I forgave him for deserting me after the morning kiss we exchanged. “Why did you leave?”
“Eirik woke me up. Poor bastard. He had no idea how he came to be in your room.”
“I feel so bad for him.”
“He felt worse. You want a ride to school?”
I glanced outside. It was drizzling, and from the dark sky, it might be one of those days when it rained nonstop. “Unless you have runes that will stop us from getting wet, I don’t think so.”
“We’ll take the SUV.”
I liked the idea of hitching a ride with him. “Okay.”
“You can watch me practice after school, too.”
“Oh, no. I’m not going to hang around the football field like some groupie.” I started to move away, but he snuggled my waist and pulled me into his arms for another kiss. I clung to him. When he eased off, I sighed. “Okay. I’ll be there. For an hour, then I have to leave.”
He grinned and whispered against my lips, “Why?”
“I have an appointment with my physical therapist at four fifteen.”
“Great. We’re tapering off at practice, so I can take you.” I tried to protest, but he silenced me the best way he knew how, with a kiss. “Do you know what I like to do when the weather is this crappy?”
“Use a kiss to mess with my head then ask rhetorical questions?”
He chuckled. “No, snuggle in bed. Want to ditch school and stay in bed with me?”
He didn’t play fair. I’d kill to make out the entire day. I visualized years of reaping souls with him and snuggling in bed, and grinned. Tempting as the idea was now, I couldn’t ditch school. “I can’t.”
“You have no idea what you’re missing. Just the two of us at home. The things we could do.”
I hated him for teasing me like this. I reluctantly eased from his arms. “You’re so mean.”
A wicked grin curled his lips, his eyes smoldering. “You haven’t seen anything yet.”
Shaking my head, I disappeared through the portal, showered, changed, and hurried downstairs. My parents were still asleep. Or so I thought. Mom came downstairs and caught me just as I opened the front door.
“Morning and bye, Mom,” I said, yanking the door open.
“Not so fast. We’ll be going out to dinner tonight.”
“Okay. Have fun.”
She gripped the door before I could close it. “Slow down. I’m not done talking. We’re all going out to dinner.”
“What time? My lessons end at seven.”
“I know. Lavania said you can leave early and go back after dinner if you’d like. She said you were picking up things fast.”
I shrugged, glancing toward the driveway. “She’s a fun trainer.”
“I should hope so.” She reached out and touched my hair. “Another thing—”
“I’m going to be late, Mom.”
“No, you’re not. Torin will wait for you.”
I blinked. How did she know he was driving me to school? “Oh, okay,” I said slowly.
“You’re only seventeen, so don’t rush into anything yet. The two of you will have a lifetime to do as you please, including sex.”
I cringed, my face burning. She knew about Torin coming to my room.
“Raine?”
This was beyond awkward. I couldn’t meet her gaze. “I get it, Mom. Can I go now?”
“Yes.” She smiled and tugged one of my curls. “I like your hair like that.”
“Yeah. Bye.” I pulled the hood of my jacket to cover my hair. She was still staring after me when I turned the corner into the driveway. She was beyond weird. One second talking about sex, the next my hair.
Torin’s garage door was open. He came out to meet me before I reached the driveway, took my backpack, and grabbed my hand.
“Where is everyone?” I asked when I noticed the car was empty.
“The others left early to take care of something at school.”
“They used a portal?”
“Yep, which worked perfectly. Andris has an aversion to rain.” He cranked the engine and backed out of the garage. “If he had his away, we’d have a permanent base on some beachfront property.”
“I wouldn’t mind.”
“You’d hate it after a while.” For the rest of the drive, he talked about the bases they’d used around the world. “You’ll love visiting new places.”
“You don’t miss old friends?”
“I don’t have old friends.”
That was sad. He reaped everyone he befriended. Poor Drew and Keith.
“You’ll have to cut ties with your Mortal friends after a few years and never see them again. Otherwise they’ll notice you don’t age.”
