Another gasp slipped past her lips. This one didn’t surprise me because I knew what she was seeing—everything the remaining two Sisters had done to me in an effort to get me to talk.
“They beat you. They screamed until your eardrums ruptured and you couldn’t stand anymore.” Her bottom lip trembled as she spoke. I wanted to touch her, to pull her from the memories of what they did to me and back to the present, but I couldn’t because the memories of my past had gripped hold of me too.
I was drowning in them right along with her.
When a tear slipped down her cheek, Lena’s eyes opened. She stared at me for a long drawn out moment in which neither of us spoke.
There were no words needed.
She’d witnessed that I’d done everything I could to keep her safe and she had to know from the way I looked at her now that I’d do it all over again if given the chance.
I loved her. I always had.
“They put you in the compass and spelled it to find me,” she whispered, finally breaking the silence we’d been trapped in. Her lips trembled with the force of each word and her tears came faster. “I should’ve stayed with you. I shouldn’t have listened when you told me to run. I’m so sorry.”
Her head dipped making her chin nearly touch her chest as sobs shook her. I cupped her face between my palms and used my thumbs to wipe away her tears as I stared into her beautiful eyes.
“I’m glad you listened to me, Lena. I’m so damn happy you ran. One of us was finally able to get away from them, and I’m so fucking grateful it was you.”
My words were riddled with truth. Lena knew it. I could see it in her eyes. Any reservations she might have had in regards to me being here melted away as the memories of mine faded from her mind.
She blinked and in the next second her lips were pressed against mine. My body responded instantly. I skimmed my tongue along her bottom lip, hoping she’d open her mouth wider. I wanted to take control of the kiss she’d initiated. I wanted to show her how much I loved her right here and now because I didn’t know if I’d ever get the chance again.
A tremor slipped through her at the sensation of my tongue against her lips. She opened her mouth the way I craved, and I slid my hands from her face to her shoulders and then along her arms. I wanted to pull her closer, to have her in my lap, but resisted the urge to do so.
We should take things slow. I should. This might not be what she wanted. She was upset. People did things they regretted when they were upset, and I didn’t want to be a regret.
However, when Lena nibbled along my bottom lip as she fisted the front of my shirt, I knew the probability of taking things slow had flown right out the damn window. She was just as into this as I was.
I grazed my lips against hers as I took a chance and pulled her into my lap. She didn’t resist. Electricity zipped through me when she wiggled her hips a little. A hiss of pleasure escaped me at the friction she’d created between us with the movement. Lena eased away from me, her eyes narrowing on mine. She sucked on her bottom lip as she studied my face.
“You okay?” I asked, thinking she might be having second thoughts about where this was going. If she wanted to stop I would. It would be the hardest thing I’d ever had to do, but I’d do it in heartbeat.
Hell, I’d do anything for this woman.
Relief trickled through me when she nodded and said, “I’m fine. Just trying to memorize this moment is all.” Her lips brushed against mine. “Also, you really should lose the beard. It’s prickly.”
A wide smile broke out on my face. “Anything for you.”
I gripped her hips and forced her closer. The friction of her moving on top of me again had me wanting to move this elsewhere. I lifted her into the air and carried her toward what I presumed to be her bedroom, unable to last another second without being inside her.
Lena’s head rested on my shoulder. Her dark hair fanned out across the crisp white sheets. My gaze dipped to her lips. They were red and swollen from kissing me last night. An indicator I did need to get rid of my beard if I planned to make out with her again anytime soon.
Her long, thick lashes fluttered against her creamy cheeks. I thought she was about to wake but she didn’t. Was she dreaming? About me maybe? My eyes trailed over her face until I came to the freckles that dotted the bridge of her nose. They’d been there when she was younger too. Although, I didn’t remember there being quite so many. My favorite was still there, though. It rested on the tip of her nose.
The memory of the day I first noticed it surfaced in my mind.
