Oculus

by S. E. Akers

  He couldn’t finish his sentence, nor did I want him to, knowing it was more of a possibility for him than it was for me if the crafty Leviathan overpowered all of us. I couldn’t imagine what its escape would bring. The world had changed a lot since a monster like that had roamed the earth and its seas. It didn’t strike me as the sort of creature that would stay hidden in the shadows, at least not for long. I’d already let the chimera get past me. I didn’t want to think what would have happened if Silas hadn’t been there to protect Tanner. I couldn’t run the risk of something happening to him as a result of another one of my thoughtless decisions.

  “I understand,” I assured him. “But from here on out, I’ll tell you when I’m ready, okay?” I posed, hoping it registered in his head. “This is one thing that I won’t let you hold any sway over in the future — not with Galious, or any other creature for that matter. My choice to fight whatever lies in my path is my decision. Is that clear?”

  Tanner exhaled a not-so happy but compliant breath. “Yes,” he finally agreed, trying to fight off a grimace.

  “Now uncross your mental-fingers, or I’ll be forced to use the same kind of spelled arrangement Beatrix and Helaine made,” I vowed.

  Tanner’s stance remained rigid, despite the weariness paling his eyes into that revealing lavender hue.

  “What are you thinking?” I asked.

  “The truth,” Tanner replied. “You could slay a hundred beasts blindfolded with one of your hands tied behind your back, and I would still never stop worrying about you.”

  “I worry about you too,” I asserted. “That’s why I ran into the vortex. I couldn’t bear the thought of something happening to you in there, whether that red chalcedony was for Bea or Katie . . . or even for me. It wasn’t worth you getting hurt, especially now that I know it was Galious you were battling.”

  Tanner grinned. “Actually, the flames you singed me with were the worst of my injuries.”

  “That was an accident,” I smiled. “And I paid for it later. You may have been roasted on the outside, but trust me . . . Inside hurts way worse.”

  “Will you promise me something?” Tanner asked.

  “It depends on what it is,” I replied coyly.

  “That everything that happened here, stays here,” he requested. “I don’t want you dwelling on something that isn’t in the here and now, nor do I want you feeling any guilt.” Tanner slid his hands down my back, stopping just past the round of my rear, and then pulled me closer to him with a forceful jolt. “This time is ours.”

  My cheeks warmed. “I can do that,” I whispered.

  “Good,” he rustled and kept one of his hands right where it lay as we continued down the stairs.

  If we were truly putting this discussion to bed, there was one little thing I was still curious about before we did. “Can I ask you one more thing?”

  “Depends,” he replied with a grin.

  “What was Galious saying to you?” He paused for a moment, his eyes only hinting a flash of the fury I’d seen them glaring during his stare-down with the creature.

  Tanner composed himself quickly and then turned to me with a smile. “We were catching up,” he assured, a little too firmly in my opinion. Then he resumed his descent, purposely quicker and without me.

  “You’re not going to tell me?” I posed as I caught up with him.

  “No,” he said. “You’ve already asked your mandatory question for the day.”

  I wasn’t going to press him, but I knew whatever the leviathan had said was still lingering in the back of his mind. And by the looks of that artery on his neck, I would say it was pulsing to the tune of worried as much as it was angry.

  “Speaking of questions,” I began, hoping to shift his thoughts. “I bet you’re glad you went ahead and fessed up your birth name . . . Tannerius.”

  Tanner grabbed me by my waist as I was hitting the last step and then swung me around and into a swaddling dip. “I am now that I get to hear you say it,” he rustled. “I like the way it rolls off your tongue.”

  “Tannerius,” I said again, as I lay bound in his arms.

  “Just like that,” he breathed, his eyes delighted. Then Tannerius pulled me closer, luring me to his lips. The warmth of his kiss was different this time—kind of tender and much slower—like he was savoring every second of our touch to eternally engrain the memory. But assuredly, he lit my insides on fire with every delectable twist of his tongue.

