Jared continued to peer up at the moon and stars. It was always cloudy at home. Cassie couldn’t remember the last time she saw so many stars in the sky.
“What are you thinking about?” Cassie asked.
He smiled back at her as his gaze went from the sky to her. His eyes almost glowed in the moonlight.
Shrugging, he reached for her. Cassie took his warm hand. It was cool outside, yet he was still running toasty.
“Night human thing,” Jared explained with a chuckle, pulling her to his lap as he sat back down.
“So are your thoughts a secret?” Cassie asked, since hers obviously weren’t.
Jared smiled, but it didn’t seem quite as happy of a smile as she had seen on him.
“Just thinking about life and how everything turned out. What you thought was going to happen and what did. How different our lives would have been. I wouldn’t have had to share you with anyone. You would have been all mine.” Jared shrugged and looked back into the sky.
“I didn’t want you to die. I was going to give you up if it meant you’d live,” Cassie replied, feeling those memories all too well. It was as if holding his hand made them more and more prominent in her mind. She could almost feel them like she had lived through them.
“But I wasn’t going to quit. You weren’t meant to spend your life alone. I knew that much. That coven rule was wrong. It was meant to keep the seer from coming from only one family. There was no reason to make you live your life alone. I would have convinced them otherwise,” Jared explained.
Cassie smiled. She knew that, too. He would have tried, but he was never going to survive it. Her vision told her so. It would have been nice if she could do that now; if she saw what she was supposed to do.
“I think I wasn’t meant to end up with anyone. I was set to be the seer. They are supposed to be alone.” It didn’t sound like a fun life, but better than being caught in everything and trying her best to keep up.
“You’ve never been alone, Cas. I was always going to be there whether you wanted me to or not.” Jared gave one last look at the star-filled sky. “It’s time to get ready. Your dress is on the chair, and Whitney’s dress is there also. Do you want me to take it over or do you?”
Cassie’s mind was still swirling with mixed feelings about Owen. She hated that he had joined the coven and did what they wanted. She hated that he would complicate her life further. But what she hated the most was that she couldn’t completely hate him and leave him out of her life. When she thought of the past few years, he was part of the only good she could remember. Owen and Whitney meant everything to her. She could hate his actions, but she couldn’t hate him.
“I’ll take it over,” Cassie replied, standing to leave, and he stood with her.
Jared held on to her hand, not letting her go. He leaned down, pressing his forehead to hers.
“I know our lives turned out different than you had seen, but my feelings are still the same. I never wanted anyone but you.” Jared backed up only a centimeter to be able to lightly kiss the spot his head had just been touching.
Cassie smiled up at him. She could feel everything he was feeling, and there was nothing but truth behind his words. He gave her a small smile and let go of her hand. She smiled back. He was still the boy she remembered. He might have been ready to kill his cousin hours ago, but he trusted her to go back in that room again. He trusted her completely. That was Cassie’s friend, not the outsider everyone feared when he walked the hallways of the school.
Cassie grabbed the bright pink dress waiting on the chair for Whitney. How she didn’t see it when she woke was beyond her. The thing practically glowed bubble gum pink. There was no doubt that was the dress Jared had for Whitney. It would be perfect with her blond hair, and it was her favorite color after all.
Hurrying over to her friend’s room, Cassie stopped outside the doorway. She wasn’t exactly sure if she was ready to face Owen yet.
“I’d let you stand out there longer, but I need time to get my hair done before I do yours,” Whitney told Cassie as she cracked open the doorway.
Cassie glanced in the bit of the room she could see.
“He’s in his room, getting ready,” Whitney explained, since Cassie still stood outside the doorway.
Cassie held out the dress to her friend, still not moving.
Whitney took the dress and tossed it on the chair. Grasping her friend’s arm, she pulled Cassie into the room.
“The idiot feels completely bad about what he did,” Whitney apologized for Owen.
Whitney let go of Cassie’s arm now that she had her in the room, but that didn’t make Cassie not look like she wanted to bolt.