I’d thought it was a speck of dirt at first, but when it didn’t wipe away I knew it was a new freckle. I remembered not being able to stop staring at it; it was adorable. Lena had been embarrassed by it. She’d said she hated it and tried to hide it from me by covering her face anytime she caught me staring. I told her I loved it, and I’ll never forget the way her eyes flashed at the word. It had made me want to say the words directly to her not just her freckle, but I hadn’t wanted to freak her out so I let them crawl back down my throat and wait for the right moment.
It was three years before I finally decided the moment was right and shortly after we were ripped apart thanks to the Sisters.
God, I’d missed her. Six years was too long without her. She’d been my everything. I’d known she was the one for me when we were kids, but it took me until I was seventeen before I could let her really know.
If I could, I’d go back and tell her sooner.
Lena shifted in her sleep until she was tucked into my side. Her movement pulled me from my thoughts. I grinned at her as my eyes soaked in the new way she lay. God, she was beautiful. I wished we could stay like this forever but I knew we couldn’t. Today we had to find an onyx stone and somehow begin preparing for when the Sisters came.
They’d be here soon. I could sense it somehow. It wouldn’t be today, that much I was certain of, but I knew it would be soon.
Lena’s eyes fluttered open to lock with mine. I didn’t look away because I didn’t care if she caught me staring.
“Why are you staring at me?” she asked. Her voice was husky and sleepy sounding. It stirred things to life inside me I didn’t think she’d intended to. “Stop.” She grinned and lifted her hands to cover her face.
“I can’t help it. You’re beautiful.”
“Whatever. I was snoring, wasn’t I?” She peeked at me through splayed fingers.
I chuckled. “Not in the slightest.”
“Good. What time is it?” She moved to sit up. Her hand reached for the clock on her nightstand. “Crap. I need to get dressed. We should head to the shop so I can talk with Violet and Hubs about everything. They might know where we can find the rock we need, and I need to let them know I’ll be taking a couple of days off.”
I leaned against my elbows, propping myself up in bed. “Will they be upset with you?”
“No. But I’ll probably have to explain things some. They’ll want to know why I’m trying to amplify my powers. Also, I’ve never missed work before. They’re going to know something is up. It’s just time I told them about me.”
She slipped out of bed and walked to her dresser. I watched as she rummaged through the drawers until she found what she was looking for—a pair of jeans and a t-shirt. I soaked in every curve of her naked body, memorizing her.
“I’m gonna shower real quick.” She glanced over her shoulder at me, and I wondered if she was debating on asking me to join her.
Should I ask to? I wanted to but the look in her eyes wasn’t too playful. She was stressed.
“There’s Pop-Tarts in the kitchen if you want one. If not, we can grab something on the way to talk with my bosses. I usually swing by Urban Grind for coffee, but I’m really not much of a breakfast person. Hence the reason there isn’t much to choose from here,” she said.
No invite to the shower. Damn.
“Pop-Tarts? You still eat those things?” I chuckled.
She paused at her
bedroom door. “Brown sugar will always be my favorite.”
I liked that some things about her hadn’t changed. She was still the Lena I remembered even though she wasn’t, and I liked to think she thought the same of me.
Twelve
Lena
After leaving my apartment we headed to Urban Grind for coffee and to get Thane something to eat since Pop-tarts weren’t his thing. While we walked, I noticed people seemed to have gotten used to seeing him with me. In fact, they barely paid us any attention at all.
The aroma of coffee hit my nose when we stepped inside Urban Grind. It called to all of my senses. The place was busy, but it was to be expected this time of day.
“Lena, I was hoping to see you this morning,” Loran said when the line moved enough for Thane and me to reach the counter. “I have something for you. One second.”
“Okay,” I said.
“What’s that about?” Thane asked.
“I have no clue.”
When Loran came back carrying a small cardboard box my puzzlement increased tenfold. He set it on the counter in front of me and winked.
