Paranormal After Dark

by Rebecca Hamilton

  Back at the O’Connell homestead, they left the box outside the spare bedroom where Nate was sleeping. Cade told Ever goodnight with one last kiss that he felt through his entire body. Then he begrudgingly retired to his own room.

  * * *

  HE AWOKE BEFORE dawn, antsy and disoriented.

  He’d slept plenty of nights away from home. His father was a world traveler, and for most of Cade’s childhood, he’d been dragged along. So his unease didn’t stem from waking in a strange place; being in Ever’s house definitely wasn’t a bad feeling. If anything, the very idea of her just down the hall made him hot under the collar.

  Something was bothering him. Intuitively. His mother had taught him not to ignore these surges of forewarning.

  He dressed in warm sweats and sneakers before stealing down the hall. Nobody stirred as his passed, not even the dogs snoozing at the foot of Ever’s bed.

  Cade stopped briefly to peer into her room. Ever was little more than a mound beneath her covers. He wished he were a part of that mound, their limbs tangled and her soft breath occupying his space.

  When he walked out the front door, the cold air hit him hard enough to take his breath away. He pulled up the hood of his sweatshirt and took off along the edge of the property.

  The pounding of his tennis shoes on the frostbitten grass grounded him. He ran steadily, not hard, but soon began to sweat. He knocked off his hood, focused on regulating his breathing and not hitting any potholes in the meadow.

  He followed the wooden fence, his gaze everywhere. He noted the dark forest that surrounded the O’Connells’ large plot of land. The fenced pasture alone covered at least ten acres, he estimated, and had probably belonged to the family for eons.

  He found the source of his discomfort not far from the eastern side of the house: a faint signature of someone else’s magick.

  Cade skidded to a halt, his shoes ripping up clods of grass and dirt. He ventured towards the fence, reaching for his own magick in case that same someone remained close by.

  He didn’t recognize the signature. It wasn’t Ever, nor was it anyone female. The magick had a distinctly masculine feel, though it wasn’t Rémy, nor — thankfully — Gilles.

  But that didn’t mean it wasn’t someone who worked for those two.

  Cade knew they needed to protect the house and property. Gilles was obviously unstable in his delusions that Ever belonged to him and capable of anything. If he was hiring goons to watch the house and wait for Ever to be vulnerable, then Cade had to do something about that.

  Lost in thought about gathering friends and family to enchant the land, he walked right by his mother in the driveway. He registered her presence only after he’d passed her.

  “Mom. What are you doing here?” He doubled back, kissing her on both cheeks.

  She looked tired. Her graying auburn hair was loose around her shoulders, capped by ear muffs. The wind had put color in her cheeks and nose, but it couldn’t hide the dark circles beneath her eyes.

  “I brought you this.” She handed him a box. “It’s already charged and activated. Same number.”

  “Thanks.” He opened the box and pulled out a newer version of his last cell phone.

  “I didn’t like not having a way to get in touch with you.” She sighed, looking up at Ever’s house. “Are you okay here?”

  “More than okay.” He didn’t want her to worry about his early morning discovery. By the look on her face, she was worrying about enough. His mother appeared to have aged overnight.

  “Stay out of trouble,” Grace warned.

  “Don’t I always?” Cade grinned, trying to lighten the mood.

  Grace lifted an eyebrow, a shadow of her usual self.

  “I got an email from Dad.”

  Grace shook her head. “And he hasn’t the faintest idea that anything he’s done is wrong. He hasn’t always been so… harsh.”

  Cade didn’t know how to respond. Maybe his father had gone darker. Or maybe Cade’s perception, and his mother’s, had changed.

  Grace wrapped him in a hug. “I love you.”

  “Be careful around him,” Cade said, squeezing her. “We don’t know what he’s capable…” He trailed off. He didn’t want to finish the sentence. His dad had always been his hero — his power, his prestige, his absolute dominion. Cade had envied those things and strived to follow in Rémy’s footsteps.

  Now, he would have given anything to be out from under Rémy’s destructive shadow. The equation was no longer just himself; now, he had to protect Ever.

