“You so didn’t expect that after the way I acted the other day. Sorry, I get kinda weird when I’m talking to dead people. It’s, like, always people who died in some horrendous way. Okay, every once in a while, it’s someone who didn’t die horrifically, but they’re still carrying major dead baggage.”
“Dead baggage?” Trish asked because she wasn’t sure where a conversation like this was supposed to go.
“Sometimes I get crazy ghosts who want me to impart a message to a loved one. They hang around forever, looking for someone who can see them, and then they get all obsessed with me and junk. Even I get a little weirded out by it.”
“I can’t even imagine having to deal with that,” Trish admitted.
Willow shrugged. “It sucks some days, but I’m sure you know how that is. I mean, seriously, you must feel like your head is going to explode when you see the past in overlays. Totally freaky.”
That’s when Trish realized that Willow wasn’t just there to check on her. Willow felt a connection with her. They both had unusual talents, and Willow likely didn’t have anyone to talk to about what she dealt with most of the time.
“Would you like something to drink?” Trish asked and didn’t miss the relief in Willow’s eyes. It was becoming obvious that Willow was a little worried Trish would send her away.
“That would be great!” Willow said and followed her into the kitchen. “This house is nice. It almost makes me want to chill with Uncle Nathaniel.”
Trish laughed. “Nathaniel isn’t as bad as you think. Maybe you should give him a chance. You might end up liking him.”
“Maybe,” Willow said with a noncommittal shrug. “Aiden isn’t as bad as I thought. Don’t tell Tempest I said this, but the Irish accent is kind of sexy.”
“Especially now that he’s got the whole bad boy biker thing going on,” Trish added. When she first met Aiden, he’d been pretty clean cut. Now he had long hair, a goatee, and seriously dressed like a biker.
Willow grinned. “Yeah, he really pulls the look off well. Again, don’t tell Tempest I said any of this. He’s good to Tempest.”
“See? You just need to get to know the Draksel men better.”
“It’s kind of hard for us, me and my sister, Rose,” Willow said. “Our dad died when we were young, and now we have a grandfather we never knew. Roman looks like he could be my brother, so I don’t know how to act when he calls me his granddaughter. The whole thing is just a little too much to take in.”
Trish nodded and then turned to look in the fridge. “They have this extravagant coffee machine I have no idea how to use. There’s also soda, and more juice than any family should ever have.”
“Can I play with the espresso machine?” Willow asked excitedly.
“Sure,” Trish said. “I’m not entirely sure anyone living here knows how to work it.”
“I know how to use it,” Isaiah said from the entryway to the kitchen.
Trish jumped. “Jeez, Isaiah! Why do you always have to sneak up on me?”
He gave her a shy smile and pushed his glasses up on the bridge of his nose. “Sorry,” he said as he made his way to the monstrosity this household called a coffee machine. Opening the cupboard, he gestured to the selection of coffees— some ground and others whole bean. “What kind would you like?”
“You people have more coffee than Peet’s!” Trish said, staring wide-eyed at the selection.
“This is, like, so awesome,” Willow said, carefully selecting the coffee she wanted.
Isaiah started up the machine, but Willow’s attention was at the far end of the kitchen.
“Are you okay?” Trish asked.
“Dead chick over there wants to talk,” she said casually.
Isaiah tensed, and his skin paled.
Willow walked across the room and had a full-fledged conversation with someone Trish couldn’t see. A year ago, Trish would have thought Willow was insane, but she’d become much more accepting of weird stuff in this last year.
Willow looked over at Isaiah and nodded. After a few more quietly spoken words, she headed back across the room.
“That girl has been stalking this place for way too long for something like this,” Willow said.
“What did she want?” Trish asked.
Willow looked at Isaiah. “She wants me to tell you she was dying and to thank you for helping her go in an incredibly cool way.”
Isaiah’s fist closed tightly around the coffee mug he was holding until the ceramic cracked. “That’s not possible.”
