by Tamara White
I smile reassuringly. "Oh, that's okay. I was planning to head back anyway. I need another shower. I'm sure I'm stinking up the place after that workout."
He chuckles, wrinkling his nose in mock disgust. "Hmm, that's true. Better get back and shower before the whole coven catches whiff of your distinct odor."
I playfully shove his arm before waving goodbye and making my way towards the elevator, a smile on my face. For the first time since arriving, I feel relaxed in my position among the coven members.
While my father and I had been sitting to the side chatting, people would insert themselves into our conversation with random comments about my performance, making me feel accepted. None of them shied away from me like so many in the pack had. They actually accepted me.
As I take the elevator up to my room, I focus on the gnawing hunger that has been rising within me since my father and I finished our round together. I must have used way more energy than I thought. Hopefully, if the guys are back, one of them will offer to feed me, because I don't really know how to ask.
Lately, it feels like I'm just using them for their blood and I don't want them to get the wrong impression from it. I really need to figure out a new way to feed. It’s not fair for them to have to drop everything just to feed me, but I fear that taking blood from a bag only to vomit it up again would be one, a waste of blood, and two, a waste of time.
I take the time to wonder what happened at the meeting. Surely, the guys didn't get in too much trouble. After all, those wolves attacked me! I merely defended myself! And the same was true of the guys. I would have died without their help. I wish I had the chance to tell the Alpha exactly what went down.
I still don't understand why those wolves attacked me in the first place. There was no real reason I could think of for them to barge into my hotel and attack me.
Another thing I can’t figure out was how they knew where to find me. Did they just happen to see me as I explored the city and decided to follow me? Or did they actually know just where I was? That would mean that someone had told them I was coming, but who would do such a thing?
I guess those are all questions for another day.
The bell dings and I get out of the elevator onto my floor. I make it two steps down the hall before a door opens to one of the other rooms. I freeze as the scent of the person reaches my nose.
Sunlight and leather. The smell of someone who I thought had left the coven. Apparently not.
Sure enough, when I look up, I meet her shocked vibrant blue eyes. Nothing much has changed with her. Her long auburn locks flow behind her, and her pale freckled skin still has me as envious as ever.
Something is different, though. Her skin, while still pale, looks slightly sun-kissed. She must have been spray tanned or something, because no way would a vampire weaken themselves by going out in the sun just for a tan. Then again, she does strike me as the type of person to be vain enough do such a thing if anyone was.
Felicia stares at me, opening her mouth before closing it a few times until her face finally settles into a mask of determination.
"Emerald, I'm so glad I ran into you. I've been wanting to talk to you, but I didn't know when would be an appropriate time after everything you’ve been through."
I fight the urge to roll my eyes at her words. Her tone may come across as polite, but it feels forced. Instead of calling her out on it though, I remain silent, letting her say what she needs to. I can be the bigger person and listen to whatever she has to say.
"I just want you to know how sorry I am for the way things happened. Heather said some things to make me believe you were just out to hurt us, but I should have known better. A soul-tie between two people is treasured among our people, but with the way she used to talk about you and your soul-ties, she made me believe you were faking the whole thing."
Her gaze darts down to look at the cursive script on the right side on my collarbone where Nikoli's name is forever burned into me before meeting my eyes again.
"After Heather left, I had some time to think over your words, and I realized you were right. Nik deserves someone who makes him happy, and while I tried my best to do that, it’s not my job to make him happy, it’s yours as his soul-tie."
She pauses to take a deep breath. I see the sheen of tears in her eyes, which leaves me a little shocked. She must be really torn up over Nik, or is just a really fucking good actor. I don't quite know which to believe right now.
"I know you two will be happy together, and I don't want to stand in the way of that, but I would love it if we could find a way to be friends. I know it may not happen right off the bat, but I would like to get to know you more and can help ease you into our way of life. There is so much I could teach you about our kind, and our women in particular. The past is behind us, and I believe we can move forward and look towards the future instead. We live too long to let that kind of drama to affect us. So, if you're open to it, then I would like for us to be friends," she finishes with a smile.
