by Anna Santos
“Why aren’t you mad?”
“Would it matter if I was mad at you?” he questioned. “It wouldn’t change the way you feel, would it?”
I shook my head and put my arms around his neck. “I like you a lot, too.”
“But you don’t love me more than you love him, do you?”
“No. I’m sorry.” I almost cried again. My body trembled, and he rubbed my back, drawing circles and humming a tune for me to calm down.
“You don’t need to ask me for forgiveness. I shouldn’t have pushed you so hard. I’ve made a lot of mistakes. But Aria, I know that you love him since your angel’s awake, and you went to save him. You shouldn’t have cared about him once you accepted your angel.”
“So why did you ask me to choose to go back to you?”
“I didn’t want to be alone and was stubborn. I understand now that we can’t force love to happen. I think I’ve learned something through this experience. Plus, I got to know you… You are the best thing that happened to me since my parents died.”
“You never told me how they died.”
“It’s a long story. We don’t have time for that now. We need to make sure that you’ll be safe even after you give up your wings. Also, we need to stop the specters from producing Clarity. We don’t want your jerk of a soul-mate to blow up in pieces, do we?”
I laughed, hiding my head against his neck. Then, I stopped laughing, realizing that he had called Philippe my soul-mate. “I’m not your soul-mate anymore…” I puckered my lips. “Too bad I can’t have you both.”
“You are joking. Tell me you are joking,” he requested.
I giggled. “Maybe. Don’t you like the idea?”
“I don’t share,” he stated.
I kissed his cheek and nodded. “I don’t like to share, either.”
“Can I still punch him if he tries to hurt you?”
Grinning, I answered, “I would appreciate it a lot.”
Cedric smiled, clearing the unshed tears from my eyes.
“What?”
“You are the prettiest thing. He’s lucky to have you.”
I blushed at his words. “He doesn’t have me. It doesn’t mean I want to be his, and he may not want me back.”
“Should I punch him now, then?”
I rolled my eyes and laughed. “What are you going to do about Jo?”
“Nothing.”
“Why not? You like her. Don’t lie to me. You keep following her every move and…”
“Honey, you know how the curse works. I can’t choose who I want to be with. Well, at least, not like humans do. Mates must be assigned. And Jo isn’t a rejected soul… Not anymore. She had her chance.”
“That would explain a lot,” I mumbled. “She used to be one of us?”
“Yes. But her mate and she didn’t survive the trial.”
“Does that mean he was turned to rock? That’s so sad. She is so nice!”
“And she hates my guts now,” he said.
Stepping back, I mused about their problem. “You can like her even if she isn’t an angel. Who cares? Just tell her you like her. When you become a gargoyle again, you will be awake at night. She is a vampire and can’t be outside during the day so…”
“It doesn’t work like that,” he said, stopping my reasoning and my attempt to find a solution. “Gargoyles don’t feel like angels do. They don’t lust, they don’t…experience things in the same way.”
“You lust for her?” I noticed how his cheeks reddened, and he started avoiding eye contact. I had to grab his face to make him look at me again. “Is it an infatuation or attraction?”
“I don’t know.” I knew he was telling the truth since he sucked at understanding his feelings. “I find her enticing. But she’s a vampire, they are sensual by nature. She is also nice and…we seem to understand each other.”
“Unlike you and me.”
“We are different. It doesn’t mean that I don’t love you and lust for you. I do.”
“Lust isn’t everything,” I mumbled, blushing at our closeness. We clicked, that was for sure. Even if I liked Cedric a lot, it wasn’t the same thing that I was beginning to feel for Philippe. “Love is more than desire.”
“Don’t you lust for Philippe?”
His question caught me off guard. “Philippe is gorgeous, but I don’t feel like I want to jump his bones.”
His eyes widened, and he chuckled. “Jump his bones, that’s new to me.”
“It means that I feel good around him regardless if we don’t talk or touch. It’s peaceful inside my mind. I experience a feeling of belonging and understanding. Like the universe is about to reveal all of its secrets to me. And I get lost in his eyes. He is not as bad as you may think. Philippe is…witty and smart. So smart! We have a lot in common, even though we are different…”
“I’m jealous of him right now,” Cedric muttered.
I smiled at him, caressing his face.
“Why can’t we feel like that for each other? It’s unfair.”
“So, you don’t feel it, either?” I asked.
“I thought I did. I thought that we were perfect for one another. But then, we began to fight and…I began to get possessive and… I love you. We just don’t see things the same way or understand each other as much as we should.”
“I still find you extremely hot.”
He laughed as did I.
“You are witty. I didn’t know you were so funny.”
“You didn’t let me be funny around you, Mister Straight Face.”
“That’s a lie. I made you laugh a lot of times,” he defended himself.
“Foreplay doesn’t count,” I whispered near his mouth, teasing him with a smile.
“Okay, you better stop before I kiss you and won’t let you leave me.”
“Are you going to be okay?” I asked, losing my smile. “I didn’t want to break your heart.”
“I’ll be fine. I just want you to be happy,” he said, caressing the hair away from my face. He had shiny eyes and a tender smile. It was hard to leave him.
