“Hmm, let’s start with how she likes to have sex when she knows she might get caught.” Anne laughed.
“None of this is funny!” I wrung my hands.
Hailey tried to hide a smile but failed miserably. “That part is. I so never imagined you were like that. Does Levi know that’s a turn on?”
“It’s not. I don’t need that kind of thing with Levi.”
Anne raised an eyebrow. “Ohhhh. Levi’s good enough that you don’t need to ratchet up the heat to get off?”
“Stop it, both of you!”
“I don’t think that’s really you,” Tiffany said softly.
“Thanks. I appreciate someone coming to my defense.”
“I mean, so much of this is supernatural.” She folded her hands in her lap. “I don’t get all the details, but it sounds like there’s something about you that attracts these Pterons and you’re supposed to figure out which one to choose?”
“Yes. To choose the next king.”
“Then it’s going to be affecting your body. The needing more with Toby was probably the supernatural power’s way of telling you he wasn’t the right one…”
I smiled. “You’re right. You’re right. Oh my god, I think you’re a genius. I just have to find a way to let that supernatural power know I already picked Levi.”
“You guys do realize how ridiculous this sounds, right?” Anne asked.
“Yes, but I’m kind of ready to accept it.”
Anne stood up. “So what now? What’s our plan?”
“I have no clue. We wait for Toby and come up with a way to get Jess.”
“Without losing you…” Hailey had stopped laughing.
“Let’s hope.”
“No hoping. You’re not going to the Blackwells. Put aside personal issues, you just admitted that you know Levi is the right choice. Going to Toby could seriously mess things up for The Society. You have to have this power for a reason.” Hailey was probably right, but she was also extremely biased.
“You’re right. I just need to get some fresh air. Anyone want to go for a walk in Audubon Park?”
“Sure. Let me get a coat,” Tiffany offered.
“I’ll come.” Hailey slipped on sneakers.
“You don’t have to.”
“I kind of do, but I want to anyway.”
“You sure? Maybe once we figure this out, you’ll be done babysitting.”
“I’m not babysitting, we both know that.”
“I feel gross.” Images of Levi’s face swam through my mind. If he only knew what I’d been doing.
“You didn’t do anything wrong. You couldn’t even flirt with Toby. Take it as a sign that you are definitely ready for a monogamous relationship with Levi.” Anne opened the door.
“Yeah…a monogamous, never-ending relationship.”
Chapter Thirteen
“Hey, it’s me. When you finish your meeting, can you meet me at the house? I love you.” I left my third voicemail on Levi’s phone. I usually wasn’t like that. I left one and waited, but I needed to see him. Talking to Toby had messed with me. Even a walk in the park didn’t help. We’d all come back to the new house, but everyone left because I made them. I knew there was a Pteron watching from outside, but I at least felt like I was alone. My head pounded and all I wanted to do was curl up with Levi. I hated feeling so needy. It wasn’t a feeling I was used to, and it wasn’t one I liked.
My life was a mess. I’d known it for months but it was only getting worse. I shouldn’t have been feeling bad for myself considering Jess was being held captive, but I couldn’t help it. I felt useless. All I wanted to do was find her. I’d have done it by myself if I thought it were remotely possible. I would have traded places with her, if I thought it was that simple. I just had this ugly feeling that she knew too much. Something might happen to her once they got me. What if she became expendable? I had to use my head, but I didn’t even know what to think anymore.
My phone buzzed, and I grabbed it. The text had to be from Levi. It wasn’t.
When you’re done being someone’s plaything, I’m here. I didn’t mean to leave things like that. I love you, baby. Don’t forget it over the next few weeks. After that, I’ll show you every day.
A few weeks? Is that all the time I had? I turned over my phone. I couldn’t even handle seeing his name on the screen. If it came down to getting back with Toby or letting Jess die, I knew what the answer would be. It didn’t matter that every inch of me rebelled against the thought of anyone but Levi touching me ever again.
I tried to distract myself. I took a bath, using the lilac bubble bath I found under the sink. Twenty minutes later, I got out and tried Levi again. Nothing. What could possibly be more important than making sure I was okay after I left four messages? The only person he wouldn’t leave a meeting with was his dad. Then a horrible thought hit me. What if his dad told him what I was, and he was angry for falling for me—angry that it wasn’t real love.
I lay down on the bed without bothering to get dressed. It didn’t seem worth the effort. I felt horrible.
I was fading in and out of sleep when I heard the front door open. I got up, not caring that I was wearing just a towel.
“You’re not Levi.” My heart sunk. I needed him.
“No, sorry to disappoint you, Princess.”
“Where is he, Jared?” I pulled the towel tighter around me.
“With his dad. Where else would he be?” Jared tried to avert his eyes. I’m sure I was making him uncomfortable.
“Did he send you?”
“Yeah. He got a message out to me.”
“Oh.” I sat down on the landing with my feet on the next step. “Will he be out soon?”
“You guys have eight o’clock reservations at Brennan’s.”
“We’re going out?”
Jared studied some spot on the wall several feet above me. “Yeah…I think he wanted to surprise you.”
