When the Dead Come Home

by B. L. Brunnemer

  I got it. I really did. But at the same time, I missed my Miles. “So, she’s not leaving.”

  “No, not as long as she’s teaching me,” he admitted. “She’s doing me an enormous favor, the least I could do is let her live with me a while longer.”

  My chest ached a deep, throbbing pain. Fuck it. “Is that really the reason? Or do you not want her to leave?”

  He grew still, his face blank. “What does she have to do with this?”

  I eyed him. Then shook my head as weariness washed over me. I rubbed my hand down my face as I realized tonight wasn’t a good night. I finally had Miles’ real attention, and I was too fucking exhausted to find out what was going on. “You know what, I’m just really tired. I think I’m just going to try to get some sleep.”

  He blinked at me. “Alright.” He got to his feet and leaned over me to kiss my temple. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  “Night,” I barely managed as he closed the door behind him. I waited until the front door closed before I threw my book to the floor and shut off my lamp, almost breaking it. I curled up around Hades and tried to sleep. Fuck the Veil. Tonight, I was going to get some sleep.

  * * *

  I shifted and rolled over in my bed. Again. I couldn’t fall asleep. I checked my clock. It was almost midnight. Great. Every time I closed my eyes I went back to the janitor’s closet with Ethan. Only this time we weren’t interrupted.

  What would Ethan be like? He’d always pulled my hair whenever we were really kissing. Would there be more pinches like the one to my nipple? I chewed the bottom corner of my lower lip as I wondered if there was something wrong with me. I wasn’t naive, I’d heard of pain being used during sex. I just never thought I’d like it. And I really had.

  What else would he have done? I shifted to my back and looked up at the ceiling. The ache in my body had me saying fuck it. I rolled back over and opened my middle drawer just as my phone vibrated. I smiled. It was Ethan.

  “Hey.” My voice was soft.

  “A month.” Ethan’s voice was irritated.

  “What?” I picked up my small, silent vibrator and lay back down.

  “I’ve held back for a month,” he said. “You’re my girlfriend and I shouldn’t even be touching you until we know what I am.”

  “So, today was an accident?” I grinned, everything else fading into the background.

  He chuckled. “I don’t want to hold back with you, Lexie. I’m not shy about anything.”

  Heat rolled through me, making me take a deep breath. “Then just be you.”

  “I want nothing more than to bury myself inside you right now,” he whispered in his smoky, toe-curling voice.

  I closed my eyes as that voice rolled over me. Throbbing began between my legs making me want to move. “Fuck, Ethan.”

  “I told ya.” He exhaled hard.

  I smiled my wicked grin. “Keep talking.”

  He caught his breath. “You’re okay with phone sex?”

  My heart raced as excitement bubbled along my skin. “I’ve never done it before, but as long as we’re not overheard…”

  “Fuck…” He groaned. “Beautiful, I want to slip my hand into your panties and run my fingers over you.”

  My head dropped back as I hit the button for my vibrator then slipped my hand under my underwear and between my legs.

  He inhaled in surprise. “Is that a vibrator?”

  “Uh-huh.”

  “Are you already wet for me?” he asked, that voice running down my spine like fingers.

  My fingers slipped through my folds. “Fuck yeah.” I stroked myself with my toy. “My fingers slowly run down your chest. Down your stomach to brush against you.”

  “Imagine my tongue, running across you,” he countered.

  I pressed my vibrator exactly where I wanted it. Sparks shot up and down my nerves as my hips moved against my hand.

  “My hot breath blowing across the inside of your thigh while my hands grip your thighs tightly, keeping you where I want you,” he whispered. “My tongue playing with your clit. Stroking it slowly.”

  “Oh, shit.” My body coiled tighter.

  “My fingers slip inside you while I continue to stroke you, enjoying the taste of you on my tongue.”

