Almost Two Years Later
The sun crests over the horizon, rousing me from an indecent night’s sleep. Cooper’s roommate has forfeited the room for the next few weeks to help get his girlfriend settled, so I’ve taken advantage of the situation.
Coop moans into me, burying a kiss in my neck. “You’re awake.”
“Could you blame me? I wanted to take in the view.” My fingers rake down his perfectly chiseled chest, and I purr without meaning to.
That day comes back to me in flashes, like it always does in the morning as if Ephemeral were fighting for a place in my life, as if its singular goal is to keep holding me back by way of those twisted memories.
We had a fantastic reunion with our families after we left the tunnels. Lacey and Marky have been inseparable ever since. As luck would have it, the house next door to the Flanders went on the market, and I convinced my “father” to purchase it for me as a miniscule means of restitution. Mom, Lacey, and I moved in right away. Jen and Fletch had a hard time wrapping their heads around the truth, but Jones pulled through and made sure to come clean, shaking out his dirty laundry for everyone to see. My other sister was still happily clueless out on her semester at sea. The news of my death had never even reached her. When she flew home for Christmas, it was a strange sort of reunion but one that was worth the wait. Ephemeral-Jen could hardly believe she had a twin but was quick to indoctrinate her in all things pure and right as far as “boys” are concerned. Old Jen just laughed it off. She always was easy going.
As for Coop and me, we enrolled in the local public school in Heaven and finished out our junior and senior years. Our relationship hit a whole new physical level, right around prom, and we’ve never looked back. A rainy day, a motel room, and a fake class field trip that spanned a three-day weekend were involved. We were all tongues and teeth, the pulling and tugging of limbs, his heated skin raking over mine. It was magical. Cooper has a way of making me feel new things, of taking life to new heights without even trying. And now, here we are at Host University, the only college out of dozens that accepted us both. I wondered if it was some cosmic coincidence that it was located right next to Paragon, right next to where Skyla lives and now Edinger. But I’m far too jaded to believe in coincidences and wishes anymore. This is by design, and if I had to, I could guess whose hand was behind this.
“So you think it’ll be weird?” Coop gives my ribs a tickle before pulling me in close, his iron hot skin hard under mine. “Having them so close?”
“Are you kidding? It’s beyond weird, but Lacey and Marky are in love with the idea.” The girls were heartbroken that Coop and I were moving clear across the country, so the Flanders and Mom decided to make the move with us—although, they’ll be staying on Paragon.
He pulls his cheek back as if considering the idea—and, dear God, Cooper Flanders is the most gorgeous man alive.
“You know it drives me insane when you get all contemplative.” I track kisses up his neck, straight to his lips.
Dr. Flanders is partnering with another psychiatrist by the name of Dr. Booth. Mom has already acclimated to Paragon and has found a fulltime job at the island’s biggest daycare center. But that hasn’t stopped her from dreaming of opening an art gallery. If the Celestra tunnels did one good thing, they dried her out. She hasn’t hit the bottle once since she’s been back, and I hope it stays that way forever.
Marky and Lacey are getting ready to start junior high, then, before we know it, they’ll be freshmen in high school. I shake my head as I reflect back on my freshman year. That’s the last year I spent with Wes, my Wes, not the Ephemeral version he morphed into toward the end. I haven’t seen him since that final day in the tunnels.
After the Spectators retreated, Ephemeral began to repair itself almost overnight. Edinger and Ms. Paxton managed to fool the student body into believing it was a master prank by the school’s crosstown rival, Rycroft. The academy was restored to all of its wicked glory within a week. But I never saw it—it was all relayed to me by Jen and Fletch.
Jax Easton finally had the right amount of fear instilled in her so as not to mess with Jen. Carter is back to her perky self—albeit with a glass eye, and Hattie and Flynn still can’t keep their hands off each other. They were one of the first resurrected. Ezrina pushed them out in batches until every last one of the Spectators was resettled as perfect living beings.
