He nodded, then a smile crept back on his face. “Let’s not talk about him right now. He’s not the reason for the surprise.”
I lifted my brows and gave him a warm smile. “Okay, so what’s this surprise?”
Jacob turned to me and picked my hand up and softly cupped it between his hands. “Well, I’ll be able to talk to you more often. Grandfather has lifted the restrictions my father placed on us against cellphones. He said we were living too far in the dark ages. He also said that I was free to come and visit you any time I wanted, that is, if you decided to return home.” He chuckled.
“Wow—that is a surprise. I was wondering how we were going to work this out—I mean, I guess you could say it’s a long-distance relationship.”
Jacob chuckled, then released my hands. His face was bright with a certain amount of joy I hadn’t seen in him until now. “I thought about that as well. We can text and call one another since I will be getting a cellphone soon. I know all about the technology that’s out there—I mean, we do have the internet here. We can make this work.” He leaned over and gently brushed his fingers against my jawline. “I can make time to even take you out on a date sometime on the weekends.”
A huge smile crossed my lips. “I would like that.”
Jacob leaned closer and then paused. “I would too.” His words cut short as his lips softly grazed against mine.
If there was any one thing that I had learned about myself, it was the fact that I was the aggressor. Eagerly I dived into the kiss, deepening it as my tongue made its way past his lips. My fingers made a trail from his arm to the nape of his neck, where they caressed the smooth skin there. Jacob took a sharp intake of breath as his hand slid around my waist and pulled me closer to him.
I gave into the kiss, wanting more, but before I understood what happened, my mind drifted to that almost-kiss with Kyle. All those feelings I had then flooded my mind. The wanting, the desire—hell, even the lust. I tried to put those thoughts out of my mind. I tried to focus on Jacob and how he made me feel respected, adored, and wanted. I tried to fight those feelings I’d previously had, but it wasn’t working. I stopped and pulled back from the kiss, shaking my head numbly.
Jacob’s brows drew into a frown as a cloud of confusion consumed him. “What’s wrong?”
I shook my head and forced out a soft smile. “Nothing, really.”
Jacob sighed. “Jessie, you’re a terrible liar. How about you learn to trust me for starters, and tell me the truth?”
My gaze drifted down to my lap, then back up to his eyes again. The last thing I ever wanted was to hurt him in any way. I contemplated telling him the truth of what happened, because there was a reasonable explanation for the event. It was a dragon thing, and I didn’t expect him to understand because he wasn’t a full-blooded dragon. For that matter, I didn’t expect either one of my parents were full-blooded. Jacob was bitten. I studied his eyes for a long moment and didn’t see the appeal that Kyle had in his. Jacob’s eyes didn’t glow like ours did at that time. I inhaled a quick breath, and there was no spicy, warm scent to drive me crazy.
“What are you doing?” Jacob asked as he pulled back further from me.
I blushed and chuckled, trying to shake off my embarrassment. I felt Jacob’s heart in my very soul. It was so pure, honest, and so full of love. I looked up into his eyes with the warmest, most genuine smile I could muster. “Everything will be all right. I’m still learning about these new dragon things, and it’s a bit difficult to control.”
“Jessie, I would never lie to you, nor would I ever purposely hurt you.” Jacob’s voice seemed to fade off into another thought for a long moment, as his gaze drifted out among the flowers.
I leaned forward and placed a finger under his chin, turning it toward me. “What are you thinking? I can’t read your thoughts.”
Jacob took my finger, brought it to his mouth, and kissed the tip lightly, then gave me a soft loving smile. “I trust you, Jessie.”
Jacob’s words, although sincere, seemed to cut me deeply. It felt as though I had done something to hurt him, or perhaps his heart. Call it a hunch—a gut feeling, maybe, but I had a feeling that Jacob knew about Kyle. I tried to rationalize my thoughts to include the fact that nothing really happened between us. There was no reason for him to be jealous, or even hurt.
Jacob stood, then held his hand out for me. “Let’s go back inside, shall we? I think the mosquitos are hungry.” He chuckled as he scratched at his arm.
