Pure Elemental (Evelyn Storm Series Book 3)

by Tamara White

  I catch up with Teddy as he’s going down the stairs, and walk beside him until we get to the kitchen.

  Everyone’s already at the massive table so I join the others. The food must have been ordered while I was in the bath because Dane and Christian are setting all of the containers out. The smell of butter chicken and naan bread is making my mouth water so much so that Teddy pretend wipes the drool from my mouth.

  “Sweetie you know none of us will judge you if you want to eat. Here,” he says dishing butter chicken, chicken tikka, and two slices of garlic naan bread on my plate.

  I moan at the sight before me and dig in. it’s not until I’m half way through my plate that I realize everyone’s staring at me. I swallow what’s in my mouth, “What?”

  Zach shakes his head with a smile, “Nothing. You just looked like if anyone went near your plate, they’d lose a finger. It’s kind of cute seeing you so enthused in food with how nauseous you’ve been feeling.”

  I didn’t notice how fast I was eating, and they’re right. The morning sickness actually hasn’t showed up yet, which is great. Losing your food after every meal is not exactly fun.

  I finish eating, hoping that it stays away long enough to digest. I don’t want Indian food coming back up.

  Leaning back in my chair, I watch the others talking and joking while eating. I feel a sense of rightness settle into my heart. This is what family should feel like.

  My grandfather and Zeke are joking around about the last time they were together. Christian, Zach, and Mike are talking about school and who’s going to be with me in most of my classes. Dane, Teddy, and Ky are all debating on what sport is the best: football, basketball, or hockey.

  For the first time in a long time, I feel like nothing can go wrong. “Ok, guys, I’m knackered. Have we organized the sleeping arrangements yet?”

  Everyone stops and looks at me.

  “Well, I think I’m going to bed. Goodnight,” my grandfather, says hurrying from the room.

  What was that about?

  Chapter 11

  Evie

  “Ok, so is someone going to tell me what that was about?”

  Everyone avoids looking at me, then Mike clears his throat and faces me with determination. “Well, we all have something to talk to you about. Your grandfather knows what we wanted to talk to you about so he’s just giving us some privacy.”

  Ok, this is getting weirder. All of the guys are looking at me with different expressions on their faces, but the obvious one is fear. What could be so bad that they’re all scared to tell me?

  “You guys are freaking me out. What is it?”

  “Well, honey, we’ve all been talking, and with the babies coming soon, we kind of have a decision to make. We’re obviously not going to be able to live here since we need to be closer to the community. Mike has been looking at a place online that looks amazing and it’s only a 30 minute drive from the mansion. The property is large enough for us to build multiple structures on it, or we can expand on the current house size,” Dane explains to me, pausing to let me process, “The house is big enough to help sustain us, at the moment, if we want to stay there while we renovate, or we can stay at the mansion until it’s completed. I know a few guys who can speed up the process, and would, hopefully, have the house done before the babies are here.”

  They watch me waiting for me to respond, but I’m stunned. They’ve been planning all this? I can’t believe how organized they are.

  “I can’t say yes or no, but I would like to see it. How much is it? Have you guys thought about how we are going to pay for it? I can’t afford it, and I don’t want one of you paying for it,” my voice is stern as I look pointedly at Teddy.

  If he had his way, he’d probably buy us each a house of our own on the same piece of land then have houses to spare for guests.

  “We figured since we’re all bonded to you, whether its completed or not, we should all chip in for it. We know you don’t have the money for it, but we don’t care. As your bonded, it’s our responsibility to take care of you and the babies. That means providing you with food, shelter, and a happy life. Obviously if you aren’t ready for it, we will hold off. We just thought you might prefer a more private setting for raising the babies, rather than in the mansion with constant visitors. You’re going to be tired after giving birth, the last thing you’ll want to do is host visitors. This way we have privacy, and we can have a place of our own. We’d build a room for each of us and you, plus two to four spare bedrooms. One for each of the babies, and the remaining two will be for guests, or if you develop new bonds.

