by Annika James
“Who?” The corner of his lip curled up as he thought. “Oh, from lunch? No way, she was like a thousand years ago. Once I found out she was anti-vampire, I moved way on. Keep up, Ash.”
“Oh. Who’s your date then?” That small fist grew and squeezed harder.
His mouth tightened but he didn’t say anything. Moving past him, I made to leave the kitchen, almost relieved to not know the answer to my question. His hand on my arm stopped my progress. “If you don’t get your power under control, the Council will be forced to take action tonight.”
I stumbled slightly. “What?”
His eyes closed briefly, as though steadying himself, before he leveled that gaze of sea-blue eyes on me. “They cannot allow you to go through the ceremony if there’s a chance you’ll hurt Conor. He has to report to them whether you were successful with your control or not.”
The fist in my stomach squeezed painfully and I fought not to throw up. “What will they do?” I whispered.
Matt shook his head. “I don’t know. Right now, I’m here to make sure you get this.”
“And tonight?” I pushed. “Will you be there when it all goes down? What about your date?”
Matt’s eyebrows rose at the bitterness in my voice, but he didn’t take the bait. “I’ll be there if you need me.”
With a shake of my head, I mentally cursed myself. I had to get under control, both my power and my emotions. “Well, let’s get started.” I tried to ignore the wash of feelings coursing through me as I took my arm out of his grip and left the room.
Conor waited patiently for us in the family room among the pillows we’d put on the floor. I sat beside him, placing my water on the end table. Matt sat on my other side and gave Conor a look over my head.
“If you guys are going to communicate, I wish you’d do it out loud, so I knew what you were saying.”
Matt grinned for the first time. “We’re not talking. It’s just a guy thing.”
Conor’s hand was warm on my shoulder.
“It is a guy thing, and nothing for you to worry about.” He leaned in and pressed a whisper-light kiss to my cheek. “Now, get started, my little witch,” he whispered in my ear.
Shivering, I swatted him away and closed my eyes to begin. My centering and grounding had gotten so fast, it was done before I exhaled. I opened my eyes and focused on the pillow in front of me. It rose easily and hung in place.
Conor leaned in and breathed on my neck, the pillow wobbled. A warm hand enveloped mine, and Matt’s presence flowed through my body. The pillow steadied and I gasped. Conor’s lips touched my jaw, my neck, leaving a trail of kisses as he moved across my skin. My pulse sped, yet the pillow remained steady.
Normally, things would be flying by now, but Matt’s presence had a calming effect and I found I was in complete control for the first time. Conor’s fangs tickled my skin, leaving goosebumps. I panted but was not hit by any projectiles. Finally, he sat back and I released the pillow.
I looked at him excitedly.
“I did it.” Letting go of Matt, I leaned over and drew Conor into a fierce hug. His arms came around me and I buried my face in the crook of his neck. Finally, finally I had control. I could do this, I would get through tonight, and Conor and I would be together.
I sat back and looked at him, wondering why he was so silent. His eyes weren’t focused on me; they were locked with Matt’s baby blues. My head swung between the two boys.
“What? No one’s excited? This is what I needed to do, and I did it. We’re all good now.”
Silence.
“What?” Anxiety overtook my joy. “What’s going on now?” Two pairs of eyes locked on me. One blue, one green, both serious.
“Matt is the key.” Conor’s voice was barely above a whisper.
“Well, that’s okay,” I reassured him, taking his hand in mine. “Matt said he would be there if I needed him. Even if he has to ditch his date.” I didn’t know why I couldn’t stop myself from sounding like a jealous ex-girlfriend. Conor’s eyebrows raised, his focus going to Matt.
Matt’s cheeks flushed, his eyes still on Conor. “I can be there if it’s okay with you.”
Conor looked between us. “I’m not sure the Council would allow it. You need to be able to control your power with just me. Matt will not always be around.”
For some reason, my skin grew cold, my throat closed, and black danced around the edges of my vision. I forced a laugh; it sounded harsh. “Of course Matt won’t always be with us, but he’ll always be around. I mean, nearby. Nobody’s leaving, right?” I felt like I watched a tennis match with the way my head was swinging from side to side, trying to get a response from either of them.
