Eternal Promise: (The Cursed Series, Book 5)

by Kara Leigh Miller

  “I was so relieved to see him. He kissed me, told me he was sorry I was hurting.” Abby stopped pacing and stared at me. “Then he said he would do whatever he could to make things better because he couldn’t stand to see me so upset. Hours later, you were found.”

  Tears pooled in my eyes and slipped down my cheeks. I remembered the day I was found. “Isach was keeping me hidden with his magic. He dropped it, then told Trent and Jax where to find me.”

  After he’d instructed Hannah to kill me, but I left that part out. No reason to make an already tense situation any worse. Though, now I was curious—why would Isach tell Hannah to kill me and then lead Trent and Jax to me? Surely, Isach had to know Hannah would kill me before Trent ever showed up.

  Had he secretly hoped that would be the outcome? So he could then say he’d tried, that it wasn’t his fault that Trent and Jax didn’t get to me in time? That didn’t make much sense, because Isach wasn’t stupid—if he’d let Hannah kill me, Trent and Jax would have killed him. He must have alerted them to where I was before he instructed Hannah to kill me.

  I shook the thoughts from my head. None of that mattered anymore. “Don’t you see?” I said, stepping up to her. “He did that because of you, Abby. Because he saw how much you were hurting, and he didn’t want to do that to you.”

  “Then he never should’ve taken you in the first place,” she said.

  “You’re absolutely right, but he did, and we can’t undo the past. But people can change, and I honestly believe Isach has,” I said. A shiver wracked my body. “Okay, I’m sorry, but I can’t stand out here a second longer. I’m freezing.”

  I turned to head back inside, and thankfully, Abby fell into step beside me. She didn’t say anything else, and while I was curious as to what she’d decide to do, I wasn’t going to push her.

  We climbed the porch, and Abby grabbed my arm, stopping me. Then she flung her arms around me in a suffocating hug. “I’m sorry for everything you’ve had to go through,” she mumbled.

  “Thanks, but you know none of it is your fault, right?”

  She nodded but still didn’t release me. “I’m just going to need some time,” she said.

  “Of course.” I pulled away from her hug. “And I’m sure Isach will understand that.”

  Abby wiped her eyes, opened the door, and walked inside. I followed her in and was blasted with warm air. Trent must have turned up the heat.

  When Isach saw us, he stood. His eyes were red and puffy. Had he been crying? “Abby, I’m so sorry,” he said.

  She held up her hand to silence him, and he snapped his mouth shut. If the situation wasn’t so severe, I would’ve laughed. I never thought I’d see the day a human girl could bring the all-powerful Isach Zoya to his knees, but I fully expected him to do just that any second.

  “It’s your choice,” I said to Abby.

  “I want to talk to Isach,” she said, glancing at me. “Alone.”

  “We’ll give you two some privacy,” Trent said, taking my hand and leading me upstairs.

  CHAPTER EIGHT:

  Right or Wrong

  I STEPPED INSIDE THE BEDROOM TRENT and I had shared over the summer, and I was hit with a tidal wave of memories. I blinked, trying to force them away, but they only flashed harder and faster before my eyes. I took a deep breath and blew it out slowly.

  “Everything okay?” Trent asked. He stood next to me, hands shoved into his pockets.

  I nodded. “Yeah, just… a lot happened in this room,” I said with a nervous laugh.

  Trent smiled faintly and glanced around. “We can go wait in a different room if you want,” he offered.

  “No, it’s fine,” I said, walking farther into the room and embracing the memories rather than fighting them.

  Despite having almost died in this very room—and being in a coma—I’d had some pretty great moments in here, too. Snuggling with Trent in bed, whispering how much we loved each other, almost having sex, talking about our future…

  I approached the bed and dragged my fingers across the comforter, unable to successfully push back against the memory of how I’d snuck out of bed while Trent slept, how I’d crept through the cabin like some criminal. Taking a deep breath, I closed my eyes, wishing yet again I could go back in time and redo so much about that night.

  “Hey,” Trent whispered. He slid his arms around my stomach and hugged me from behind, his breath warm against my ear. “Are you sure you’re all right?”