“I have a feeling this is what you’re wanting today,” he said. “Along with your coffee that is. Feel free to open it now if you like.”
I picked up the box and pulled the cardboard tabs on the sides outward then lifted the lid. When I peeked inside, a black stone sat on top of white tissue paper. Thane glanced over my shoulder.
“Is that an onyx stone?” he asked.
“I think so.”
I wanted to reach out and touch it, but my cautious raven thought it was a bad idea so I refrained.
“How did he know we were looking for one?”
“Magic.” I grinned. My gaze drifted to Loran. He glanced up from where he was making a caramel macchiato for me. “Thanks.”
“You’re welcome.” He finished what he was doing and then reached for one of the New York style bagels that always seemed to sell out fast and passed it to Thane. “And here you are. Give me one second to make your vanilla cappuccino.”
“I have no clue how he knows what he does, but I sure am glad,” Thane said. He bit into the bagel. “These are fantastic.”
I closed the cardboard box and tucked it inside my purse before grabbing out my wallet to pay. Remembering I needed to pay instead of Thane because he didn’t have any money had me wondering what his plans were. Long-term wise.
Did he intend to stay in Willow Harbor? Get a job? His own place? Would he want to move in with me? Was that something I’d be okay with?
Of course. Thane and I had lost time to make up for still. Besides, after last night it was clear he felt the same about me as he had years ago and the feeling was mutual. I honestly couldn’t imagine him not being in my life again. I’d missed him more than I cared to admit.
“Here you go,” Loran said. He slid Thane’s coffee across the counter to him. “How’s the bagel?”
“It’s great.”
“Glad to hear it.” Loran shifted his attention to me. “That will be $11.50.”
“How much for the stone?” I asked him in a whisper, nodding to my purse.
He waved my words away. “I’m not charging for that. It’s a gift.”
“Thanks,” I said.
He grinned. “Enjoy your day.”
Thane held open the door for me while he ate the remainder of his bagel. Outside, dark clouds had begun to roll in. I hoped it wasn’t about to rain. Now that we had a stone, I was ready to practice drawing out this shield that had been hiding inside me.
“You always were the chivalrous type,” I said as I stepped past Thane and onto the sidewalk.
My heart pitter-pattered inside my chest when I glanced at him. A crooked smile had formed on his face, making him look boyish and adorable. The sight of it had me wanting to kiss him. It was like I was fifteen again and completely smitten with Thane Jensen.
“Only because I knew how much you enjoyed it,” he said.
I took a sip from my coffee, testing to see if it had cooled down enough to drink. It burned the tip of my tongue so I lifted the lid off and blew on the contents as we walked toward The Dragon’s Hoard. My stomach twisted into knots the size of my fist when we stepped inside.
“Hey, dollface,” Violet said. She glanced at me but then spotted Thane. “Oh. Hello.”
“Hey.”
She was at one of the display cases checking inventory same as any other morning. Her gaze drifted back to Thane. She clasped her clipboard tight to her chest and folded her arms over it.
“Everything okay?” she asked, her eyes moving back to me.
“Sort of.” I took a tentative sip from my coffee, stalling before I had to explain myself. Where should I start? “I need to talk to you and Hubs about something.”
Concern shifted through Violet’s eyes. “Are you sure you’re okay?”
“I just need to talk to you. It won’t take long. I promise. I know you have a lot to do before the shop opens in a few minutes,” I said. There was no way I could lie and tell her not to worry that everything was fine because it wasn’t. Nothing was ever fine when the Sisters were involved.
“You’re scaring me. I can feel tension rolling off the two of you.” Her eyes drifted to Thane again. “It’s making my dragon uneasy.”
“I’m sorry.” I tried to smile but couldn’t get my lips to form one. “I’ll explain once Hubs comes out here.”
“Hubs, can you come here? Lena has something she wants to say to the both of us,” Violet insisted.