“Yeah, it is,” Willow said, grabbing a roll of paper towels. “Dude, you have got to get a grip.” She opened his fist and carefully cleaned out the bits of ceramic before using the paper towel to apply direct pressure. “Seriously, you cannot go breaking things whenever some weird stuff happens. Hello! You’re a vampire, so I am guessing weird is what your life is all about.”
“Should I get Justin?” Trish asked.
He shook his head. “I’m fine, but you don’t know what you’re talking about. I killed her.”
“She didn’t say you didn’t kill her, just that she was cool with it. I mean, I guess her other option was to die from some hideous heart disease. Instead, she says she died having sex with a hot looking nerd. Her words, not mine. You are so not hot to me.”
“Even if what you say is true, what about her family?” he asked without looking up from his bloody hand. “They have a right to know what happened to her.”
Willow shook her head, looking sad. “She was in the foster system since age ten when her grandma died. There wasn’t anyone else. Actually, I guess her dad is still alive, but she doesn’t even remember him. He was in prison most of her life. He was paroled the day you met her. Guy is a serious nut job, and she was terrified he’d find her. That was also the day her boyfriend broke up with her and kicked her out.”
“How do you know all of this?” Isaiah asked, still looking doubtful.
The expression on Willow’s face said she was losing patience with Isaiah. “Didn’t we already cover this?”
Isaiah just nodded. He stood frozen for the longest time, and Trish was afraid to say anything. His sanity was a new found thing, and she wondered if she should call Ivy to help him. Finally, Isaiah let out a shuddering breath.
He looked like he was getting ready to leave when he suddenly turned and wrapped his arms around Willow. “Thank you. I know you aren’t sure about any of us, and you didn’t do this for me, but thank you anyway. This guilt has been killing me.”
Willow was stiff at first, but she ended up hugging him back. “I’m glad I helped you. For what it’s worth, you seem like an okay guy.”
Isaiah released her and smiled. “I intruded on your visit. The coffee should be done soon.”
With that, he walked out of the room.
“I’m not sure if I should let him leave without telling his brother what’s going on,” Trish said. “Isaiah has been having some issues.”
“He’ll be okay,” Willow assured her. “Guilt was causing a lot of his problems. Now he can deal with this in a different way.”
“Thank you,” Trish said, a little teary-eyed. “When we first met, I got the impression you were kind of cold and didn’t care too much about most people, but I was mistaken.”
Willow laughed. “Yeah, most people think that. Trust me, I like it that way, but it’s okay if you see me differently. It’s hard when you have the weird talent in the group, and I get the feeling we’re going to be good friends.”
“I think you’re right,” Trish agreed with a smile. “So, can I ask you something?”
“Go ahead,” Willow said.
“What happened to the airhead speak with all the ‘likes’ thrown in?”
Willow giggled. “I don’t do that all the time. It annoys the heck out of Tempest, which is a huge plus because she can be a bossy control freak. It also throws people off, because I don’t look like a flighty airhead. My sister does it too.”
Tri
sh laughed, a little surprised that she was enjoying her conversation with Willow so much. They talked about books, movies, and how bossy the Draksel men were. Trish hadn’t realized how much she needed to complain about that until they started talking.
“Seriously, I was about ready to scream every time one of them said ‘Trish is off-limits’. Who do those guys think they are?”
Willow snorted. “Yeah, the alpha male thing is really annoying. How can you stand being in a relationship with that Alek guy?”
Trish gave her a naughty smile. “I wouldn’t call it a relationship.”
Willow laughed. “Oh, you slut!”
That’s when Caitlin came into the room looking annoyed and bored, which was how Caitlin normally looked. Her face softened when her eyes fell on Willow. “Justin wants me to thank you for helping Isaiah. He would have come in here himself, but he heard you talking about what an overbearing ass he is.”
“I didn’t do it for Isaiah,” Willow claimed, her lips pressed in a stubborn line. “I did it for the dead girl.”
