‘I’m your bodyguard. Do as I say.’
I paused as I snorted. It wasn’t a ladylike sound. Antony frowned at me but I couldn’t help it. It wasn’t the right time to be laughing, but after everything that had happened, I wasn’t going to stay behind.
‘Derek needs to stay here with Bev. I’m coming with you, or I’m going home to the others. It’s your choice.’
I left him and stormed to my room to get dressed. I had just put on my bra when the door opened and Antony came in. I squeaked as I tried to cover myself but he ignored my state of undress.
He came to me, buried his hand into my loose hair and pulled my head back to expose my throat. I swallowed and his gaze followed the movement. He lowered his head and flicked his tongue over the sensitive skin below my ear.
‘Antony…’ I whispered.
He reached up and covered my mouth.
‘I won’t let you ruin this,’ he whispered against my neck.
His breath made me shiver as it caressed my skin. His puckered lips kissed along my collarbone. I had forgotten that I was half dressed. When his hand brushed my bare stomach, I sucked in a breath.
I linked my arms around his neck. He loosened his grip in my hair and brought my head up. Our lips met but it wasn’t soft. His breath huffed into my mouth as he forced it open with his tongue. His arms wrapped around my back and held me against his warm chest. Our heartbeats matched as they raced together.
‘Antony, you’ve got to let me come!’ Derek shouted from the hallway.
He nipped my bottom lip as we pulled apart. I licked the spot he had caught and his gaze zoned in on my tongue.
I opened my mouth to speak. As he lowered his gaze, his eyes widened at the realisation that I had no top on. His cheeks flushed pink as he muttered an apology before he winked and left me to finish getting dressed.
I was still panting after he had gone. I hadn’t expected him to kiss me, yet my whole body had been ready. It felt right. Just like the fireworks I had imagined when I found my soulmate.
After pulling on my blue jumper, I hurried with the rest of my stuff. I had a feeling I would no longer stay at my father’s. The first part of my mission was almost complete, although we had a way to go yet.
The book said that the first sign of harmonising was being drawn to one another. We wouldn’t be able to resist each other. No matter how much we tried to run, we would always end up together. I had read a lot over the last two months. I was now confident that we were going to unite.
Chapter Nineteen
‘Was Derek really miffed?’ I asked as I climbed into Father’s car.
‘Just a bit,’ Antony said.
‘Do you think we can find Father and end all this?’
I wrung my hands together as I imagined what Nick would do to the one man that knew what I was going through. My guardian.
‘I hate to say it but I think it’s only just begun.’ Antony patted my thigh and my cheeks grew warm as the memory of our kiss flashed into my mind.
‘I was afraid of that,’ I said, looking out of the window at the passing traffic. The motorway made my teeth go on edge.
‘It will be okay in the end.’ Antony took my hand.
I looked down to see that the car was automatic. He didn’t need his hand to change gear. I squeezed his fingers and enjoyed the calm that settled over me.
‘Do you think this is it?’ His words were quiet as he kept his eyes on the road ahead. I wasn’t sure what he was talking about.
‘What do you mean?’
‘Us…?’ he said as he glanced at me and smiled wickedly.
His dimples appeared and I flushed with an emotion so powerful, I shivered. I had been in love with him since the moment I had met him. The connection was too strong to ignore now but I didn’t know how much more in love with him I could fall.
The love before this had been tormented and painful. Now it felt like nothing I had ever experienced.
‘Yes, I think we’re harmonising.’
His eyes left the road again to look at me. He swallowed and his arm muscles tensed.
‘It’s okay,’ I said, laughing when he shook his head.
‘I’m sorry but the last few months have been torture. I didn’t want a relationship when I met you. Sure, I thought you were attractive but I was busy with my job. It didn’t seem right to want you.’
It was my turn to swallow. ‘You wanted me?’
A gentle laugh escaped him as he looked into the rear-view mirror.
His hand left my thigh in a rush. He gripped the steering wheel and wrenched it to the right.
