Bonded (The Raegan Mason Trilogy)

by Cheryl Courtney

  “Breathe.” I spoke. He gasped and his eyes refocused on me. His heart was still pounding. I was seeing myself in his thoughts. His eyes roamed over my body and the thoughts that followed made the heat return to my body. He was bewildered. I didn’t feel his emotions like I did at the lighthouse; I knew them as my own thoughts. I knew what he was thinking. He had never heard my music as I had heard his. I could hear his music again, but this was so much more intimate. I didn’t have any doubts about what he felt. He couldn’t believe I was standing here.

  “What are you doing here?” He asked, still staring at me. His voice was constricted as if he wanted to cry. He wanted to reach out to me but the thought of the woman flashed in his thoughts again.

  I closed the gap between us and his heart rate increased tempo. A frown creased his brow and he looked down at my hands as I reached for his. He inhaled sharply and I heard his thoughts of pleasure. For me it wasn’t the same electrical shocks as earlier. It was warmth as if I melted into him. For him, he was experiencing the shocks. His body was heating up under my touch and his self control was fading.

  “I saw you…” I struggled to explain. As I spoke, his body trembled. He closed his eyes as I did when he talked. I needed to feel his arms around me. I placed my hand on his pounding heart and he couldn’t resist my touch any longer. He grasped me around my waist and pulled me into him. He bent down and kissed me feverishly. His thoughts no longer rang in my head, but melted into my own thoughts. Our thoughts mingled together and I felt his desire to be with me in every sense of the word. He lowered me to the sand; his hand firmly holding my weight as we melted into another passionate kiss. His mouth kissed my neck and set my body into shivers. I giggled and made him look at me. His body was trembling with my laughter.

  “Did we switch bodies?” I asked him teasingly.

  “What do you mean?” He whispered and started kissing me again. His thoughts were only of kissing me and making me want him more.

  “I was the one without self control earlier and could feel your touch zap through my body like electricity. I could ‘hear’ your emotions like music. Now you’re feeling it.” He pushed slightly away when I said those words.

  “How do you know what I’m feeling?” He stared at me amazed. His body tensed slightly under my touch. His thoughts suddenly closed to me like a door shutting.

  I frowned at him. “What did you just do? I can’t hear your thoughts anymore.”

  He released me from his embrace and sat up. He stared at me baffled. His blue eyes seemed to sparkle even in the moonlight.

  “What is it?” I asked and moved closer to him. I could still hear his heart beating rapidly. His eyes darted over my neck, my head, down to my feet and back to my eyes. I reached out to his hand and his eyes caught on my mother’s bracelet. His eyes widened with something resembling horror.

  “Where’d you get that?” He grasped my wrist and turned the bracelet so the stone was facing us. When he touched the bracelet, it began to glow slightly. At first I thought it was reflecting some moonlight, but realized it was actually glowing and warming my wrist beneath.

  “I, uh, it was my mother’s and my Aunt Sarah gave it to me tonight after we got back from the hospital.” My eyes were glued to the glowing stone. Kyler still gripped my wrist and bracelet. His heart was beating so hard, I didn’t need the extra sense to hear it. “What is going on?” I asked him and stared into his glowing blue eyes. Now my heart was pounding. His eyes were glowing neon blue. The wall that he’d put up on his thoughts crumbled and I saw my own face in his thoughts. My green eyes were glowing like emeralds. I gasped and pulled my wrist from his hand and backed away. His blazing eyes faded back to the electric blue. His thoughts revealed that mine had too.

  “Raegan, please don’t be afraid. This is a good thing. I promise.” He inched closer to me and I stood up and stepped back.

  “What just happened? Why were your eyes glowing? Why were MINE?” I didn’t actually feel afraid, but something close to fear was coursing through my blood. I was freaking out. I knew there was something different about him, but I didn’t think it was contagious.

  His thoughts returned to the woman but the anger was gone. He was almost jubilant thinking about talking to her again. He replayed the glowing eyes scene we just shared. He focused on the bracelet. I looked down at my bracelet and back at him. “What does my bracelet have to do with this?” I asked him point blankly.

