by Chrissy Jaye
“We’re definitely going shopping?” I asked as we headed downstairs, fingering the hem of my sleeves.
“Yes. Afterward. Lucien is going to insist on it,” she replied.
“Is he gay?” I asked. I was starting to get the impression he might be, by the way Brooke seemed to mention him when it came to fashion and whatnot.
She laughed and shook her head. “Definitely not.”
Well okay then. He was just weird. Like everyone else, apparently.
We headed toward the kitchen. Vian sat at the bar, his head tucked down over a steaming cup of coffee. I settled into the seat beside him and regarded him with a look.
“I can practically feel you judging me from here,” he muttered into his cup.
“I just don’t understand the obsession,” I said simply, eyeing the mug of black coffee he seemed to be inhaling instead of drinking, as if the fumes alone where fuel.
He groaned and turned a blearily eye in my direction. “Don’t start. I’m not awake yet.”
“And what would Princess like to drink with her breakfast?” Kieran asked, coming up behind me. His large hand pressed against the small of my back and I shifted in my seat, trying to dislodge it. Instead, he shifted his hand to rest against my hip and ran his thumb over it. My entire body came alive, thrumming with excitement, something I was not even close to being ready to acknowledge.
“This,” I said, motioning toward his hand on me, “is how you go from being ‘Asshole’s Twin’ to ‘Other Asshole,” I said, pushing his hand away. He grimaced as I turned to face him. Brooke could talk all day about how touching was perfectly normal. Didn’t mean I had to go along with it just because they wanted that. “And please don’t call me Princess.” His palms came up as he backed away. I turned and looked at the others in the kitchen. “That goes for everyone else. Ask first,” I finished sweetly.
Lucien breezed by us, throwing Brooke a dirty look and rounded the counter, heading toward the stove. She snorted a laugh at him as he pulled the oven open and waved an arm. I could hear him muttering under his breath about pillows and messing up his hair as a tray of muffins floated out, making me lose my train of thought.
“So weird,” I mumbled, all my previous irritation gone in the blink of an eye.
“You’ll get used to it,” Vian replied, following my line of sight. “Though most of us don’t really use it for mundane shit. He’s just showing off.”
“Him muttering under his breath?” I asked, not really having listened to the rest of what he said. I was focused on the way Lucien moved around the kitchen. Graceful and light on his feet.
“Earth to Olive?” Vian said, waving a hand in front of my face. I jerked and stared in his direction. Vian’s line of sight shifted to the right over my shoulder. I turned, realizing I’d forgotten about Kieran and raised an eyebrow at him because he was staring at me.
“What?” I asked, bewildered by his expression. He looked so perplexed and lost. Something told me I’d put the look there.
His mouth opened and closed for a second before he gathered himself. “I was wondering if you’d mind…that is…”
“Just spit it out, Kier,” Brooke said. She’d sat on the other side of my brother but was now leaning around him with an exasperated look.
“Your hip is still bruised. I’d rather you didn’t go to the council with injuries. It would look bad for us. Can I heal it?” he asked.
I thought about it for a second. “Do I have to take my clothes off for that? Because the answer would be no.”
“It would work better if we had direct contact with the injury, but not necessary,” he replied. For a moment, his eyes hooded. I knew what that look meant and it was so not going to happen. He was cute and all, but this was not only not the time, it was certainly not the place for me to toss my virginity out the window.
“It doesn’t hurt,” Brooke interjected. “The healing. If that’s what you were worried about.”
“Fine,” I said, giving him a long look. “Just no funny business like before.” I pointed a finger at him, showing him I meant business, but I forced myself to smile to soften the reprimand. He visibly relaxed, not at all bothered by my threat.
I turned in my seat as Kieran brought a hand up and placed it on the back of my neck. It brought his body almost flush with mine. Close enough that I had to spread my knees so I didn’t hit him in the dick.