  I leaned against him. “Yeah.”

  Despite the mistakes I’d made that night—and I’d made more than one—everything was working out the way it was supposed to, and we were going to have an eternity together. I needed to stop dwelling in the past.

  Gently, Trent spun me so I was facing him. His expression was full of compassion, and his eyes were bordering on dark. “What’s going on in that head of yours?” he asked.

  I laughed and rested my forehead against his chest. “Did we do the right thing?” I asked. “Giving Abby’s memories back? She was pretty upset.” I lifted my head and met Trent’s gaze.

  “Right or wrong, it’s done now,” he said. “And if it’s too much for her, I can always wipe her memories again.”

  “Yeah, I told her the same thing,” I said and snaked my arms around him. “I think you’re just eager to kiss her again.” I smirked.

  He let out a surprised laugh. “I’m pretty sure that was more painful for me than it was for you,” he said, raising a brow, daring me to disagree.

  “Was it?” I asked, my voice suddenly uneven with insecurity. “I mean, you didn’t actually like kissing her, did you?”

  “No,” he said adamantly. “Everything about kissing her was wrong. I tried to convince myself I was kissing you, but knowing I had to focus on her memories, that was impossible. She didn’t feel the same as you always do.”

  I tilted my head. “What?”

  “You feel a certain way in my arms, like you just… fit. She doesn’t,” he said. “And she doesn’t smell like you, either. Or taste like you. Her heart doesn’t sound like yours.”

  “Okay, I get the point,” I said with a satisfied smile. “I just hope she and Isach can work through this.”

  “I’m sure they will,” Trent said, slowly lowering his head until his mouth was poised above mine. His eyes darkened a little more, his intentions clear.

  My heart kickstarted, and my breath hitched as I leaned closer, eager for him to kiss me.

  “Is that all that’s on your mind?” he asked.

  “Well, now I’m thinking about you kissing me,” I said.

  He smiled, and then his lips landed on mine in a soft, hungry kiss. My eyes fluttered closed, and I moved my arms up to circle his neck, my fingers splaying in his hair. He groaned, the sound rumbling through me, and I was suddenly very grateful we were alone. Well, sort of. Abby and Isach could come upstairs at any moment, but for right now, it was just me and Trent.

  “That’s what I meant,” he whispered. “When I kiss you, your heart trips over itself. Hers didn’t do that.”

  A sense of excitement shot through me at his admission. He really did have that effect on me, and I couldn’t hide it even if I wanted to. “Are you sure you have to go camping with your dad and brothers this weekend?” I asked.

  “Yes,” he grumbled. “But trust me, I’d much rather be with you.”

  “Whitney would probably kill me if I tried to back out of her girls’ weekend anyway,” I said with a smile.

  Even though I hated the idea of being away from Trent all weekend, I was excited to spend a few days with my friends. I couldn’t remember the last time all of us had hung out, and truth be told, girl time always helped put my life into perspective. In fact, not having to think about the Zoya or Ivy was sounding more appealing by the second.

  “How much time do you think we have?” I asked, my gaze darting toward the bed, then back to Trent.

  He grinned, then scowled. “Not enough. Abby’s on her way up
here right now,” he said.

  My shoulders slumped. So much for having some time with Trent before he took off for the weekend. A moment later, Abby knocked on the door.

  “Yeah?” I called, reluctantly stepping out of Trent’s arms.

  Abby entered, her face red and her eyes bloodshot from crying. My heart ached at the sight of her like that. Guilt stabbed at me—I’d caused that. If I hadn’t insisted on giving back her memories… but the alternative was much worse.

  “Can we please go now?” she asked, her bottom lip trembling.

  “Of course,” I said, glancing at Trent, who now had his truck keys in hand. “I assume you want to ride home with us?”

  She nodded and hugged herself. “I told Isach I needed some time,” she mumbled.

  “Of course,” I said again, at a loss for anything helpful to say. “Let’s go.”

  “I HAVE A QUESTION,” Karina said. Her voice was always so soft. I had to strain to hear her most of the time. “If you could know your future, would you want to?”