Conor took his hand out of mine and suddenly I was an island between two brewing storms; isolated at the moment, but I could feel the tension pouring off them. Each boy was lost in his own thoughts and both had left me here to deal with mine. Their eyes connected and they did that whole guy, voiceless communicating again.
I grabbed Matt’s hand, drawing his eyes to me. “You’re not leaving, right?”
He frowned and touched my cheek briefly before letting his hand fall to his lap. He, too, withdrew his hand from my grip. “You’re going to have Conor, now. You won’t need me.”
Panic threatened to overtake me as I finally realized what was going on. “Of course I’m going to need you. You are my best friend. I’m always going to need you.”
His gaze focused over my head, and I swung mine to Conor. “And that is the problem,” Conor whispered, touching my cheek just as Matt had, his green eyes sad.
“What? I can’t be your familiar and be friends with Matt? That’s just dumb.”
The opening of the front door cut off any reply I may have gotten. My mom appeared in the family room moments later.
“How’s it going in here?” Her voice was cheerful, so odd compared to the melancholy hanging in the room. Matt’s face melted into a grin, blue eyes sparkling as he turned to my mom.
“Ash is doing great, Mrs. O’Hara. She’s got her control down pat now.”
He stood, stretching his arms over his head. I tried not to stare at the patch of golden abs poking out below his lifted shirt. Conor cleared his throat and I looked to him guiltily, cheeks flushing. He simply raised an eyebrow at me as he took my hand and helped me to stand.
My mom hugged Matt and came over to me and Conor.
“That’s great news,” she told me, beaming. I supposed she had known the Council wouldn’t let an out of control witch be bitten.
I nodded. “Now I just need to get ready, eat dinner, and we’re good to go.”
“Actually, we’ll have dinner there, so you just need to get ready.” Conor’s soft voice was close to my ear, eliciting goosebumps.
“Oh. And what do I wear?”
“I have your dress in my car,” Matt replied.
“Oh.” I didn’t know what to say.
He turned and left the house, only to return a few moments later with a dress bag on a hanger.
“It’s tradition to wear a formal dress,” Conor told me as Matt handed the dress bag to my mom. “Matt and I picked one out for you.”
“You and Matt,” I repeated.
He nodded. “Well, Matt knows you better than I do. He knew what kind of style you would like and what would look good on you.”
Matt’s gaze met mine, and I tried to ignore the flare of heat I saw in them. Was he thinking of what I’d look like in the dress he’d helped pick out?
I focused on my mom, who was still smiling. She clapped her hands together. “Okay, boys, your job is done. I’ll get Ashlinn ready, and you can come back later to get her.”
Matt cleared his throat. “Conor will come back to get her. I’ll just see her there.”
Mom’s brows drew together in confusion as she looked between us. “Oh? I thought…” She shook her head. “Nevermind, I guess. Let’s go, Ash.” She left the room carrying the dress.
I turned to Co
nor and raised on tiptoes to give him a quick kiss. His hands on my waist, he squeezed me briefly before letting go. He leaned into my ear. “I’ll be back, we’ll get through this. You need to talk to Matt right now.”
He pulled away, dropping a quick kiss on my forehead. Talk to Matt? Why? Conor left, giving Matt’s shoulder a squeeze on his way past him. Okay. What was going on here?
Matt stood, hands in pockets, focusing on the floor.
“Matt?”
When he raised his eyes to me, I saw everything. Love, concern, anger, resignation. I wasn’t sure which emotion was winning at the moment.
“I’ll be there tonight.” His voice was low, gruff.
“Okay,” I said cautiously. “And…”
“And, we’ll talk after. I don’t want to upset you now.”
I forced a smile. “Matty, knowing what you have to say is going to upset me later upsets me now.”
“I know,” he whispered, focusing somewhere to his left, anywhere except on me.
“So, what does it mean that I only have control when you’re there?” I ventured.
