Set In Stone

by Balmanno, Beth

  “I’m sorry, Valerie.” His voice was filled with remorse.

  Sorry for what? That he’d kissed me? I wasn’t.

  “I shouldn’t have let that happen. It won’t happen again. I promise.”

  I’d just had the best first kiss I could imagine—I didn’t count Leo’s hypnotic assault—and he was telling me he was sorry? That it wouldn’t happen again? I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.

  “What?” I asked.

  It was Noel’s turn to frown. “It’s not fair. I have an unfair advantage. I don’t want to do that to you.”

  My face must have mirrored the confusion I felt because he sighed, frustrated.

  “I don’t want to be like Leo.” Anger flared in his voice. “I don’t want to be irresistible. But I know this…” He gestured to himself. “…all of this is compelling. Seductive. I don’t want you to feel as though you don’t have a choice. That you’re not in control.”

  “You’re not at all like Leo.” With Leo, I didn’t have a choice. He called all the shots. He could bring me to my knees with a simple look or touch. I’d gone to Noel willingly.

  “Maybe not. But this whole pretense I wanted—asking you to pretend we’re the same…” His voice trailed off. “We’re not and we never will be. And I shouldn’t try…for your sake.”

  “OK.” I tried to understand.

  “I know you don’t understand.” He voiced my thoughts again. “But it’s really for the best. I don’t want you to get involved with me. Or care about me.”

  “Why?”

  “Because I can’t stay,” he said regretfully. “And I don’t want to hurt you. Now or when I leave.”

  Chapter 33

  Noel wasn’t here for good. With the multitude of questions swirling through my mind, this was something I’d never considered. My muscles tensed and I clenched my hands into tight balls. I didn’t want him to go.

  We drove home mostly in silence. Noel tuned the radio to music I’d never head, a lyrical instrumental piece with a woman’s lilting voice singing softly in the background.

  “What is this?” I asked.

  “Celtic music.”

  “It’s nice.”

  “It’s one of my favorites.”

  It was both soothing and haunting, a harmonious blend of reedy flutes and rich violins. It filled my heart with joy and sadness, an accurate reflection of my own mood. He was just one more in the long line of people who would leave me…or who had already left.

  He pulled into the driveway and turned off the ignition.

  “You don’t have to get out,” I said.

  “I want to.” He walked to my side of the car and opened the door. “It’s not often I get to play this role,” he said as he helped me down.

  I raised my eyebrows. “What role is that? A human?”

  He laughed. “No, an adoring date.”

  We walked to the front door together, his hand resting lightly on my back. The door was unlocked and I stepped inside. Noel followed.

  “We’re in the kitchen.” Dad called.

  I turned to Noel. “Thanks for today. For the date.” I stumbled over the word.

  He smiled. “I should be thanking you. I’ll be the first to admit the circumstances are a little unusual. It wouldn’t have surprised me if you’d demanded I take you home. You know, after the initial revelation at the car.”

  I didn’t say anything. Leaving had actually been the furthest thing from my mind.

  “So, thank you.” He hesitated for just a moment before leaning down to kiss my cheek.

  “Valerie, you should have mentioned your friend was here.” Noel stepped back just as Mom appeared, a smile on her face and a plateful of food in one hand.

  “Noel, won’t you join us?” she asked. “There’s plenty of food. Mexican.”

  “I don’t want to intrude.”

  “Nonsense.” My mother reached out with her free hand and led him to the kitchen.

  He glanced back at me with a questioning look. I gave him a half-smile and shrugged before following them.

  Dad was sitting at the bar, a plate and a pad of paper in front of him.

  “Look, Michael, Valerie’s friend is here. The one I was telling you about.” Mom paraded Noel in front of him as if he was a trophy I’d won.

  Dad took off his glasses and extended his hand to Noel. “So you’re Valerie’s new young man.”

  Inwardly, I groaned.

  But Noel smiled and said, “That’s me.”

  Dad studied him. “Hmm. You’re new at St. John’s?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  The Spanish Inquisition began. “Where did you move here from? What do your parents do?”

  “My parents are dead, sir.”

  “Oh, I’m sorry--” Dad was instantly contrite.

  Noel held up his hand. “It was years ago,” he told him. “I live with my brother.”