‘What’s happening?’ I cried as we were thrown about.
The car sped into the fast lane. I had to cover my eyes. Antony was a brilliant driver but there was an articulated lorry ahead.
‘Someone’s following us. I don’t like the look of them. They were about to ram us,’ Antony almost shouted.
Uncovering my eyes, I looked behind us. A big car was on our tail and it was coming closer.
‘Do you think it’s Nick?’
Our car swerved across the road again. I yelped when my shoulder crashed into the door. He could have warned me that he was going to swerve. I didn’t moan. He was concentrating and I didn’t want to upset him.
‘Probably. Who else would it be?’
I took another look to try and get a clue but the windows in the other car were blacked out.
‘Can we lose them?’
I wanted to help but there was nothing I could do.
‘Hold on!’ Antony cried as he sped out of the fast lane and straight through the others.
I gripped the dashboard as hard as I could. He drove straight towards the exit. There were two separate exits right next to each other. He cut in front of a lorry. I screamed as the lorry blew its horn. He sped straight onto the first exit with just inches to spare. The other car got stuck on the other side of the lorry.
I sighed as we escaped down the exit and out of sight.
‘That was mad,’ I said as I tried to get my breathing back to normal.
My heartbeat tripped all over the place and my nerves were shot.
‘I’m sorry.’ Antony put his foot on the accelerator.
‘Don’t be sorry, you did what you had to do.’
He took my hand and pulled it to his lips. He kissed it as I placed my other hand over my heart. It was beating for an entirely different reason now.
‘I know you’re super sensitive, though. That couldn’t have helped.’
I let him keep hold of my hand. He entwined his fingers with mine and rested them on his lap.
‘How do you know that about me?’
His cheeks glowed slightly as he pulled off the motorway. ‘Firstly, I noticed that you go all tense when we’re around a lot of people. You also react differently to anyone I’ve ever known. You get crazy defensive, although you seem to be a little better with that now.’
My heart expanded even more. He had taken notice of who I was and accepted me anyway.
‘You do know that you have a lifetime of stroppiness, defensiveness and complexity ahead, don’t you? Do you think you can handle it?’
I grinned. The adrenaline of the chase still pumped through my veins but it had turned into a warm fuzzy feeling.
‘I have no idea,’ he replied, keeping hold of my hand when I tried to pull away to playfully hit him. ‘Before we even start to think about that adventure, we need to get your father back.’
The smile dropped from my face. It was like a slap on the cheek and the warm feeling turned cold.
‘Yes. Will it take long to get back to the others from here?’
He felt the energy shift and squeezed my hand. How had I switched from terror, to love and then back to dread, in the space of a few minutes? I laughed suddenly. Antony frowned.
‘Are you okay?’
I wanted to reach out and straighten his furrowed brow. Instead I sat back and closed my eyes.
‘I’m fine. I’m just allowing m
y emotions to come up.’
He tutted. The sound sent prickles of annoyance down my arms. I tried to pull my hand out of his grip but he wouldn’t let go. Nothing was said but it was obvious. He wasn’t going to let me run. He knew me well enough to know when to stay and just be with me. The thought sent a wave of warmth over me but a tiny bubble of dread made my stomach gurgle. Could I really let anyone in? Even Antony?
‘We’re almost there.’
‘Thank you,’ I whispered.
He had given me space to calm my emotions. No one had ever done that, not even my siblings.
‘You know what?’ he said as the car came to a stop.
‘What?’ I answered as I opened my eyes. We were parked a few streets away from my home in Clapham.
‘This has been a wild ride and I’m glad it’s not over.’
His lips caught mine as he leant over. I welcomed the contact. The kiss was short and sweet but it sent a thrill straight through me. He pulled away and winked as he got out of the car.
‘I must admit, I’ll be glad when it’s over.’ I laughed as he opened the passenger door and helped me out.
‘I don’t know. I think you could do with a wild ride every now and then.’ He laughed as he put his arm around my shoulders and guided me home.