I nodded and chuckled nervously. “You might be right about that.” Even though I didn’t really see any mosquitos, except the little whelp that rose up on Jacob’s arm where he scratched.
Jacob and I walked inside and said our goodbyes for the day. He had training in the evening with Gordon, and I had time to wander around on my own. I had no idea what I wanted to do, so I headed back to my room. Perhaps surf the web, or watch a show online, or something to keep my overactive imagination calm.
Tristan showed up, and that brought some type of relief. His eyes were bright as if he had some big exciting adventure to discuss. But instead of his usual self, he plopped down on my bed, and crossed one leg over the other and stared at me.
“Just what do you think you’re doing?” Tristan lifted his brows as his foot bounced up and down.
I let out a breath. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
He leaned over and waved his right hand at me. “Look, Missy Thang—I already heard about what happened with you and Kyle. Don’t let that happen again.” He shook his head at the same time as his finger.
“Tristan, I’m not getting into some type of warfare with you over Kyle.” I rolled my eyes and looked back at my laptop.
“Oh, honey, this isn’t about Kyle. This is about Jacob—and he does know what happened.” Tristan sounded deep and serious.
My attention suddenly snapped to him. “But nothing happened.”
Tristan shook his head. “Hot and bothered? Nothing happened but that—right? Are you seriously mental?”
“NOTHING HAPPENED!” I growled.
“Okay, now keep that tone to yourself. Don’t make me whip your dragon ass right here, because you know I can. So calm yourself.” Tristan’s gaze narrowed. “Now, what I’m saying is that Jacob realizes that there is some type of attachment between you and Kyle. He figures it’s a dragon thing—I guess because you two are the same kind—or whatever.” He shook his head. “Anyway, he knows there’s an attraction between you too.”
“Oh, no.” I breathed out and stared at Tristan.
He nodded. “Well, lucky for you, Jacob’s not like most guys. He’s stronger than that, Jessie, and he’ll wait for hell to burn out before he gives up on you. He knows you’re the one for him, and nothing will stop that. You might be a bit different because of your Dragon blood, and all of you are a bit animalistic—” He paused and drifted off into some unknown thought.
“Animalistic?” I tried to drag him back into the complete sentence.
“Oh!” Tristan’s attention snapped back to the present time. “Yes, that dragon inside of you and Kyle is a dangerous thing. And it makes sense that dragons would be attracted to other dragons. But damn—”
“Tristan, do you think that Jacob’s decision is based upon his grandfather’s demands?”
Tristan shook his head. “No. It’s all you, Jessie. He really loves everything about you. I’ve never seen him this way before. He’s falling in love with you—very fast and hard.”
“I kind of felt that too, from him, that is.” I sighed.
Tristan’s gaze softened. “You sound like you’re not so sure of this.”
“I do like Jacob, very much. I just feel like this is so—” Immediately I thought about the dragon and then about the Dragon Blood trees—my people. “It’s what the king wants to bring peace between the two clans. So, it’s meant to be.”
Tristan searched my eyes for a long moment as if he were digging deep into my soul for an answe
r that I didn’t give him. “Your heart is to your people, I see this. You’ll make a beautiful queen one day, Jessie. Just give it time, allow him to show you that he loves you. I’ve lived for thousands of years in many different lives. So my knowledge is far beyond my age. Take this how you want, but you’re an old soul too—and eventually, you’ll come to see Jacob as you should.”
I gave him a warm smile. “I know. Thank you, Tristan.”
Tristan smiled, then leaned over and patted my hand. “Now, Kyle, on the other hand—he’s going to be a tough cookie to win over. But I have faith—and plenty of time.” He gave me a wink, and with that, he hopped off my bed and disappeared behind the door.
I shook my head and chuckled softly. There was nothing I could say to Tristan that would change his mind—he was all about Kyle. Whatever reason I had to feel the way I did, Tristan’s interest in Kyle really didn’t bother me. I’m not sure why, maybe it was the fact that Tristan was just so damn loveable. He was so cheery, and when he walked into a room, it just immediately brightened. He was like a light that moths were drawn too, the type of guy that would give you his heart alongside his life. I released a long sigh, and realized Tristan was right—he was my best friend. He not only looked out for me, but Jacob as well. Damn—he did his job well.
