My heart jumped in my chest even after I told it not to get too excited. “You mean it?”
She sighed, rolling her blue eyes towards the ceiling and wrinkling her nose. “No. Honestly, I think it’s super gross, the thought of you tongue-locking with my brother…” She shuddered, making a gagging face. “But I guess I can pretend it’s not happening.” She gave me a shove towards Adam. “Go!”
I didn’t have to. He was across the room before I could even think to breathe in relief. His arms swept around me and I was lifted into his chest.
“Finally!” He groaned wickedly before claiming my mouth in a bruising kiss.
I was vaguely aware of Nessie making gagging noises behind me. “I’m going to go upstairs and pretend you’re not spit swapping with my brother … in the kitchen … where we eat our food.”
Her heels clacked as she scurried away.
I broke Adam’s hungry kisses and tipped my head back to peer into his face. “I feel like this is a dream and I’ll wake up and—”
“And I’ll be right there next to you,” he finished, bending his head and nipping at my bottom lip.
I smiled and looped my arms around his neck. “I like the sound of that.”
Epilogue
Kia
Four months later…
“Hello Kia!” Mrs. Chaves swung the door open and moved aside to let me into the house.
“Hello Mrs. Chaves. Is Adam or Nessie home?”
Mrs. Chaves checked her watch and then tossed a fretful glance towards the stairs. “They are, but Vanessa and I are on our way to see Dr. McKevitt, which we are going to be late for if someone doesn’t hurry up!” The last parted was shouted up the stairs.
A moment later, we heard the pounding of feet and Nessie came thundering down the steps. Her unbound mane bounced around her shoulders as she hopped the last two steps to stand before her mother.
“Relax, Mom!” she muttered, rolling her eyes. “I just need to grab my purse. It’s in the kitchen.” She glanced at me, grinned. “Hey! Here to see dork-boy?”
I laughed. “I came to see whoever’s home. I forgot you had your appointment today.”
Nessie rolled her eyes again and I wondered how many more times she could do that before her eyeballs got stuck pointed towards the back of her skull. “Today. Tomorrow. Every day until I die.”
“Can we save the drama for our therapy sessions, please? We have ten minutes to get there and it’s almost rush hour.”
Nessie snorted. “Who are you trying to beat, Mom? The cows? Mayferd doesn’t have traffic.” But she turned on her heels and hurried into the kitchen.
I turned to Mrs. Chaves. “How is she?”
The other woman shrugged. “It’s only been three months, but the doctor says she’ll be fine so long as she continues to take her medication and makes regular appointments.” Her worried eyes landed on me. “How’s she holding up at school?”
I nodded slowly. “Okay, I think. I mean, I don’t think anyone is stupid enough to continue what they were doing after half the football team got expelled back in January for sending Nessie those texts and images.”
Relief flickered over Mrs. Chaves’ pretty face. “I’m glad to hear that.” She offered me a hesitant smile. “Plus, she has you there so I know she’ll be okay.”
I grinned at her. “She’ll be fine. She’s tough.”
Her smile was brighter, genuine. “Yes, she is.”
I darted a glance towards the kitchen before turning back to Mrs. Chaves and dropping my voice. “How are things with you?”
Her smile faded and the lingering sadness that had been in her eyes for months returned. “I’m all right. Thank you for asking. It’s been hard, you know? But we’re coming around now that we know what we’re dealing with. The doctor said depression was common with teenage girls and she’s confident Vanessa will make a full turn around with lots of support. That helps. The knowing,” she added in case I didn’t catch on. “Everything else … well, we’ll manage.”
It was a lie. Adam and Nessie never had to say a word about it, but I knew things hadn’t gotten better. One only had to have ears to hear the shouting match behind closed doors.
I opened my mouth to say something, although I wasn’t sure what. I was saved by the return of Nessie. She swung the strap of her purse over her shoulder and marched up to us.
“Ready for another round,” she said.
Mrs. Chaves smiled and turned towards the door. “We’ll be back in an hour or so,” she told me pointedly and I felt my cheeks burn.
“Oh, I can’t stay long,” I said quickly. “I have to work. I just came to say hi.”
She didn’t say it, but it was in her eyes and I wanted to die. “Well, we’ll be back in an hour.”
She headed out the door. Nessie skipped after her. She paused on the threshold to glance back at me. Her grin was as knowing as her mother’s.
“Use a raincoat!”
Then she was shutting the door and I was left staring at it with absolute horror.