  We also discussed building a small structure on the property that will contain a workout room for us, spa and sauna room for you and us, and a small, enclosed, play room for the babies with security cameras and baby monitors installed. This way if you need a break, you can go to the spa and one of us can watch the babies in the playroom, or you can sit down in the playroom with them and have a cup of coffee.

  It can always be changed if for some reason it doesn’t live up to your expectations, or you want to build on to it. We just want you to be happy.”

  Christian has outlined the basics of what they want the house to be and I have to say it sounds perfect. I never really thought about where I’d live once I grew up, but hearing this makes it seem like the best idea.

  “You guys have really thought about this, haven’t you?”

  “Yeah, we needed it to be ready before the babies come. Mike has been looking at a place for a while, but he didn’t tell any of us until we got you back. I’m kind of glad though, none of us had really given it too much thought besides staying at the mansion. With our own house, we can get it protected by barriers from your grandfather and my dad, I mean Spencer,” Dane says.

  It’s cute how flustered he gets by calling Spencer his dad. I’ve seen him slip up a few times now, but he barely notices. If he does notice, he’ll immediately correct himself. I don’t know why he has a problem with it, I mean technically Spencer is his dad. Maybe it’s just too soon.

  “Ok, for now I get this is a great idea, but I want to contribute. I don’t want to be the only one not adding money to the house. Maybe once I get a job, I can put money into an account to pay you all back for my share?”

  “Sorry to interrupt. Evie, you won’t have to do that, you actually have your own money,” my grandfather says from the door to the dining room.

  “What?” I ask, perplexed by his abrupt return.

  “Well, honey, your mother and father both had money. Your mother’s was mainly inheritance from me, but your father was alive close to 2000 years. Now that he’s gone, all that’s yours.”

  Whoa. Two thousand years! That’s unbelievable. We thought maybe one thousand years, not two thousand! The things he must have seen!

  “So, how much are we talking about?” Teddy asks.

  I look back at him wondering if he’s actually curious, or if he wants to know who’s got more money.

  “Evie, has more money than everyone in this room, plus your families, combined. She could buy the state if she wanted to.”

  Teddy

  Wow! Evie’s rich. That wasn’t what I was expecting but it’s honestly a relief. Not that her being poor was bad, but we all knew she would want to contribute. That’s why we fed her the line about us providing for her. Most elemental relationships are contributed to equally, but we’re not exactly normal, so none of us thought it would matter. Now that Evie has her own money, she will be able to buy what she wants.

  Maybe this will make her see she doesn’t need to go to college. Although knowing her, it will probably only make her want to go even more to prove herself.

  “So, I could buy the house and pay for renovations all by myself then?” Evie asks Raphael with a sly look on her face.

  I can’t help it, I laugh at the look of pure suspicion on the others’ faces. Zeke and Zach join in laughing, realizing Evie’s just pulling our legs.

  “You can’
t buy it by yourself! And why are you four laughing?!” Dane is aghast at Evie’s thoughts, while Christian joins in on the laughter.

  Dane, Ky, and Mike, however, are still looking at Evie with horror thinking she means to buy it by herself.

  “Why not? I could do what I want then. I could paint it all pink on the inside and outside. It would look like the most beautiful house in the world. I could even add glitter in some of the paint. Oh yes, glitter on the outside would make my house sparkle with awesomeness.”

  She’s doing everything in her power to not laugh at them. The rest of us can’t help it, even Raphael is laughing. Mike and Ky are both looking between us and Evie before they seem to realize she’s messing with them, and they start to chuckle along with us. Dane is standing there like a fish out of water, mouth open, looking at us as if we’ve lost it. He tries a few times to speak before just staring at Evie.

  “Oh, honey, I’m just messing with you,” she says, getting up and going to him. She hugs him and whispers in his ears before pulling back with a cheeky grin.