Funny I hadn’t thought that far. I’d always assumed that Cora and I would be friends forever. As though he felt my sadness, Torin reached for my hand and pressed a kiss on my knuckles. “Don’t worry. You can revisit them in twenty years or so and pretend you are your daughter.”
“Is that supposed to make me feel better?”
“I told you being a Valkyrie is a lonely existence.”
I would have him. I hoped. “So now you’re okay with me becoming a Valkyrie?”
He shook his head. “Nope, but I’ve come to learn that once you make up your mind no one can bully you into changing it.” He parked, but didn’t let go of my hand. “What are you doing tonight after your lessons?”
“Going to dinner with my parents, but I could get out of it.”
“No, don’t. We have team dinner at my coach’s house, so this works perfectly.” He lifted my backpack from the backseat, and we joined the students running to the school entrance. It was raining hard.
Inside the foyer, girls headed to the restrooms to repair their makeup or their hair. Torin’s hair was wet from the downpour, and I couldn’t help reaching up and sweeping the wet strands from his forehead. My hoodie saved me from looking like a drowned rat. As we headed toward my locker, I searched for Eirik and Cora among the throng of students.
We turned a corner and almost bumped into Andris and Ingrid.
“Did you do it?” Torin asked.
“Absolutely, and we caught her,” Andris said, smirking. “Your problems are over, Raine.”
“My problems?” I asked, not liking his grin or the malicious gleam in Ingrid’s eyes. I ignored her and focused on Andris.
“We caught the person vandalizing your locker,” he said.
“I told you I’d take care of it,” Torin said, grinning.
“We helped,” Andris added.
“Thanks, guys.” I touched Andris’ arm as Torin and I hurried toward the lockers. I turned the corner, expecting to see, I don’t know, Lavania since she wasn’t with Andris and Ingrid. Instead, the only person standing in front of my locker was Cora.
“Told you there was something off about her,” Andris said.
“This is a mistake,” I said. “She’s not the one.”
“We used the right bind runes,” Andris retorted from behind me. “The runes were supposed to lure someone who hated you to your locker and trap them there. The other students walked right past, but not our busty blondie.”
I glared at him. “Then you used the wrong ones because she doesn’t hate me. I’ve known Cora since elementary school, and she doesn’t have a hateful bone in her body.” He opened his mouth, and I added, “Don’t even think about saying another word. Unrune her and whatever you did to trap her.” I hurried toward Cora.
Cora looked furious. “I’m so going to kill you, Raine Cooper,” she snarled through clenched teeth. “I know you did this with your witchy powers. I haven’t been able to move for, like, forever. Release me. Right now,” she snarled through clenched teeth.
There were black runes on my locker and on the floor around her feet. They looked nothing like the ones Lavania had shown me. I glanced at Torin, but he was busy studying Cora. If he started believing his crazy friends, I was going to knee him where it hurt the most.
&nb
sp; “Raine!” Cora snapped.
“Hug her,” Torin whispered.
Cora gave me the look that said she’d flay me alive if I didn’t get moving.
“I’m so sorry,” I said and hugged her. At the same time, Torin pressed the palm of his hand on my locker. The runes grew faint then disappeared. Cora stepped back and sagged against me. She was shaking.
“How did you do it?’ she asked.
I exchanged a glance with Torin and shrugged. “It’s hard to explain.”
She slapped the back of my arm. “Keep your witchy powers away from me.”
“I was trying to catch the person writing on my locker, Cora,” I said.
“You freaking caught me instead,” she snapped. “It wasn’t funny.”
“Sorry. How long were you trapped?” I asked.
“Forever.” She pushed against me and went to open her locker. “I came in early to talk to Doc. He wants me to participate at the meet after all, but if he cuts me…” She threw me another hard glare, grabbed books from her locker, and slapped the door closed. “I will hold you responsible.”
I watched her walk away, feeling terrible. I glanced at Torin, who’d been quiet since he’d gotten rid of the runes. Andris and Ingrid were gone. Thank goodness. I couldn’t stand their smirking.