  I tilted my head, studying her. I hoped she wasn’t going to tell everyone she was psychic. Of course, they’d probably think she was joking, but I had hoped this weekend would be normal, just a group of friends hanging out.

  “No way.” Abby shook her head. “Why would anyone want to know their future?”

  It was Saturday night, and we—me, Abby, Whitney, Ellie, Gina, Tonya, and Karina—were spread out on the living room floor. The fireplace roared with warmth, and I swore the entire snack aisle at the store was now spread out around us.

  Before showing up here last night, I’d told Abby all about Karina and her psychic gifts. Abby was intrigued, but she was still dealing with everything she’d learned about Isach, so she didn’t ask nearly as many questions as I’d expected.

  She hadn’t dumped Isach, but she was taking a break from him, at least for the weekend. I hoped spending some quality girl time with our friends would help her. It always seemed to work for me.

  “Why wouldn’t you want to know?” Whitney asked, head tilted.

  “Because what if it’s something bad?” Abby asked. “Like, what if you found out you were going to die?”

  “We’re all going to die someday,” Tonya said.

  I shot Whitney and Abby a knowing look and shoved a potato chip into my mouth to stop from laughing.

  “Yeah, but do you really want to know when or how?” Abby asked. “If you knew, you’d be obsessed with it, right? Like, you’d do everything you could to change your future.”

  Ellie shrugged. “Maybe. Or maybe you’d be more willing to do risky things because you know that specific thing isn’t going to kill you.”

  Part of me was curious to know how my life would turn out. Would Trent and I get the eternity together we wanted? Would we defeat the Zoya? Would we have a child? A bigger part of me, though, didn’t want to know any of that. Because Ellie was right—if I knew what was going to happen, I’d probably try to change the outcome.

  “Not knowing is half the fun,” I said, munching on another chip. “Sometimes, life can surprise you.”

  “Yeah, like you moving here and meeting me,” Ellie said, flipping her hair over her shoulder and giggling.

  “Exactly like that,” I said, laughing.

  “I think I’d like to know some stuff,” Whitney said.

  “Such as?” I asked.

  “Am I ever going to meet a guy I fall crazy in love with?” she said. “Don’t get me wrong. Luke is great, but I don’t think he’s the one.”

  I frowned. As a vampire, Whitney could tell if someone she was interested in was her soulmate or not, and if she wasn’t feeling that with Luke, then he wasn’t the one for her. I hoped she’d find him someday, too. But as Trent and Jax had both pointed out to me—it’s rare.

  “Okay, who’s hungry?” Whitney asked, shaking off her melancholy and springing to her feet.

  “You’re kidding, right?” Gina said, staring up at her with wide eyes. “There’s already enough food here to feed the entire town.”

  “Those are snacks,” Whitney said. “I’m talking about real food. You know… pizza, chicken wings, some breadsticks…”

  “Oh, I could eat some pizza,” I said. Not that I was super hungry or anything, but I couldn’t say no to a slice of extra cheese pizza.

  “I’ll order it.” Whitney practically skipped into the kitchen.

  I stood and picked up some of the snacks, intent on putting them away. All of us had slept in the living room last night—mostly because there wasn’t a single room in this house large enough to accommodate seven of us, and Whitney insisted we stay together. I assumed we’d be doing the same tonight, too.

  Karina helped me carry food to the kitchen while Abby and Ellie tried to find a scary movie to watch. Gina and Tonya gathered the blankets and pillows from Whitney’s room and dumped them on the living room floor.

  “Your friends are so nice,” Karina said as she shoved packages of cookies into the cabinet.

  “Yeah, they’re pretty great, aren’t they?” I said, smiling.

  She nodded vigorously. “Thank you for letting me hang out with all of you.” She set a container of chip dip in the fridge, then spun to face me. “Because of how things turned out with my parents and then everything with Dante and Colt, I don’t really have any friends.”

  Karina hung her head as if she were too embarrassed to look at me. My heart splintered for how sad and alone she was. I knew the feeling all too well.

  “Now you do,” I said.

  She jerked her head up, eyes wide. “You mean that?”

