by Lia Davis
“Oh.” It was all she was able to say. She’d completely lost herself in Ayden’s baby blue eyes and the weird, erotic feelings he raised in her. Maybe his mood swings were contagious.
She was so captivated by the swirls of silver that danced around his pupils that she didn’t notice when Ayden shifted forward to stand between her legs. His hand cupped her cheek as he lowered his head to hers. Just before their lips touched, a light knock sounded on the door. Ayden dropped his hand and backed away from her a second before the nurse walked into the room.
Damn nurse. She resisted the urge to kick the woman out.
“You’re free to go, Ms. Bradenton,” the nurse said with a chipper voice as she walked over and handed the discharge papers to her. “Are you sure you don’t need a prescription?”
It took her a couple of seconds to form a coherent thought. “Yes, I’m sure. Thanks.” Like all magickin, she had a high tolerance for pain. Plus, most human pain medications messed with their nervous systems. She shared the same unusual sensitivity to meds and alcohol as Khloe. Though her sensitivity wasn’t as severe. She could drink wine in moderation without an adverse effect. Her twin, on the other hand, was drunk as a skunk after only a couple of sips. It was very easy for them to accidently overdose, so they had to be careful what they took. Kalissa had lucked out that the ER doctor had treated witches before and was fully aware of what medications they could take.
The nurse gave one last bob of the head and left the room.
Kalissa had never felt more relieved to leave a place than she did at that moment. She hopped off the bed, only to have her balance thrown off. A wave of dizziness overtook her, and her knees refused to hold her weight.
Ayden reached out with one of his large arms and wrapped it around her waist to help her regain her balance. “You’ll stay with me,” he commanded.
Kalissa shook her head. “I have a reservation.”
“Where are you staying?” he asked.
She told him, and he laughed out loud. When she shot him a peeved looked, he shook his head and said, “I’m sorry. That’s where I’m staying. I’m sure they’ll understand.”
Concern surged through him at her dizzy spell when she hopped off the hospital bed. After making sure she was strong enough to walk on her own, he led her to his Jeep and drove to the hotel in silence.
They entered the hotel lobby and went straight to the front desk. The same perky young redhead that had checked him in over an hour ago greeted them with a smile. “Can I help you, Mr. Daniels?” The bright, warm smile diminished slightly when her peridot eyes shifted to Kalissa standing next to him. Envy swirled off the hotel clerk. Women.
“I hope so,” he said, giving her a mildly seductive smile when she looked back at him. “I would like to upgrade my room to a suite. Miss Bradenton had a reservation, which she would like to cancel since she will be staying with me.” He reached down and took Kalissa’s hand in his as a warning for her not to protest. She was about to. The shift in her mood told him that. Stubbornness rolled off her, wanting to reject his proposal.
The desk clerk frowned, but quickly recovered, glancing to the computer screen. A few seconds later, she swiped a set of keys and handed them to him. “There is a cancellation fee…”
Her sentence cut off when he took her hand that held the key cards and stroked his pinky over her wrist. “Can it be waived?” He leaned into her a half an inch.
Her cheeks colored, and she pulled her hand back. He let it go, taking the keys from her.
“Let me…see what I can do.”
Moments later, Kalissa and Ayden were on the elevator. Ayden laughed at Kalissa’s narrowed-eyed gaze. She hadn’t said anything, but she didn’t need to. “You would have done the same thing.”
She lifted her head in a stubborn, proud pose. “I thought only women used their looks to get what they wanted.”
“If you got it, use it.”
She didn’t respond. She was jealous. He’d picked up on the emotion at the front desk, when he’d flirted with the clerk. That amused and confused him.
Her reaction to him at the hospital was that of an old friend seeing him for the first time in fifteen years. Buried pain resurfaced. But he couldn’t resist touching her. It had gone downhill from there.
