The Greystone Bundle (Books 1-4)

by Taylor Longford

  Automatically, my gaze followed him, wondering where he was going. Moments later, I heard him in the kitchen, running the water, probably finishing the dishes we'd left earlier. Feeling kinda gloomy, I stared at the wall that stood between us.

  "I'd better get going," Havoc announced. He got to his feet and pulled up the zipper on his plaid coat. "Mac's mom is expecting me to cook tonight."

  "We'll be over at six," Victor promised him and caught MacKenzie's eye. "Are you picking up Dare?"

  "We're just leaving to get him," Valor said as he stood and pulled MacKenzie to her feet.

  On his way to the back door, Havoc stopped in front of me and flicked me with his sleeve. "Will you be there, Elaina?"

  "Absolutely," I promised and gave him a smile to seal the bargain.

  Dinner was London Broil and it was amazing. Havoc made this awesome sauce with onions and mushrooms and it was like the best thing I'd ever put in my mouth. If Havoc ever wants to make a career for himself in the twenty-first century, he could nail it as a cook. Maybe even have his own cooking show. All the housemoms would go gaga over his looks.

  "You'll spend the night here," MacKenzie's mom said quite firmly while I was loading the dishwasher with Reason. I don't know if she was trying to protect me from six teenage guys or the other way around. Maybe she knew I was camped on the couch over there and just thought I'd be more comfortable in her guest room.

  "So, how's it going with Reason?" Mac asked after the guys had left for the night and we were upstairs in her bedroom.

  "What do you mean?" I asked cautiously, not sure about her motives.

  "Dare thinks Reason likes you," she whispered with a pleased grin. Wearing a pair of powder blue pajama pants and a loose T-shirt, she perched on the edge of the bed and eased her cast onto the mattress.

  "Yeah, that's why he doesn't want me in the pack," I grumbled as I threw myself on the bed beside her and tugged my old Radiohead T-shirt down over my thin cotton pajama pants. I needed some thicker ones, like MacKenzie's.

  "He's just bluffing," she said, and waved a hand through the air.

  I sent her a dry look. "You think so?"

  "I'm almost certain," she stated with a lot of confidence.

  "Why would he do that?" I challenged her.

  "Knowing Reason, it probably has something to do with his overdeveloped sense of duty," she said, keeping her voice to a low murmur. "Have you seen his barbs…leak, when he's around you?"

  "Leak what?" I exclaimed.

  "Venom. It's…blue. Bright blue."

  I shook my head and wondered why leaking venom was significant. "No. What does that mean?"

  She ignored my question and went on to the next thing. "Has he kissed you?"

  I felt a wave of heat rise into my face. "Yeah, but it wasn't a real kiss. It was sort of a…mistake."

  "A mistake?"

  "That's what he called it," I said, my shoulders slumping dejectedly.

  "Oh," she whispered, obviously disappointed with my answers. "But his barbs didn't leak while he was making this…mistake?"

  "Not that I noticed," I whispered back. "Why are you whispering?"

  She made a face and tilted her head toward the window. "Because their hearing is ridiculously good."

  That was news to me. "Really? You mean they can hear us from the house next door?"

  "Probably not," she admitted. "But it doesn't hurt to be safe."

  "So, what does all this mean?" I asked her, referring to the kissing and the barbs and the leaking venom.

  She hesitated as if she didn't want to pile any more disappointment on me, but eventually she told me that a gargoyle's barbs leak when he likes a girl. Seriously! Evidently, Valor's barbs had started leaking the first time he kissed MacKenzie. And Dare's feelings for Mim were so strong that his barbs broke through half an inch of scar tissue to get to her. That's powerful stuff.

  "I think we can safely say he doesn't like me," I scoffed like I didn't care too much either way. But I'd failed the gargoyle-love-litmus-test…and I felt my heart contract a little at the idea. Saying goodnight, I got up and headed for the bedroom door.

  "Set your alarm for eight o'clock," Mac told me around a yawn. "I promised Havoc donuts for breakfast."

  "Right," I answered and set the alarm on my phone as I left the room and made my way down the hall.

