by Morgan Smith
“Don’t fight it, cher.”
I sat up and shoved his chest. “I need to get as far away from you as I can.”
“You chose to stay, just as I chose to come back. Our souls are entwined, whether you like it or not.”
He laid back, patting the fluffy pillow next to his. “Come; stay the night with me.”
I stopped biting my lip and scooted closer to the edge, noting the three feet between us.
Maybe I could reach the door and bang until someone heard.
His hand was around my wrist before I could try it. “You know, I think you like the chase as much as I do.”
It was unsettling to see just how disarming he could be. There was no doubt in my mind that he’d changed. Sure, he made my heart go pitter-pat when we were younger, but now he knew how to overwhelm me with a glance.
“Stop thinking so hard.” He snapped his fingers and the candles went out. “Tomorrow, I’ll tell you everything.”
“Will you really?”
“Of course.” He pulled me closer, making my thoughts dissolve as that familiar melody hummed through his chest.
Darkness surrounded me when I opened my eyes. There were no windows, nothing for me to focus on except for the soft mattress at my back and Troy’s warm body at my side. It was strange waking up next to him after all this time. I nestled closer until I remembered the long list of things keeping us apart.
His voice was like velvet as he nuzzled my neck. “What’s wrong, Jade?”
I took a deep breath and tried to get up, but his arm was at my waist. “Is the sun up yet? What time is it?”
“There aren’t any windows in here and it’s almost seven.”
I laid back. “I know you don’t like the sunlight as much as you used to, but how can you not have windows?”
“This is what we need to talk about,” he said as a lamp came on.
My gaze wandered to his full lips, and then his hands were in my hair as he held me against him. I gasped, feeling every part of him.
He rolled me onto my back and covered me with his body. “Don’t shut me out, Jade. This is what we both want isn’t it? I love you. I need you to stop fighting your attraction to me.”
I shook my head. “I can’t be with you. I can’t get burned again.”
Soft kisses touched my skin, wreaking more havoc than a wrecking ball to a glass house. I tried to resist, but my hands tangled in his wavy locks.
“I won’t let you get hurt again.” He stripped me of my barriers and whispered promises I wasn’t sure I wanted the new Troy to keep.
There was so much I didn’t know about this man. His face and body were the same, but his eyes were full of darkness.
“One day you’ll see that I did all of this for you.”
Sinking
Like a rock,
I sink in this endless sea
Of unfulfilled dreams
And memories.
You lit up my life
like a flame,
Not caring or thinking
about my pain…
Yet,
Here you are once again,
Expecting me to forget
and give in.
You torched my love…
And my heart.
Like a roman candle…
You lit it up.
Now I see what you are,
But I can’t deny
how good we were.
-Jade
Chapter 13
Darkness, warmth, the inability to move: those were the first things I noticed when I woke up. I exhaled as I sifted through my thoughts. Troy kissed my cheek, and then my shoulder. I wasn’t sure I wanted to see the smugness on his face, but I rolled over anyway.
He snapped his fingers and a lamp came on. “That was even sweeter than I imagined it would be,” he whispered, kissing me with so much passion I thought I might melt.
I lay in his arms for a few minutes trying to understand what I was feeling. His warmth radiated around me like an electric blanket, making it hard to keep my guard up.
He pinned me with his magnificent gaze. “I’d trade the fountain of youth for your thoughts.”
I laughed. “Then you’d be insane. They’re only worth a dime, if that.”
“Your thoughts are priceless; therefore, I would trade something extravagant.”
My heart wanted to pretend he was a normal man, but my brain wouldn’t allow it. The Troy I knew couldn’t whisper inside my head from five feet away or pinpoint my train of thought.
“Can you read my mind?”
He rubbed a hand over his jaw and sighed. “Yes, but I’d prefer you tell me. It seemed like you were starting to get used to the idea of us.”
I tucked my hair behind my ear with shaky fingers. “I don’t think I can do this, Troy. We both know you are not the same, only… I don’t know what you could be.”
He pulled me over his body. “That doesn’t matter.”
I crossed my arms on top of his chest and rested my head. “It does.”
His arms slid around me, creating a sensory overload. “Being with you is all that matters.”
I buried my nose against his neck, relishing the feel of his hair against my cheek.
“It’s okay to stop fighting it. I love you. My heart won’t allow me to give you up.” He was trying to put me at ease, saying everything I’d ever wished to hear, but I still tried to resist the temptation.
I tried to get up, but he rolled so that we lay on our sides, facing each other.
“I need you, Jade. You don’t know how hard it’s been without you.”
My fingers traced circles on his smooth chest. “Then why did you leave?”
“So you wouldn’t see what I’d become.”
I arched an eyebrow. “What are you?” I asked, brushing his lips with my thumb.
“If I tell you, you’ll try to avoid me.”
My finger stilled and he licked it with his tongue. “You think I’ll try?”