  He stood up and stepped toward me and looked into my eyes. “Raegan, that bracelet means quite a bit. There’s a lot to explain but right now, I think we should go back to my house and let my mother explain.” Her face flashed again in my thoughts. It almost seemed like he let me see some thoughts and held back others. An image of him holding my other hand walking toward the light house flashed across my thoughts. An emotion of love washed over my body, it was his desire for me. He smiled slightly and reached out his hand. “I promise it isn’t anything contagious.” He winked and smiled his crooked smile at me. Whatever was happening, it was happening to both of us and I couldn’t bear not to know more. I took a deep breath and reached for his hand. His warmth rushed through my body. He closed his eyes and inhaled slowly then smiled. “Everything is going to be fine now.” He whispered as he pulled me toward the light house.

  CHAPTER 16 - MARINA

  We reached the lighthouse and he pulled me toward his motorcycle again. The black metal reflected the moonlight and I caught a thought from Kyler. He was thinking of me with my arms around him on the back of his motorcycle. His desire reflected my own. I couldn’t wait to wrap my arms around him again. He started the engine and I climbed on back. I purposely delayed wrapping my arms around him to see how much control I had. I searched his thoughts. He was wondering what was taking so long. He turned slightly and asked, “Are you ready?” I asked him, “Are you?” I giggled and I placed my arms around him knowing as soon as I touched him the electricity would flow from me through him as it did last night in reciprocation. He shuddered under my touch and images flashed through his thoughts of us in very intimate embraces. Images that I entertained last night as he touched me and his energy flowed through me. He released the throttle and the engine died. I loosened my hold on him knowing he wasn’t in control.

  “Isn’t easy to control? Is it?” I teased him.

  “It’s overpowering! How did you bear this last night?” He was breathing hard and trying to focus.

  “It wasn’t unpleasant by any means! I’m guessing you were the one in control and kept your desires in check.” I smiled at him and kissed him gently on the shoulder. He stood up from the seat and made me release him from my loose hug. He was tense and uncomfortable. His thoughts focused on my bracelet.

  “Can you take the bracelet off for now and put it in the saddle bag? It will help me focus on the driving so I don’t wrap us around a telephone pole.”

  “Is that why?” I started putting two and two together. “Is that why you took yours off?” I remembered he wasn’t wearing his after our night in the lighthouse. “Is it some kind of aphrodisiac?”

  “Yes and absolutely not. I was told it might help.” He was trying not to think of last night. I could feel his desire building again. “Rae, please.” He begged without looking at me.

  “Okay, okay, I’m taking it off.” I said as I removed the cuff from my wrist and placed it in the leather bag beside me. As soon as I placed it in the bag and closed the flap, his thoughts were gone from my mind. He inhaled deeply and sat back down. “Thanks.” He said as he started the motorcycle up again. The engine roared and I wrapped my arms around him again and laid my head against his back.

  He was still warm, but the warmth that melted into me was only a memory at this point. He drove down the gravel path toward the highway. He headed through the University streets toward the bay side of the island. Some of the older homes were established out there. Many had private docks for their boats and yachts. Kyler pulled into the driveway we had just left a couple o
f hours before. He parked his motorcycle and we climbed off. He reached for my hand instinctively now and I welcomed the slight buzz of electricity streaming through us. He lifted the flap of the saddle bag and grabbed my bracelet by the silver cuff careful not to touch the stone. He handed it to me and suggested I hold it and not wear it yet. We walked to the front door and went in.

  The entry way was dark and narrow as he led me through the hall to the living room. The walls were a neutral color. The center of the room held a black leather sofa and arm chair. The walls had paintings of old ships displayed. The stone fireplace was empty in the summer weather but decorated with replica lighthouses. The room did not feel comfortable. It felt like a showcase room rather than a living room. Kyler left me there to find his mother. I walked from picture to picture admiring the art. The French doors at the end of the room revealed a patio area overlooking the bay. I looked out the windows to see a private dock with a large yacht parked. There was some movement on the pier. People were unloading equipment from the vessel. I held my bracelet near my body as I crossed my arms and watched. I didn’t know if Kyler went outside to find his mother amongst the workers or if they were still in the house.

