and Alina are as well. It appears all of our pack made it out, as well as her father. And she says to tell you that if we don't get our furry butts out of here right now she will personally," Fane paused and, cringing, shook his head, "it's better if you didn't know. I say we just heed her warning and get out."
Fane and Decebel took off at a run, heading for the front door of the mansion, which was quickly becoming a death trap. Several times the two had to jump over flames and duck under falling boards that had weakened from the fire eating through the plaster and sheet rock down to the frame of the house.
Finally, they pushed through the front door, still surrounded by smoke-filled air. They kept running. Their lungs cried out for fresh oxygen, burning with each breath. Fane flew straight into Jacque's waiting arms. Decebel watched and it reinforced the fact that his mate was cold, lost, and hurt. He wanted to howl at the injustice of it. Finally hearing her in his head only for her to be taken from him. He gritted his teeth and put his anger to good use, checking over the pack.
He saw Vasile and Alina seated in front of a tree, leaning against the large, rough trunk. The ground around them had been swept free of snow in an attempt to keep the Alphas as dry as possible. He headed straight for them, pausing on his way to touch his pack mates, sending reassurance through the simple act.
"How are you feeling, Alpha?" Decebel asked as he crouched down in front of Vasile and Alina, who was
finally awake. Decebel tried to keep a submissive stance as he knew it was difficult for his Alpha to be seated on the ground with everyone else standing.
"Getting stronger, thanks to Sally." Vasile's eyes briefly shimmered with moisture as he looked over at the soot-covered brunette who – to every one's astonishment – was a gypsy healer.
"Luna." Decebel addressed his female Alpha in a rare show of formality. "Are you regaining your strength as well?"
Alina nodded and gave him a small, reassuring smile. "I will live another day, so long as Vasile needs someone to keep him in line."
Decebel chuckled. "Thank goodness for that." His smile faded quickly as his wolf stirred, reminding him that he needed to be searching for Jennifer. He shook his head, trying to clear the fog. He did need to search for Jennifer, but he had promised her he would get her friends to safety first. That meant getting them as far away as possible from whatever magic fueled that unnatural fire.
The Light Tamer (The Light Tamer Trilogy) Page 16