  “Dude, you really thought she’d paint it pink of all things?” I ask him wiping the tears from my eyes. I think we all needed the laugh.

  “Shut up,” he says sullenly.

  “Yeah, I knew she was messing with us when she said pink. If anything, it would be purple and blue. Evie doesn’t like pink,” Ky says, pointing out the obvious, while still chuckling.

  “Hey, you can’t blame me for thinking she might do that. You all thought she was serious too. I thought the money was going to her head. Damn. I’m never going to live this down.”

  We all laugh before Raphael says “No, you won’t,” setting off another round of laughter.

  “Ok, ok. Now that we’ve sorted that out, are you happy for us to put in an offer? Obviously, we’ll have to go see it first, but with you being made of money we could just destroy it and build a new one if you don’t like it,” Mike says grinning.

  “Yeah, put an offer in. We can always renovate it or build a new one. Will it really be ready in time for the babies?”

  “Yeah, baby. I’ve got a few human, and elemental, friends who know a lot about building and can put a rush on it. The foundation will take maybe 10 days, or a week if we all help out to rush it, then the rest is a matter of days,” Mike says matter of factly.

  He’s always known a bit about houses which makes me glad he’s thought about all of this. The rest of us were mainly thinking along the lines of having her stay at the mansion, but let’s be real, that would have been a nightmare.

  “Alright, so now that you’ve sorted the details for the house, we should discuss what’s going to happen tomorrow.”

  Raphael is watching us, amusement clear on his face, but he doesn’t say anything more. He’s like a child enjoying the drama and humour in the room. It’s nice to see him so relaxed. Evie not talking to him really hurt him. Now it’s like he’s a new man.

  Kylan

  “We already decided on what we were going to do, we just haven’t told Evie the full plan yet,” I face her ready to explain what’s happening.

  “Uh oh,” Christian whispers beside me while I watch Evie’s eyes harden. Shit, what did I say?

  “You already decided? So, I get no say?” she asks angry.

  “Shit, no. I didn’t mean it like that. It’s just while you were in the bath, we sorted everything out. You don’t have to do anything,” I say hoping I’ve made it better, but by the tears in her eyes I know I haven’t.

  “So now I’m lazy?! Well, fuck you, Ky!” She stalks out of the room. leaving me completely flabbergasted.

  “What the hell just happened?” I ask the others, looking for some kind of explanation.

  Christian sighs shaking his head at me before exchanging a grin with Zach and Raphael.

  “Can one of you please explain what he said wrong?” he asks slumping down in a chair.

  Raphael laughs at Christian before facing the rest of us. “Evie’s pregnant.”

  “Well, duh, we already know that, but what does that have to do with anything?” I ask, confused at the turn in conversation.

  “I know Christian has explained this, so I’ll be brief before you go make up with Evie. Her body and brain are both cooking in a batch of hormones that make her: irrational, angry, tired, and happy all at the flip of a switch. Her body is growing not one, but two, babies, and in a matter of three months, instead of six months, she will be holding them in her arms. Her emotional state is going to be unstable pretty much until the babies are born. What just happened was you told her she was lazy for taking a bath, while you all decided what to do, so she got no say in the matter.

  If you were smarter, you would have pretended you hadn’t already organized things and speak your plan as ideas. That way she won’t want to kick your ass,” he adds with a laugh.

  I sigh, hanging my head in defeat. It’s still so new to me, and I feel horrible, but I can understand what he means. What I said could be interpreted that way, but I didn’t think it would come across like that when I said it to her.

  “What do I do to make it better?”

  “You go find her, apologize, and hope she forgives you,” Zach suggests, smirking.

  Christian

  These stupid boys. I know it’s not their fault for being clueless around a pregnant woman, but, in all honesty, they shouldn’t have made all the decisions without her.