He shook his head. “Nothing good, Ash.”
More forced laughter from me. “Come on, it has to be something good. I actually had control. Good, right?”
He tried to smile, almost made it. “I gotta go. I’m picking up Victoria in a half hour.”
That fist was back in my stomach and squeezing harder this time. “Victoria?” Was that my squeaky voice?
He still wasn’t looking at me. “My date.”
My chest constricted and I found it hard to talk past the lump that had suddenly formed in my throat. “Oh. Well, that’s…cool.” Had he moved on from me already? I knew I had no right to be upset. I was the one who was going to be bitten by one of his friends in a few hours, pledging to be Conor’s familiar instead of Matt’s. And yet.
He sighed and stepped to stand in front of me, still avoiding my eyes. Woodenly, he pressed lips to my cheek. “I’ll see you later.”
I resisted the strange urge to turn my head and catch his mouth on mine. Where were these thoughts coming from? I blamed that crazy dream I’d had. It had put weird thoughts about Matt into my head. I didn’t like this serious, morose Matt. I wanted my fun, joking Matt back. When would he resurface? He turned to leave.
“Matt.” My voice came out desperate.
He paused, not turning around. I closed the distance between us and wrapped my arms around him. He turned with a sound of desperation and his arms crushed me to him, his face pressing into my hair. Calm washed over me. All the tight, panicky feelings inside went away and I breathed easier. As long as I had Matt, I was good.
All the talk of his possibly not being there for me at some point had made me crazy. As he held me, though, I knew he’d never leave me. He couldn’t. It was so obvious we needed each other. He tore out of my grip and left before I could say anything else. Shit. Shit, shit, shit. My life wasn’t complicated at all. We’d get through it. Matt and I would survive this. Really.
Chapter Fifteen
“Honey, you look beautiful.” My mom pinned another curl on top of my head and rested her hands on my bare shoulders. She grinned at me in the mirror. I took a deep breath before returning the smile.
My pulse sped at the sight of my reflection. I did look pretty, even to me. My hair was pinned in curls on top of my head, leaving my neck bare, easier to be bitten.
The dress was the one from my dream, which freaked me out more than a little. The exact emerald green of Conor’s eyes, strapless, with a square neckline. It pulled in at the waist, the shiny material wrapping around in pleats. The skirt flared from the waist and fell to the floor in shiny folds. The material was gathered at random places, making more pretty pleats and folds.
My mom helped me with my makeup and, somehow, my skin looked glowing. I didn’t get many chances to really dress up, and I had to admit, I liked the results.
My heart raced at the sound of the doorbell. Mom squeezed my shoulders and left to let in Conor. I stared into my eyes in the mirror, more blue than gray tonight. Did I know what I was doing? Did I have a choice? Would Matt be there? What was Victoria going to be wearing? Why was I thinking these things? Closing my eyes, I shook my head.
“Ashlinn,” Mom called.
I swallowed past the lump in my throat, comprised of both nerves and something else unnamable. I managed to smile at myself. “Coming.” I left the room to meet my destiny.
When I saw Conor standing with my mom and dad in the foyer, I pulled up short, my heart speeding so fast, it threatened to burst out of my chest. He wore a black tuxedo, a freaking tuxedo. His black hair was gelled into an artfully messy style that only enhanced his sexiness. When his eyes fell on me, they widened, his mouth falling open slightly.
“Ash, you look…” His eyes drifted to my parents before settling on me. “Really good,” he finished with a raise of the eyebrows.
A warm flush washed over my skin and I smiled. “Thanks. You look good, too.” Lame, but my parents were looking at us and beaming.
“Good luck tonight, sweetheart.” Mom gave me a hug and Dad followed suit. I returned the sentiments and tried to tell myself I was not nervous.
Conor held his hand out to me. I gratefully took it and let him lead me to his car.