Caitlin waved off her remark. “Whatever. You helped Isaiah, so my husband is grateful. He doesn’t care what your reasons were.”
“Sorry about insulting your husband,” Willow said.
Caitlin rolled her eyes. “He is an overbearing ass.”
“I don’t know how any of you put up with them,” Willow said. “Trish thinks I should give them a chance since we’re family, but I’m not sure I could handle the macho stuff.”
“They’re trainable,” Caitlin assured.
“Like a dog?” Willow teased.
“Not that trainable,” Caitlin said dryly.
“That is not very nice at all,” Trish admonished Caitlin, struggling to keep her laughter under control.
“Before you start defending the idiots, you should know they’re fascinated with the fact that they used their mind control crap on you before your clairvoyance appeared. Everyone seems convinced that you’ve always had repressed psychic abilities, so they think mind control never should have worked on you.”
Trish’s confusion quickly transformed to anger. “Mind control? They used mind control on me? When did that happen?”
“Hannah’s birthday party. Drew was using it to get you to hook up with him, and then Noah used it to get you away from Drew,” Caitlin explained. “I was pissed when I found out. You have Alek to thank for the fact that they haven’t tried it again as some sort of experiment.”
Trish shook her head. “They are such idiots.”
“No argument from me,” Willow said.
“Me either,” Caitlin added.
“You don’t even know the half of it,” Trish continued, both annoyed and amused. “Drew wasn’t using any sort of compulsion. That was the first time I’d met him, and he was cute, so I was talking to him in the kitchen. Then he got kind of pushy, and it was making me uncomfortable.”
“So, you were flirting with him,” Caitlin said as she caught on to what Trish was saying.
“Huh?” Willow asked in confusion.
“For whatever reason, when I’m nervous around a guy, I giggle, bat my eyes, and wiggle around like a tramp. It’s why I take back up to clubs.”
“And Drew is like an untrained puppy most days,” Caitlin said. “Even the slightest encouragement, and he’s humping your leg.”
“It wasn’t that bad, but he was getting too handsy. I was working on getting out of the kitchen until Noah came in. I had a huge crush on Noah,” Trish explained to Willow. “So, he walked into the kitchen looking almost like he was jealous. That’s what I thought anyway, but it was probably just his protective nature. Anyway, he tells me to come over to him and that I don’t like Drew. I’m thinking he’s interested and getting all breathy and stupid looking because I don’t know how to react.”
Caitlin laughed. “Neither of them used any compulsion on you successfully?”
“I don’t think so,” Trish said, not sure if she’d know if they had. “There were a few times when they were talking funny, and I almost said something, but it seemed rude to point that out.”
“Then what about that time Justin made you cluck like a chicken to prove he was a vampire?” Caitlin asked.
Trish shrugged. “It just seemed easier to play along. You were only arguing with Justin out of habit. He’d proven his point about being a vampire before that.”
“You might play nice, but you are an evil little bitch,” Caitlin muttered.
Willow’s lips curled into a wicked grin. “You should let them do their experiment. It would be hilarious if you played them.”
“Alek will never let it happen,” Caitlin said. “He’s adamant about protecting Trish from any mind control.”
“Alek has no say in my life,” Trish insisted. “We should do this. It would be really funny.”
“Then we’d better do it before Nathaniel gets back,” Caitlin said thoughtfully. “He’d probably be more pissed about them trying this stuff on you than Alek. Isaiah won’t go for it, either, because he thinks it’s wrong to control people’s minds when you can avoid it.”
“So, we can only mess with Justin, Noah, and Aiden?” Trish asked.
“And Drew,” Caitlin said, but then added, “Scratch that. The other boys won’t play with him.”
Trish shook her head. “Plus, Drew’s feelings would be hurt.”
“Please tell me you did not just say you’re worried about hurting Drew’s feelings,” Caitlin said.
“He’s not that bad,” Trish insisted.
“Since when?” Caitlin asked.
“Since always,” Trish said. “I’ve already had this argument with Alek. I’m not about to have it with you too.”