  Chapter 29

  EVER

  THURSDAY MORNING, EVER woke up to an excited yell from the hall. A split second later, Nate burst through her open doorway, his altar box in his hands.

  “How?” he demanded, his eyes shining. He was mussed with sleep, his chestnut hair sticking up wildly and the indent of a pillow creasing his square jaw.

  Ever sat up with a yawn. “In a car.”

  Nate shook his head, brandishing the cut-glass mug. “But the chalice was in pieces!”

  Ever loved the glow on his face. It was the look of a guy who had hit rough waters, only to be handed a life preserver. “It wasn’t as broken as you thought,” Ever fudged. “Some hot glue fixed it right up.”

  She was banking on Nate being a stereotypical sports junkie who wouldn’t know hot glue from duct tape. Then he could accept a blemish-free chalice with little effort.

  Ever caught movement behind Nate and watched as Cade leaned against the doorframe. His hair was down and windblown, and his cheeks and nose were tinged red. She thought his eyes seemed haunted, but he gave her a secret wink and a smile.

  “Thank you so much,” Nate told her, clutching the box tighter. He hadn’t seen Cade arrive.

  “Don’t thank me.” Ever gestured behind him. “It was his idea.”

  Nate turned, offering a hand to Cade. “I don’t know how you did it, but thanks. I owe you.”

  Cade clapped him on the shoulder. “You don’t owe me a damn thing.”

  Nate excused himself to get ready for school, the box clutched so tightly in his hands the cardboard edges were crumpling. Ever wouldn’t have thought it strange at all if he refused to part with the box, and instead tucked it lovingly into his backpack.

  For a long moment, Ever stared at Cade. He was beautiful in the sunlight piercing through her aqua curtains, shadows caressing his angular face. There were so many things she wished she had the courage to say to him, but none of the words felt right. Not yet.

  The silence grew unbearable. Ever slipped from bed, the hardwood cold beneath her bare feet as she crossed to him. She tilted her head back to catch his emerald eyes, sliding her fingers over his sweatshirt.

  She kissed him, relishing the warmth of his chest beneath her hands and the startling cold of his lips. “You did good,” she murmured.

  “That felt good,” Cade replied with a disbelieving shake of his head. “Who knew salvaging a box of altar tools from the trash could make a guy so happy?”

  “There are things more important than power.”

  “I realize that. I was raised differently.”

  “Somehow, I don’t believe that. I know for a fact you’re very fond of your mother, and she’s kind and caring. More so than my mom,” Ever added bitterly.

  Cade rested his hands easily on her hips, his thumbs brushing against the strip of bare skin between her shirt and pants. “I’m surprised you don’t get along with your mom. I thought you got along with everybody.”

  “Like Donovan?” Ever laughed.

  Cade cringed, squeezing her hips. “Good point. But your mom. What happened there? Other than not telling you about your deadbeat dad.”

  Ever leaned forward, resting her forehead against his chest. He felt sturdy, as if he’d catch her by sheer force of will were she to crumble. “What mom? She doesn’t just keep important stuff from me. She’s never here. Her life is anywhere but Coalhaven. What kind of mother does that?”

  �
��She must have her reasons. I’m sure it has nothing to do with you.”

  Ever stepped back and shrugged. She had expended so much energy over the past eighteen years trying to understand her mom’s motivations. Something about Cade’s presence made her not want to waste any more time.

  “What made you want to help Nate?” she asked, changing the subject.

  “I don’t know.”

  Ever punched his arm. “Don’t give me that.”

  “Maybe I think he and I aren’t so different. Maybe I want him to like me because I know he — and the rest of your coven — loves you. And I want to be accepted. To be good enough for you.”

  Ever’s heart skipped. She moved close again, wrapping her arms around his waist as she gazed up into his beautiful face. “You are good enough for me.”

  * * *

  NATE WAS STILL great spirits at breakfast, laughing and teasing Nah until she blushed from his attentions.

