A rueful smile finally curved my father’s mouth. It had taken him a couple of weeks to get used to the fact that I was with Gabe now. “Something tells me that Gabe will follow you anywhere you go. I’ve never seen a man so head over heels.”
My cheeks heated in a blush. “It’s mutual. He makes me laugh,” I blurted out. It sounded lame to my ears, but it was too late to take it back.
“Well, then,” he said in a soft voice. “He’s given you the world, hasn’t he?”
I smiled. “Yeah. He has.” Then I sobered. “When will you and Lucy go?”
“Do we have to decide now?”
“The longer we draw this out, the more it will hurt,” I confessed. I’d already waited too long to tell him the truth.
He hated my answer, but he nodded reluctantly. “Tomorrow, then.”
I accepted his decision, even as my stomach burned. “Will you tell Lucy?”
“Yes. Promise me you’ll find a way to visit. We’re going to miss you.”
Unable to get a word past the knot in my throat, I squeezed his hand. Then, because I was going to fall apart completely, I almost ran for the door. My father’s broken voice called after me.
“You’ll make a brilliant doctor, Remy.”
Dinner was a party affair. Seamus had thrown together a feast, and everyone had gathered for a farewell meal. Through dinner, I managed to put on a bright show, teasing a morose Lucy into a better mood and reminding her of everything that waited for her at home. It worked. Too well. She and Lottie began to talk about all the things they planned to do, and I listened with a big, fake smile that made my teeth ache.
Gabe leaned over and whispered in my ear, “One more day, sweetheart.”
He offered me his hand, and I squeezed it desperately. This last month, I’d been so intensely focused on my family and the time I had left with them that I’d neglected Gabe. He’d moved into a room with Asher so that I could share my bedroom with Lucy. I’d missed him, though. We hadn’t discussed the future. What if I’d blown it with him by putting him on hold?
I stared up at him. “I didn’t mean to push you away.”
Noise continued around us, the sparkle of it hurting my ears. Gabe bent to drop a small kiss on the corner of my mouth. “You didn’t push me away. I’m right here.”
“We have things to figure out,” I said.
He smiled. “Tomorrow’s soon enough. Don’t worry about me, okay?”
He meant it, and relief flooded through me for one too-brief moment. Then the meal was over, and I followed Lucy to our room to watch her pack. She didn’t have a lot, but every item that went into her bag felt like another piece of me being taken away.
“You know, I figured out why I don’t have Protector powers like you,” Lucy said out of the blue, landing on the bed beside me with a bounce.
“What?” I asked in genuine surprise. “What is it?”
“I’m adopted,” she said.
I laughed, thinking she was joking, but her serious expression didn’t change. “No way,” I said. “Mom and Dad wouldn’t have kept that from you. Besides, you look like them.”
“No. I look like Mom, except I have black hair.” She wrapped one of her curls around a finger, fidgeting with nerves. “It was the only thing that made sense. So I asked Dad and he told me the truth. Mom was pregnant with me when they got together. It was just an accident of fate that my birth dad had black hair, too.”
I stared at Lucy in shock. “Where’s your birth dad?”
“He was a soldier. Mom met him when he was on leave, but he died before she could tell him that she was pregnant. And then Dad moved back to Blackwell Falls, and they started dating again, and here we are.”
She rose and began to get ready for bed, changing into pajamas. She didn’t look sad or mad, and I couldn’t quite tell what she was feeling. “Are you okay with all of this?” I asked.
“Honestly?” She tipped her head, considering the question. “Yes. What does it really change? I guess I would have been upset a year ago.” She paused and laughed. “Heck, I would have thrown a fit, and we both know it.” She shook her head. “But with everything I know now, it doesn’t seem to matter.” She sat on the bed again, pulled her knees up, and rested her chin on them. “Blood doesn’t always make a family. I was lucky to have Mom, and I’m lucky to have Dad and you.”
“You’ve changed, Lucy.”