  We were back on our path before long and getting much closer to our exit. “I still can’t believe that was Seraphina,” I muttered.

  “What can I say . . . Her shape-shifting abilities are unmatched,” he bragged.

  “She played her part well,” I remarked.

  “I suppose,” he agreed. “Though it didn’t do any good. Lorelei’s still hell-bent on revenge.” Tanner sighed. “I get her delusional vendetta against Arica, but I find hers in regards to you more baffling. She could kill an easier mark if this were just about obtaining a moonstone.”

  “Seraphina implied the same thing,” I acknowledged. In fact, Silas had as well on the morning I’d scalped her.

  Tanner continued, “And she’s been whipped in battles by others before that she wasn’t so fixated on seeking her revenge.”

  “Maybe I just bring out the best in her?” I teased.

  Tanner turned to me, looking painfully curious. “Is there anything else that happened before I found you on the reef that night?”

  “She dragged me off to The Gulf as soon as she found me in the river,” I said reflectively. “Right after she slammed Damiec.”

  “Did he attack her first?”

  “No,” I said. “He was just standing on the bank . . . but she did look pretty pissed at him.”

  Tanner stopped in front of the watery portal, wrapped in his thoughts.

  “So, tell me,” I said, angling for his attention. “Is it a long walk back to your car?”

  He snapped out of his daze straightaway. “Maybe for you.” Then he stepped into the raging falls and disappeared right before my eyes.

  “Hey!” I called out, feeling a firm mix of both stunned and amused. Then I started counting off the seconds (aiming for ten, to be exact) before going to hunt down Nerina. If a teleporting orb could drop me off, surely one could shuttle me back just as quick. I’d just started my turn when a hand shot out of the waterfall and tugged me inside. The water cascading around us in this portal was much different, more like a quivering magical vapor than a full-flowing liquid stream.

  “You’re not going anywhere,” Tanner vowed, clenching my waist as we started to disappear. “I was promised ten full weeks, and I intend on getting every second of them.”

  He held true to his word. No sooner than we arrived back to Naples, Tanner whisked me off to start the evening he had originally planned. The night proved far more enchanting than I ever expected. Every place we visited… Everything we ate… Our moonlit walk by the sea… Right down to the romantic dance we shared in the middle of his apartment before we changed for bed. Without a doubt, my wildest dreams would have a tough time topping such a perfect evening when my head hit the pillow tonight.

  As per the professor’s warden’s sleeping orders, I crawled into his sleigh bed while he retired to the chaise. He drifted off first. I, however, was far too dreamy-eyed than sleepy-headed to even think about catching any Z’s. I lay there silently watching him, his beautiful frame bathed in the light of the moon as he slept. Out of all the things that had happened today, my mind chose to pull a few thoughts from my subconscious instead. Soon all of my dateless high school years tromped a steady path through my head. I never minded a bit that no one had ever asked me out, not even Tyler Smith. And I still firmly believed that destiny didn’t drop everyone’s soul mates within the confined walls of their high school, even more so now; destiny doesn’t ever make things that easy. Aside from random wishes, you never think about what could possibly be lying down the road until down the road
is right in front of you — people you stand to meet, along with all the different things yet to be experienced. All you’re consumed with is the long wait in-between now and then. But this was one time I didn’t want what was happening to be just a fleeting stone along my path. I hoped our destined roads were melding together and headed in the same direction, for a thousand forevers. And regardless of how rushed or crazy that sounded considering my eighteen years to his almost two thousand, something made me think he might very well be my soul’s complement. The warm, honeyed feeling in my chest sure wanted their whispers to be true. So that’s exactly what I prayed for when my eyes fell to a close.

  And I prayed that Kamya was lying, and that I didn’t roar out the first snore.

  I prayed really hard on that one too.