“Oh…”
“Why don’t you go get dressed?” Jared nodded toward the upstairs.
“Oh, yeah. Are you going to wait here?”
“I don’t think Levi would appreciate if I offered to help.”
“Very funny. I just meant, you’ll wait at the house?”
“Of course. Where else would I go for ten minutes?” He stuffed his hands in his pockets.
“Ten minutes? Yeah, dream on.” I ran back up the last flight of stairs. I stood in front of my closet trying to pick out a dress, but I couldn’t. The last thing I wanted to do was dress up and go out. I wanted to sit around and wallow in self-pity.
I settled on a pair of yoga pants and a Tulane sweatshirt. I brushed out my hair but left it down to dry. It wasn’t worth the effort of blow-drying it.
“You ready?” Jared turned in his seat at the island when I walked into the kitchen. “Wow, not what I would wear to Brennan’s, but to each their own.”
“Shut up.”
“Okay…you going to tell me what’s going on?”
“I’m not going to dinner.”
“Any particular reason why?” He tapped a foot on the leg of his stool.
“I can’t do this anymore.” I slumped down on a stool next to him.
“Do what exactly?” He swiveled to look at me.
“This. Be part of this. I’m not strong enough.”
“Are you okay?”
“Do I look okay?”
“No. And since when do you question your strength? You’re Miss ‘I can do it all.’”
“I can’t do it all. I suck.” I buried my face in my arms.
“Okay, this isn’t funny anymore.” He tentatively put a hand on my back. “Do you want me to try to break him out of his meeting?”
I shook my head.
“Are you crying?”
“No.” Of course, there were tears streaming down my face.
“What’s going on? Wait…are you…Are you pregnant?”
“No!”
“Are you sure? You’re acting ov
erly emotional. This can’t just be PMS.”
“Every time a girl is emotional it’s hormones?”
“Not every time…”
“I want to throw something at you.”
“Okay…so you are still in there.”
“What’s wrong with me? I need him. I’ve never needed anyone before.”
“Need him? Like you’re so in love with him…”
“Maybe. This is almost physical though. I just need him, and now I know that he doesn’t even really love me.”
“What? Now you’re just talking crazy.” He put a hand on the counter next to me. “You can’t be comfortable, let’s go sit in the living room.”
I nodded and followed him. I pulled a pillow onto my lap as I settled onto the couch.
“Okay. Let’s start with the most obvious. Levi loves you. Why are you suddenly questioning that?”
“I can’t tell you.”
“Excuse me?”
“I can’t tell you… I can’t tell anyone. I think he knows. I think his dad is telling him now. It’s going to make him hate me.” I started sobbing.
“Damn it, Allie. Don’t do this to me.” He awkwardly put an arm around me. I leaned into his side. “Levi isn’t going to hate you. He couldn’t hate you.”
“What if he found out his feelings for me weren’t his own choice? What if he found out it was all fake?”
“Please just tell me what you’re talking about.”
“Can I trust you?” I wiped tears off my cheek.
“Of course.” His face was serious.
“I mean really trust you.”
“Like not to tell Levi something?”
“No. I’m sure he already knows…”
“Then what are you asking?” He searched my face for an answer.
“You’re really loyal, right?” I hated even saying the words, but I needed to.
“Okay, now you’re seriously freaking me out. I’m fucking loyal to the Laurents, Allie.”
“I know. I just had to ask…” I took a deep breath. “Do you know what an enchantress is?”
“Aren’t they a spell caster?”
“Yes, but in terms of Pterons.”
“There are Pteron spell casters?”
I groaned. “No. Forget the spell casting part. I don’t want to explain it all. Suffice it to say there are women who can choose the next Pteron king.”
“That’s not possible.”
“It is.”
He shook his head. “It’s not.”
“Fine. Whatever. I don’t know why I even tried.”
“Okay, let’s just say for a minute that I believe it. What does that have to do with you? Do you think you’re one of these women?”
“Yes, Georgina was pretty positive too. I’m kind of like a Pteron heir magnet. They all want me to choose them, take their ring and sleep with them—make them king.”
“You already have Levi’s ring.”
“Something’s wrong. Toby still thinks he can get me to choose him…”
“Because he’s delusional.”
“I don’t think he is.”
“So what does this have to do with Levi hating you?” Jared actually looked concerned. I wasn’t used to seeing that expression on his face.
“You don’t get it? He doesn’t love me for me, it’s all this enchantress stuff.” I covered my head with my hands.
“Bullshit. Don’t even try to tell me you believe that.”
I looked up. “Why not?”
“I thought he told you about the dream.”
“You knew?”
“Yes, I knew. The guy was a mess after it. First he was dying to find you then he was dying to forget you. That’s when I taught him the art of picking up older girls.”
“Ugh. Why older though? Why not girls your age?”
“I’m not that much of an asshole, Allie. Fifteen-year-old girls shouldn’t be having sex, let alone having meaningless hook-up sex.”
“As compared to fifteen-year-old boys?”
“We weren’t boys.”
“Fifteen-year-old Pteron boys.”