  Dare and Valor were waiting in the kitchen when we came down the stairs on Sunday morning. Evidently, Valor was the designated driver while MacKenzie was in a cast. And we were dropping Dare off at Mim's again.

  I shouldn't have asked—or cared—but I couldn't resist slipping in a question about my Boulder roommate. "What's Reason doing this morning?"

  "He's up," Dare told me. "But he won't come over. He'll wait to see you at our place."

  "Oh," I said, acting all nonchalant. "Why's that?"

  Dare caught my eye. "Because he doesn't want you to know how much he likes you."

  Yeah, right. Like I believed that was the problem.

  "Help me round up the books," MacKenzie told the guys as she breezed through the house, collecting a bunch of children's books from the family room and living room. "I want to stop at the library after we drop off Dare," she explained.

  Down in Pine Grove, Valor stopped the Jeep at a small house on our way to the library. A girl with long dark hair waited at the front door, and Dare wasted no time getting out of the car. When he was about ten feet away from her, she ran the last few steps to meet him and he swung her up into his arms like she was the most precious thing in his life. It was like a full hallmark moment. And even though I'm not the sentimental type, I have to admit it brought tears to my eyes.

  "Thanks," I said as MacKenzie pulled a tissue from the center console and handed it to me in the back seat. I dabbed my eyes and grinned at her. "Are they always like that?"

  "Pretty much," she answered. "Dare can't stand to be away from her."

  Valor grabbed her knee and gave it a squeeze. "It's hard for us to be separated from the lass who wears our rune," he explained.

  And all of that was pretty romantic stuff except that it didn't apply to me and probably never would. Even if Reason gave me his rune, it wouldn't be for romantic purposes. I probably sighed without realizing it.

  MacKenzie picked up on my mood and changed the subject. "The guys are making great progress with their reading and writing. Victor and Valor are already into fourth grade chapter books."

  "What about the others?"

  "Oh, Dare is reading Dickens; he's been getting extra help from Mim. But Havoc acts like he couldn't care less about reading. Like it's not important."

  "And Defiance?"

  She shook her head. "He's just been really distracted, lately. I think he's upset because Whitney isn't around. Has Reason been keeping up with his lessons?"

  I shook my head, feeling guilty for not keeping him on track but he was a hard guy to steer.

  "You should work with him," she suggested softly.

  "MacKenzie's help has really brought us closer together," Valor volunteered.

  "You're right," I sighed. "I should help Reason with his reading. I sure can't help him with his art."

  "Why do you say that?" Mac asked.

  "Because we're not in the same league," I grumbled. "I can draw things exactly as I see them but he just…sees more."

  "What do you mean?"

  "He's better than me," I muttered. "For example, if I were to draw Victor, it would look a lot like Victor. But when Reason draws Victor, he looks like a god. When he draws Defiance, you can tell he's a bad boy. And when he draws Havoc, he's a modern-day Puck with a skateboard. I just can't teach him anything."

  "Maybe you don't have to," she said quietly as Valor parked in front of the library. "Maybe you just have to be there and encourage him."

  "Maybe," I agreed. We left Valor in the car and climbed the steps to the front doors with the stacks of books in our arms. "I've never been much of an encourager. Maybe I need to try
harder."

  Inside the small-town library, we dumped the books in the return slot and headed over to the children's section to look for more reading material. "What do you know about harpies?" MacKenzie asked as she picked a couple of brightly colored books from the shelf.

  "They're big and ugly and hard to kill," I answered, tucking a fourth grade reader under my arm.

  "Well here are a few tips that might save your life," she said. "Evidently, the best weapon is a sledgehammer."

  "Reason picked one up at the hardware store but I can't get it off the floor."

  MacKenzie nodded. "I hear ya. The guys are really strong, stronger than any of the jocks at my school."

  "He'll need to be strong if he's going to go up against one of those armored trucks with wings," I pointed out.

  "The harpies can also be killed with a long knife, which explains why the guys never go anywhere without their blades. But you have to strike for one of the soft spots between the protective plates."

  I tucked the information away, thinking it might be helpful one day. "Anything else?"

  "I'm not sure it's useful, but they like shiny things that glitter. They can't stand bright light and they hate music."