  Just as I started to rouse from my slumber the next morning, my nose caught a whiff of what I thought was perfume. An undeniably sweet smell was lingering in the air as I lay there, tickling my lips straight into a smile. It had been some time since I’d woken to a scent so distinct. The triggering aroma of coffee brewing was the last thing I recalled, though that had been several months ago. But this was a stimulant in a select class of its own. Roses… And the seductive intent behind them was just as stirring as their fragrant notes.

  I eased my eyes open, fully expecting to see a beautiful arrangement sitting close by. There wasn’t one, at least not from the angle of my side-eyed view. Before any further disappointment took hold, one lone petal danced a slow path down to the sheets right before my eyes, twirling with the grace of a ballerina. The softness of its hue was exquisite, barely a blush of a violet that faded into a creamy white bloom — paling to the eye in the most innocent way. Soon several more petals drifted down, some landing on the bed while others found their way to my skin. I stroked one the velvety beauties as it lay on my arm. A few seconds later it disappeared while its aroma kept teasing my senses. Wonderment lured my eyes to look over my head. Dozens of tiny rose petals were randomly appearing from out of thin air, showering me with all of their loveliness, magically.

  Without a doubt, I was toe-curling impressed.

  I gave my muscles a quick stretch, just to make sure I wasn’t dreaming. The petals held their bewitching pace, steadily showering me like a lazy afternoon rain. Hands down, THIS was the best way anyone had ever woken me up — breakfast-in-bed and birthday cakes included.

  The rattle of the bathroom doorknob shot me into a more composed position.

  “I see you’re finally up,” Tanner remarked and motioned to the vintage clock on the nightstand. “It’s almost ten.”

  A blush flooded my cheeks for many reasons. And yeah, one of them was my obviously late laze. The rest of them matched the number of glistening beads of water that he had yet to towel off his fresh-out-of-the-shower bare chest.

  “It’s the time difference,” I assured. Of course that was a lie, but I would have liked for him to think I still had some of my wits left, instead of the obvious. Every minute we spent together stripped away the wall surrounding my senses, stone by stone. For someone so strict about silly things like oversleeping, I didn’t mind their crumble a bit. What little grit that remained as a reminder felt so casual and sweet, much more like sugar than the grate of rough sand. The only thing I cared about concerning time right now was how much more of it I had to spend with him like this — just the two of us all alone. And I knew precisely how fast those hands were ticking away.

  Tanner sat down on the edge of the bed and collected one of the petals before it landed. “I told you I could do better.”

  I met his gaze, my chest feeling as airy-light and lovely as his floral surprise. “This was a nice way to wake up,” I said.

  His eyes flickered when they fell into the path of a late morning ray streaming through the window. “There are nicer ways,” Tanner assured and then directed a glance at the ceiling. “But my choices were limited for now.”

  Tanner stroked the edge of the rose petal down my face, sweeping it from cheek to chin. For something so velvety, its touch struck my flesh with the force of a mallet and sent my heart pounding into a frenzy. He guided the petal across my lips with a ginger graze. “I like to put a little extra thought into things that truly matter to me.”

  My lips fell into a helpless part. He was going to have to stop talking this way…acting this way…and fanning the flames of my soul with only his gaze. Tanner didn’t make a single move. He simply sat there, drinking me in with his eyes, and rest assured, reading my emotions as easily as he would a black & white morning paper. My feelings were simply incapable of gently whispering their wants, not with the fervent and dangerous desires they were churning. And mine were trumpeting their demands like a college marching band during a halftime show. I knew right then and there that I was never leaving home without my ruby cuff again.

  Tanner rose to his feet and backed away from the bed—casually but with purpose—like a reformed addict who needed to be cautious of their every step. I might not be able to read his emotions, but the appetite in his eyes was a potent enough hint. Just one passionate kiss at that precise moment and his tongue would have torn down all of my defenses like the swing of a wrecking ball.

  He nodded to the bathroom. “You need to get ready . . . but not too ready.”