  Ever and Cade exchanged amused looks, and she thought about saying something funny in his head. But anytime she caught his gaze, she could barely speak, much less come up with something witty.

  Nah picked up the cereal box from the center of the table and peeked inside. “Lord and Lady! I just bought this last week. With three teenagers in the house, I’m going to have to go grocery shopping tonight.” She chuckled, putting the box back on the table. “I’m beginning to feel like a boardinghouse. Any requests from the store?”

  “If at any point I become a burden, please let me know,” Cade said.

  Nah gave him a little half smile and patted his face. “Honey, I doubt you’re ever gonna feel like a burden in this house.”

  “I’m sure my mom would help with groceries, at least.”

  Nate, mouthful of cereal, echoed the sentiment. “I’ve got some savings from mowing lawns this summer.”

  “Don’t you boys worry yourselves,” Nah said softly, refilling their coffee mugs. She smiled at Ever. “It’s been a long time since we’ve had a man in the house. We consider it a blessing.”

  When they were finished eating, Nah said, “Ever, honey, may I have a word with you?”

  Ever froze. It wasn’t that Nah’s voice gave anything away or suggested Ever was in trouble or anything. But anytime Nah asked for a word, it meant something was wrong.

  The guys disappeared upstairs without complaint, glancing back at Ever sympathetically.

  Nah sat across from her at the table, her lips pursed. She had Dah’s bifocals perched on her nose from reading the paper, and it gave her a severe appearance, like an angry schoolmarm.

  Ever refused to crack first. She held Nah’s gaze, the hum of the fridge filling the silence. The electric kettle clicked. Tiny droplets spilled from the leaky faucet. One of the dogs barked in the yard, breaking the spell.

  “Lily called me late last night,” Nah said.

  Ohhh, Ever thought. That’s what this is about.

  “Did she now?”

  Nah hmm’d. “Would you like to explain why I had to convince your mother she didn’t need to come home?”

  “No,” Ever answered immediately, surprising herself as much as Nah. Lily should come home, even if Gilles hadn’t been released from jail.

  “Excuse me?” Nah looked more confused than angered by Ever’s candid response.

  “She has lied to me and withheld information from me my entire life. If I’d known who my father was, I would have had a chance to get help before he followed me home and tried to kidnap me.” Nah opened her mouth, but Ever rushed on. “She’s never here. She never worries about my feelings. Half the time, she doesn’t answer my calls. My mother shows me no loyalty. Why should I give her that respect?” Ever fell into silence. She didn’t know what else to say.

  “I don’t disagree with you,” Nah murmured. “Not entirely. Lily has always been rash and irresponsible. She was that way even at your age, which is how she ended up married to Gilles Robidoux halfway across the world. But I promise you, Ever — Lily loves you. She’s sworn for a dozen years that she has stayed away to protect you.”

  “How does that even make sense?” Ever whined.

  Nah’s gaze shifted from Ever’s face to the small window above the sink. The sky was blue outside, dotted with wispy white clouds. “I don’t know for sure, honey.”

  “But you have a theory?” Ever prompted.

  Nah focused on her again. “A theory I would hate to be true. Best be off, honey. You’ll be late.”

  Ever huffed. Her grandmother’s tone left no room for argument. The conversation was over.

  Chapter 30

  CADE

  THEY RODE TO school with Nate, the three of them chatting with an easy camaraderie unfamiliar to Cade. It wasn’t that he couldn’t talk to his coven; but their constant bickering and drama put a strain on their relationships. Ever and her friends let things go more easily. They didn’t hold grudges.

  Though he was able to sneak moments throughout the school day with Ever, he had swim practice at the Y that afternoon. After a pizza dinner with the crew, one of his teammates took him to Mitch’s to get his car. By the time Cade got back to Ever’s — she was already in bed.

  Friday was the same; only this time Ever had plans with Meagan and Ollie to go to the mall after school. So Cade spent the afternoon at the O’Connell’s with Nate and Mitch.

  “Thanks for inviting me over,” Mitch said as the fire pit crackled, the flames burning hot enough to ward off the chill in the air.