It was that night I made a promise to myself, to think of my people first and not myself. If I were to be Queen, then I needed to start acting like one. Right now, I didn’t see myself as royal material, nor did I see myself as a queen. I closed my laptop and stared outside the window, up into the starry night. A certain amount of faith rose up inside my heart. I knew I could handle anything that this life threw at me—I just had to stay focused on what my heart told me to do.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
∆
The weeks had passed by so quickly, I lost count on exactly how many. Those weeks had been absolutely the best summer of my life. Jacob and I spent as much time together as we could—in between my training and taking classes. He had been so sweet and adoring. Each morning he met me with a rose, then escorted me to the Dining Hall where we had breakfast with his family.
One of those mornings would forever burn its mark in my memory. It was after we had all eaten breakfast, and Mia folded her napkin, then placed it neatly on top of her plate. She lifted her gaze to mine, and a soft smile crossed her lips.
Her eyes shifted to Jacob. “Brother, would you mind if I borrowed Jessie for a moment?”
Jacob’s brows lifted as he looked from me to his sister. “If you promise not to keep her long.” He chuckled.
Mia closed her eyes slowly, then nodded as she pushed back from the table and stood. “Jessie, if you please.”
Jacob’s hand crossed mine, then he gave it a gentle squeeze as he smiled. I nodded, then gave him a soft kiss before I stood and followed Mia. She took me out to the garden where we stopped at the cement benches. Gracefully, she sat down and motioned for me to join her.
“I know this is your last day here, and you’d probably prefer to spend the rest of your time with my brother. However, I would like to share with you something—a burden of my heart, actually.” She looked down, then up, as her gaze traveled around the beautiful garden. “You probably got the impression that I haven’t been the nicest person to you.”
“Well, actually, yes. You weren’t very welcoming when I first arrived.” I tucked a strand of hair behind my ear and faced her.
Her semi-hard expression softened as her gaze drifted back to me. “I apologize for that. I wasn’t particularly fond of my brother bringing a stranger into our midst. Especially one who wasn’t in our records of being a Bloodborne—it presents a set of complications I can’t begin to explain.”
“You mentioned sharing something with me?” I softly reminded her.
She chuckled. “Oh, yes. Jessie, when you saved my daughter, that meant so much to me. Like I told you that day, I don’t know what I would have done if something happened to her. She is all I have left of my mate.” She inhaled a deep breath and released it slowly. “There was a huge battle that had taken place, and I had just found out I was pregnant.” Her gaze shifted to the pond and a beautiful waterfall before us. “I had taken him by the hand and led him out here to the garden, where I’d planned to tell him of our good fortune.” Her gaze shifted to me with a bright smile. “It was a day much like this one. A gentle breeze stirred in the cool morning air, as the birds sang wake up songs to their little ones. Even the flowers perfumed the air with their fragrant scents.”
Mia inhaled a deep breath and released it slowly. Her bright smile faded as she continued. “This very spot is where we sat when I took his hands in mine. Just before I could tell him, Gordon bolted through the door and announced there was a breach. Liam, the good warrior he was, begged for my forgiveness that we would have to wait. I, being the good wife I was, hesitantly agreed. We both followed Gordon and loaded up with our weapons to meet these demons head-on. Our team consisted of twelve, including us. I opened a portal through the dimension and arrived right at the spot where they had come through. At least fourteen of them were there, with more still coming. We battled hard against them, but there were so many.” She shook her head and then looked away. “Liam was a good fighter, warrior, and husband.” She looked back at me with tears in her eyes. “One of the best.” Her voice crumbled. She sucked in a quick breath and chuckled softly as she wiped her eye with the outside of her thumb. “He always told me that if anything were to happen to him in the battle for me not to worry, he’d find me again in our next lives. He was much more than just my husband—he was my soul mate.”