“She’s not the one,” I insisted, sorting my books.
“Of course not.” Torin was staring after Cora. “Andris said you suspected the vandal was a Valkyrie, and she’s definitely not one of us.”
“That’s right and she doesn’t hate me.”
20. THE SCARS
Lavania entered the class after the second bell, and Mrs. Bates didn’t reprimand her. Funny how she’d become the teacher’s favorite. I hated suspecting her, but all this mess with Cora and the trapping runes had me worried. Had she poisoned Andris and Ingrid against Cora? Where had she been this morning?
I didn’t see Eirik until lunchtime. Torin and I were on our way to lunch when he came around the corner with two of his new “girlfriends”. He said something to them and stopped while they continued toward the cafeteria.
“You guys are not going to lunch?” he asked, but he didn’t meet my eyes.
“We are,” Torin said, his arm tightening around my shoulders. “Just not here.”
“Oh.” Eirik glanced at me. The lost puppy expression on his face made my heart ache. “Sorry about last night,” he said.
“Don’t be.” I slipped out of Torin’s arm, crossed the space between me and Eirik, and hugged him. At first he stiffened; then he relaxed. His arms came around me and squeezed. I leaned back and studied his face. “Come to the house later tonight. I have lessons then dinner with my parents. We should be home by eight. Eight thirty at the latest.”
He started to shake his head.
“Don’t do that. Be there or… Just be there.” I stepped back then remembered yesterday. “And that crap you told me yesterday wasn’t cool. You don’t push those who love you away, Eirik. It hurts.”
He grabbed his chest and grimaced. “Ouch. Now I have guilt.”
“Shut up. Be there tonight or I’ll come for you.” I pointed at him and added, playfully, “You don’t want me to do that.”
“Now I’m scared.”
I made a face. He could be such a goofball. I’d missed that. “Oh, I tried texting Cora, but she didn’t return my message. If you see her, tell her I’ll talk to her later.”
“Okay.” He glanced at Torin. “Be good, St. James. You hurt her,” he glanced at me then back at Torin and grinned, “and she’ll rip you a new one.”
I rolled my eyes. Torin just laughed. “I can handle her.”
I forgave him the arrogant statement because he was charming and attentive during lunch. The waitresses stared, but I was getting used to that reaction from girls and women wherever we went. He was completely oblivious to them, or if he was aware, he ignored them. Either way, I loved it, and I didn’t want lunch to end. But like most fun things, we had to dash back to school.
“So where was Lavania this morning?” I asked as we walked back to the school from the parking lot. Torin didn’t answer right away, so I bumped him with my shoulder. “She left with the others, right?”
“Yes. You’re worried she might have done something to Cora and caused her to get trapped?”
I stopped and studied him. His uncanny way of reading me was amazing. “Yes, I’m worried about Cora. The runes trapped her by mistake, and now she’s angry and probably scared of me again. She was after the meet incident, but when I came back she’d gotten over it. And yes, I wonder about Lavania. She doesn’t like Cora or that Eirik likes her.”
“I know. I told her you were a good judge of character and wouldn’t be friends with an evil person.”
I made a face. “Thank you, I think.”
“It was a compliment.”
I pouted. “Except for the evil part.”
Chuckling, he pressed his arms on the wall and trapped me with his body. He moved closer, bringing with him heat and temptation. We had a few minutes to kill before the bell went off. “You know you’re quite amazing.”
I slipped my arms around his waist, lifted my chin and gave him a playful smile. “I know.”
“Shameless, too.”
I wrinkled my nose. “I don’t think so.”
“Beautiful, loyal, and stubborn?”
“Those I like.”
We got lost in our little world for a while as he became the master of my senses. Kissing him was like hurtling down a roller coaster at a supersonic speed, thrilling with unexpected jolts to my senses, elevated heartbeat, and danger thrown in because he was so unpredictable.
“School is a place for learning, not foreplay, you two.” Cora’s voice penetrated the sensual haze Torin had created.