“Really, Cas. He wanted to apologize, but he was afraid you would leave,” Whitney explained.
Cassie was caught in the mixture of emotion flowing through her. What he had done wasn’t something any friend should have ever done. He knew how much she wanted out of the bonds she had with Jared and Nate, but he had tried to add a third bond. That wasn’t a solution. Any friend could have seen that.
Whitney yanked Cassie to the couch with her.
“You can be blind sometimes,” Whitney continued to talk when Cassie didn’t respond. “Owen’s had the biggest crush on your for years. Why do you think all the guys ran away from you at the dance once he showed up?”
Cassie shrugged. She didn’t really think about that.
“Because everyone knows that he’s wanted to ask you out. He was just too afraid your uncle would say no and would have forbidden you from hanging out with us.”
“I don’t need another mate. It’s already too messy as it is. If he was my friend, he’d see that,” Cassie finally responded. That was what hurt the most. He ignored her feelings like everyone else.
“I was being selfish,” Owen said from the doorway to his room. Cassie jumped up, ready to make a quick exit. “And I’m sorry.”
Cassie stopped at the doorway, her hand still on the handle.
“I was an idiot and acting on my feelings. I should have been a better friend. Please forgive me,” Owen begged, not moving from his spot across the room.
Slowly, Cassie turned around. Owen leaned against the doorframe in his unbuttoned tux. His eyes were pleading more than his words. Cassie didn’t respond, but he stepped away from the doorway slowly.
“I messed up, Cas. I had my chance for years and never acted on it. I’m sorry I tried to now. I don’t want to mess anything up between us. You and Whitney are my best friends. I’d never try to do anything to hurt either one of you, and that’s exactly what I did before. Please forgive me. I promise to be nothing but your best friend from here on out. Scout’s honor.” Owen held up two fingers.
Cassie rolled her eyes. “You were never a scout.” Owen wasn’t a nature guy, and always put up with hikes and trips to the local parks because that was what Cassie and Whitney wanted to do.
“Okay. Skinwalker’s honor?” he tried again.
Cassie couldn’t help the small smile at the corners of her mouth.
“You can look in my eyes if you need to. You can see my past. I’ve never wanted to hurt you ever.” Owen was close enough that Cassie could look if she wanted, but she didn’t. She wanted to be able to trust his word.
“Fine. You are partially forgiven,” Cassie finally gave in.
Leaning down, Owen pulled her into a hug. “Partially?” he asked, dropping her to the ground in confusion.
“I forgive you for doing all the crappy stuff to me, but it’s not my place to forgive you for what you did to Jared. That you have to ask him yourself,” Cassie explained.
“But he’s a wendigo-” Owen sulked.
“-and your cousin. You want me to forgive you, be nice to him. He was as responsible for everything as a kid as much as you were.” Meaning he had no choice like Owen did. Cassie needed Owen to see that. If he wanted to be forgiven because he had no choice, then he had to accept Jared, as he truly had no choice.
“
Fine. I’ll be nice to him.” Owen pouted, because Cassie’s logic was much better than his for holding a grudge.
“And you have to deal with Nate on your own when we get back,” Cassie added as she turned to leave.
The color drained from Owen’s face. That was another aspect of his poorly chosen actions that he hadn’t thought about.
“Crap. He’s going to be pissed,” Owen added. “Could we just not tell him about me being crazy tonight and forgetting how to be a real friend?”
“I didn’t plan to tell him, but I’m not very good at keeping my thoughts to myself yet, so even if I don’t say a word, he’s going to know. And I have a feeling that Jared might tell him anyway, because he’s really mad at you.”
“Crap. Crap. Crap.” Owen pounded his feet like a child in trouble.
Cassie laughed. Her friend was back, pouting and all. She could have stayed mad at him, but what was the point? He made a mistake, and that was it. She understood. Plus, he was still her friend. And she needed friends more than enemies since there was a very good chance the coven wasn’t done trying to take her witch powers from her yet.