She was the same Kalissa he’d fallen in love with over fifteen years ago, but she didn’t remember him. Ayden, like the rest of his family, was empathic. Being a Divinity only amplified the empathy, and, combined with his very rare power of adaptability, gave him the ability to pick up on others’ feeling and thoughts. He’d grasped on to Kalissa’s gift of visions and had used it with his empathy to see into her mind. And into the past. There was a hole in her memory. His anger dissolved into confusion. Hope sparked into a tiny flame. That flame grew with every minute they were together. Who would erase her memory? Better yet, why erase her love for him but not all of him from her memories? How in the hell was that even possible?
The main reason for invading her memories, besides being a selfish bastard, was to find out why she’d dumped him for someone else so many years ago. He hadn’t expected her memory to be altered.
Is this my second chance? Can I trust her with my heart again?
It was wishful thinking. There wasn’t a second chance. He wouldn’t allow it, couldn’t allow it. Because if she never returned those feelings…
He cut that thought right off and opened the door to their suite. Ayden held the door for Kalissa. She muttered, “Thank you,” and continued on to the bedroom, closing the door behind her.
Chapter 4
When Kalissa woke up the next morning, Ayden was gone. His duffel bag still sat on top of the small dresser, but the sofa bed he’d slept on was folded up. She still couldn’t get over the way he’d manipulated the young woman at the front desk to upgrade his room to a one-bedroom suite for the two of them. He’d used a sexy smile and his good looks to get the clerk to cancel Kalissa’s reservation and waive the cancellation fees.
Hell, the way he had smiled and spoken in a low husky voice, Kalissa would have given him anything he asked.
How would that voice sound whispered in her ear? A heat wave of desire rolled through her as it had in the hospital room. He had been about to kiss her before they were rudely interrupted. And she would have let him. Even just the thought of his mouth on hers weakened her knees. And brought on the tang of panic she’d fought for years to control.
They’d been friends when in their teens. They’d hung out at the coven with the rest of the youth. She didn’t remember having feelings like that toward him. But she wondered how it would have felt to be kissed by Ayden Daniels. What would he taste like?
She started to wonder if the attraction to him was in her head, a result of the bump she’d gotten from the accident. Men like Ayden didn’t look at her like that. Not many men gave her more than a glance. That was fine by her. After the relationship she’d had with Liam Loomis, she wasn’t interested in another.
Of course, she didn’t help in that department either. She never wore makeup, and most times, her long, dark blond waves were piled on top of her head in a messy bun. Simplicity was her calling card. Leave the dramatics to her sister.
She and Liam had dated in high school, and the relationship continued through college until he’d collapsed with heart failure during football practice. Liam had anger and aggression issues, which had caused many heated fights between them. She’d been relieved to finally be out from under his control, but saddened because she’d been the reason for his sudden heart condition.
Then she’d gotten the painful news six months later that his mother had killed herself. It had sent a wave of grief over Kalissa. She had loved his mom. Barbra was the sweetest, most loving woman.
Her cell phone rang, bringing Kalissa back to the present. She picked up the phone from the nightstand and glanced at the caller ID. Khloe. With a smile, she answered. “Hola.”
“Hi. How’s your head?”
“Feels better. I’m heading out in a few,” she said while she stood, and then sat back down on the edge of the bed, shoulders hunched. “Oh, no.”
“What?” Khloe had a hint of panic in her voice.
“I don’t have my bag.” The only clothes she had were the ones she’d worn the day before and Ayden’s shirt that fit her like a nightgown.
“Just conjure up some clothes, Kalissa. We’re Divinities. With god-like powers.”
She wasn’t sure she liked her twin’s tone. There was an eye roll in there. But she was right. Kalissa, Khloe, and others like them had the power to conjure things they desired. Within reason. The three-fold law wasn’t a myth, and Karma was more than happy to let it be known.
The truth was, Kalissa didn’t fully trust her magic. It had failed her on many accounts, but mostly, her visions brought her too much pain. Physical and emotional. “I guess I could try.”
Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes and visualized the articles of clothing that she wanted from her room. Every detail was important, especially where the garments came from. She didn’t want to take someone else’s clothes off their back. That would be embarrassing for both parties involved.
She held her hands out in front of her and imagined standing in front of her dresser at home. Carefully, she chose a pair of panties, a t-shirt, and a pair of jeans from her drawers. Then willed them into her hands where she sat on the hotel bed. She opened her eyes and smiled.
“I did it. No pain.”
Khloe’s soft laugh came over the phone. “See. You’re not defective.”
Normally, she’d argue with her sister, but today, Kalissa wasn’t in the mood. She had to get out of the hotel without Ayden seeing her.
“So…what did you sleep in?” The wickedness in Khloe’s voice made her heart flutter. Images of Ayden popped into her mind.
His baby blue eyes lit with desire and need. His soft lips crushed against hers. Kalissa shuddered and shoved all those steamy visuals to the back of her mind. That was all they could be, visuals and fantasies. Thanks to Liam, she couldn’t get that close to another man.
“Ayden lent me a shirt. And before you say it, I slept in the bed, and he was on the sofa.”
“I wasn’t going to say a word.” Khloe fell silent, and after a few moments, said, “Have you talked to him? Has he said anything unusual?”
“No. Should he?”
“I don’t know. Men can be weird.”
It was an odd thing to ask. Then again, Khloe could be purposely cryptic at times. So Kalissa dismissed it. “I better get going.”
“Oh, all right. Love you.”
“Love you, too.”
She hung up the phone, grabbed her tote, and entered the living room. When she passed the small table, she saw the hotel notepad positioned near the edge with writing on it. Curiously, she stopped and peered down to read it.
Meet me downstairs for breakfast. Ayd.
Great. He probably had a front-row view of the elevators, waiting for her.
“I can’t believe you didn’t tell me,” Ayden growled into the phone.
Zach released a heavy sigh. “I wasn’t sure. I asked Papa once if it was possible to take a Divinity’s memory. He said it was, but he also said it’s a dark spell and only the warlocks are brave enough to try it. I didn’t give it a second thought until you mentioned it.”
The knowledge that his cousin had information and didn’t share it irritated him. Zach knew how the breakup had killed him. Why hadn’t he told him?
“How long have you known?” he asked, trying to sound calm.
“Not long. I first suspected it after her parents died. I’m sure Lo knew longer than that, but she never said anything to me.” Uncertainty flowed through Zach’s words.
Ayden pushed it away, for now. “Someone took her memories,” he said through clenched teeth. What pissed him off was that someone had wanted them split up enough that they would alter Kalissa’s mind. She was not the cause of his broken heart. Not directly. “What about that guy she started dating?”
“Liam?” Zach said with disgust in his voice. “He was human…and is no longer a problem.”
Ayden wasn’t sure if he wanted to ask about the last part of that statement. He looked up to see Kalissa emerge from the elevator and resented his body for reacting. Her blond hair hung loosely, cascading around her shoulders to stop over her breast. She turned toward him, and violet eyes met his. For a moment, he lost all coherent thought. Clenching the phone tighter, he broke from the dangerous thoughts of possessing the only woman he’d ever loved and ended his call with Zach. “Well, keep hunting. Someone wanted me out of her life, and I want to know who.”
His cousin agreed, and they hung up. Ayden sighed. He’d have to win Kalissa’s heart all over again. First, he would get to the bottom of her missing memories. This time around was going to be different. The pull to do something he should have been done years ago was too strong. Undeniably so. She was his life partner. She belonged to him. He was going to see to it that she became his bonded eternal companion, even if it killed him.
Ayden stood and pulled out a chair when she reached the table. “Morning.”
“Morning,” she replied softly, not meeting his eyes. She sat down and scooted her chair in before Ayden could do it.