No. No thinking about dicks, I chided myself. No matter how yummy said owner of the dick was. He smelled like cedar and something flowery. It was similar, yet different from Flynn. For fuck’s sake. Now I was thinking about Flynn with his brother between my thighs.
“Did she just say something about dicks,” Lucien asked.
I went to jerk away from Kieran, but he pulled me in tighter and my neck grew cool under his palm, almost to the point that it stung. I sucked in a breath, and with it his scent. It seriously made my insides flutter. My head leaned forward to rest on his chest without me even thinking about. Something foreign coiled around me, bringing goosebumps to my skin before it rippled inward. I groaned as my hip flared up with heat. It burned in a flash and then soothed away. I shivered as the sensation ebbed.
“All done,” he said softly into my hair. He let go of me slowly, making sure I was upright before stepping back. I stared up at him in a daze before my brain reconnected with the rest of me.
I let out a shuddering breath. “I…”
He smiled. “Just an after effect. It’ll pass in a second.”
I nodded as something thudded onto the counter behind me. I turned slowly and blinked at a cup of coffee, heavy with cream, and a blueberry muffin.
“Eat up,” Lucien said with a wide knowing grin.
“This sucks,” I whispered under my breath as I tentatively poked my hip to see if it was still bruised. He smiled even wider, flashing me all of his teeth.
“Just eat, Beautiful,” he said with a chuckle.
Chapter 9
The sun beat down on us as everyone piled into a single SUV. I wondered briefly why there were two but decided to file that question away for another time.
I leaned into my twin who sat next to the window in the middle row beside me. “How come there aren’t any adults living with us?”
He smirked. “Entwined are considered adults at fourteen but have to wait to start living with their circle till they are sixteen,” he answered. “Flynn and Kieran’s parents live just down the road from us though.”
“Oh,” I said, surprised.
“Not to mention, we’re technically all adults now. Time to start thinking like one,” he said briskly.
“Is that a dig?” I asked, slightly put out.
“No,” he answered with a sigh. “Not at you.” He nodded toward the front passenger seat where Flynn sat watching us.
Seriously? Why was he watching me again? Didn’t he have better things to do? I wasn’t going to rise to the bait. This time. I hoped...
The SUV started moving, with Kieran in the driver’s seat. I glanced back at the house, finally getting my first look at it from the outside. Just as I had thought, it was a large house. What I hadn’t expected was how quaint it looked. The bottom floor was made of stone but had stripped wooden siding about halfway up the wall where the windows started. It seemed that the porch only wrapped around one side, disappearing toward the back. The stripped siding continued up to the second story and then a third. I silently vowed to explore the rest of the house soon. I wouldn’t be surprised if there was a basement. I knew there was a backyard, but I’d only gotten a glimpse of it through the sliding glass door last night at dinner.
The place disappeared as we headed down the dirt road, the sunlight suddenly blocked out by the thick canopy overhead. The woods were thick and stunning. We drove for a few miles as I stared out my brother’s window, I tuned out the chatter of the others as we went. Every now and then, the road forked, and I caught sight of other cottages through the trees. Most didn’t look nearly as large
as ours, but I couldn’t say for sure.
“I’m surprised you haven’t tried to head out into all this yet,” Vian said, leaning into my side.
I glanced at him and shrugged. “Where would I go?” I loved the outdoors, something that Vian knew all too well. But it was also dangerous to go out into unfamiliar woods by yourself. “I’d probably get lost.”
Flynn let out a derisive laugh. “I’d rather not have to form a search party for our resident princess.”
Vian cut a glare in his direction. “Our dad taught us how to read the land. We used to go on weekend orienteering trips. She’s actually pretty good at woodcraft. We used to spend hours outside as kids. She never gets lost.” My heart swelled at my brother’s praise, even if it was a bit of an exaggeration. I hadn’t been orienteering since before our parents died and that was a long time ago.
“Well, she shouldn’t go out by herself just now,” Brooke piped up behind us.