Chapter Twenty
‘The lovebirds have arrived,’ Leo announced as we entered the kitchen.
‘What’s it like?’ Cancer squealed as she rushed up to us.
‘Have you…you know?’ Scorpio said to Antony.
‘Scorpio…!’
My cheeks flushed as my brother patted my twin flame on the back.
‘What? I think you’re the only one that hasn’t had—’ Scorpio was cut off as Aries punched him in the arm. I smiled at the tall handsome warrior. He might be a bit of a ladies’ man but he looked out for his family.
‘We were followed for part of the journey. I managed to lose them but only just,’ Antony said.
The boys gathered around to talk about Father. I wanted to listen but the girls dragged me to the living room to talk about men.
‘What’s it like?’ Sagi asked as she sat on the arm of the sofa.
I laughed and patted her thigh. ‘It’s amazing.’
The others crowded around and started to throw questions. I answered them as best as I could. There were still many things I couldn’t explain.
‘We’re not quite there yet. We’ve only just started this stage. Give me a chance.’
My cheeks were hot. I fanned myself to try and cool down. At one point, I looked up and saw that Antony hovered in the doorway. He watched me with a small smile on his face. When he caught me looking, he ducked out of the room.
‘It’s so amazing though! You’ve done it within a few months. Usually it takes years,’ Cancer said.
‘That’s the old way. We’re not going to fail this time and to be honest, I still think it will take years. It’s something we need to work at for the rest of our lives.’ I clasped Cancer’s hands in mine when she tried to get me to say more. I wanted to join the men to help with Father’s rescue. If it wasn’t for him, I would never have met Antony.
‘It’s so romantic,’ Virgo said in her matter of fact tone.
I left them to see what the boys were up to. It was my turn to spy on my boyfriend. My whole body hummed at the thought. Most of the others had experienced a relationship but not me.
‘I saw Nick head towards north London,’ Leo said.
They were gathered around the island in the middle of the kitchen. Antony fitted in so well that I struggled to spot him amongst my brothers at first. Aries moved to reveal him. He looked up at my brother. His face was serious and ready for battle. He held his head high, even though he was shorter than Leo, Scorpio and Aries.
‘We need to go back to the house that he kept Pisces in. I doubt very much he’s still there but it’s worth going over,’ Scorpio offered.
‘Can I just finish the song I was writing?’ Leo asked, going to walk away from the group.
‘No, you can’t.’ Aries grabbed his shoulder and pulled him back.
Antony studied Leo’s tattoos. He had sleeves on both arms and they stood out on his bulging biceps. There was a question in Antony’s eyes. How could such a big, hard looking man, be such a creative softy?
‘Come on, mate, the album is almost done,’ Leo whined.
‘Our father is more important than your album, Leo.’ Aries scowled.
‘I’m happy to go and check out that house,’ Gemini said.
We all turned to study Gemini, the most suave and least warrior-like of them all. He was usually lost in his own world, absorbed with himself.
‘Really…?’ Aries glanced at Leo.
The two smiled and I felt sorry for Gemini.
‘Yes, I want to be involved,’ he said as he tapped his fingers on the work surface.
I almost laughed when the others blinked in surprise.
‘I’ll go with him,’ Taurus said, glancing back at me. ‘I’m sure we’ll find something.’
The others noticed I was there but carried on with the conversation as if I wasn’t. Taurus had a shaved head and square jaw. He was meant to be a fitness trainer. He had dropped out of university when he started to smoke marijuana.
‘Okay, head over there now, but be careful.’ Aries gestured for them to leave.
Gemini threw a smart coat over his suit and Taurus put a cap on his head.
‘Do you have to wear that? You look like a thug,’ I heard Gemini say as they closed the front door behind them.
I marvelled at how well Aries ran the operation. My mind zoned out and I stopped following the plans as I watched Antony. I was a brilliant listener when it came to one on one but I was easily distracted when I wasn’t directly spoken to.
‘What do you think, Pisces?’ Leo addressed me.