  “Where are we going?”

  “To one of my favorite spots,” he assured, and that was all he seemed willing to disclose.

  I hopped out of bed. “How ‘not too ready’ should I get?” I asked, needing some sort of clue. “Am I going to get dirty or wet?”

  “A bit of both,” he assured, his eyes sly, and then issued a nod to hurry me along.

  I entered the bathroom to find another surprise waiting. Tanner had already taken the liberty of laying out a few garments, alleviating any further suspicions of mine. Thankfully they weren’t the play-clothes I was used to. A breezy top and shorts were hanging on the ebony-stained dressing stand. My gaze then fell to its base to find a pair of tan leather sandals resting there. I noticed they fastened together with straps, which was my favorite. I hated any sort of thong and its irritating divide (didn’t matter, butt or feet) and found myself grinning like an idiot because somehow he’d known it. I peeked behind the shirt to uncover something else. A slight gasp channeled a stream of cold air into my lungs like a vacuum. Hanging under my garments was a classic, white two-piece bathing suit. I hadn’t even slipped into the string bikini yet, and I was already blushing. And that was completely crazy considering the thoughts I’d just had out there less than two minutes ago, on top of all the times he’d seen almost every inch of me.

  I looked into the mirror feeling the height of desperate and determined. If I can just get through these next two days, I swear I’m hauling my butt up to the Morganite Talisman’s totem and begging him for the pinkest stone he’s got!

  A little over thirty minutes later, I was buckling my magical holster around my thigh and ready to swing open the bathroom door. “So where are we going?” I asked as I emerged.

  With a small duffle bag in tow, Tanner took my hand and led me straight back into the bathroom. “I told you it was a surprise,” he scolded with a grin and turned on the shower.

  My anticipation was raging right along with the sheets of falling water. The Mediterranean was right outside our window with miles and miles of safe & sandy beaches to lounge on, even if we couldn’t go for a dip.

  “So we’re actually ‘going’, going somewhere?” I asked.

  Tanner remained purposely mum as the portal’s magical essence began glowing within the flowing streams. Even as thrilled as I was, it couldn’t temper my impatient curiosity. “Well, will you at least tell me if the swimsuit is for the destination or just the ride?”

  “Yes,” he replied, totally shutting me down. He stepped into the basin and extended his hand. “Come on.”

  I remained exactly where I stood. “Tell me, first,” I requested and pursed my lips firmly.

  His brow shot i
nto an arch. “No,” he laughed, knowing I was more interested in testing my bounds. Then he directed a rope-like stream of water to shoot out of the shower and lasso my waist. With one solid tug, he had me locked in the heat of his arms. “You radiate a certain feeling when you’re truly surprised, just like when you discovered your flowers this morning,” he rustled. “Your body warms with a bliss that even I can’t mimic. And I like knowing that I was the one who put it there.” The tip of his finger stroked a long and heavenly trail down my cheek. “ . . . without any magic.”

  My heart thundered inside my chest. Elaborate surprises were irrelevant; all he had to do was wrap me in his arms if he was looking to cast a spell like that on my heart. And I could tell by the delight sparking in his eyes that he was shamelessly aware of it too.

  “Now this time,” he began, “I don’t want you to open your eyes until I tell you.”

  I nodded and lowered my lids to a rapturous close. I knew the moment we were teleporting by the heavenly carried-away feeling tingling my frame. It wasn’t long before I was being blindly led through a well of much deeper water, hitting me just above my waist. It felt much cooler against my skin and its current was oddly turning more tranquil. My footsteps whispered a few hints as they brushed with the scrape of the pebbly bed beneath me. Tanner must have sensed my suspicions or noticed my smile because he scooped me into his arms not a second later. The fragrant air held a mix of fresh grass and florally notes lingering in its breeze. However, I did detect a subtle trace of salt lacing its scent, which was strange because I hadn’t sensed any while wading in the water.