  I rubbed the stone with my thumb and caught a flash of his mother at the docks in his thoughts. She was looking at a laptop. I kept rubbing my thumb over the stone as he approached his mother. He was telling her that he had some news and that she would need to come to the house. Her icy blue eyes measured him before she spoke.

  “You brought her here?” She asked him.

  “Yes, Mother. Something has changed and we need answers.”

  “We?” Her eyes widened and she paused and stared into Kyler’s eyes. “Did you unite with her?” Disapproval filled her words.

  “No, Mother, but we have bonded and ignited.” A flash of my eyes glowing at his touch and a flush of desire flooded my thoughts. “She also has something that you will be interested in seeing.” My bracelet flashed through his thoughts.

  “I see.” His mother glanced up to the doors where I was looking toward them. “Does she know how to use it?”

  My heart pounded. She seemed to know exactly where I was. I backed away from the door fearing that she knew I was eavesdropping on their conversation. I kept my thumb on the stone and sat down on the leather couch to continue listening in on their conversation.

  “I don’t believe so. She does have many questions about our bonding. I felt it would be best coming from you since her mother is not here to explain.” A replay of our accident on the bridge rolled through his thoughts as if he witnessed the whole thing!

  I gasped and quickly took my thumb off of the stone. I couldn’t bear to see those images. How did he know so much? Was he there? My heart was pounding faster and my fear was building. I thought about leaving. Unions? Igniting? Bonding? Nate had said something about bonding that night. I didn’t know what I was getting into. Who were these people? I stood up and started heading for the door. I grabbed the door knob as Kyler ran down the hall and stopped inches from me.

  “Rae, don’t be afraid. Please stay while my mother explains. I know you have a lot of questions and I promise you’ll get the answers tonight.” He didn’t touch me but I could feel the magnetism pulling me back toward him. My fears were melting away in his presence. I was safe with him. Everything would be okay. I turned and looked into his eyes and the world ceased to exist for a moment. His feelings of immense love and desire for me overwhelmed my fear of the unknown I was entering into. I was in his arms again and felt like I was floating. His kiss on top of my head sent vibrations through my body. Then abruptly he released me and stepped aside as he introduced me to his mother.

  My body was still flushed from the interrupted embrace. His mother was taller than I saw through Kyler’s thoughts. She was about 5’9”, slender but strong. Her long blonde hair was pulled back in a pony tail. Her appearance matched that of a traveler. She wore baggy green cargo Capri pants and a black collared sleeveless shirt. She was beautiful too. Her skin was naturally tan like Kyler and her blue eyes were startling as well, but they didn’t hold the warmth that his held. Her eyes were cold and hard and boring through mine.

  “Raegan, this is my mother Marina Stone. Mother, this is Raegan Mason.” Kyler quickly introduced us and started ushering me back to the living room. Marina stood in the long hallway and prevented us from going further. She held out our hand to shake mine. I was afraid of what I would feel. Could she feel my fear? I reluctantly held out my hand and managed to say “Nice to meet you.” Her hand was warm and her handshake was firm. There were no shocks of electricity or overwhelming emotions that I felt with Kyler. I was relieved instantly and managed a smile for her.

  Marina released her hand from our handshake and moved toward the living room. “Raegan, please come and have a seat. It seems we have much to talk about this evening. I’ve just returned from a trip to Brazil and I am a bit exhausted, so please forgive any rudeness on my part. Kyler has shared with me only a little about you and I understand you have some questions?” We reached the living room and Kyler and I sat on the couch as Marina sat in the arm chair. She looked to me, then briefly to Kyler, and back to me. I didn’t know where to begin. I looked to Kyler for some kind of starting point. I already felt like I was trapped in a bad dream and couldn’t wake up. I took a deep breath and held out my bracelet.