I shook my head and blinked.
‘She didn’t hear you.’ Aries clapped him on the back. ‘See, I told you that you were boring.’
Leo pushed Aries and he stumbled back a few steps.
‘I’m sorry.’ I joined Antony.
He reached out and took my hand. ‘I told Aries what you said about Nick and your mother.’
‘We could try and lure Nick by using you as bait. If you go out and about in London, he might try to grab you again. Especially if he sees you with Antony,’ Aries said.
I nodded before he finished speaking. I wanted to do anything to help rescue Father. If that meant being bait, well…I would do it. My body shivered at the thought of Nick kidnapping me again but Antony squeezed my hand at just the right time.
‘There will be two of us guarding you at all times. Just try not to go out in public on your own. Unless you stick to the back roads, but even then, it’s dodgy.’
‘Do you think Bev and Derek will be all right? Daniel knows where Father lives and he’s probably told Nick,’ I asked.
Antony’s eyes widened. ‘I forgot that Daniel knew where your father lived.’
He stepped away from the group and dialled a number on his phone.
‘That might be the ideal place to lure him to,’ Aries said.
‘No answer. Derek always answers his phone. We need to go back.’ Antony grabbed my hand.
‘Wait. We need to finalise everything,’ Scorpio said.
I watched them as they spoke. My mind couldn’t keep track of what they said. All I could think about was Bev and Derek. I hoped they were safe and we were just being paranoid.
‘Right, I think we all know what we’re doing. Pisces, you go with Antony. Take Leo and Scorpio just in case.’
Grabbing my bag, I decided not to say goodbye to the girls. I didn’t want them to get involved. It was my fault Father had been kidnapped. I didn’t want to risk them being caught too.
‘Pisces, remember to keep your head,’ Aries said as I was about to leave.
I frowned at him. ‘What do you mean?’
‘Antony might have to fight and you’r
e going to have to let him.’
He knew me well. The idea of Antony being in danger had crossed my mind and I didn’t like it. However, it was part of his job. It was part of his mission. He had also signed up before he had come down to earth. We had both decided that we would fight to bring more love to the world.
‘I’ll be fine.’
‘We can do this,’ Antony whispered, waving to Aries as the door shut behind us.
Chapter Twenty One
‘How does this sound? Trapped heart of sorrow beats, with tenderness and misery streaks…’
‘I love it.’
Leo grinned and it felt like the sun shone on my face. Antony squeezed my hand as I looked at him. The words resonated with us more than Leo knew. I was amazed at the lyrics that came from my brother. He was upbeat and serious but his songs spoke of a deeper nature than no one ever saw.
‘Who do you think will find their soulmate next?’ I asked when Leo sat back and tucked his notepad away.
‘Aries of course,’ Scorpio said. His words were mumbled as he chewed on a chocolate bar. A peanut flew out of his mouth and landed on the floor. ‘Sorry,’ he muttered.
The train sped through stations on the way back to Surrey. My gaze caught on the green scenery as it whizzed past. I raised my eyebrows when Scorpio shoved the rest of the bar into his mouth. ‘Why do you think it is Aries?’
He shrugged as he swallowed. ‘Because he’s already met his.’
Leo nodded his agreement. Why hadn’t I known about this?
‘He has no idea, though.’ Scorpio clicked open a can of fizzy drink and downed it.
‘How can he not know?’ Antony said.
It had only been a few hours since he had admitted that he was my soulmate but I didn’t say anything.
‘Did you know when you met Pisces?’ Scorpio raised his eyebrows.
Antony looked away from him. ‘Deep down somewhere I did but I fought against it,’ he said, stroking my palm with his thumb.
The train slowed. ‘Our stop,’ I called. The others followed as we alighted from the train.
‘What do you think Aries is doing then?’
Scorpio fell into step beside us as we commandeered a taxi and asked the driver to take us to Father’s house.
[Zodiac Twin Flames 01.0 - 03.0] Boxed Set Page 14