After Mia took a long pause to compose herself, she looked back at the water fountain and smiled. “I was busy fighting off two demons when I saw it happen. A fiery-red headed woman stood off to the far end, commanding her demon troops to do battle. Liam knew how to kill her, but it was as though she was some kind of evil witch or something. I watched helplessly as Liam went after her and she summoned a horde of demons at him. He was surrounded, and I couldn’t get there in time. One by one, they took turns cutting him until there was not much left. I got there just before she stood over him with her staff and drove it into his heart. His eyes locked to mine before they closed forever.”
“Mia, I’m so sorry—” I touched her hand as I watched the tears fall from her eyes.
She chuckled softly, then wiped the tears from her face with her palm. “She left after that, like she’d come here just to kill him or something.” She shook her head. “I don’t know. But I do know that Gordon managed to get Liam’s body, and I opened a portal for us to go home. Just as I did, she showed up again. I pushed Gordon through, and before I could make it through safely, she sent one of her hybrid-demon spawns to bite and stab me. Luckily, I fell through and closed the portal behind me before it had a chance to follow.” She turned to look at me again. “I died that day with Liam. My mom was clever enough to know how to save me and my unborn child. Somehow, she survived everything my body went through. She was born Awakened.”
“Wow—that explains why she looks like a little mini-you. I didn’t know that was possible.” My voice softened.
“Neither did we. But she’s the only part of my Liam I have left.”
I frowned and tilted my head to the side as I looked into her face with grave concern. “Mia, you said you’d seen a fiery red-headed woman.”
She nodded. “That’s right, I did. Well, I should say blood red-haired woman. Fiery red doesn’t quite describe her hair.” She paused, then I could clearly see the confusion set in. “Why do you ask?”
I shrugged. “Nothing, I just heard another story about a fiery red-headed woman.”
Mia’s brows lifted. “Oh, the one who was with the dragons that killed Jen’s parents?”
I shook my head. “Actually she didn’t have anything to do with the dragons—they killed her.”
The frown that Mia made on her face told me that she had no idea what happened with that wom
an. After I had given thought to this ginger-haired demon mistress, she seemed to have a hand in a lot of people’s deaths. Perhaps this would be something I’d handle later, because today was my last day at the Sanctuary, and playing Nancy Drew wasn’t what I had in mind.
“Anyway—I wanted you to know that my behavior wasn’t a personal attack against you. I can respect Jacob’s decision in who he chooses. However, I know it will be difficult for him if something were to happen to you.” Mia’s composure shifted, as she took more of a firm tone with me.
“Mia, I believe Jacob is a strong person, and strength does run in your family. Your grandfather, your mother, and you. Don’t you think Jacob could handle anything? I mean, eventually, he’ll be King, and then what? He’ll crumble and let the Kingdom fall because he lost someone he cared for?” I shook my head. “He’s much stronger than that.”
“I hope you’re right, because I don’t see him with anyone else anymore. You make him happy. That does count for something.” She glanced away, then back to me again, only this time she handed me a little black box. “I got you a little something. Consider it a going away gift.”
I looked down at the little black velvet box and shook my head. “Mia, you didn’t have to do this.”
Mia chuckled. “You’re right—I didn’t, but I wanted too.”
I took the box from her—the hinges cawed horribly as I opened the box to reveal a beautiful bracelet. It was a sterling silver dragon wrapped around to form a bracelet. The gem, a red ruby, was its eye. I looked up to Mia in surprise and awe at the same time.
“It’s beautiful. Thank you.” I smiled gratefully.
Mia’s face brightened, then she stood. “Well, I guess this will do until we meet again.” She reached out as I stood and accepted her arms in a loving embrace.
“Next year, probably.” I gave her a tight squeeze.
“I’ll see you soon, then.” Mia pulled back from the hug as I let her go and stepped back.
A gentle little tug on my hand brought my attention down to Mia’s little girl. She looked just like a mini version of her mother. “I’ll miss you too.” Her little arms widened for a hug.
Bloodborne Awakened (Borne of Blood Book 1) Page 18
