Darlings of Paranormal Romance (Anthology)

by Chrissy Peebles

  I cried out, slapped my hand over the mark and slumped back against the wall. I slid down until my butt hit the floor; the sting radiated through my whole body. Pulling my knees to my chest, I rested my head against my legs and trembled.

  He knelt next to me, sounding a little panicked. “What’s wrong?”

  “It—it hurts.” I held my breath.

  “The mark?”

  I nodded.

  He seemed to make a decision quickly. “Sit on the bed. I’ll be back.”

  I lifted my head and grabbed his arm. “Aiden…please don’t. Can’t—can’t you give us a few days before you tell him? I mean, it may go away.” Though, I seriously doubted it and given his uneasy expression, he did, too.

  “It could get worse.”

  “Please.” I half-surprised myself. He couldn’t tell Ian. Ian would lock me away.

  Aiden must’ve felt my desperation and fear. He stared at my hand gripping his arm, seeming conflicted. At last, he let out a slow breath and lifted his gaze to mine. “Damn it, Taylee . . .”

  The tense feeling left my shoulders, hearing his defeat. I leaned my head back against the wall in relief. “I know. I’m a pain in the—”

  “You’re right. You are.” He stood and walked to his bag, leaving me wondering if he was kidding or not. “We’ll see how things go over the next few days. If something else happens, I’m calling.”

  I nodded, taking deep breaths, and gradually the sting dissipated as my adrenaline did. Now, however, heat rose to my cheeks. Sure I had some anger problems, but I never remembered feeling so out of control…or screaming like I had…it came on so quick. So violently. Then again, it’d been a very long night.

  When Aiden came back, black kit in hand, I’d managed to climb on the bed. “Here.” He unzipped the case, revealing: gauze, tape and some sort of ointment. He tossed it next to me. “Do you need help?”

  I glanced up.

  His eyes were soft, sincere. His expression let me know my earlier freak out was behind us. Good.

  “I think I’ve got it.” I squeezed a dime-sized amount of cream on my skin, conscious of Aiden watching me. As carefully as I could manage, I dabbed the raw, red skin. I flinched. “Guess I should leave tattoo removal to the professionals.”

  “Or get a clue when it’s not coming off.” He knelt in front of me and examined it closely. “It’s bigger.”

  Sure enough, the line above my underwear now loosely coiled upward. If I wasn’t totally and completely weirded out by it, I’d say it was kind of cool.

  What did it mean? How did the Kember place the mark on my skin? In a creepy way, it reminded me of the energy veins Rygons had on their faces.

  I finished putting the bandage over it and looked up. “I…” I stopped breathing.

  Aiden still knelt in front of me, but the concern momentarily left his features. His intent eyes brightened as he watched me, studying me in a way he never had before. His gaze wandered over my face…my curves.

  My chest tightened. A warm flush radiated through me. The gawking wasn’t anything new—I just would’ve never expected it from Mr. Stoicism. I stared back, very aware of our situation and my apparel. The sudden urge to push back the hair that, so often, hung in his face itched. I always knew he was good-looking. I did have eyes, but something struck me about him. Maybe it was because he listened. Or maybe the fact he never made me feel as pathetic as everyone else did.

  No, no, no! In a hurry, I realized what I’d been thinking and even more, feeling. I cursed myself, not caring about rules. No. There weren’t even regulations about Kember and Drea attractions. It didn’t happen. It was unnatural. Then what the hell was this?

  “Committing me to memory?” I groaned inwardly. Of all the things I could’ve said.

  Like I’d kicked him, he blinked and averted his gaze. I could’ve sworn a flush spread over his cheeks, but he stood and strode to his suitcase before I could be sure. “Get some sleep. We’ll talk in the morning.”

  I bit my lip. Sleep. Right.

  Chapter 15

  I scooted to the middle of the bed and stared at the ceiling. This would be the longest night of my life. Even after the night’s events, I was wide awake. Only now, the distractions were gone, leaving me alone with my thoughts. Exactly what I didn’t want. The barely audible hum of the air conditioner buzzed through the still room.

  Aiden crawled into his bed on the floor, and a few seconds later a soft glow rose from his phone as he tapped on the screen.