He took his seat next to her. “I thought we could go get your things from impound after we eat.” She tensed. But it was so subtle he would have missed it if his shields were up that blocked others’ emotions. He’d lowered those mental shields when she got off the elevator. That way, he could read and monitor her emotions.
She was in Charlotte for a reason. He had a hunch it was the same reason he’d come.
The waiter came by to take their orders and pour their coffee. After he’d left, Ayden added, “I have to make a stop first. My father left me a package at his lawyer’s office before he died.” He watched her take a nervous sip of her coffee and set the cup down in front of her gently, almost too calculated. She was very good at remaining calm and controlled. But the empath in him sensed the uneasiness that hung around when someone was hiding something. “That’s why you’re here,” he accused, not taking his eyes off her.
She snapped her eyes to his, shocked. He smiled. She narrowed her eyes. “You’re empathic.” He nodded. Her shoulders dropped in defeat.
“The Divinities that died left a package of some sort for their surviving children.” He paused when the waiter came with their breakfast. He waited until they were alone before speaking again. “I’ve been investigating the cases. Papa provided me with as much information as he could. There seems to be a trail of clues. Papa said your mother knew where the Sinew is hidden.”
Eyes wide, she peered at him. Curiosity rolled off her in waves, and he could almost see the wheels turning in her head as the questions piled in. “What cases? How is my mother involved?”
Her questions stopped when he placed a hand on top of hers. “There’ve been others who’ve had accidents.”
“Besides our parents?”
He gave her a nod in answer and wasn’t surprised that she knew his parents had died from a plane crash. She’d probably heard the news from Zach.
“How many?” she asked.
“Five. Two are missing, the other three are dead.” He looked into her violet eyes and wanted to take her back to Maxville where she belonged, far from harm’s way. “Two of the Divinities killed are from Canada and out of my jurisdiction. Their coven isn’t sharing. Plus, I’m not sure if their deaths are even related. The other, Caleb, was the husband of one of the missing Divinities.”
“Angelica,” Kalissa whispered.
Ayden nodded. “You knew them?”
Kalissa shook her head. “No, but my mom talked about them. They had two children. I think they are about ten years older than us.”
“I was hoping to run into them. If Angelica is still alive, then they’ll be looking for her.” Ayden took the last bite of his pancakes and chewed bef
ore speaking again. “We’ll have to get our packages and move on.”
“We?”
“Yes. I’m not letting you out of my sight.”
“I don’t need a babysitter,” she replied with a hint of anger.
“You were run off the road last night and almost killed,” Ayden shot back, barely controlling the anger bubbling inside him.
“That was just an accident…” She broke off and looked back at him with realization in her gaze. Those beautiful violet eyes darkened as she glared. “Okay, let’s pretend it was a deliberate attack on my life. What good would it do to kill me?”
“You are investigating your parents’ deaths and pose a threat.”
She folded her arms over her chest and hardened her stare. “What about you? You’re investigating all of the deaths.”
The corner of his mouth lifted in a sideways smirk. “I’ve had my run-ins.”
“And?”
“My Divine gift allows me to use others’ abilities. Papa calls it the power of adaptability. I can adapt others’ powers as my own. It apparently works with demons, too.” Ayden tried not to be amused with her annoyance but failed. He liked the way her violet eyes changed with her moods. They became a deep, almost royal purple when she was angry or sad and lightened with swirls of lavender when she was happy or excited.
Without thinking, he reached over to move her dark blond hair aside to look at the wound on her forehead. And to feel the silken strands against his fingers. She flinched slightly when he touched her face. He brought his eyebrows together in a frown. “Does it still hurt?”
“No.” It came out in an almost nervous squeak. She took his hand in hers to set it back on the table. Their hands never made it to the table. Instead, he brought hers to his lips. A sudden intake of breath escaped her as soon as his lips touched the backs of her fingers. His rose birthmark tingled as if awakened. He was sure Kalissa’s did the same when her desire reached out to him like a lover’s caress.