I frown, not sure how to respond, when she moves past me. "Don't worry, Emerald. I know it won't happen straight away, but I just wanted to offer my apologies and let you know I would like us to become friends. Unfortunately though, I have an appointment I have to get to now, but maybe we can talk soon?"
I nod mutely as she presses the button for the elevator, offering a friendly wave as the doors close shut behind her.
What the fuck just happened?
I continue down the hall to our room in a daze. When I get there, I open the door, relieved to find it unlocked because I couldn't remember whether I had locked it or not. Considering I don't have a key, I would have been out of luck if I had and the guys weren't back yet.
Thankfully though, they’ve returned and are all laughing at some joke between them when I walk in. The sound of the door closing draws their gaze. One look at my face, and they leap to their feet, surrounding me with concerned expressions.
Talon grips me by the shoulders. "Em, what happened? Are you hurt?" When I don’t immediately respond, he shakes me firmly. I snap out of my daze just in time to hear him threaten anyone who dared to hurt me. "I swear if anyone so much as laid a finger on you, I will destroy them!”
I choke out a laugh. Talon, my amazing protective Talon who always assumes I'm hurt. I move away from the guys, distancing myself.
I decide to make a coffee, wanting to keep my hands busy while I digest all the information Felicia just piled onto me.
The guys leave me alone, letting me do what I need, backing off into the background until I'm ready to talk. When my coffee is ready, I cradle it in my hands and take a large sip before lifting my gaze to meet the guys’.
Talon's eyes, while blazing, also show understanding. Now that he's no longer worried I'm hurt, he seems to have calmed down. Dev's face is a blank mask, and I know he's waiting to react until he has all the info.
Last but not least, I see that Nik's eyes are filled with concern. I'm not sure how he will handle what I'm about to say, but he should be aware of the situation regardless.
I sigh and steel myself. "On the way back from training with my father, I ran into Felicia. She was leaving our floor and stopped me to apologize. She also offered to be my friend."
Nik frowns at that and refuses to meet my gaze, choosing to look down at the floor instead. Talon stands as if frozen, shocked into silence. I think that was the last thing either of them expected to come from my mouth.
Dev, however, takes charge of the situation, straightening his back as he meets my gaze with hard eyes. "Tell us exactly what happened,” he demands.
I nod and move over to the nearest couch, sitting down with my coffee. Then I relay everything that happened, almost word for word. When I get to the part about Felicia and how she talks about me being the one to make Nikoli happy, Nik goes and grabs a beer from the fridge, downing it in three gulps before pulling out a second. He starts to drink that one as well, but at a more reasonable pace.
When I
finish recounting the conversation, I lean back in the chair to finish drinking my coffee, leaving the guys to their thoughts. I don't know how much time passes in complete silence, but I can't help glancing at each of them as I sit there. When my gaze reaches Nik, his eyes dart up and pierce me with a fierce expression. Some emotion is playing behind his eyes, and all I want to do is climb into his lap and erase whatever it is that is making him hurt so much.
"What are you going to do?" he asks, his voice sounding deeper than normal.
I scrutinize him, trying to figure out why he seems so bothered by this. Does he still have feelings for her? I know the relationship between Talon and Heather was built on lies rather than love, but I never stopped to think about what things had been like between Nik and Felicia.
Britt told me that Nik had been used by her in their relationship but he never actually said as much to me. Was I wrong to assume he was better off with me than he was with her?
But I don't ask any of the questions that are burning in my mind, knowing there's another time and place for such questions.
Instead, I merely shrug and focus on answering his question.
"I have no clue what to do honestly. I'm leaning towards ignoring her offer, but I just thought it was strange as hell she approached me. At first, I thought she was playing some game, but she cried real tears, Nik. I think she was actually being sincere. And if she was, do I not owe it to her to be the bigger person and try to be friends, or at the very least, be polite to her in passing?"