CHAPTER 5
Cassie sat in the chair in front of the vanity in the bedroom as a tall, elegant, blond-haired lady twisted and pinched her hair into a fancy up-do with tons of tiny curls springing from it. She made it seem effortless to do such a complicated hairstyle. After talking to Owen and Whitney, Cassie returned to her room to find the lady waiting to do her hair for her, and Jared staring curiously at the woman. Neither one knew why she was there or who invited her, but they didn’t want to seem rude to whoever had hired her.
The lady skillfully curled each piece of hair and placed it into the mix at record speed. She was expertly doing what would have taken Cassie hours to do on her own. Jared said she arrived and told him she was there to do Cassie’s hair. She never said another word, and Cassie had no idea who she was or why she showed up. She was grateful she was there, though, because Whitney took twice as long with her own hair and would have had no time to help Cassie.
Sitting silently, Cassie watched the lady. She never once looked down at Cassie’s eyes. She was too busy with her hair. The woman was tall, probably close to six feet tall, but it didn’t make her stand out as much as the way she held herself. Cassie couldn’t understand why, but she would have to describe her as regal. Her movements were refined and elegant, even as she did Cassie’s hair. She just didn’t seem to fit the hairdresser personality Cassie had seen over the years going to at least a dozen different people. They all were talkative and kept conversations going. This lady made no effort to talk. She was completely entranced by her job doing Cassie’s hair.
The woman finished up Cassie’s hair and immediately began to pack up her bag she had brought. Cassie watched her, wanting to ask her who she was, but since the lady made no conversation, Cassie didn’t know where to begin. With her bag packed, she finally looked up one time at Cassie across the mirror.
The woman’s blue eyes were crystal clear and her complexion perfect. Her golden blond hair was coiled up perfectly and not a strand was out of place though she had worked hard and quickly. Her full-length gown gave nothing away and appeared to be a standard fluffy ball gown—nothing that made her stand out, yet something made Cassie stare back at her. Across the mirror, Cassie couldn’t read her past, but she wanted to be able to. Something in the woman’s eyes seemed familiar, but she couldn’t put her finger on it. The woman nodded her head to Cassie and then hurried out the door without a single word.
“That was a bit weird,” Cassie muttered, sitting beside Jared in her teal, sparkly gown. From the dresses alone she could tell dinner was a bigger deal than Turner made it out to be.
Jared was sitting with his tux jacket on, but his shirt unbuttoned still.
“That’s for sure. I’ve never seen a sidhe before and really want to know why one would be here. They never leave the woods where they come from. They hate anything not all nature,” Jared explained.
“She was a sidhe?” Cassie asked.
That was why her blue eyes and fair skin were familiar. Cassie had met the sidhe before, and they all looked like her. In fact, she was pretty sure all the sidhe had blue eyes like the woman she had seen.
“Yeah, but why she’d be outside her village is beyond me,” Jared replied just as there was a knock at the door.
Jared stood and opened it. A man outside the doorway, dressed in a full tuxedo with gloves and all, bowed to Jared.
“Your friends have been escorted to dinner already,” the man said, still bowing to Jared. “If you would follow me, I will present you to the Winter family.”
Jared nodded and held a hand back for Cassie. Rising, she took his hand as he led the way, following the man.
‘Umm,’ Cassie said silently to him. ‘You forgot to button your shirt.’ The white shirt was flapping as they moved down the hallway.
Jared laughed mentally, but kept his face serious as they walked.
‘I don’t want to ruin it, so best left unbuttoned,’ Jared explained.
Like always, Cassie shook her head. She had no clue what he was talking about.
‘It would be rude to appear before our host as a day human. When we are announced, I have to be in my night human form, which doesn’t exactly fit in my dress clothes. Unless you’d like me to be naked for the night? I can do that,’ Jared offered, sliding his coat off.
“No, no,” Cassie spat out, and Jared laughed out loud.
The man escorting them led them through the main doorway and to a car waiting in the driveway. He ignored their conversation and never once turned around to see if they were still following him.
‘Going somewhere?’ Cassie asked. She got the clue that dinner was a big deal with the dresses and tuxes, but she assumed it would be in the house.