He chuckled softly and caressed my face. “We both know you’ll try to get away.” His knuckles traced a path from my cheek to my hand. “All that matters is that you realize we’re supposed to be together.” As Troy spoke, he linked his fingers with mine. “You are my heart; I won’t let you break again.”
I wanted to protest, but he was tapping into old feelings.
“Stop thinking.”
I tried to deny it, but he interrupted. “I can read your thoughts remember?”
“You said you wouldn’t!”
He embraced me, squeezing a bit too tight. “I said I wanted you to tell me, but you’re not talking. Are you, Jade?”
I shrugged and rolled to the other side of the bed. “I don’t want you to know my thoughts. I can already tell you’ve tried to change them.”
He laughed, but didn’t deny it.
Angel
I need you
like a fish needs water.
To me…
There will be no other…
Woman
who lights my life like you.
No one else
to make the long hours few.
You
are the one I’ve waited for.
My angel
in this wicked world.
-Troy
Chapter 14
His boxers were low on his hips as he stood by the bed. Troy ran a hand through his hair, and I watched, hypnotized as his ring sparked in the glow of the lamp.
Blinking twice, I ripped the sheet from the bed and dashed for the door.
Troy stepped in front of me, eyebrow raised. “What are you doing?”
“I’m going to take a shower.”
He wrapped his arms around me. “Shower here.”
“I’m not going to shower with you.”
His eyes took on a wicked glint. “Why not? You just slept with me,” he added as he pulled me toward a door at the back of his room.
I dug my heels into the carpet, trying to think of an e
xcuse.
“Ah, ah, ah, Jade. No excuses. You enjoy our time together, that’s why you’re trying to fight it.” He pulled me into a steamy room with a claw foot tub in the center.
“When did you…”
He shook his head. “It will all make sense soon.”
I couldn’t keep my voice from shaking. “What are you, Troy?”
He pulled the sheet from my body and led me to the tub. “I’m everything you need me to be.”
I surveyed the room—tub, toilet, sink, but no shower. “You said we were taking a shower.”
“Did I?”
“You most certainly did.” I ran for the door, but he caught me around the waist as the room went dark.
“What happened to the lights?” I asked as he dragged me back. “How can you see?”
He held my hand as he climbed in. “Come on, you need to relax.”
“I’m not going to risk breaking my neck!”
“I’ll help you. All you have to do is trust me.”
I bit my lip as I strained to make out phantom shapes in the dark. This whole charade was probably just a ploy to get my guard down.
“You’re getting in the tub whether you trust me or not, Jade. But I want to know… do you trust me?”
I swallowed and nodded slowly. “I’ll trust you, if you tell me how you can see in the dark.”
He chuckled. “Alright, Jade.” The water rippled as he wrapped his arms around me.
“Tell me.”
“My family has been able to see in the dark for a long time.”
The water was comforting, despite the chill of his statement. I sighed as he ran a soapy sponge along my arm. It felt good, but didn’t distract me from the words he left floating in the air.
“How is that possible?”
“It’s a long story, but it all began with my ancestors: Christian and Angelique. Soon you’ll know all my secrets.” He kissed my neck, seducing me in the darkness.
Was I crazy? How many women would kill to be in their dead boyfriend’s arms again?
I closed my eyes and leaned against his chest.
His voice turned husky. “I’ve longed for these moments too, Jade, but you won’t have to wish for them anymore.” He kissed the tender spot below my ear, and I froze.
“Why not?”
“Because we won’t be apart again.”
“What does that mean?”
“I meant what I said at the ball, and every time we’ve spoken. I won’t lose you this time.” He kneaded my shoulders. “You’re so tense, cher, you should try to relax.”
I turned around, needing to see his face. For a second, his eyes appeared golden, but it was just my imagination. “It’s not fair that you can see in the dark and I can’t.”
He ran his fingers along my neck and tucked my bangs behind my ear. “I can remedy that.”
Curiosity peaked; I played along. “Really? How?”
Troy laughed as he pulled me closer. “I’ll show you one day.”
After mulling it over, I decided I might not be brave enough. “I don’t think I want to know what lives in the shadows.”
He chuckled softly, “You’re a firecracker, Jade. You’ll do just fine.”
“What does that mean?” I gripped the tub, afraid to be in the dark or maybe it was being there with him that terrified me. Either way, it was difficult to breathe.
Please, don’t let me pass out.
“Just clear your mind, Jade.”
After a minute, I laid my head on the side of the tub and tried to still my thoughts.
He caressed my shoulders. “Are you alright, now?”
I couldn’t say anything. The fear in my chest was as intense as my heartbeat. I tried not to think about anything, but that was like telling a fish not to swim.
After a few minutes, we were in towels and he was setting me near the couch.
Turning away, I dried off without exposing too much skin. When I finally looked at him, he was against his closet, wearing black sweatpants, and watching me like a primetime television show.