"Friends?" Nik spits out harshly. He forces a laugh and turns to face me with a hard expression.
"Be careful, Emerald. You may think all she wants is friendship, but then it will evolve into something more. She may start just by asking for a small favor, or for you to do something for her, and I guarantee she'll make you feel bad for her until you finally do it out of pity. That's when you're screwed. You won't ever be able to escape her at that point. Trust me, Felicia has perfected the art of crocodile tears, and if they can get her what she wants most, then she'll stop at nothing. Trust me, I know." He slams the empty beer bottle down on the bench, and I watch as it shatters to pieces, shards of glass scattering across the floor. Then he storms off without another word, leaving a mess behind him.
I swing my gaze to Talon and Dev, hoping for some kind of explanation for what Nik just said, but they remain immobile, both with drawn expressions.
I let out a breath of air, feeling exasperated by their lack of information. If they won't tell me, I guess I'll just have to find out for myself.
Shaking my head in irritation, I get to my feet, stepping around the pile of shattered glass to go set my empty cup gently on the counter. As I walk towards the bedroom, I call back over my shoulder. "That mess better be cleaned up by the time I come back out here."
Thirteen – Movie Night
Emerald
I'm standing behind the closed bedroom door, feeling confused beyond belief. Nik is nowhere to be found. Maybe he went to take a shower? I look inside the bathroom, but it’s quiet, and there’s no sign of him having used the shower recently.
I brush my hair out of my face and look at myself in the mirror. How on earth did Nik just disappear? That's when it occurs to me.
That son of a bitch! I stomp from the bathroom in a rage, my hair whipping behind me in my hurry.
I march straight over to his bed, my anger controlling me as I glare down at the thick gray comforter. It’s the only explanation I can think of.
"Nik! I swear to all things holy, if you don't reveal yourself right now, I'm going to start throwing shit around the room until I find you. Then I'm going to strangle you for using your powers to hide from me!" I threaten, waiting with my hands on my hips. His comforter shimmers, and then he appears, plain as day, lying on his bed with his hands behind his head.
I try not let myself show how impressed I am by the use of his powers. I never thought he could make himself completely invisible. I thought it was more like a camouflage kind of effect. That’s a pretty cool ability to have, to be honest.
While I'm busy marveling at his power, Nik is staring up at the ceiling, his eyes conveying a level of sadness which makes all my questions about his power disappear.
I sigh and move around to the side of the bed, taking a seat next to his hip. Leaning against him, I wait until he meets my eyes.
When he does, there's so much pain in their depths that it takes my breath away. "Hey, what's wrong? Please talk to me."
He moves over so I can lie beside him, and rolls onto his side to look at me. I stare back and discover an emotion in his eyes that I wasn't expecting: fear.
He leans forward, pressing his lips to mine, gently at first, but then the kiss becomes filled with desperation. I groan, letting the kiss continue, knowing he needs this closeness right now.
When he pulls away, I reach out and run my hand over his smooth cheek. "You don't have to talk if it bothers you, Nikoli. I'm sorry I tried to push you," I soothe, trying to convey my sincerity.
His eyes, while now filled with lust, still also shine with the fear I saw before the kiss. He sighs heavily. "You don't have to be sorry, Emerald. I'm just worried about you. At the end of the day, I can't tell you who to be friends with. However, I want you to know, if you choose to accept Felicia's offer of forgiveness and become her friend, I don't want any part of it. That's not to say I would leave you, but I won't spend time in the same room with her. I'm sorry if this sounds like an ultimatum; it's honestly not. I just… can't go through this again. I won't let myself be manipulated again."