‘I’m guessing the grand ballroom is in a different building or part of town,’ Jared replied, not knowing either.
“It is a short trip across town,” the man said as he opened the car door and bowed to them again, answering the silently spoken question. She looked closer, but couldn’t catch his eye to see if he could read minds like Arianna could.
‘This bowing thing is getting old,’ Cassie complained. And the silence. Everyone said only what needed to be said and walked away. She was curious, but too shy to start conversations with people.
Smiling, Jared slid into the seat before Cassie, offering her his hand from the inside of the car to help her in. Luckily the dress was floor length, and besides being a little hard to walk in, it was great for sitting in. It wasn’t at all like the small mini dress Whitney loaned her for the dance only weeks ago, when her life changed forever.
‘I would have liked to see that dress,’ Jared commented on her memory. Cassie smacked him before the car began to move.
Cassie kept quiet on the car ride while her nervousness grew. A large banquet hall full of strangers never seemed like a good plan in her mind. Even a large dance full of her classmates scared her, but this was way beyond that. She didn’t know much about the night human world, and now she was going to meet tons of them at one time. It was overwhelming.
Jared reached over and took her hand in his, sending calming vibes her way.
‘There’s nothing to worry about. We’re basically the same as royalty in this world. No one is going to say or do something to embarrass you. Okay, I can’t guarantee that. We did bring Owen with us.’
Cassie slapped Jared’s chest at his comment. He had already agreed to play nice with Owen.
‘Cassie, you don’t have to worry about anything. People around here understand others have powers. No one gets too close. I promise you. You’ll be fine.’
She hoped so as they came to a stop behind a line of other cars. They were only three cars away from being dropped off at the door. Cassie could feel her stomach drop. She wasn’t good in these situations. The first car’s occupants got out and were walking up the grand marble staircase leading
inside. Two cars away now. Cassie couldn’t see around the corner of the staircase, but she did see the people exit. The woman was tall and thin with a slight green tinge to her skin. The man matched in coloring, but wasn’t thin by any means. And he was shirtless.
Beside her, Jared shifted in his seat and removed his own shirt. Cassie averted her eyes, her cheeks flaming as he caught her watching him. She couldn’t help it— he looked good shirtless. She had to figure it was a night human thing to have a six pack, but then again lots of the guys at school weren’t nearly as fit as Jared and Nate, and they were all night humans. Jared caught her right hand and pulled her to face him. Cassie did her best to keep her eyes on his face. Why did she have to bond to two of the hottest guys she’d ever met? It was making resisting the bonds between her and the guys more and more impossible.
“Cas, no need to be embarrassed,” Jared told her as he swiped a thumb across her very red cheek. “You’re my mate.”
She looked down to avoid his intense gaze and realized that was a mistake. Now she was staring at his well-defined abs instead. Her cheeks burned more as the car inched forward. Only one car in front of them now.
Jared chuckled when she immediately looked back up and closed her eyes to avoid his serious gaze. He gently touched her face, leaving a warm spot where his thumb had been.
“Cas, you never have to be embarrassed to look at me. I’m yours,” he told her, pressing his lips briefly to hers right before the door opened beside her. Jared turned her to the open door.
The man that had driven them across town was standing outside the door, offering her his hand. Cassie took it and stepped out of the car into the night air. It was cool but nice as it helped the color return to normal in her cheeks. Stepping away from the car, she peered up the grand staircase. The doors to the place they were going were open. She couldn’t see inside, but she heard the music and chatter of people.
Jared took ahold of her arm, and Cassie looked up at his now cat-like face since he had transformed into his night human form. His bare arm was soft, almost like a short white fur covered it, and was such a stark contrast to the midnight black cat he once was. He tucked her hand into the crook of his elbow. Her hands shook a little at the sight of the staircase and the amount of noise of people enjoying themselves. She really was regretting that she hadn’t come up with an excuse. Couldn’t she just be sick? She felt sick.
The Witchling Seer Page 7