“No one’s saying she should,” Kieran said from the driver’s seat. “But we should make an effort to do things she likes. Besides, Flynn and I spend a lot of time in the woods. There’s nothing dangerous around here.”
“I’d be down to do some hiking,” Lucien murmured, drawing my attention to him on my other side.
“You?” I asked, a bit astounded. “You don’t seem the type who likes to get sweaty.”
He tilted his head toward me and lowered his voice so only I could hear. “I love to get sweaty.” His brown eyes dug into mine with a smirk that told me he wasn’t talking about a hike in the woods. I looked away quickly.
“Jesus, Luc. Why don’t you just throw her down and rip her clothes off already?” Liam quipped behind us. Several people chuckled, making me wish I could melt into the seat and pretend I didn’t exist.
“There’s a fine line between flirting and being a pig,” Lucien snapped over his shoulder. Then to me, “Sorry, I didn’t mean to embarrass you.”
“It’s fine,” I said quietly, unable to meet his eyes. Was it fine? No. Okay, maybe a little bit, but also no. Just no.
“Livvy,” Kieran called, grabbing my attention just as the SUV filled with sunlight. Out the front window, I could see a valley spreading out before us. We rolled down a hill that overlooked a small town, connected by a few paved roads. At the center of it all was a gothic monstrosity that looked like one of those abandoned hospitals from a horror flick.
“What is that?” I asked.
“Well, that’s the town, but I assume you mean the building at the center,” Lucien said next to me. I’d largely been ignoring how close he sat to me after his earlier comment but once my attention shifted to him, I caught his scent and leaned in. It was a cross between citrus and cotton. An odd combination, but I liked it. It was better than Vian who I swear had bathed in his cologne this morning. I was going to have a come-to-Jesus talk with him about it soon. Sure, it was comforting because I associated it with him, but damn son, he didn’t need to use the whole fucking bottle.
“Yeah, I’m not going in that. Not happening. Just the sight of it makes my skin crawl.” It really did too.
“Not an option,” Flynn remarked, throwing a wolfish smile at me from the front seat.
Bristling with irritation, I closed my eyes and willed myself to calm down. “You can’t force me,” I tried to reason.
He snorted a laugh and turned back around to point at it through the window. “That’s where the council is. Pretty much every job associated with our kind happens in that building. It’s not as creepy as it seems. I promise.”
I shook my head even though he couldn’t see me and changed the subject. Avoidance. Always the best option. “Where is this town anyway?”
“An island just off the coast of Oregon called Vol. It’s hidden though,” Ben said behind me. “It’s actually rather large, but completely cloaked to any kind of radar detection and there’s some Arts in place that keep it that way.”
“That’s not weird at all,” I whispered. Lucien chuckled beside me. His shoulder brushed against mine as he covered his mouth to hide a smile. A small grin bloomed on my face, unbidden but his reaction was sort of infectious.
Ben continued as if he hadn’t heard us. Maybe he hadn’t, but it only made Lucien struggle not to laugh more. “There’s also a specific Art that has to be used every day to keep the place clear of military drones. I have a book—”
His voice cut off as a hand reached over the back of the seat and hit Lucien in the back of the head. I burst out laughing as Brooke’s hand disappeared and she said something quietly to her twin in the backseat. I twisted in my seat to get a look at her. She glared at the back of Lucien’s head while Ben sat beside her blushing furiously. It sobered me up quick.
I mouthed an apology to them. Brooke gave me a small tight smile in acknowledgement, but Ben just ducked his head.
Shit. I got the feeling that it happened a lot. It made sense that he tended to be quiet. I wouldn’t talk much either if people made fun of me for being passionate about something. And it was obvious that Ben was passionate about this stuff. I didn’t really want to get involved in their drama, but I also didn’t want to add to it.
We pulled to a stop in front of the monstrosity and it immediately called for my attention. Everyone started to pile out of the car, but I sat frozen in my seat as I stared at the building up close.