  She already feels like she’s lost all control in her life with everything that has happened to her: the kidnappings, not being able to protect herself, the loss of her father. She feels like she has no control of it anymore.

  From what she’s told me, when she was with her adoptive parents, they used to beat her and took away any sense of control she had. As she grew older she was able to control the things around her like school, and it gave her the sense of freedom she needed, but it was still barely any of the control a normal person grows up with.

  Meeting the boys and leaving her parents let her gain some sense of control. She had friends, or boyfriends, and she was living with them, doing what she wanted.

  Now she’s going back to school trying to grasp onto the only thing left in her life that seems to give her some control, but it’s not working with them treating her like she has no choices.

  “Are you guys all stupid?!” I blurt out, my frustration getting to me.

  They all stop and turn to me.

  “What did you say?!” Mike growls, slowly standing up.

  I don’t want this to turn into a fight, but I’m over them acting like children, especially as the babies will be here any day now. They need to grow up and listen to what Evie’s saying and focus more on the bond.

  “I said, ‘Are you stupid’? How is it that me, the guy who’s been around Evie for half the time as the rest of you, knows what to do, and the rest of you don’t? I swear I feel like if it wasn’t for being her bonded, none of you would be here. Do any of you listen to her through the bond?”

  They’re all looking at me perplexed, and it makes my anger rise.

  “Jesus, none of you do, do you? I can’t believe this!”

  I start pacing, trying to calm myself down, but it’s not working. I need to take a walk. Going out in the back, I walk a couple circles in the yard before I feel them. They followed me out and obviously want to talk.

  “What do you mean by listen through the bond? She talks to us very rarely through the bond, mainly when she’s in trouble,” Dane says irritated.

  “Dude, how do you not know? You grew up with elementals. How is it that I know this shit and none of you seem to have a clue?

  I feel Evie all the time. From the moment I met her, I felt her. Her soul is a part of mine and vice versa. Being apart physically hurts because all I feel from her lately is sorrow and defeat. She thinks she’s barely worth all the effort.

  When we were kidnapped, I felt her defeat take over. She was close to giving up on herself and the babies. She didn’t feel it was fa
ir on all of you. She loves each of you so much, but feels like the bond is forcing love from you. It’s why she was so angry over her father. She thought if you loved her, you would have warned her, or found another way. She wants to tell you who the fathers of the babies are because she feels guilt every day that you don’t know. She wants to know the gender of her babies, but, again, feels guilty for wanting to ask me when the rest of you aren’t there.

  She’s in love with the four of you, but Zach, Zeke, and I are nowhere near that level. No matter what we do, we’ll never be the same to her as you four are, and I’ve accepted that. None of you seem to see that.

  She slept in the bed with Zach and I while she couldn’t have you, but each night she cried herself to sleep because she wanted you so bad, and couldn’t have you without getting rid of her hurt.

  Her third night home, I was terrified she would lose the babies because she wouldn’t talk to any of you. The depression was eating at her, and, in the end, I demanded she talk to you, or I was going to tell you what was going on.

  I know what I’m saying is going to hit a lot of sore points with you guys, but I’m fed up. Our bond should be utilised, not ignored until you need her. Every day the bond between Evie and I grows stronger because I’m open to it. I let her emotions come through and I respond with my own, soothing her and comforting her.

  That should be what you’re doing, but none of you have figured it out. I hate how much she cares for the rest of you sometimes, especially when I’m trying my hardest to make her see me too, but she just wants you. The four of you are the first ones she met, and will probably be the main ones she focuses on in her bond. Zeke, Zach, and I will have to do our best to get her to notice us over any of you.”

  I close my eyes in defeat. I know she cares about me but it’s nothing compared to the feeling of having her kiss me one day, then go to moping over her other bonds. We kissed once since that day and it was barely a kiss on the cheek.

  “I love you,” I hear whispered behind me and gasp in shock as I turn around. Evie’s standing right in front of me, love shining through her eyes and flowing through the bond.