“Here.” He held up a white tank top, and navy capris with a matching jacket.
“Thank you.” I paused. “Turn around.”
“You don’t have to be modest. I know you better than you know yourself.”
“Uh huh.” I was dressed in under a minute, once he turned his back. A personal best, if you ask me. I zipped the jacket and rolled up my sleeves, surprised that the clothes fit so well.
I frowned and sat on the sofa because he was still blocking the door. He’d put on a black short sleeve shirt that hugged his body and accentuated his muscles. I looked away, tired of the way he studied me. I had to move, I was too agitated. I walked over to the piano and touched a few keys.
Troy rubbed his chin as he pinned me with his assessing gaze. “You’re mind is different than I remember it, but then, I couldn’t read your thoughts a few years ago, could I?”
I wasn’t sure how to respond.
He continued as though he was just thinking aloud. “Am I really so frightening that I give you panic attacks?”
My mouth was still open. It took a second before I could make my brain accept what he was saying. “If you couldn’t read it a few years ago, what changed?”
His smile turned sad as he motioned for me to come to him, but I couldn’t.
I was petrified.
He walked toward me but the piano was somewhat of a barrier. “If I come at you from the side, you’ll be cornered. Wouldn’t you rather just come to me?”
My gaze flew to the spot near the couch, and then back to him. His smile turned predatory as he watched me.
“What happened to you?”
He ran his hand through his hair and sighed. “It’s a long story, but I do owe it to you.”
“Why?” I had two choices: squeeze between the wall and piano to get to the hallway or make a run for the bathroom, and lock myself inside.
Troy stepped closer. “Because I need you, and you have to know this if we’re going to be together.” Now, he was less than four feet away.
“No, I’ve already decided we can’t be together.”
“You’ve already decided that, have you?” He stepped to the left.
“Yes. You and I are a lot different than we used to be. We can’t go back to the way things were.”
Running a finger over the smooth piano lid, he stared at me with eyes so piercing I felt it in my soul. “And… what about what I want?” he asked, taking another step to the left.
“You can’t have me.”
His eyes glittered as they held mine. “I’ve already had you, remember? You weren’t ready for me back then, but now that you’ve given yourself to me.…”
I balked at his cocky attitude. “What?”
He smirked. “I think you’ll find it a lot harder to go on without me.”
A shiver crept down my spine. “Why?”
Troy moved to the left again, and I realized what he’d been doing. He was at the side of the piano—one more step and he’d have me cornered. I lunged before he could move, but he grabbed me, holding me so close that I couldn’t breathe anything but his scent. There was nowhere to go.
“We’re a part of each other now. You might’ve been able to escape before, but now you’ll always be mine.”
I pushed at his chest before I noticed the silver medallion around his neck. Pulling him close, I fingered the engraved coin. After all the time we’d spent together, I still didn’t know what it stood for. “What is this?”
“Saint Christopher is the patron saint of travelers.”
I looked at it again, studying the etchings. “You like to travel?”
“I went to the ends of the earth to occupy my mind, but no matter where I went, I longed for you—I wondered how you passed the time, and if you were thinking about me.”
“Why did you come back?”
“I’d rather be where you are.”
Such sweet sentiments, but I couldn�
�t ignore the truth. “That doesn’t make sense.”
Troy leaned his head on my shoulder. “I have to tell you something.”
“Okay.”
He led me to the couch, and put his arm around my shoulder. “Centuries ago, two men fell in love with a woman whose light brown skin, and soulful grey eyes were the most divine of any woman in the area. One man offered his love and an amber palace he helped build with his own hands, while the other offered a future filled with powerful magic, and a hundred room mansion on the Bayou.”
Troy examined the carpet. “Angelique was a powerful psychic. People used to come from all over just to discover the future she saw for them. Where Nikoli saw Angelique as a way to move up in the magical hierarchy, Christian believed they could have a magical love.”
Troy pinned me with his fiery gaze. “And in a way he was right. They had a wonderful life until their fairy tale became a nightmare.”
“Why are you telling me this?” My breath caught when I finally looked at him. I grabbed his face, eyeing him closely.
His eyes were more than hazel—flecks of amber illuminated them like the facets of a diamond. My fingers traced his frown as I tried to put the pieces together.
“What happened to them, Troy? Who are they?”
When he stopped staring at the ceiling, his eyes were a solid hazel. “They’re my ancestors.”
Although many thoughts had flooded my mind, I hadn’t pictured that. I opened my mouth to ask another question, but someone knocked at the door.
Rubbing my chest, I tried to calm my racing heart. Who knew what he would’ve said next. It wasn’t often that I got the chance to learn about his past. I glared at the door, wishing they’d go away.
¤¤¤¤
Secrets
I’ve waited years to tell you this…
The secrets that have made me tick,