He takes a deep breath and blows it out, making a strand of hair fall back down in front of my eyes. I push it out of the way as Nik continues. "While her offer seems sincere, and I love that you are the type of person that is kind enough to consider it, even after everything that happened, I just know how she is. She'll become your friend and act all sweet, then she’ll turn around and use everything you tell her against you. She'll start doing things to undermine you or manipulate you. Then she'll flirt with you, and before you know it, you're in a relationship you have no way to escape from," he says with a shudder.
I chuckle at his words. I think he got a little too lost in his thoughts to realize exactly what he said.
"Uh, Nik? Felicia's okay looking, but she's definitely not my type. For one thing, I am one hundred percent interested in men. A certain three to be more specific. It just so happens one of them is lying directly opposite me." I grin over at him teasingly.
He flushes before returning my grin with one of his own. "You know what I meant."
I roll my eyes at him and sigh. "Yes, I know what you meant. And I want you to know, if you don't want me to try to be friends with Felicia, I won't. How you guys feel matters to me. We need to communicate to make this relationship work. We're tied together for the rest of our lives. We can't be selfish. So, I will steer far from Felicia unless we all agree on giving her a second chance. Okay?"
He nods, looking relieved. "You're right. I should have trusted you to make the right decision and talk to us first, rather than just assume you would act in a similar way to how Felicia would. I'm sorry, Emerald. I guess there are still a few issues I need to resolve."
I roll out of the bed and lean down to give him a gentle kiss. "You aren't the only one who has relationship issues, Nikoli. I have them, I'm sure Talon does too, and who knows what issues Dev's hiding? Regardless of the problems we all have, though, there's all the time in the world to build the trust between us and work on all of our issues."
I hold out a hand to help him to his feet. He takes it, sliding across the bed until he's sitting on the edge, directly in front of me. "How did we get so lucky to have such a compassionate soul-tie, who happens to be completely badass as well? I swear, it’s like you were made for us."
I smirk and lower myself onto his lap, relishing the feel of his hands as he grips onto my hips firmly. "I was made for you. I can promise you that," I murmur before press
ing my lips to his gently.
After our lips part, I climb off his lap before things get too heated between us. "Come on, let’s go tell the guys you haven't killed me in a fit of rage."
His face goes immediately blank, and he freezes in his position on the edge of the bed. "Em, you know I'd never hurt you, right?"
I cock my head, feeling confused. He didn't really believe I thought he would actually kill me in a fit of rage, did he? "Of course I know you wouldn't hurt me. Why would you ask that?"
He shakes his head with a soft smile. "Sorry, it doesn't matter. I'm just projecting my issues."
I let the matter go, refusing to let anything else ruin our night. He'll tell me when he's ready, so I won't try to force it anymore. We have all the time in the world to learn about each other. I don't need to know everything all in one go. Besides, it wouldn't leave much mystery in our relationship if I knew every little detail about them within just a month of meeting them. We could have hundreds, maybe thousands of years ahead of us. That's a long time to get to know each other.
Hand in hand, we head out into the main room where Talon and Dev are both on the couch conversing quietly. As we walk past the kitchen, I look around to make sure the shattered glass has been cleaned up. I smile when I notice the floor looks even cleaner than it had before the bottle broke. I guess they took my instructions seriously.
Nik and I take a seat on the sofa opposite Talon and Dev. Once I'm comfortable and all eyes are on me, I start in on my questions. "So? How did the meeting go?"
Dev smiles over at me, but it doesn't quite reach his eyes. "It went fine. Just like we told you it would." He relaxes back into the cushion, throwing his arms up to rest along the back of the couch. "They just wanted to grill us about why we didn't report the rogues and their attack on you. We had to explain that after the attack, we were all so focused on getting you back to the coven to deal with all the drama that none of us really stopped to consider proper procedure for when rogues attacked. As it is, they still have absolutely no idea who the fourth wolf is because he refuses to speak, so they've arranged for him to be sent to another pack. One that's known for getting rogues to talk. Anyhow, we should have more info in about a week, maybe two,” he says with a shrug.