“That doesn’t matter anyway. What I’m saying is that he was inconsolable. He pretended to be over it, but I knew he wasn’t. And then he met you. I figured it out before he did.”
“What? How?”
“At first I thought he just liked the chase, but then I saw the way he got pissed at Owen for even looking at you. He was already possessive like you were his mate.”
“You actually think he dreamed the future?”
“I wouldn’t have believed it if I hadn’t seen him myself.”
I closed my eyes. “But that doesn’t change that his attraction came from this enchantress thing.”
“Come on, don’t even try to argue that. Have you looked at yourself in the mirror lately? You’re wearing sweats and still look fuckable right now.”
“Fuckable?” I laughed.
“Finally a laugh.”
“I want him to love me for me.” I put a hand over my chest. I was seriously losing it.
“He does.”
“I can’t lose him.”
“You’ve come a long way in a few months, Princess.”
“I know.”
“Are you done getting my shirt wet?”
“I think I’m done crying.” I didn’t make any effort to move. I was too spent, and my head pounded. I let sleep take me.
***
“What the hell are you doing?”
I woke up with a start as I was pushed aside. Levi had Jared by his collar.
“Hey, calm down. It’s just me.”
“Just you? You think being my friend means you can move in on my mate when I’m not around?” Through my half asleep haze, I saw Levi’s eyes turn black.
“Calm down, man. Nothing’s going on. I came here like you asked me to.”
“I asked you to bring her to dinner. You never showed up.”
“We fell asleep.” Jared spoke quietly. He was usually pretty good at defusing Levi.
“Get the hell out of my house.”
“Calm down.”
Levi tightened his grip on Jared’s collar. “Get out of this house before I kick the shit out of you.”
“Levi!” I grabbed his arm. At first it looked like he was going to shrug me off but he calmed down. “Stay out of this.”
“Levi, it’s just Jared. He’d never try anything.”
Levi’s shoulders relaxed, and I kept my eyes glued to him.
Jared gave Levi a funny look. “What was that about?”
“I don’t know… I just…”
“Why did you transform so quickly? You are usually the most in control.” Jared still looked shaken up.
“He’s been doing it more other times too…” Then something hit me. He’d been transforming, I was insanely emotional, having bad headaches, and more attached. What if this was all part of our messed up bond? “It’s because we’re not bound right.”
“What?” Levi turned to me. “We are bound just fine.” He picked up my left hand and gently ran a finger over my ring. “You’re my mate. Don’t ever doubt that.” I could feel anger roll off him at the thought of anything else being true.
“Tell him, Allie.” Jared sounded more serious than I’d ever heard him.
“Tell me what?”
“Your dad didn’t tell you?”
“Tell me what? We were discussing political strategies. He wants to take control over the Hawaiian islands again. Right now, they’re independent but… And you really don’t care.”
I tied my hair up with an elastic I had around my wrist. “Normally I would at least pretend, but this is pretty huge.”
“What is it?”
“I don’t want you to hate me.”
“He’s not going to hate you. I already told you that.” Jared shook his head. “Do you want me to stay or go?”
“Stay. That way if Levi decides he wants nothing to do with me, you can at least drive me b
ack to my dorm.” Would he be disgusted that the feelings he felt for me weren’t even his own? Would he blame me?
Levi put a hand on both of my shoulders and looked me right in the eye. “What’s going on? There’s nothing in the world that could do that.”
I sat back down on the couch. Levi sat down right next to me. “I don’t know where to start.”
“Let me do this.” Jared crossed his arms. “Both Allie and your grandma think she’s an enchantress—which does not mean she’s a spell caster. She supposedly has the power to pick the next king, and every Pteron heir who gets near her wants to jump her.”
Levi put an arm around me protectively as soon as Jared said the last part.
Jared groaned. “I’m not an heir, idiot.”
“My grandmother believes this?” Levi ran a hand through his hair. He only did that when he was upset or nervous.
I struggled to swallow. “Yeah…nothing else makes sense.”
“But what does this have to do with our bond? You’re obviously with me, so I’m going to be king anyway.” His eyes locked with mine, like he was searching for words I wasn’t saying.
“It should have broken the attraction of the others…it should be over. Your grandmother and Toby seem to think I can still choose someone else unless we fix this.”
“But I gave you my ring. We consummated it.”
“You didn’t give me a choice. When I accepted the ring, I didn’t know what I was accepting. But the real issue is whether any of your feelings for me are really yours.”
“Of course my feelings are my own, and the bond is there, we’ll figure out how to fix any issues with it.” He was taking the news way better than I expected. I kept waiting for the floor to drop out from under me.
A look of understanding crossed his face. “Is that why you look so upset? Why you didn’t show up at dinner?”
“Mostly. I also just felt lousy.” Was he really more worried about me than the bomb I’d just dropped on him?
“She was missing you…and on that note, I’m out of here. Judging by the death grip he has on you, I don’t think you have to worry about Levi kicking you out tonight.”
“Good night, Jared.” I didn’t bother to turn around. I knew he was already halfway out the door.
“What do we do now?” Levi asked softly.
Found (The Crescent Chronicles #3) Page 10