As for Wes, in truth, I don’t know where he is, but I’ve always had a sense for when he was near, and as soon as I stepped off that ferry last week, I felt him here, his presence as real as mine or Cooper’s. I suppose it won’t be long before he makes himself known. I can feel him hovering wherever I go like a ghost. I still don’t know what I’ll say to him when I do see him, if anything. Just thinking about him breaks my heart, and I wish it didn’t. I wish I hated him as much as I hate what he stands for, but that sweet boy from Kansas crops up in my mind and begs me not to.
A guttural moan drums through Coop’s chest. “I think after all we went through—I like the idea of family being nearby. You know what else I love?” He kisses the tip of my index finger, and an electrical impulse tracks all the way down from his mouth to the most intimate part of me. “You.” A smile flirts with his lips. “You’re my family, Laken. And as soon as we’re ready, I think we should make it official.”
“Well, then.” I bite my lip with excitement. “I guess I’ll wait for the proposal.”
A silent laugh thumps through his chest as he pulls me on top of him. “Be ready. It might come sooner than you think.”
“I’ll be Mrs. Flanders. Mmm—I like the sound of that.”
My lips find his, and we engage in a kiss that spans straight into the future.
I love you, I tell him. Forever, Cooper, I’m yours. Thank you for saving me.
“Forever.” Coop pulls back. His eyes bear into mine. “I think we saved each other. I think this was our destiny all along.”
We crash into another kiss. This time we don’t stop. We shower our love over one another in every way that our flesh demands.
No matter what the future holds, I know that with Coop by my side I can handle it all.
This is love.
Coop is right—this was our destiny all along.
Somewhere in the distance, a howl goes off and seeps in through the window—a primal cry neither human nor animal. It was as if a demonic being were protesting everything we stand for. Coop and I know the Counts are still out there, monitoring us, watching, waiting. We unearthed one of their darkest secrets, and, for that, we’ll most likely pay a price. It’s not a matter of if, it’s a matter of when.
The good war had come and gone, the one between Celestra and the Countenance. But another war is on the horizon. This one would be brother against brother—the civil war of my people. Those are always the bloodiest.
The Counts, and all their wickedness, need to be stopped.
And now the math is simple.
Who would stop whom first?
*Thank you for reading Entropy (The Countenance Trilogy 3). If you enjoyed this book, please consider leaving a review at your point of purchase.
*To read further into the lives of Laken, Cooper and Wesley, look for Celestra Forever After (New Adult, 17+) coming early 2014.
Acknowledgements
To my awesome readers who have loved and enjoyed the Countenance Series as much as I have, I hope you’ve had fun with Laken and feel a sense of satisfaction with the way her story played out. I look forward to sharing more of her life with you in glimpses through the Celestra Forever After Series. Your unwavering support for my books has been mind-blowing. Thank you for making all of my dreams come true. Please feel free to contact me through Twitter, Facebook, my blog, or email. I really do consider you like family.
Thank you to my children and husband with whose support I was able to spend countless months at the Ephemeral Academy. I love how each one of you pitches in. Because of this, we’ve grown stronger and closer as
a family. Thank you for being you.
To the dream team! Rachel Tsoumbakos, Christina Kendler, and Sarah Freese your eyes are invaluable. Thank you from the deepest part of me for pouring over my work. I appreciate it more than I could ever express. There are no books without you.
To Him who scrubbed the world clean with the blood of His Son. Each day I smile with peace in my heart because I am forgiven. I owe you everything.
About the Author
Addison Moore is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author who writes contemporary and paranormal romance. Her work has been featured in Cosmopolitan Magazine. Previously she worked as a therapist on a locked psychiatric unit for nearly a decade. She resides on the West Coast with her husband, four wonderful children and two dogs where she eats too much chocolate and stays up way too late. When she's not writing, she's reading.
Feel free to visit her blog at: addisonmoorewrites.blogspot.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Addison-Moore/140192649382294 -
Twitter: https://twitter.com/AddisonMoore
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