  Cade slid down in his seat, resting his soda on his knee. “Yeah, man. Hadn’t seen you all week.”

  Nate leaned forward and tossed another branch in the fire. “It’s cool to meet you. As friends instead of enemies.”

  Mitch saluted him with his can. “For sure. Between you, Ever, and that hellion Stauble, I’m starting to think you Fluffs are pretty cool.”

  Nate grinned. “It’s the truth.”

  They talked for an hour about sports and CircleEarth, and then Nate left for his date with Claudia. Cade found himself alone with his best friend.

  Mitch nodded. “I like that guy. Seriously.”

  “Me, too.”

  “You keep watching the door,” Mitch remarked with a smirk. “She’s not gonna come home any faster just because you’re willing her to.”

  Cade laughed. “Am I that obvious?”

  “Dude.” Mitch rolled his head to look at Cade. “It’s all over your face. You’re in deep. How are you even breathing right now?”

  “Because I can still feel her.”

  There was no response but the crackling of the fire as Mitch studied him. “Like how?”

  Cade touched the point where his ribs separated, his solar plexus. “Right here. Something connects me to her, a thread or something.”

  “Magick?” Mitch clarified.

  “Yeah. And the longer we’re together, the stronger it gets. Right now, I can sense she’s happy and having fun, but I can feel…” Cade’s face felt hot, and it wasn’t just the fire. “I can feel this incredible sense of longing. For me.”

  Mitch waggled his eyebrows. “Have you hit that?”

  Cade crumpled his empty can and launched it at Mitch’s chest. “Fuck off, dude. Love isn’t just about sex.”

  “Love, huh?”

  Cade’s heart pounded in his chest. “Yeah. Love.”

  * * *

  IT WAS AFTER ten before he heard — and felt — Ever come home.

  Nate was still out with Claudia, and Nah was at work. Cade lay in his dark room, every sense on alert as Ever moved through the house.

  He waited until she was in her room, and then shoved back the covers and went to her, unable to stay away any longer.

  She’d left her door cracked. Cade knocked once and gently pushed it open, not giving any thought to the fact she might not be decent. He froze in the doorway, staring.

  She stood in front of her vanity brushing her hair in nothing but her bra and panties. The jeans and blouse she’d worn to school were
crumpled on the floor with her boots. On the bed, her nightgown was laid out as if waiting for her to step into as soon as she was ready.

  Ever gasped, dropping the brush to the hardwood floor. “Cade!”

  “I’m… sorry,” Cade said, unable to find words or stop looking at her. He’d always known there were dangerous curves beneath her loose-fitting clothes, but to see them in the flesh, her ivory skin bathed in the warm glow of her bedside lamp…

  Cade wasn’t sorry at all.

  “I missed you,” he said.

  Ever nodded. “I missed you, too.”

  They stared at each other in silence, Cade mesmerized by the rise and fall of her chest, her breasts barely contained by the tiny scrap of lace that functioned as a bra. The curve of her hips, the fullness of her ass — Ever was the personification of an hourglass figure. Cade suddenly wondered why he’d ever wasted time on any girl not built like Ever. Like a woman.

  He had no idea who made the first move: he or Ever. But one moment they faced each other, the expanse of her room between them, and the next, her warmth and softness was in his arms.

  In between kisses, Cade said, “I can’t stand you being away from me.”

  Ever nodded, her eyes wide as she paused to take a breath. “It hurts,” she said, touching her solar plexus.

  Cade took her hand and put it over his t-shirt in the same spot. “Me, too.”

  “What’s going on?” she asked. “Why is it like this?”

  Cade shook his head, then delved back into her lips. “I don’t know. I don’t care. I don’t want it to stop.”

  Ever lifted his shirt, breaking the kiss long enough to rip it from over his head. Her gaze drifted down his torso, and for a brief moment, Cade was lucid enough in his desire to hope she liked what she saw. She caught his eye, then moved her lips over his skin, down his pecs and to his stomach, her breasts brushing his erection.