  "Is that a thirteenth century thing?" I asked as I studied the cover of another book and tried to decide if Reason could handle it. It had been one of my favorites when I was a kid. "Reason doesn't appear to like music, either."

  "Reason likes music!" she protested, right away.

  I frowned at her. "He doesn't seem to like anything that I like."

  "He's a big classical fan," she explained.

  "Oh," I murmured as I followed her to the checkout desk, feeling a little sad that she knew so much about Reason, and trying to decide if I could share his appreciation for classical music. I basically hate violins.

  After we were done at the library, we stopped at the grocery store and picked up fresh donuts as well as a few other things that Mac's mother had added to the list. Back on the road with our groceries, we passed MacKenzie's driveway and headed up the next one. As we bounced around the bend and the rental came into view, I felt a keen surge of excitement just because I'd be seeing Reason soon. Honestly, I was so pathetic.

  There was a pot of hot coffee waiting for us when we got inside, and the donuts were way popular. Now I understood why MacKenzie had filled two boxes. Five minutes later we were down to a single cinnamon twist and Havoc had challenged Defiance for the right to claim it. It looked like the decision-by-wrist-wrestling was going to take a while so I dug a textbook from my bag and headed for the living room.

  After Defiance had won the contest, and the cinnamon twist was history, Havoc stepped into the living room with a cardboard game box in his hands. The once-bright colors on the long, rectangular box were faded to a muted blue and red. "Fancy a game of Parcheesi?" he asked.

  "Parcheesi?" I questioned him.

  "It's an old board game," he explained. "It originated in India. You'll love it."

  "If you say so," I answered with a grin, and put my book down at the far end of the coffee table.

  "First you must agree to the rules," he said as he positioned the game pieces on the board.

  "Rules? Are they complicated?"

  "Nay, not at all. The main one is that the winner gets to kiss the loser of his choice."

  "His choice?" I questioned him. "Shouldn't that be his or her choice?"

  He slanted a wolfish grin at me. "I suppose it should be, but a girl has never won."

  "That's not true," MacKenzie called out from the kitchen. "Mim has won…once."

  "Only because I let her," Havoc called back.

  So, naturally, I was determined to beat the girl-losing odds. "Who all is playing?" I asked shrewdly. "I want to know what my choices are."

  Havoc set two dice in the middle of the board. "Clever lass," he said.

  "I'm in," Reason announced as he sauntered into the room, making my head whip up in surprise.

  "I'm in too," I said immediately, optimistically thinking I'd collect a kiss from Reason if I won and hoping my motives weren't too obvious.

  "This should be interesting," Defiance drawled, following Reason into the room.

  "Are you playing?" Havoc asked him.

  Defiance shook his head. "I'll watch. I love a good fight."

  I didn't know what he meant by that, but we marched our game pieces around the board while Defiance slouched on the couch and watched with aloof indifference. After a while, Victor wandered in and sat down. And later on, Valor and MacKenzie joined us.

  My hopes of winning didn't last long. 'Course I didn't know how badly the odds were stacked against me when I signed on. Evidently, Havoc usually wins…though I can't see how since there isn't much strategy involved in the game. Maybe he's just lucky. But it looked like he was set to win again, only a dice throw away from the finish line when Reason stood abruptly. His knee caught the edge of the board and knocked the game pieces flying.

  Havoc jumped to his feet. "What did you do that for?" he demanded hotly.

  "It was an accident," Reason drawled. "Sorry."

  "Like hell," Havoc snapped. "You didn't want me to kiss—"

  I just caught a glimpse of Defiance's sharp smile before Reason dove for Havoc. The two guys rolled around on the floor, fighting like they meant it but laughing like it was all a joke. I tucked my feet up under me to get them out of the way. When they were done pummeling each other, they lay panting in the middle of the living room floor.

  "I demand satisfaction," Havoc chuckled as he stood and pulled Reason up to his feet. "I challenge you to a game of Sparrow Hawk. In the park. Right now."

  "You're on," Reason answered.

  Defiance eyed the windows. "It's broad daylight," he pointed out.