I felt Torin smile against my lips. I didn’t want to stop kissing him. Reluctantly, I let him go and glanced at Cora. She grinned and fanned herself.
“The temp in the entire school just shot up a few notches. You do know there’s a make out closet a few feet away.” She pointed at the closed door.
“I couldn’t wait,” Torin said.
Cora laughed. “You’re bad, but in a good way.” She glanced at me and added, “I’ll stop by your place this evening.”
“Sure.” Thank goodness she was no longer pissed at me. If I could make Eirik’s problem go away, my life would be perfect.
***
After school, I walked with Torin to the field for practice. Andris and his friend Roger joined me, though they spent part of the time criticizing Ingrid and the cheerleaders’ jumps and kicks. When Torin was detained, Andris and Roger dropped me home early. I had an appointment with my physical therapist that couldn’t wait. Luckily, the guy didn’t bring up the infamous swim meet, but I left the office with a list of what to do and what not to do.
“I think you should be very cautious around your Mortal friend, Raine,” Lavania said as soon as I arrived at Torin’s house. “She hates you.”
She couldn’t even bring herself to call Cora by her name. “No, she doesn’t. I know her, Lavania. We’ve been friends for years. And her name is Cora.”
“There’s something off—”
“Please. Can we, uh, just focus on my lessons?”
Two hours later, Lavania angled her head and said, “She’s here.”
I went to the window, lifted the corner of the curtain, and glanced outside just as Cora pulled into my driveway. She jumped out of the car. I let the curtain fall and turned. “How did you know?”
Lavania shrugged. “I just do. I told you her essence is a bit off.”
I sighed, anger building, but I got a grip on it. “I’ll go talk to her.”
“No, she’ll realize you’re not home and leave.” As though on cue, my cell phone vibrated. I looked at it then Lavania. “Tell her that you’re busy,” she added.
I picked up my phone from the table and read Cora’s message. “Where are you? Your car is here, b
ut your house is in total darkness.”
I debated whether to lie about my whereabouts or come clean.
“This Mortal is only complicating your life, Raine.”
“Coming,” I texted back, then glanced at my unhappy trainer. “I’ll be gone for just a minute.”
Lavania sighed. “Fine. Be careful what you tell her,” she warned. “And don’t stay for too long. We still have an hour of work.”
Argh, she was seriously beginning to irritate me. Cora saw me as I crossed the lawn and got out of her car. “Hey. Did I interrupt you and your gorgeous QB?”
“No. Torin is still at practice. I’m really sorry about the trap near my locker.”
She shrugged. “I forgive you, but if you put your mojo on me again, I will publicly disown you on my vlog and unfriend you on every social website.”
We hugged.
“Coming inside?” I asked.
“Nah, I gotta run.” She glanced at Torin’s. “So, what were you doing over there?”
“I’m tutoring Lavania. She’s been having problems at school, and I offered to help,” I lied, my cheeks warming.
Cora made a face. “Hard to imagine Ms. Perfect having any problems at anything. Anyway, when are you going to be done?”
“Six thirty, then I have dinner with my parents. Today has been such a horrible day.”
“Why don’t we have a sleepover on, uh, Friday? Next week. We have a meet next Saturday. We can have Supernatural marathon and ogle the Winchester Boys.”
I grimaced. With Eirik sleepwalking into my room in the middle of the night, I wouldn’t dare have her spend the night at my place. “Round one of state championship starts next week on Friday, and I promised Torin I’d be there.”
“Ah, the dutiful girlfriend.” There was a pinch of envy in her voice. “I heard you’ve been going to watch him practice.”
I bristled at the censure in her voice. When she’d dated a ball player, I’d teased her about attending his practice sessions, yet I was doing it, too.
“I went today for an hour,” I said defensively. “How did you know?”
“Everything you and Torin do is news.”
I made a face. “We could hangout on Saturday evening. Have a late night with the guys.”
Immortals (Runes book 2) Page 28