  I pulled the blankets to my chin and strained to keep my mind on a leash. A very short leash. Some things the Kember said refused to leave me alone.

  The stuff about Delmari lying almost made me laugh. If I knew one thing, it was he never lied to me. Even though it had been a dead end, Delmari devoted weeks and weeks of time to help me dig up information on my parents. If he hadn’t known them, I doubted that psycho had.

  “If Delmari told you everything, like you’re convinced he did, why didn’t he mention Aiden?” Of all the Kember’s in the world who could’ve taken Delmari’s spot, Ian decided to nab my new one from the Guard? I’d never realized, until now, the peculiarity of it. They couldn’t pull a Kember from a hat to replace Aiden. I bit my tongue, hearing those repeated words. I didn’t want to think it, but what if there was the teensiest tiniest possibility the Kember knew something about Aiden?

  “Question.” My voice cracked and I quickly cleared it.

  Aiden took a moment to answer.

  Had he fallen asleep?

  “Yes.”

  “Did you know him?” I swallowed hard, and my next words came so quiet I barely heard them. “Delmari, I mean.”

  He sat up, and even though I couldn’t see his features, I knew his eyes were on me. “Yes, of course I did. You didn’t know?”

  “Everyone knows of him. I just didn’t know if you actually knew him, knew him.”

  Aiden hesitated. “Well, we’d never officially met until my last week at the academy. He assisted Ian and Favian in giving us our eligibility assessment so we could graduate and take the oath.”

  “Oh…I remember that.” Delmari had done lots of random things for Ian and vice versa. I still didn’t recall Delmari mentioning Aiden. Ever. “Not very well though.”

  He paused. “Didn’t you know? Didn’t he mention me?”

  I rolled to my side to face him. For some stupid reason, my heart accelerated. “I, um… should he have?”

  “I’d think so. He had this all worked out so if something happened to him, Joshua or I would be assigned as your Kember.”

  My eyes widened and suddenly, I couldn’t breathe. It stung, like taking a slap to the face. How did he forget to mention that to me? “He-He probably didn’t get a chance to tell me.”

  “You were eleven.” He cleared his throat.

  Wham! Slapped all over again. “What?”

  “He asked me at graduation.” Aiden talked like he was trying to trigger the memory in my head. “He knew I’d been offered a position in the Guard and that I’d be available if—”

  “You said yes?” He dropped his Guard title, incredible pay and tons of action to follow me around? No wonder he was so offish the day he picked me up.

  “Delmari Aiken, one of the most respected Kembers around, asked me, of all Kembers. It was an honor.”

  I didn’t want to hear any more about Delmari. I couldn’t. Kicking back the comforter, I hopped out of bed. Delmari had been the most stubborn person I knew. He always tried to protect me in more ways than just physically. I knew exactly why he didn’t tell me about Aiden. He didn’t want to ruin my blissful, stress-free life by clouding it with worry. He thought he was only taking precautions. I bit my lip, upset he hadn’t told me. Right now, there were bigger things to worry about. Is that what the Kember had been referring to? Aiden and Delmari’s arrangement? How was it possible for him to know when I didn’t?

  No shoes, no coat. I just needed air.

  A brackish breeze w
afted around me as I opened the back door and stepped onto the silent beach. The sky, clear of its normal clouds, allowed masses of stars to shine. The full moon’s reflection glowed in the undulating waves, lighting up the entire seashore.

  So, the Kember knew. Big deal. It wasn’t like it was a secret. It definitely didn’t mean he knew anything else. I kicked the sand, and it sifted through the air. The Kember most likely wanted me to ask Aiden, knowing I’d second-guess myself. I wasn’t that gullible. He didn’t know anything about me or my family. Hell, no one knew anything about them. Not the Authority. Not me. No one. Only a few steps away from the tide, I dropped down on the sand. Just like in life, I had no clue where I was going.

  Aiden sat, a lot more graceful than I had, next to me. He extended his long legs out in front of him and leaned back on his hands. Staring straight ahead, he stayed silent. Never questioned me. Never nagged because he was cold or tired. Somehow, he knew I needed to think.

  I don’t know how long I vacantly watched the waves crease the moon’s reflection. Maybe an hour.