“What’s she got to say?” He coughed. “She ain’t leavin’ us, is she?”
Violet eyed me. “I don’t think so.”
Her eyes lacked confidence in her words though, causing a slight pang of guilt to pass through me. I didn’t reply to either of them because my leaving was a real possibility. After all, death was me leaving and so was being taken away by the Sisters, which were both things that could happen any second.
Hubs carried a cardboard box out of the office with him. I recognized some of the items poking out of it. They were the ones I was supposed to price the other day. The knots in my stomach tightened.
I would be leaving them with so much work when I took a few days off.
“What’s up?” Hubs asked. His eyes skimmed over me. “You okay?”
I licked my lips. “I just wanted to let you both know I need to take off the next few days. Something’s come up.” I rocked on my heels, refusing to meet either of their stares.
I knew I should be feeling relief at having done part of what I’d set out to but I didn’t. Explaining everything else was going to be the hard part.
“Can I ask why you need a few days off?” Violet stepped closer to me. “There’s something going on. I can sense it. It’s more than taking time off because an old flame is in town for a while.”
Her gaze had shifted to Thane again when I glanced at her. I knew she was trying to figure out what was going on, but I wasn’t giving her much to go off of.
I puffed my cheeks up with air. Where should I start? The desire to tell them everything floated through me. Violet and Hubs were like family. They deserved to know what was going on without any omissions, but I also knew telling them would lead to them wanting to help and that was something I’d never allow.
Violet and Hubs were never going to meet either of the Sisters. Not if I could help it.
I exhaled a long breath. “Okay, you both know I’m not from Willow Harbor. Neither of you ever asked where I was from though. You both opened your arms to me without questions. I can’t tell you how grateful I am to you for that. Honestly.” I choked on my last few words. My face heated as embarrassment pushed through me. I couldn’t remember a time when I’d been so open and honest with someone who wasn’t Thane.
“Oh, honey,” Violet insisted. Her arms wrapped around me, and she pulled me in tight for a hug. “You know we love you as though you’re our daughter. Now tell me what’s troubling you. You’re scar
ing me.”
I sniffled and blinked back the tears that had been forming. “I know. I’m sorry.” I whispered as I hugged her back. When we separated, I pulled in a deep breath and began. “Thane and I lived in the same orphanage growing up. One where we were forced to use our gifts against our will for three wicked banshees who called themselves the Sisters. There were others who lived there, adults and children, forced to do the same. Since my raven’s gifts of being connected to death and the underworld were so similar to their own powers, they used me to bring in the majority of their meals so they didn’t have to. I hated working for them.” I motioned to Thane. “We both did. They were vile. We saw them do awful things to innocent people. The fear they might do the same to us is what kept us all in line.”
A shudder slipped through me as the memories of being under their control tumbled through my mind. Thane grabbed hold of my hand and gently squeezed. His touch pulled me from my memories.
“The two of us weren’t allowed around each other. Ever. Neither of us was sure why, but the rule was strictly enforced. Still, we took the risk to see each other often. Living there was too solitary otherwise.” I took a sip from my coffee to wash away the tremble behind my words. My gaze locked on the floor of the store because I couldn’t bear to see the emotions swirling through Violet’s or Hubs’s eyes. “When I was fifteen we were caught by one of the Sisters. She attacked us and we fought. Obviously, I got away and made my way here over the next few years. Thane wasn’t so lucky that day.”
“How did you escape the old bats?” Hubs asked.
My teeth sank into my bottom lip. When I opened my mouth to answer him, Thane spoke before I could.
“She used her gift of reflection,” he said. Pride seemed to echo through his words. “When she weakened the Sister enough for me to take her out I did. After I’d already told Lena to run.”
“How many Sisters are there?” Violet asked. She was catching on to where this was going. I could sense it in her expression.
“There were three. Now there are only two,” Thane said.
[Willow Harbor 08.0] Raven's Sight Page 8