“Ooookay,” Caitlin said, giving Trish a look that said she thought Trish was crazy.
“So what should we do?” Willow asked.
Caitlin grinned. “I’m sure we’ll come up with something once everyone gets here.”
Chapter Thirty
Trish had worried they wouldn’t be able to get all the guys to the house, but Caitlin had taken care of everything with two phone calls— one to Tempest and the other to Hannah. Tempest and Aiden were getting ready to head to Nathaniel’s house, where they planned to stay until after the babies were born. Tempest loved the idea of messing with Aiden and didn’t seem to care if there was a good reason or not. Getting Hannah on board with the plan was much harder because she didn’t like tricking Noah, but Caitlin could be very persuasive.
The guys were in one of the sitting rooms bonding. All except Isaiah, who was out breaking into the main offices of a company whose name he had refused to divulge. Trish thought it was kind of crazy that people paid Isaiah to break into their own companies— crazy and really cool at the same time.
“We have no plan,” Trish pointed out. “Shouldn’t we have come up with a plan before the guys came over here? While they’re getting along now, one of them is bound to say something stupid soon.”
Tempest was leaning back in a chair, looking like she was trying to hide a watermelon under her shirt. She kept pushing her nearly shoulder-length blonde hair behind her ears. It had been cut in a short bob several months back, but Tempest seemed to make it in for a haircut about as often as Isaiah. “Aiden is getting on my last nerve, so, hopefully, he’ll be distracted for hours. Every time I so much as shift my weight, he’s asking if I’m having a contraction.”
“You are, like, totally ready to have those babies,” Willow blurted. With Tempest in the room, Trish’s reprieve from Willow’s bimbo speak was over.
“Lydia is going to be really mad that we didn’t invite her over for this,” Hannah stated as she nursed Hope.
“Lydia would have brought Roman,” Trish said.
“He would not have reacted well to this at all,” Caitlin added.
“True,” Hannah said. “While he’s loosened up a lot since he’s been with Lyd, he’s still kind of uptight in a scary sort of way.”
“I would say
it’s sweet that he’s protective of me, but it’s not,” Trish continued. “The men in this family make me want to change my name and move to a new city some days.”
“Wouldn’t do any good,” Caitlin said.
“She’s right,” Tempest agreed. “Isaiah would find you before you even unpacked your first box. That is, if they didn’t send Aiden after you first.”
“Why me?” Trish asked.
“It’s probably because you’re totally nice all the time,” Willow said. “Them being all protective and junk is cute, in a creepy stalker kind of way.”
“I’m not sure creepy stalkers can be cute,” Trish said. “Although, I guess they’re cute to Caitlin since she married her creepy stalker.”
“Dying has certainly brought out your bitchy side,” Caitlin said with a disdainful stare.
“I was going to say it brought out her sassy side,” Tempest piped in and then groaned and clutched her belly.
Caitlin rushed to Tempest’s side. “Are you okay? Is it time? I can get Helena back here and call in the rest of the OR team while Justin gets you prepped.”
“Calm down,” Tempest said. “It’s just Braxton Hicks contractions. I’ve been having them for a couple of weeks. You were there for my last ultrasound, so you already know I’m not going into labor this week.”
Caitlin put one hand on her hip, giving Tempest a disapproving frown. “That is not what Justin said. He said you are not likely to go into labor before your c-section next week but to take it easy.”
“I am taking it easy,” Tempest said. “Don’t forget, I’m a doctor with experience delivering babies. I know what labor looks like.”
Willow snorted. “You are such a liar. The closest you’ve come to delivering a baby was helping our aunt in the delivery room, and you tried to get out of it.”
Tempest glared at Willow. “If you don’t stop telling them all my business, I will sit on you.”
They were all startled when a masculine throat cleared near the entrance of the room. “Don’t worry, ladies, I won’t be here long,” Alek said and made his way over to Trish.
Wanton With a Vampire Page 14