“I want us to like each other despite not being together for an eternity. I know you don’t like my decision and find it…unexpected. But I want us to be friends.”
“You are my first mate. I’ll always have a special place for you in my heart.”
“You will have a special place in my heart, too. You were my first boyfriend.”
“Guess Philippe will be your last.”
“I don’t know.” I shrugged as I put distance between us. “I want to go back home. I’m not kidding about that. I want to have my life back, to go to college and become an oncologist. I have many dreams to fulfill. I won’t stay with a guy who tries to stop me from doing that.”
He looked at me with pensive eyes again. “I was demanding too much of you, and I was giving you little in return.”
I refused to agree, although it was partially true. “You saved me and you…loved me and made me happy.”
“And gave you an awesome pair of wings with amazing powers.”
“I would face the trial and love you madly if there wasn’t a Philippe around,” I confessed as I played with my hands. “I know he isn’t Prince Charming. He has lots of flaws, but I love him. It isn’t fair to keep pushing this between us and kill you. You deserve to be happy. I’m sure there will be another rejected soul or a gargoyle girl who will be your new match and you will be insanely happy.”
He hugged me tightly. I felt overwhelmed by my emotions. It was sad, and I knew that there was no coming back from my decision. However, it was time to let go of Cedric. It was time to face my feelings and give my heart a break. No more doubts, no more fears.
Cedric kissed my cheek, taking his time to smash his soft lips against my skin. I liked him a lot. But it wasn’t the same as when I was next to Philippe.
“Okay, I’m going outside to get some fresh air. I will see you in a bit,” he whispered, trying to conceal the quivering of his voice.
I was going to be alone. It was the first thought that crossed my mind. Turning around, I faced the window to where the meeting was taking place. Philippe was on the other side, staring at me with wounded eyes. I didn’t know if I loved or hated the fact that I could understand what was crossing his mind when we looked at each other. He had witnessed what had happened inside the office. By the look of it, he wasn’t happy about it.
I teleported in front of him.
“We need to talk,” I said, grabbing his arm and preventing him from storming away.
Before he could say anything else, we teleported out of there. I didn’t know exactly where we were going to land, but it wasn’t far away. We ended up outside the church, in front of the entrance.
Philippe looked at the building and then at me.
“You didn’t need to bring me outside to tell me that you are going to get back with Cedric,” he said with hurt in his eyes. “You didn’t even let me give you an explanation.”
“Explanation for what?” I asked.
“That there is only you in my life now. Even if you don’t forgive me, there isn’t anyone else that I love,” he confessed sweetly, sending goose bumps throughout my skin. “I love you, Aria. No one else. You are my whole world. And I’m sorry if I sound selfish, but I was hoping that you would leave Cedric and give me a chance to prove how much I love you and how much I regret rejecting you.”
I lost my breath at his words. I wasn’t expecting such an elaborated declaration of love. It touched me and made me smile like a silly person. After staring into his loving eyes, I hugged him. I wasn’t going to kiss him. I wanted to so bad that my body was shaking. No kissing him. I shouldn’t even be hugging him. I should be slapping him around for being a coldhearted jerk when we first met.
He hesitated and eventually hugged me back. I relaxed against him as I enjoyed the silence for a moment.
My words came out muffled against his chest. “Cedric and I weren’t making up. We were saying goodbye.” I pulled away to talk to him without fangirling myself over his declaration of love.
“You are leaving him?” His big brown chocolate eyes rounded, probably not believing me.
“Yes, we broke up for good. I’m going back home,” I told him before he could think that he was going to make me stay. “Do you understand me?”
“You want to go back home… And me?”
It was a damn valid question, one I knew he was going to ask me. I wanted to be able to be evil and say mean things to make him suffer but couldn’t. I was a romantic fool.
“I guess you’ll have to try harder to make me forgive you,” I said, trying to stay serious. “It’s not like I’m going to believe that you are suddenly in love with me and don’t want me floating down the river.” I diverted my eyes from his. It was true. He could be tricking me. He might want to lock me up in his house and prevent me from leaving. I didn’t want to be trapped again. The idea made me panic.
“You were the one who threw yourself into the river, not me,” he accused me, waking me up from my fears.
I glared at him. “Really? Do you want me to tell you whose fault it was?”
I didn’t manage to say anything else. He grabbed me and kissed me. I wasn’t expecting that. I wanted him to, but I wasn’t expecting it right then. He placed his hands on my face and pulled me in for a kiss. It wasn’t rushed or harsh, just surprising. He brought his lips against mine, and I let him, closing my eyes and placing my hands on his wrists. My lips played with his, rubbing, touching, and enjoying the closeness of our mouths. It was glorious, breathtaking, and addictive. We drew near each other, his arms reaching to bring me closer to his chest, and my arms surrounding his neck. Suddenly, we were wrapped in each other’s arms and breathing was the last thing on my mind.
“I hate to interrupt, but everybody is waiting for you.” It was a soft and embarrassed voice that broke our bubble.