  “Of course. I mean, you and Colt are going to stay, right?” I leaned against the counter and crossed my arms. Only then did I notice Whitney wasn’t in here. Where did she go?

  “Yes,” Karina said. “Colt’s so happy here, and he deserves that.” She moved to sit in one of the kitchen chairs. “All he ever talked about was his dad and brothers. He really missed them.”

  “He shouldn’t have stayed away so long,” I said, then winced at how harsh and accusatory I sounded. “Sorry. I just meant—”

  She held up her hand to silence me. “No, I get it. I’d been telling him the same thing.” She laughed. “But as I’m sure you’ve realized, those Halstead boys can be incredibly stubborn.”

  “Tell me about it.” I laughed and sat across from her. “So, was Dante really that awful?”

  Karina’s face paled, and she quickly averted her gaze. Clearly, she was still very much afraid of him. I shouldn’t have mentioned his name, but Trent hadn’t given me much information about Dante, and I was curious.

  “He’s worse than awful,” she said after a moment. “He has no compassion for anyone but himself.”

  Hesitantly, I reached over and patted her hand. “I’m sorry. But you’re away from him now, and if Colt is anything like Trent and Jax, he’ll die to protect you.”

  She gave me a grateful smile. “He’s already done so much for me.”

  Even though I didn’t know her well, and this was the longest amount of time I’d spent talking to her, it was clear we had a lot in common. I was suddenly struck with the desire to ask her to be my other bridesmaid. Doing so would save me from having to choose between Gina and Tonya, and if Karina said yes, she could walk down the aisle with Colt.

  Gathering her hair in her hand, she draped it over her shoulder and sighed.

  “He claimed you,” I said, nodding at the bite mark on her neck.

  Karina quickly put her hair back so it was covering her neck, and she cleared her throat. “Yeah. It was one of the ways he protected me from Dante.”

  I narrowed my eyes in confusion. “How so?”

  “Dante would threaten to claim me so that I’d be his and his alone. I don’t know if he was ever actually going to do it, but Colt wasn’t going to give him the chance, so he claimed me instead.”

  Understanding dawned on me. “Right, because when a vampire claims you, it’s like being brand
ed. You’re basically off-limits to any other vampire ever.”

  “Exactly.” She nodded.

  “But… how could he claim you if you’re not his soulmate?” I asked, trying to remember everything Trent had told me about this.

  “I am his soulmate,” she said softly.

  “Right,” I said.

  But did she really believe that? Technically, she was his soulmate because he’d claimed her, but had he claimed her because he knew she was his soulmate? Or was it done solely to protect her from Dante? Could a vampire claim someone who wasn’t their soulmate?

  “Has Trent…?” she asked, brow raised.

  “Yes.” I shifted my hair away from my neck to show her the bite mark, then quickly hid it again. I didn’t need Ellie or anyone else to walk in and see it.

  “You’re bonded to him, too, right?” She folded her arms on the table and leaned forward. “What’s that like? It’s gotta be intense, sharing an eternal bond and being soulmates.”

  I laughed. “Intense doesn’t begin to explain it.”

  Whitney breezed into the room a second later. “What’re you two doing in here?” she asked, then tossed the menu from the local pizza place onto the counter.

  “We were putting away the snacks, and then we got distracted talking,” Karina said, standing. “Did you order the pizza?”

  “Yup.” Whitney grinned. “I ordered enough fried foods to put all of us into a grease coma.”

  I rolled my eyes but couldn’t stop from smiling. She really was too much. Good thing I loved her like a sister. I stood and stretched. “Let’s go see if Abby and Ellie found a movie that will scare us senseless.”

  Whitney squealed and raced into the living room. I’d left my phone on the kitchen counter to charge. On my way out, I checked it for any messages, hoping I’d have one from Trent. But I didn’t. Disappointment settled around me. He’d called late last night—after I’d already fallen asleep—to say he loved me, and while I appreciated that, I couldn’t help but feel like it was an afterthought.

  I debated texting him and decided against it. He wanted time with his family to reconnect, and I wasn’t going to intrude on that. Besides, if he couldn’t be bothered to talk to me, why should I talk to him?