  “Did he tell you anything about me?” My voice wavered. Hopefully he thought it was from lack of speaking.

  Aiden pulled his knees up and rested his forearms on top of them. “Not much. You were young. You didn’t even have your ability yet. I learned everything about you through your file and word of mouth.”

  What if my parents were bad people? What if there’s a reason I don’t know who they are? My eyes widened. To my horror, I hadn’t just thought those words but said them.

  “You don’t know who they are?”

  What the heck was wrong with me? For a moment, I only wished for a shovel. After I buried myself, I wouldn’t have to worry about sounding so whiny and pitiful. “I’m sure you know more than I do. There’s gotta be a section labeled ‘bastard’ in that file somewhere.”

  “It said your mother, Aileen Pierce, was a Drea. There was nothing, not even a name, for your father.”

  I slid my feet back and forth in the sand, burying them. “Maybe she got around and didn’t know who he was.”

  “So you don’t know if he was a Drea or anything?” He sounded a little surprised.

  “Nope, I don’t know anything about him.” I shrugged, trying for nonchalance. “We kinda figured he didn’t have a gift and ran off when he found out my mom did.” Not many Dreas or Kembers mingled with the Norms, but it did happen. I’d heard of them marrying Norms just because they wanted a chance at normal kids. “That Kember, he talked like he knew them…That can’t be good.”

  Aiden stayed quiet, like he was contemplating. “I wouldn’t worry.”

  “You’re right.” I laughed under my breath. “It’s not like their bad choices would affect who I am.”

  “It doesn’t matter who your parents were.” He spoke confidently, almost defensively. “They don’t define you. Only you decide who you want to be.”

  A soft breeze fluttered by. Finally, I looked in his direction and pushed my wild hair behind my ear. “The Kember, he told me he felt something inside of me and…”

  Aiden’s eyes narrowed slightly as he measured me for a few moments. Still appearing to be deep in thought, he reached his hand toward my face.

  I froze. My heart accelerated from the mere memory of his touch.

  Goose bumps spread over my body as his fingers lightly brushed my jaw. He rested his palm against my cheek. “I don’t feel anything.” His hand lingered across my skin and I stared at him, staring at me.

  He dropped his hand, as if he realized what he’d done. “If you’re unsure, ask Skyler.” He averted his gaze. “He’s better at determining people’s intent.”

  My skin stopped its ridiculous burning. I frowned. Skyler? The paranoid old lady? Hah. “Great idea, Captain. I’ll get right on that.”

  “You’ll worry if you don’t.” He obviously caught my sarcasm. “I think it’s a good idea.”

  “I’ll think about it.” When I have nothing else to think about. “Like you said, it doesn’t matter anyway. Only I decide who I wanna be.”

  He shook his head. His gaze fell to the bottom of my shirt where the mark was embedded. “I didn’t say it doesn’t matter. Something’s going on. The faster we find out the better.”

  We sat there for a few more minutes. I didn’t know if he was right, but it made me hopeful to think that even if I was the spawn of Satan, ultimately, I could choose whether or not to follow the same path. He sounded so wise. Experienced. It made me wonder…“What about you? Your parents set you out to be a profound Hercules?”

  “No.” Aiden’s sudden dark, short tone made my eyes widen.

  I briefly wondered if I’d overstepped my boundary. “Are they still…alive?”

  “They live in Montana. My mother doesn’t have an ability.” He stared straight ahead, his posture rigid.

  I tried to hide my astonishment, but my mouth dropped open a second too soon. No need to ask questions. I could figure out the rest. Kembers have flings. Their famous excuse for having sex was to keep the Kember race going. It was a lot like horse breeding. The best, most respected Kembers got together in hopes of creating offspring to follow in their path.

  Then there were the Kembers who “got with” the Norms.

  Those were the Kembers who didn’t take the oath; the ones who didn’t want anything to do with Dreas and Rygons.

  The shamed.

  Awkward. Anything else on that subject and my earlier wish of hiding ten feet under would probably be carried out—by him. Not knowing what else to do, I chewed the bottom of my lip and rose to my feet. “I’m beat.”

  “Yeah, you should get some sleep.” Aiden stood and, without another word, led the way back to the room.