It was still surreal, being so open about my relationship with Adam. There were days I still worried Nessie would change her mind, but they were becoming less frequent with every passing day. The first few weeks had been the worst, but not as bad as the days following the first time we had sex. I had no idea how everyone knew we’d done it, especially since we’d been the only two in the house, and maybe it was just me being paranoid, but I could have sworn everyone I knew and everyone I passed on the street knew I’d done the deed. Adam thought it was hilarious, which didn’t quench my fears.
“So what if they know?” he’d said when I told him.
“I have to look your mother in the face. The last thing I want is for her to think I’m, I dunno, immoral.”
His eyebrow had lifted. “Well, you are pretty dirty once I get you naked…”
I hit him. “Stop that!”
Laughing, he kissed me. “Relax. It’s not such a big deal.”
I knew he was right, but I still blushed furiously every time he walked into a room with me in it and our eyes met. It probably didn’t help that he smirked when he did it, as though he was remembering us tangled, sweaty and naked across his bed. I was always torn between hitting him and dragging him back to bed. The guy was incorrigible and I was absolutely crazy about him.
With one hand on the banister, I jogged up the stairs to the second floor. I knew Adam was locked away in his room, studying for his exams, but I promised myself that I would only stay a minute. I would say hi, give him a kiss and leave. At least, that had been the plan.
I reached his door and knocked softly.
“Yeah?” I heard him mutter.
I turned the knob and stuck my head inside. It always amazed me how organized his room was for a boy. I tried not to think how messy we’d made it the weekend his parents took Nessie to some doctor in Calgary to get diagnosed, leaving him home alone. Well, semi-alone.
“Hey,” I murmured, slipping inside and shutting the door behind me.
His head came up from the text book open across his cluttered desk, his blue eyes wide behind his glasses. Other books, papers and notebooks lay scattered around his elbows. A mug of cold coffee sat beneath a dim lamp and he had a pen sticking out from behind his ear even though he held one between his fingers, poised over papers. He was a mess. His face was shadowed in at least two days of growth. His hair needed a cut and stuck up around his head in spikes. His clothes were wrinkled and stained, and I never thought he could look sexier.
“Hey,” he said, dropping the pen in his hand onto his open book. “I thought you said you were avoiding me until after the exams, which I still think is horribly unfair.”
I smiled, tilting my head to the side. “I’m not staying long. I just wanted to see you.”
He turned his chair to face me. “Does that include you moving closer or…?”
Laughing, I shuffled over to him. I bit my lip when his fingers found my hips and I was dragged be
tween his knees. My hands rested lightly on his shoulders.
“You need a shave,” I said, raising one hand to touch the soft bristles along his jaw.
He made a humming sound. “There’s something else I need way more.”
I felt the hot tingles way before his gaze swept up to meet mine. “Yeah? What’s that?”
In a move I thought he was very good at, he rose and hoisted me up into his arms. My legs went automatically around his hips and my arms around his neck as I was carried to the bed. His phone vibrated, making a loud, cluttering sound across the desk.
“Ignore it,” he said, yanking off my sneakers. “It’s just Kenny.”
“You sure?” I had no idea why I was breathing so hard, but I couldn’t seem to slow my heart rate down once my top was torn over my head and his hands were on me. “Could be important.”
He shook his head, his mouth attacking my shoulder and neck. “He wants to come over this weekend to study. I’ll answer him later.”
“I told you, I can’t stay,” I said, but put up no fight when he reached for the fasteners on my jeans. My own fingers tucked under the hem of his shirt and made quick work yanking the material over his head.
His face scratched mine as he kissed me. The slight burn was completely ignored as I returned the urgency of his demands. I knew from experience that there was no stopping either of us once the fever caught. We were both hot and hungry and so tired of waiting.
“What were you saying?” he breathed into my damp skin twenty minutes later.
I laughed. “You’re supposed to be studying.”
He raised his head and met my gaze. He grinned. “Well, I’m confident that I am thoroughly prepared for my human reproduction exam.” His hand traveled down to rest on my waist. His mouth moved along the curve of my neck, burning holes into my skin everywhere his lips touched. “You’ve been such a great inspiration.”
I made a sound between a laugh and a moan as he stirred my body awake. But I knew we’d never leave the bed if I let him have his way.
“Hands off, pal.” I rolled out from under him and sat up, dragging the sheets with me. “You need to study and I have to get ready for work.”