  My body trembled as I imagined him between my legs, those chocolate eyes looking up at me. I moved my vibrator over. “Snoopy…”

  “My fingers slide out slowly, then back in as my tongue strokes your clit.” The last whisper of that soft, smoky voice threw me over the edge. I barely remembered to push my face into my pillows as I blew apart. I cried out into the pillow, my entire body shaking as waves of pleasure crashed over me. A low, guttural groan filled my ear as I continued to spasm. My core clenched and unclenched, achingly empty as I took several deep, shaky breaths.

  When I could, I wet my lips. “That fucking voice of yours…”

  He chuckled softly in my ear making me shiver again. “You should hear yours when you’re close.”

  I turned off my vibrator. “Oh yeah?”

  “Your voice got husky and soft,” he whispered. “And the sounds you made when you came? Fuck. I didn’t stand a chance.”

  I smiled as I looked up at the ceiling. “You finished, huh?”

  “Fuck yeah.” Satisfaction practically purred from his voice. “Now, if only I could make that your ring tone.”

  “Don’t you fucking dare.” I smiled a big smile as my face burned.

  He chuckled softly. “I won’t, promise.”

  I started to relax into my bed. “So, you’ve been holding back?”

  “Yeah, well, I hadn’t told you about the whole not human thing yet. And I figured no dates also meant…”

  “No phone sex.” It made sense.

  “Beautiful, you know I like touching and being touched,” he sighed. “I barely thought twice about calling you for phone sex.”

  “Are you asking me if you being as physical as you like to be is going to be too much for me?”

  “Yeah, not a lot of girls are that open about this stuff.” He shifted on his side of the phone. “And, well, I didn’t know how you felt about a little pain.”

  I licked my suddenly dry lips.

  “No one’s ever done that before. Right?” Ethan’s voice had me relaxing against my mattress.

  “Done what?” I knew what he was talking about, but I had to be sure.

  “Pulling your hair. Gripping you a little too hard,” he said without embarrassment.

  My face burned. “No. Never before.”

  “And did you like it?” he asked softly, that smoky voice rolling over me.

  “Yeah.” I couldn’t help it, I looked up at the ceiling. “It’s… confusing.”

  “What’s so confusing about it? You liked it, what’s wrong with that?”

  I had nothing to be embarrassed about. It was time to tell him. “It’s confusing because of what happened at the cabin in January.” I swallowed hard. “Ordin grabbed my chest and between my legs really hard. It hurt.”

  The line was silent for several heartbeats.

  “But you like when I pull your hair and squeeze a little too hard.” Understanding filled his voice. “I can see how that would make it confusing as hell.”

  “I know it’s not the same, but…”

  “It weirds you out a little?” he asked softly.

  I lowered my voice. “Yeah.”

  He sighed. “It’s not just you. I went through the same thing when I finally realized what I like.”

  “What do you like?” The question slipped out before I knew it.

  “I realized a year ago I was a bit more intense than most people.” His voice grew even softer. “My girlfriend at the time said I scared her sometimes.”

  “How?”

  “I was more rough than she liked, I guess. She didn’t like when I’d pull her hair or bite her lip,” he sighed. “We broke up and I’ve been doing research since.”

  “Did you pull Faith’s hair?�
�� It slipped out.

  “No way. I didn’t… I kept that part of myself hidden from her,” he huffed. “I know it’s normal, I guess a part of me just doesn’t believe it yet.”

  “Do you feel like a freak too?” I whispered.

  “A little. The point is, there’s nothing wrong with you if you liked it from me. I’d never…” He struggled to find the words.

  My fingers fidgeted against my stomach. “I know you’d never really hurt me. And maybe that’s why I did like it.”

  “That might be part of it.”

  “I just…” I tried to figure out how to say what I was thinking. “It makes me nervous and a little confused.”

  “Same here. I want you to know that if you don’t want to explore it, that’s okay. If you do, I’m here.”

  I chewed on the corner of my bottom lip. “You’d be okay if I said I never wanted you to do that again?”

  “Yeah,” he said softly. “I’m not going to push for you to do something you don’t want to do, especially not when it comes to sex.”