  “This is Aiden Oltman. I need to speak with Authority Alvarez immediately.”

  I groaned, opened my heavy eyes and peered at the glowing red numbers on the clock. Six a.m. Slowly, I blinked and squinted against the lamplight shining from the corner of the room. Aiden paced in front of the bed, phone held to his ear.

  “Are you freakin’ serious?” Of course he was. Grasping the blankets, I pulled them up over my head.

  “Do you know when he gets back?” Aiden sounded exasperated.

  Stringing together a long line of profanities, I lifted my pillow and shoved my head beneath it.

  “When he gets in, tell him to call me.” Aiden exhaled.

  “Not that I care,” my voice was smothered beneath the bedding, “but aren’t there three head honchos?”

  “This isn’t Favian’s or Xander’s area.”

  I couldn’t help but smile. “Guess we’ll have to figure it out by ourselves.” Yawning, I sprawled out my arms and legs.

  “I need to report that the Kember was in the bathroom. That he pursued you.” The bed moved and I felt him sit. “Turn over. Let’s take a look.”

  “Right now?”

  “Yes, if you get up now, we can stop for breakfast before we leave.”

  I popped my head out and my hair rose with static. “Breakfast? Like pancakes, bacon, hash browns…”

  He raised an eyebrow but nodded.

  I rolled onto my back and kicked the blankets off. Shielding my eyes with one hand, I lifted my shirt with the other.

  “There’s, um…The bandage is still on.”

  “Oh, yeah.” My eyes adjusted to the light and I propped myself up on an elbow. Taking up one side of the taped gauze, I ripped it off.

  Aiden blinked and then leaned over my legs to get a closer look.

  I stared, too. All the raw skin that should’ve taken days to heal healed overnight. There wasn’t any sign of a wound, not even redness: Just smooth, tanned skin overtaken with some scribble mark.

  “Weird.” With the tip of my finger, I traced the black line. Nothing felt off. Well, not that I could tell.

  “How does it feel?” He spoke barely above a whisper.

  “Normal. Like skin…I think.”

  Aiden continued to stare like he was to
uching it with his eyes. “So, it’s not coarse or…”

  “No. Feel it.”

  Shifting his position on the bed, Aiden cautiously reached out. Pausing, hand midair; he hesitated briefly, like he wasn’t sure how to touch it

  As his fingers swept over the tip of the mark, I inhaled and looked at the wall. His movement stopped, but he didn’t pull his hand away. Instead, he slowly proceeded to trace the entire tattoo. My body tingled and something told me it wasn’t a side effect of the mark. I tightened my grip on my shirt, giving myself a mental reminder: Kember. Drea. Kember. Drea...

  After repeating those words probably close to a hundred times, Aiden removed his hand and placed it on his leg. “It doesn’t feel any different than mine. Then again, normal tattoos don’t change or cause pain.”

  I sighed. “Or randomly appear.” I dropped my gaze to his side. “What’s your tattoo, anyway? Some kind of Chinese writing?”

  He glanced down at himself and shook his head. “Arabic.”

  “Arabic? Why?”

  “My first assignment with the Guard was in Saudi Arabia.” He pulled his shirt up, revealing the black dots and curvy lines. “The Authority requires all members to have a tattoo of their ability.”

  “It’s way cool.” And incredibly hot.

  He released his shirt, and it slid down, covering his torso. “Listen. Let’s head home, research the mark and see what we can find. In a few days, if it’s not gone…we should call Ian.”

  I sat up. “No, you said—”

  He reached out in a calming gesture. “Before you get upset, let’s see what we find. I just don’t want anything bad to happen.”

  I chuckled darkly. “Yeah, knowing my luck, it’s gonna slowly suck away my life or something.”

  He stared at me, straight-faced, and I knew I’d said the wrong thing—as usual. I could almost see the wheels turning behind his heart-stopping green eyes as he considered that theory.

  “I—I was kidding. You know, like a joke.” Oops. I dropped my gaze and cleared my throat. “So, what now? Can we keep looking for things on that Sable Gage guy?”

  He sighed, seeming reluctant about changing the subject so soon. “I don’t think so. The last thing we need is for him to think we’re curious about him. By the sound of it, he has multiple Rygons waiting for a command.”