The creep factor had ramped up from a five to an eleven. Overtly, it wasn’t that bad. Just a huge structure that looked completely out of place. There were at least four stories, all with beautiful sweeping lines that I could appreciate. There weren’t any broken windows and the gray stonework was actually sort of nice, but something about it didn’t sit right with me at all.
“You coming, Olive?” Vian asked. He held his hand out to me to help me out of the back, but I still couldn’t move. Someone brushed up against my other side and I jumped, but when I turned my head, the door was closed, and Lucien wasn’t in his seat anymore. My twin reached into the car and took my hand, grabbing my attention. “What’s wrong?”
“I don’t know,” I answered honestly.
“What’s the problem?” Flynn barked, coming up behind my brother. I looked at him for a second before my gaze slipped past him to the building they wanted me to enter. I shook my head. I was being stupid. It was just a building. Nothing creepy. Just old.
I slid across the seat and accepted Vian’s help getting down. Sometimes, being short really sucked. Like climbing into SUVs with high seats. Flynn shut the door as my twin tucked me into his side and moved toward the front of the car. I felt Flynn’s eyes on me, assessing as we moved but I didn’t look back. My gaze kept going back to the building before I would realize it and I’d try to focus on something else.
“She’s as white as a sheet,” Liam said with concern. He moved toward us and cupped one of my cheeks.
Normally I would have swatted him away, but I couldn’t stop looking at the damn building. The urge to run, to move away from it grew inside me. I shuddered, realizing what was happening.
“We can’t go in there,” I found myself pleading. “Something is going to happen if we do.” My hands trembled as I stood there facing it.
“Shit,” Flynn muttered, brushing Liam aside. Flynn clutched at my forearms. Cedar and cloves wrapped around me as he stepped into my personal space. He glanced down. A small smile formed on his lips, but he erased it with a shake of his head. “Kier, she needs a boost.”
He pulled me around to the other side of the hood and spun me away from the building before grasping at my waist and lifting me to sit on it. Kieran placed his hand on the back of my neck before that crisp sting took hold and I sighed into it.
I immediately started to feel better. A few seconds later and I was warm all over and his hand dropped from my neck to my back.
“That’s incredible,” Flynn said to himself. I had no idea what he meant.
“Hey guys,” Ben yelled. We all turned to see him at the top of the steps holding
something in his hand. Brooke was halfway up the steps behind him.
A strange mix of fear and rage swept over me at the sight of them there. I roughly shoved Flynn backward. I was surprised to see him stumble back, but I didn’t pause as I hopped off the hood and marched toward them. When someone moved to follow, I rounded on my feet, glaring as the others trailing behind me.
“No,” I said firmly. Octavian pulled to a stop that halted everyone else. I turned again and stomped up the steps toward Brooke. Did I barely know these people? Yes. Did that matter in this moment? Not even a little. When I reached her, I grabbed her by both shoulders shaking her. “You don’t ever do that again. Ever! When I say we can’t do something, I fucking mean it!” I was shouting, beyond angry and terrified. My whole body vibrated with the warring emotions. I pulled her into a rough hug before pushing back and away. She opened her mouth to say something.
I brushed by her and glared daggers at Ben. He stared at me, confusion clear on his face. In his hand, he held a small bone that looked like it had a bundle of dried flowers tied to it with a silver ribbon. I had no idea where he’d found it, and I didn’t care. I was in front of him within seconds.
Reaching up, I snagged his ear, pulling him down so his eyes were just inches from mine.
“Ow, fuck!” he cried out.
“Shut it, you idiot. The same goes for you.” Without letting go of his ear, I dragged him down the steps. “Never again will you ignore me when I say something is wrong. I’ve lost too many fucking people and sacrificed enough of myself to this stupid power or whatever you people call it.” When we reached the bottom, I let him go and rounded to face him. “Do you understand me?”