  I smiled as the tension left my shoulders. Was it something I wanted to explore? Maybe. With him. “Let’s take things one step at a time.”

  “Well, we really shouldn’t,” he muttered. “We still don’t know what I am and if I could hurt you like Asher can.”

  I grinned. “Your phone survived.”

  “It did.” His voice grew warmer.

  “So, we could do this again.” I smiled my biggest smile.

  “If you like.” The warmth in his voice told me he was smiling too.

  “Next time, I get to do the talking.”

  He chuckled. “Deal.”

  Chapter 7

  Tuesday

  I watched the wild cornflower bloom in seconds. Smiling, I took a good look around the Veil. It was a completely different place. The grass and flowers were so thick that there were places you couldn’t walk through. The burnt stumps were gone, replaced with towering trees. Pine, birch, ponderosa… You name it and it was here. The entire Veil was a canvas of color. Alive and thriving.

  Except around the pit. That was still a barren stone ring. It didn’t bother me so much anymore.

  I made my way through the thicket to the very edge of the Veil. The first time I came the walls had been covered in a dark-gray sludgy smoke. Now… I smiled again. Only bigger. The smoke was almost completely gone, the opaqueness giving way to a translucent shimmer. The stars that surrounded the Veil peeked at me through the thin barrier. As I watched, something moved on the other side.

  I stepped back.

  The light came toward me.

  I moved further back, dropping into a defensive stance.

  The wispy figure of a girl came into focus as she continued straight toward me. She stopped at the boundary, hesitating only a moment before she pressed against the other side and slipped through. My heart slammed. First her hand, then her foot. A second later she was in the Veil.

  Holy shit! The alarm didn’t go off. I looked up at the large vine-covered foghorn. It sat silent. I turned back to find her beaming at me.

  “Hey, I know you,” I said, stunned.

  “I’m Courtney, remember? You yelled at me for peeking on one of your boys in the shower,” she chirped happily with a big smile.

  My mouth fell open. “How… how did you get here?”

  She shrugged. “I don’t know, I was at this gay bar watching a couple hook up in the bathroom when this light just popped up.”

  “And you just followed it?” Is that how this worked?

  “Well, when I looked at it, it…” She smiled. “It felt like home.”

  I looked up at the Veil wall, not daring to believe it.

  A gold ball began to fall from the Way to us.

  She eyed me. “So, did you ever pick a guy?”

  I shook my head. “No, I’m dating all of them.”

  She giggled. “Good. They were all crazy about you even back then. Anyone dead or alive could see that.”

  A gold door formed a few feet away.

  “You know, people are going to think it’s wrong,” she said, drawing my attention away from the door. “They’ll try to make you fit in a box.”

  “Fuck ’em,” I answered without thought as the door opened.

  “It’s kinda fun being wrong, isn’t it?” She smirked as she walked backward toward the door.

  The door opened showing a large group of rather hot and sexy guys running around in swim trunks. Well. Some. The others were… without. A couple were even kissing.

  “You only live once! Go live your life and enjoy those boys while you can!” She sent me a cocky grin then ran through the door. Everyone greeted her enthusiastically. The door closed behind her.

  I stood there, my mouth hanging open for several minutes. What the hell did I just see?

  * * *

  I pulled myself out of the Veil, bubbling with energy. I opened my eyes and found myself alone. For the first time in almost a year, there wasn’t a huge group waiting for me in the cemetery demanding that I move them all on now. The Veil was open.

  Almost giddy, I ran to my Blazer and jumped in. A set of books I didn’t recognize were in the passenger seat. I stopped and searched the area through the windows. No one was around. Someone had to have left them while I was in the Veil. Okay, first things first. The Veil was open!

  I tore out of the cemetery and hauled ass to Miles’ house. Miles had sent out a text early this morning for a family meeting before school. I hadn’t asked questions at five in the morning.

  I pulled into the gravel drive and jumped out. When I ran into the house, I didn’t slow down. “Guys!”