I felt dizzy when his lips let go of mine. I didn’t want to stop. After opening my eyes to meet his, I felt like I was melting and evaporating at the same time. What is this feeling that is burning and weakening me?
“Should I tell them that you are…busy?”
I looked to my left, seeing Camille standing there with rosy cheeks.
“I tried not to interrupt,” she said, glancing at her hands. “Everyone’s impatient and wants to continue.”
“We’ll be right there,” Philippe said.
I wanted to run and hide in shame. Camille had seen us kissing. She didn’t know that I had broken up with Cedric and was probably judging me.
“Okay,” she said, turning around and leaving.
“Oh my God, I need to talk to her,” I whispered, panicking and hyperventilating.
“Calm down,” Philippe requested calmly, nuzzling his nose against my neck. His arms prevented me from running after her. “Relax. You can’t go inside like that. It was my fault. I kissed you. Now try to focus on breathing.” He combed my hair and tickled me with his nose.
My heartbeat decreased. The idea of letting go of him was daunting. I knew that we were just hugging, and I wanted to do that for all eternity.
“Couldn’t we slap some sense into them? They are so stubborn and don’t believe our good intentions,” I ranted.
Philippe laughed. His breath caressed my neck. “If I didn’t know you better, I would have thought you were being serious.”
“I wanted to save them, but that was before I knew they were so…”
He held my face between his hands. “What?”
“Creepy!”
“Most of them are black sorcerers. In the graveyard, there are kids and women, and probably some humans, too, Mara said that there was a protest. People were going to attack the angels if they invaded their territory, without permission.”
“Guess we have a meeting to attend to,” I whispered, bored but worried.
“It won’t take much longer. They are ready to give in.”
“If you say so.”
“Are you going to stop ignoring me during the meeting?” he questioned, pleading me with his eyes.
“I’ll think about it.” I smiled wickedly and let him go, so we could enter the church and prevent a war.
Philippe had other intentions. He pulled me back into his arms, and we disappeared in a flash, appearing inside the room where the meeting was taking place.
I fixed my hair, straightened my dress, and went to take my place at the table. I half-listened to some lame excuse Philippe gave them about having to leave to talk to an informer regarding Kayden. It was a plausible explanation. Jo and Cedric weren’t buying it, though. But Cedric used his commanding voice to draw the attention back to him.
CHAPTER SIX
ARIA
Things were getting heated. The graveyard representatives were losing their patience.
“I don’t care who you think you are or in the name of what God you are speaking,” one of the warlocks spoke louder, interrupting Cedric. “We are not going to let you bully us out of our sacred ground, so you can burn our ancestors’ bones and strip us of our powers!”
I looked at Philippe, confused by their words.
Leaning closer to my ear, he explained, “Covens take their magic power from their ancestors’ bones. If the presence of their ancestors is erased, their magic will become weaker.”
I nodded and paid attention to the howls of agreement that rose from the other warlocks and representatives. I grabbed Philippe’s hand tighter. The tension was killing me. They were all mistrusting. I realized why Cedric had such a hard time in believing people. I didn’t want to be like them. I liked to believe that people weren’t evil to their core and that some meant what they said and wanted to help others.
“No one will burn your ancestors’ bones or take away your powers. We are only looking for someone who is trying to hurt not just us but you as well. He wants us to sta
rt a war and make us weak. You need to understand who your true enemy here is. It’s not us. We want to help you,” Cedric said sternly, without transmitting any kind of emotion.
His face didn’t disturb me. They all looked scary and serious, even Jo looked emotionless from the other side of the table. She hadn’t smiled since the meeting resumed again. She had only spoken to support any statement that Philippe made.
“We know nothing about Kayden. We don’t meddle in his business, and he doesn’t meddle in ours,” an old man in black ceremonial clothes said.
“It looks like he wants to meddle now since he brought the angels to your front door. Not to say that vampires aren’t angered that Specters are selling Clarity, and Kayden is the one suspected of producing it,” Cedric reminded them.
Philippe held my hand and shook his head when I was about to speak. “It would only put vampires against angels, and I’m sure Kayden lied to cover his ass. He is guilty,” he whispered in my ear, sending goose bumps along my skin.
“If angels don’t invade to look for Kayden, we won’t be so gentle while looking for Clarity,” Philippe told them out loud.
The other vampires nodded in agreement. I hoped he didn’t mean what he was saying and was just bluffing to get them to agree. I trusted his judgment, and I could understand why the vampires were so mad. I hoped that the leaders wouldn’t remain stubborn and start a war because of Kayden’s manipulation and lies.
“If you don’t have anything to do with this, we will consider it as a proof of goodwill to let us in and look for Kayden and the drug,” Cedric said.
“And share with us where Kayden may be hiding,” Philippe added.
Murmurs surfaced from the graveyard people as they talked among themselves.
“We can give you four possible locations to where Kayden may be hiding,” one of the elders said after a moment.
“If we accept this,” a woman said, “any angel that goes into our territory must be supervised by two of us. And we don’t want vampires there. We don’t want them to scare the children.”
“Why would they have children at a cemetery?” I asked Philippe, troubled by it.