“I’ve grown up. Because of you. Because of the example you set. I understand why you’re not coming with us. You’re doing it for me. So that I can have a normal life.”
I nodded, too choked up to speak.
“I don’t want to give you up,” she said, her eyes filling with tears.
I hugged her. “It’s not forever. We’ll see each other again.”
She wiped her face on her shoulder and stood up to go to the bathroom, pausing in the doorway with her back to me. “I’m not saying good-bye tomorrow. That’s bullshit, and I won’t do it. And you had better figure out a way for us to write to each other. I need you in my life.”
The bathroom door shut behind her, leaving me alone in the room, and I wondered how I would make it through tomorrow.
The next day my family climbed into Sean’s SUV and drove away, taking a huge chunk of my heart with them. I did not go outside to seek comfort. There was no sky big enough to fill the hole their absence had left behind. So I went to my room, closed the door, climbed into bed, and pulled the covers over my head.
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
“Remy? Are you in here?”
The covers were yanked off my head, and Brita’s face appeared. She wrinkled her nose. “No way. You are rank, girl. When is the last time you showered?”
“What day is it?” I asked, trying to grab the covers from her hand. I was pretty sure it had only been three days, but the nights had kind of blurred together. Sleep was the only time the pain went away, so I’d spent a lot of time seeking it out.
“If you need to ask, then you’ve blown way past the acceptable limits of personal hygiene.”
“Shut up, Brita, and go away while you’re at it.”
“Fine,” she said with an indifferent shrug. She let go of the covers, and I readjusted my cocoon. I heard her walking toward the door. “I just thought you’d want to know that while you were moping away in here, Gabe left.”
That caught my attention. The covers fell to my waist when I sat up. “What are you talking about? Gabe wouldn’t just leave.”
She pointed toward the nightstand. “He left you a note.” And then she flounced out of the room.
I vaguely remembered him coming in a few times, but I’d checked out. And now he’d gone. Panic sparked in my belly, quickly followed by anger. Okay, so I wasn’t a prize these days, but give me a break. I needed a little time to get over saying good-bye to my family. For all of his promises of loving me forever, he’d jumped ship at the first speed bump.
I grabbed the envelope on the nightstand and slit it open. A piece of paper, a train ticket, a map, and some money fell out. I scanned the paper, and all of two seconds later, I was out of bed and running for the shower. The note didn’t say much, but it said everything to me.
Chase me, Remy.
Four hours later, I climbed out of a cab at the Jardin du Luxembourg. Gabe had left me a train ticket from London to Paris. I’d showered and dressed in twenty minutes flat. Edith had been waiting with a packed bag, and Sean had broken some speeding laws to get me to the station on time.
The map marked a single location. Someplace called the Medici Fountain in the Jardin du Luxembourg. I hefted my bag over my shoulder and wandered into the park. Sudden nerves unsettled my stomach, and I was glad that I’d chosen to trade my usual jeans for a dress. The buttery yellow color made my skin glow and my hair look lighter than usual. Gabe hadn’t seen me in a dress often, and I hoped he would like it.
I stopped a woman and showed her my map. She smiled and pointed me in the right direction. A few minutes later, I clim
bed a set of stone steps and inhaled a shocked breath when I spotted the fountain. A long rectangular pond sprawled under a grove of trees. The green canopy and greener water created a quiet, cool haven. Metal chairs were lined up alongside the pond and at one end, a giant sculpture stood majestically over it all. According to an inset on my map, the art depicted Polyphemus spying on two lovers, Acis and Galatea.
I didn’t see Gabe, so I sat in a chair to wait. Ducks swam in the pond, and birds chirped in the trees. Gradually, I felt myself relaxing for the first time in ages. There was something peaceful about being anonymous and knowing that nobody was looking for me.
“Mademoiselle?”
I jumped and shifted in my seat to find a short, older man with gray hair standing beside me. He smiled. “Remy?”
He pronounced my name with a strong French accent. When I nodded, he handed me an envelope, tipped an imaginary hat, and left. I stared after him, bemused for a moment, before I opened the envelope.