  “Can we start with this? My Aunt Sarah gave it to me this evening and told me it was my mother’s. She went on to tell me that my mother got it from her mother and her mother got it from hers. When I wear it, I can hear Kyler’s thoughts and when he wears his, I feel… his emotions? This evening before we got here, Kyler touched my bracelet and his eyes, our eyes, um…” I looked to Kyler again but didn’t know what else to say.

  “They ignited.” Marina answered.

  I looked back to her confused. “Ignited? Like caught on fire?”

  “In a sense, yes. May I see your bracelet closer?” She held out her hand for me. I gently laid the bracelet on her palm and waited.

  Marina turned the bracelet careful not to touch the stone. After a brief inspection, she handed it back to me. My patience was running thin. “Did your mother tell you anything about your family?”

  “Uh, nothing that would explain any of this. Do you know my family?” Two could play the twenty questions game.

  “I know some Masons. What’s important right now is that you know about your family and the unique situation that has presented itself between you and Kyler.” Her voice was calm. Her messages were cryptic. I was frustrated.

  “What are you talking about?” I finally erupted. “Please talk straight to me. I’ve been through so much these past months and now something strange happens and you want a history lesson on my family?”

  “Fair enough, Raegan. If you’ll entertain me with a few more questions, I’ll know where to begin. How old are you?”

  “17, I’ll be 18 next week.”

  “Have you always lived here on the Island?”

  “No, we moved here when I was 6. We lived…” I couldn’t remember where we lived before here. “Um, I’m having trouble remembering that right now.” I felt lost. Did I lose that memory as a result of the accident?

  “When did the headaches start?”

  “About 6 months ago, how did you know about the headaches?” I asked her.

  “A few more questions please and then I’ll answer yours. When did they stop?”

  “A few days ago when I heard, when I was on the beach resting at this rock I went to every night for the past six months.”

  “What did you hear?” She looked at Kyler briefly and then back to me waiting for an answer.

  “I heard music… music that I heard when I met Kyler a day later at the beach.” My eyes locked on the carpet on the floor. I couldn’t look at either one of them. My face was heating up with embarrassment.

  “Do you hear his music now?”

  “Not since he took off his necklace the ot
her night.” Again I kept my eyes down fearing that all our previous activities would be revealed.

  “Kyler, what do you hear of her?” She directed the inquiring to him, and I was grateful to be out from under the microscope.

  “When we first met, I only heard bits and pieces of her thoughts. When we touched, I could hear more. Now, I feel the connection pulse through my body. It feels like electric shocks. Tonight, I heard her music, her life force. I felt our bond melting together. I heard her heart.” I looked at Kyler expressing all of the things I couldn’t say and his eyes began to glow again when he looked at me. I could feel his emotions washing over me and hear his heart pounding with mine. I couldn’t breathe.

  “Kyler. Raegan.” His mother spoke firmly and broke the trance. “Kyler, go get your stone. Raegan, please put on your bracelet.” My face must have expressed my fear of putting that on in front of her. Neither one of us were wearing our stones when that incident happened. What would happen if I put the bracelet on now? “It’s okay, you’ll see when he returns.” Kyler had left at the command of his mother to get his stone. I obeyed and put my bracelet on as she instructed.

  As soon as I placed my bracelet on my wrist, I heard Kyler’s thoughts. “Everything is okay. Please don’t panic. I love you.”

  I thought in reply, “You love me? I’m trying not to freak out. I don’t understand what’s going on. Please hurry back.”

  “Yes, I love you. I’m almost there.”

  This was weird being able to communicate without talking. Marina was watching me without any emotion on her face. I couldn’t hear her thoughts or feelings. Maybe she was good at putting up that wall like Kyler did on the beach, or maybe it didn’t work between us. I wasn’t sure. “She can hear your thoughts.” Kyler thought as he sat down. My face heated up with embarrassment again.