  "We'll be careful," Havoc said as the two guys headed for their coats in the entry closet. "Nobody will see us."

  I sent MacKenzie a questioning look. She just shrugged and passed the look along to Valor.

  "Sparrow Hawk is a flying challenge," Valor explained briefly, which didn't tell us anything.

  But flying sounded good to me. I was dying to see the guys soaring through the air or even flapping through the air, although that didn't sound nearly as romantic. I raced for my coat and hurried to catch up with Havoc and Reason. They were moving fast and I didn't reach them until they were on the rocks. "So, how does this work?" I asked as we trudged through the snow toward the cliffs.

  Reason handed me his jacket as the rest of the pack joined us. "We both climb to the same height. Then we close our wings and dive."

  "And?" I asked, feeling suddenly uneasy while Victor and Defiance checked the surrounding slopes for any sign of human activity. When Victor gave the okay to fly, Havoc and Reason leapt from the edge of the cliff.

  Havoc was grinning as his wings stroked the air. "The first one to open his wings loses."

  Chapter Thirteen

  "What!" I shouted when I realized Sparrow Hawk was the gargoyle equivalent of a game of Chicken. "Nooo. That's insane. Not to mention immature."

  Ignoring me, Reason and Havoc spiraled upward. I wasn't even able to enjoy seeing them fly for the first time. I was terrified. But I wasn't the only one.

  "I can't watch," MacKenzie moaned and covered her eyes.

  "Don't worry," Valor soothed. "They won't do anything stupid."

  "How is this not stupid?" I shouted, craning my head back while Reason and Havoc melted down to mere specks against a backdrop of pale blue. But the two gargoyles were already streaking out of the sky, falling headfirst with their wings wrapped tight around their bodies as they sped toward the rocks at my feet. "You guys are crazy," I screamed, mostly because I was afraid I might cry if I didn't get mad instead.

  At the last possible instant, their wings flicked open and they landed on their feet. Right away, they started arguing about who had won. Valor lifted his voice long enough to proclaim Havoc the winner but I didn't hang around to congratulate him. I was
so angry! I spun on my heel and stomped away.

  But before I reached the path at the bottom of the rocks, I felt strong arms pick me up, and then I was sailing back toward the park in Reason's arms. For several seconds, I struggled against his hold but after he dropped me several feet, I was a lot more willing to hang on.

  "That was stupid," I pouted, and elbowed him in the chest.

  "Maybe," he agreed. "But we've done it ever since we were kids. It's part of a young gargoyle's survival training."

  "What does diving headfirst toward the ground at two hundred miles an hour have to do with surviving anything?"

  "It can be helpful if a harpy's on your tail," he pointed out. "A harpy's reflexes aren't as good as a gargoyle's and most of the time she'll crash."

  I took a deep breath and tried to see it from his point of view. It didn't work. I was still mad. "We need to get back to Boulder," I grouched. "Turn this thing around, Birdman."

  "Are you guys staying for dinner?" Havoc asked breezily when we stepped through the front door, as if he hadn't just risked his life and his cousin's. He was sorting through the freezer, pulling out packages of chicken breasts. "I'm making Chicken Mascara."

  "Chicken Marsala," MacKenzie corrected him with a snicker.

  "There's a cup of wine in the sauce," he continued without admitting his error. "Guaranteed to put hair on your chest."

  "Why would I want hair on my chest?" I growled.

  "That's only if you're a guy," he quickly reversed gears. "If you're a lass, it will make your eyelashes thicker. That's why it's called Chicken Mascara."

  But I wasn't in the mood for Havoc's sense of humor. I was still way mad. Too mad to hang around for one of his meals. Which is really mad, believe me. I said my stiff goodbyes and didn't talk to Reason all the way home.

  When we got back to Boulder, I slammed into the apartment.

  "I don't know why you're so upset," Reason said, lifting his hands out to his sides. "We were just letting off a little steam."

  What could I say? I couldn't tell him I had feelings for him. I certainly wasn't going to use the "love" word. I wasn't even ready to use the "like" word. Avoiding both of those expressions, I tried to explain. "Because, after all the time we've spent together, at such close quarters, I'm starting to…to…gloppin you."