* * * *
Tre’s house was as big as Conor’s, if not bigger. It was all glass and metal and sprawling. Lights flooded the manicured lawn from practically every window. Through those large windows, I could see people moving in various rooms, all dressed formally, as Conor had said. The driveway circled in front of the huge double doors and Conor pulled to a stop in front of a couple men wearing red jackets and bowties. They had valet parking at their dinners? After putting the car in park, Conor looked at me, face neutral. I couldn’t see his eyes in the shadows of the car. What was he thinking?
“Ready?” The first word he’d uttered since we’d left the house. Talk about a tense ride; neither one of us wanted to bring up the huge elephant riding in the back seat.
I took a deep breath, pressed my lips together with a nod, and opened the door. He followed suit and took the ticket from the valet.
As the car drove away, Conor crossed the driveway and offered me his arm. I felt foolishly formal tucking my hand into the crook of his elbow as we walked the lit pathway up to the doors. Another man in a red jacket opened the large, metal front door from the inside and nodded as we walked in.
The first thing I noticed in Tre’s house? Light. It was flooded with it. Mirrors, steel on everything, and walls of glass helped spread it, bathing the surroundings in a warm glow. Even the floor was a shiny gray, almost reflective, though it sounded like marble as we crossed the foyer. A handsome couple stood at the entrance to a room.
Beyond them I saw dozens of people in formal wear, mingling, drinking from champagne glasses, and eating little finger foods off trays from circling waitresses. Conor stopped in front of the couple, and my eyes focused on them for the first time.
The woman wasn’t tall or beautiful, but she was regal. The way she stood and held herself spoke of power. Her brown eyes raked me from head to toe, appraising me. Her white blond hair sat coiled on the crown of her head in a complicated updo. Before I could peer at the man next to her, she laughed a rich, velvety sound that left my skin itching, like it was too tight. Next to me Conor tensed, his arm coming around my waist possessively.
“So this is the little witch we’ve heard so much about?” She spoke softly, but her words rang in my head like she’d shouted. My guess was she was on the Council, Tre’s mom, maybe?
“Mrs. Davis, Mr. Davis. This is Ashlinn O’Hara.” I was right, point for me.
Tre’s mom sniffed me, her long fingers wrapped around a champagne flute filled with thick, red liquid. Oh, blood. Was that blood? It was the same color as her manicured nails.
Conor squeezed my side, jolting me to focus on Tre’s dad. He resembled an older version of Tre. His long hair was t
he same light brown color, only he wore it pulled back in a low ponytail, which didn’t quite go with the tux. The eyes were the same cold, icy blue, and focused solely on me. As he glanced at me, they filled with something akin to hunger. I pressed closer to Conor as Mr. Davis’s lips twisted into a cruel grin.
“Powerful, is she?” His low and resonant voice struck a chord in my head and panic vibrated throughout my body. “You’re going to bite her tonight, Conor?” His glare finally left me. But his voice had me trembling. What was with his voice? Familiar. I’d heard it before, hadn’t I? Where? Or did it just sound like Tre’s?
“She will be my familiar before the night is done.” Conor spoke formally, standing straighter and meeting Mr. Davis’s glare with one of his own. I didn’t like the calculating stares coming from Tre’s parents, but I didn’t want to appear weak either.
Raising my chin, power surfaced within me. I had gotten better at sensing and controlling it in the last couple days and I used that control now to show them I wouldn’t be intimidated. Mrs. Davis’ perfectly arched eyebrows lifted and a look, perhaps approval, passed over her face.
Mr. Davis narrowed his glare and, if possible, grew even hungrier. Something in him was off; he definitely gave me the willies. Conor nodded and pulled me past them into the room full of people.
“I see why Tre is so charming,” I remarked dryly as we mixed in with the well-dressed crowd. There was a good combination of adult vampires and kids I recognized from school. Though, no one looked over thirty.
Vamps aged normally until around then and, if they maintained their blood supply, they remained young and beautiful for centuries. Once Conor and I were bonded, he would share his blood with me and I would age the same as he did. Witches already had a longer life span than normal humans, but nowhere near the immortality of a vamp.
Conor took my hand. “Are you okay?” He stopped us near a wall-sized window looking out onto an expansive lawn, illuminated by the lights in the house.