Tingly shivers raced along my back where his fingers lightly glided up the curve of my spine. “It can wait another few minutes and you don’t have work for another two hours. I think—”
I turned and lightly smacked his hand. “The only thinking you should be doing is on French.”
“Spanish,” he corrected. “And I’d rather think about that spot on the inside of your thigh, the one that makes you—”
“Get dressed!” I rose from the bed and searched for my clothes. “You’ve already taken two break’s worth of time in that bed.”
“But it was very educational. I think that should count for something.”
Nevertheless, he climbed out and helped me sort my things from his. We dressed quickly and I went straight to the door before he could tempt me into giving in again.
“I’ll see you next weekend,” I said.
He groaned. “That’s almost ten days.”
“Yes, well, you need to maintain that four point oh grade average and I need to go home and shower.” I put my hand on the doorknob. “I’ll text you later.”
“Fine, fine,” he muttered, rubbing a hand back through his hair. “But can I get a kiss before you go? Especially since I won’t see you for weeks?”
“Ten days,” I corrected him.
He moved towards me and I barely restrained the shiver that coursed through me. The kiss was dirty and provoking and meant to make me surrender, and normally I would have happily. But I pushed him back with both hands on his chest.
“Nice try, but I’m leaving,” I said, grinning.
He opened his mouth, but was interrupted by the hum of his phone announcing the arrival of another call. He groaned, shuffling over to the desk and picking it up.
“Kenny,” he muttered, flicking the screen off. “The guy is persistent.”
“Wasn’t he just here last night?”
Adam nodded. “He’s been here almost every night.” He tossed the phone down on the table. “I like the guy, but he’s beginning to drive me nuts.”
“Maybe he’s just lonely,” I mused.
He shook his head. “He’s not lonely. He’s curious.”
I frowned. “What?”
Adam grinned. “I think he has a thing for Vanessa.”
There was no doubt my jaw was gaping. “Our Vanessa? Are you sure?”
“Either that or he’s trying to get my parents to adopt him, which could also be a possibility. His parents are two pennies shy of a full purse from what I hear.”
“Huh,” I murmured, intrigued by this new bit of information. “I wonder if Nessie likes him…”
“Kia…”
I blinked at him, mildly amused and curious by the warning grumble in his voice. “What?”
“Please don’t set my sister up with my best friend. It’s weird.”
I gasped. “I wasn’t going to!” I shifted feet. “What do you mean weird? That’s like you and me.”
He made a sour face. “Yeah, but she’s my sister and he’s a total weirdo.”
I rolled my eyes. “I think it would be great if they got together. I like Kenny. I think he’s a nice guy. Nessie deserves a nice guy after what that jackass did to her.”
Adam shook his head. He put both hands up. “I want no part of it.”
Laughing, I went over and kissed him. “Think about it, if they hook up, Kenny will stop calling you.”
His features melted into a grin. His eyes darkened as he pulled me closer into his chest. “Mm, that does make it tempting.”
We kissed a moment longer, enjoying the moment before ten whole days fell between us. It was my turn to curl my fingers into his shirt and hang on, not wanting to let go and he was the one to break the connection.
“Love you, Kia,” he murmured.
My heart melted as it always did hearing him say those words to me. “Love you back.”
He touched my bottom lip with the pad of his thumb. “Movie next Saturday?”
I nodded. “Yeah.” I grinned. “I’ll see if Kenny and Nessie will join us.”
He groaned, but he was grinning. “If we must.”
With a last quick kiss to his mouth, I nodded. “We must.”
The End
About Airicka Phoenix
Huddled beneath a perpetual cloud of imagination, International Best-Selling author Airicka Phoenix lives with her husband and four gorgeous children in the beautiful province of British Columbia. When she's not busy playing with her imaginary friends, creating worlds and toying with fictional lives, she can be found reading, polishing her collection of daggers, or chilling with her kids.
Airicka is the creator of THE TOUCH SAGA, THE SONS OF JUDGMENT SAGA, THE LOST GIRL SERIES, GAMES OF FIRE and BETRAYING INNOCENCE. She also has plans to release a Sci-Fi horror/romance, WHEN NIGHT FALLS, Dec 2013.
Airicka also writes adult paranormal & contemporary romance under her alter ego, Morgana Phoenix. She has a paranormal short coming out Dec 2013 in SNOWED IN, An Anthology and CAPTURE ME, Morgana's debut novel will be released Fall 2014.
For more about Airicka, visit her website at: http://airickaphoenix.com/Author/
Revealing Kia (The Lost Girl Series, Book 2) Page 19