Feel better? You’re getting warmer.
Below those five words, Gabe had written an address. I grinned as I stood and made my way out of the park to find another cab. He’d once told me, “Whenever you’re upset, you go outside.” So he’d sent me outside because he knew how sad I was.
A short time later, the cabdriver dropped me off on a street that overlooked the Notre Dame Cathedral. I paid him and walked the direction he pointed me toward. Soon I arrived at the address, and I laughed when I saw it was a café. Gabe was nowhere in sight, but I would have been surprised if he was. I found a table on the sidewalk so I could people-watch. It suddenly hit me that I was in Paris. The poor girl from the hovel in New York had managed to break free of her past. My mom would have loved to see this. My eyes filled with tears at the thought, and I blinked them back. No more crying.
A waitress with a mass of black curls and tan skin placed a white cup and saucer in front of me.
“Oh, I didn’t order yet,” I protested.
She shrugged, placed an envelope beside the saucer, and left.
I took a sip of the café au lait and closed my eyes in appreciation. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d had a good cup of coffee. The O’Malley household had tended toward tea. I set aside the mug to open the envelope, pausing a moment to savor the anticipation.
Have I told you that I love coffee? Especially when I get to taste it on you. You’re almost there.
I reread the note, imagining Gabe beside me. Kissing me, holding me, stealing my ability to think. I shivered and nearly scalded my tongue when I gulped the rest of the café au lait. Instead of an address, Gabe had included another ticket. It was for one of the boats, the Bateau Mouches, that took the trip along the Seine River to the Eiffel Tower. I spotted a sign for the boat company at the edge of the riverbank. I dropped money on the table to cover the coffee and ran.
At the water’s edge, I handed my ticket to a man. He grinned and handed me a small, wrapped box before waving me onboard. I sought out the upper deck that offered a 360-degree view of the Seine and found a seat away from the other tourists. The Bateau Mouches pushed away from the dock and cruised along. I tried to look in every direction at once to take everything in.
Eventually, I studied the box in my hand. It was the perfect size to hold earrings or a ring, but I guessed that wouldn’t be what it held. For a second, my mind drifted to another package, but I shoved that thought away. There was no place for thoughts of Franc here. I gave Gabe’s present a slight shake, and something rattled inside. I gleefully ripped the paper off the box, impatient now. I opened the lid and stared at the contents.
A key. A very old-fashioned one that would open something equally old. But what? This time there was no note to explain. I held the key, flipping it in my hand thoughtfully.
“It opens the door of a beautiful apartment near the Jardin du Luxembourg.”
I almost dropped it when Gabe slid into the seat beside me. The wind whipped his chocolate-brown hair in every direction, and he’d narrowed his eyes against the sun. The angle of his wide jaw was offset by high cheekbones and a sensual mouth. A mouth that I could taste whenever I wanted.
“Nothing to say?” he asked when I continued to stare at him. He carried on like I’d spoken. “It’s close to several universities, including a medical school. And there’s a music school nearby that I thought I might look into. You could live in the apartment alone, if you prefer. Or we could live there together.”
Gabe rarely got nervous, but at that moment, he was almost babbling. So I leaned over and kissed him, sliding a hand into his hair to pull him down to meet me. Between one breath and the next, he stopped fidgeting and got busy reminding me what I had missed for the last month.
A throat cleared nearby, and I laughed against Gabe’s lips as he pulled away. I glanced over his shoulder to find an old woman glaring at us. Rather than feeling ashamed, I smiled at her. I was in love.
Gabe tugged on the end of my ponytail to get my attention. He stared at me with a question in his eyes. Now, I was nervous. I settled back in my seat and clutched the key. “Can we go see it? The apartment, I mean.”
“I thought we could have dinner at the Eiffel Tower and then head over there after.”
I shook my head. “I’d rather go now. I think we need to talk.” I glanced over his shoulder again at the woman who still stared at us. “In private,” I added.
“Okay,” he said. “We’ll talk.”