  Zeke was the first one I saw on his way out of the kitchen, his face drawn. I jumped. He caught me against his hard chest with his arm under my legs and held me off the ground. I grabbed his face and kissed him, thrumming with happiness. His lips were stiff for barely half a heartbeat before he relaxed, his scruff scraping against my cheeks. A heartbeat later, he stiffened again and pulled back.

  He scowled up at me. “What the hell, Lexie?”

  I ignored his annoyance and smiled a huge smile. “The Veil is open.”

  His scowl disappeared. “What?”

  “It’s open! The dead can cross on their own now!” I practically screamed in his face.

  “You’re sure?” he demanded.

  I snorted. “Yeah. I came back from the Veil and found the cemetery empty. Empty!” I kicked my legs happily.

  Relief filled his face as his hand held the back of my neck and brought my lips back down to his. I slipped my arms around his neck and sank into the heat of him.

  “We’re standing right here,” Isaac announced.

  I gave Zeke one last kiss on the cheek then pulled back to find the others in the hall too. “Oops.”

  Zeke chuckled softly as he put my feet on the ground.

  Miles sighed. “That’s one less thing to worry about at least.”

  My smile began to fade. Zeke let go of me.

  “This is huge!” Isaac came toward me with that enormous smile. He swept me up in his arms and held me tight. I kissed his cheek so he wouldn’t feel left out.

  “Yeah, don’t take that smile away,” Ethan added as he wrapped his arms around me and his brother. He squeezed us and kissed my forehead. The twins began to jump up and down, taking me with them.

  I couldn’t breathe by the time Asher came out of the kitchen in his school clothes.

  His relaxed smile let me know that he heard.

  The twins let me go and stepped away.

  Asher pulled me close. My fingers curled in his shirt without thought. I took a deep breath of vanilla. He must not have had breakfast yet.

  Miles cleared his throat. “You’re right, it is huge. But we do have other things to worry about. And we are all in the hallway at the moment.”

  I pulled back from Asher and turned to Miles. Where the hell was my Miles? My sweet nerd? But before I could say anything, my bedr
oom door opened.

  “What’s going on?” Lucy stepped into the hallway from my bedroom. Or her room, for now. Lucy closed her pale pink robe as she joined us. The alchemist was around our age. Her long, straight brown hair was mussed from sleep. Her round face was pretty with her pert nose and large, light blue eyes.

  I hesitated.

  “Lexie got the Veil open,” Miles announced for me.

  I bit back a pang of irritation.

  Lucy practically glowed at Miles. “That’s great. That’ll lower the threat from Jadis.”

  Asher squeezed my shoulder. “Breakfast is done, come on. Let’s get this meeting on its way.”

  “Oh, food. Thank God.” Lucy groaned as she headed for the kitchen.

  I stayed put as the others started for kitchen. Okay, I couldn’t begrudge her breakfast; it wasn’t as if she was going to be at the meeting. I headed into the kitchen after the others. That’s where the coffee was, and after the initial rush, I needed it.

  I was just finishing mixing cream and sugar into my coffee when Asher set a full plate of food on the counter beside me.

  Curious, I looked up at him. “So, is this a protective instinct or a taking care of me instinct?”

  That half grin popped up again. “Taking care of you.”

  I smiled. “Thanks.”

  He winked at me before going to get his own plate.

  Once everyone had their breakfast, we filed into the living room. Even Lucy. Great. Apparently, she was a part of the family now too. I bit back the jealously threatening to choke me. The girl had done nothing wrong. This was just me being insecure. Once I talked myself down, I followed the boys.

  Miles took the center of the couch, and Lucy sat beside him. Asher was all but scowling at Miles as he sat at the end of the other couch. I sat down on the raised hearth and tucked my feet underneath me. Zeke sat beside Miles on the end of the sofa closest to me. Isaac took the floor at the other end of the coffee table and he sent me a wink before setting his plate down.

  “Why the hell do we have to meet this early?” Zeke growled before he all but drained his coffee.

  “Because there is a lot going on right now and we need to try and figure things out.” Miles left his plate on the table and nursed his coffee.