Gabe took the key from me and fit it in the lock. He pushed the black door open and stood aside to let me enter. The apartment wasn’t huge. It wasn’t even extravagant, though the furnishings looked comfortable. An overstuffed, brown suede couch faced a set of shelves that housed a TV, books, and knickknacks that I couldn’t wait to explore. I trailed a hand over the couch as I passed it on my way to the kitchen. I heard the front door close as Gabe followed me.
A square island occupied the center of the kitchen with two bar stools on one side. I rounded the counter and turned. Gabe stood in the doorway watching me with an unreadable expression.
“I’m sorry,” I said. “That it took me so long to get back to you. Letting my family go . . .” Just thinking about watching them leave stole my breath, and it took me a second to continue. “I was sad.”
That was the ultimate understatement.
“You’re still sad,” Gabe observed.
I gave him a small smile. “I’m less sad,” I corrected him. “Soon, I’ll be almost happy. And before you know it, I’ll be Mary Freaking Sunshine. You’ll hate how much I’ll smile. But for a little while, I’m going to be sad.”
“I can handle that. Just don’t shut me out, sweetheart.”
“Deal.”
He started forward, but I held up a hand. “There’s more.”
He settled back against the doorway again and lifted one dark brow. “More? What could possibly follow Mary Freaking Sunshine?”
I turned to open a cabinet and spotted a box of Kraft macaroni and cheese and a bag of my favorite chocolate. I grabbed the chocolate, clutching it to my chest. “God, I love you.”
“Me or the chocolate?”
“You?” I teased, and Gabe cracked a smile.
“Good answer.”
I set the candy aside and opened another cabinet.
“Remy? Are you stalling?”
“Mmm-hmm,” I said, looking at a shelf of spices.
“Are you trying to figure out a way to apologize for leaving me out of your scheme with Asher or a way to tell me that you’re a Phoenix?”
I swung around so quickly that I almost tripped over my own feet. “You knew?” I shrieked.
He actually snorted. “I guessed and you just confirmed. You are the worst liar I’ve ever seen.”
I blushed. “Seamus said the same thing. He told me to avoid poker.” I stared at Gabe through my lashes. “I take it you’re okay with this?”
He blew out a frustrated breath. “I guess I don’t understand why you didn’t tell me.”
I’d hurt him, and I hated that. “I didn’t think it was going to be as dangerous as it was. And people would only believe that Asher would lose control. Not you. And if we were wrong about the bonding being tied to my emotions . . . Well, there was a very slim chance that Asher and I might have bonded again, and I didn’t want to upset you.”
Thank goodness that hadn’t happened.
“And the fact that you’re a Phoenix? Why not tell me that?”
“Because I didn’t want to think about it,” I confessed. “I wanted to pretend that I was normal for a while, so maybe I wouldn’t have to give up my father and Lucy. It was stupid, and I knew it while it was happening. But I couldn’t let them go.”
Except I had. And it still gutted me.
“Can you forgive me?” I asked.
“Apparently, I am incapable of holding a grudge against you,” he answered ruefully. “You have to talk to me, Remy. I knew you needed time, but the last month has been hell.”
“I’m so sorry, Gabe.”
The tension in his shoulders finally released, and he said, “Come on. I’ll show you the rest of the place.”
He held out a hand, and I walked over to grasp it. He pulled me down a hallway, and I studied the muscles in his back. I let my defenses fall away for the first time in a month as my gaze traveled lower.
Gabe froze. Then he turned, picked me up, and backed me into the closest wall. His mouth owned mine for six separate kisses, though I might have lost count around four. His hands landed on my hips, and I could hear my blood rushing through my ears. I nipped his jaw and he sucked in a breath that made me smile. I kissed his neck. I love you, Gabe. I kissed the other side of his jaw. I love you. My mouth found his again. I love you.
“I missed hearing you,” he said.
I pressed against his chest to gain a few inches of space so I could see his face. “What if you become mortal? You won’t be able to read my mind then.”
Ignited Page 30