  “How old is he?” Dad picked up his taco and took a bite.

  “Seventeen.”

  Dad frowned. “You have no other guardian? No adult?”

  “We’re both emancipated, sir.”

  “For heaven’s sake, Michael, let the boy eat.” Mom handed Noel an empty plate. He loaded it with food, spearing an enchilada with a fork and adding a scoop of rice before joining me at the small kitchen table.

  “Emancipated?” Dad swiveled around to face us. He didn’t specialize in family law but he was well-versed enough to ask a few questions.

  “Yes, sir.” Noel was unfailingly polite as he answered the barrage of questions. “We filed last year. We were left quite a large inheritance and when our aunt became ill—she was our guardian—we all decided emancipation would be the best thing. To avoid the foster system.”

  I breathed a silent sigh of relief. I knew nothing about laws but at least Noel appeared to know what he was talking about.

  Dad nodded. “I see. That’s quite a lot of responsibility for a seventeen-year-old. What made you choose St. John’s?”

  Noel took the Coke my mother handed him, thanking her with a smile. “My brother and I looked at a couple of schools, trying to decide where to go.” He paused for a moment. “None of the others had quite what we were looking for.”

  He stole a look at me with narrowed eyes and a smirk on his face.

  “St. John’s does have an excellent reputation,” Dad agreed, oblivious to the truth behind Noel’s statement. “It will serve you well to receive your diploma from that fine institution.”

  “We’re so glad Valerie decided to attend St. John’s for high school,” Mom added. She’d ignored the empty barstool next to Dad and joined me and Noel at the table.

  I rolled my eyes. As if I’d been given a choice, I thought. Going to St. John’s was the last thing I’d wanted.

  Mom changed the subject and began her own list of questions. Noel launched into a conversation with ease, charming her with his fabricated biography. I listened while I ate. He spoke animatedly as he told her stories of growing up in New York and London, jetting back and forth with his investment banker father. His dad was from England but his mother was an American citizen, he told her. They’d split their time between the two countries until his parents died in a plane crash.

  Mom listened, her eyes fixed on him. She ignored the plate of food in front of her. His lies were absorbing and, with his casual and sincere delivery, believable. Listening to his story left me feeling uneasy. If he could lie this easily to my mom, what else might he be lying about?

  “What an interesting life you’ve led,” Mom said when he finished. She reached out and covered his hand with her own. “So much adventure and so much sadness.”

  I watched her with a strange sense of detachment. She had exhibited more maternal instincts with him in the last fifteen minutes than she had in the last five years with me. I tried to feel irritated but I felt nothing. I’d become used to her lack of involvement and concern.

  “I’m sure it sounds much more interesting than it is,” I
said. “Right, Noel?”

  “Right,” he agreed. He stood, ready to take his plate to the sink, but Mom intercepted him and took it from his hands.

  “Thank you for dinner,” he said. “It was nice of you to ask me to stay.”

  “You’re welcome any time.” Mom’s voice oozed niceness. “Right, Michael?”

  Dad looked up from his notes. “What?”

  “It was nice to meet you, sir.” Noel extended his hand again. He said goodbye and turned to me. “Walk with me?” he asked.

  I walked with him to the front door.

  “I hope that wasn’t too awkward,” he said. He lingered by the front door.

  “For me or for you?”

  He smiled. “For you, of course.”

  “It was fine. I’m just sorry you got the third degree.”

  Noel shrugged. “I wouldn’t expect anything less from parents meeting their daughter’s date for the first time.” He looked at me. “Do you think I did alright? Did I make a good impression?”

  I considered this. “Dad’s hard to call. He’s probably still recovering from the shock of me having a boy over.”

  “Really?” Noel’s interest was evident. “So this isn’t a common occurrence?”

  “Nope. You’re the first.” Once I’d said it, I regretted it. Maybe that wasn’t something I should have shared so easily. I stifled a laugh as I remembered he wasn’t actually a boy.

  The smile on his face was smug. “Good. How about your mom?”

  “Mom is crazy about you,” I assured him. I opened the door and he stepped outside on to the steps. The night air was cool but he didn’t seem to notice. I hugged myself, rubbing the tops of my arms to ward off the chill.

  “What about you?” he asked, turning to face me.

  “What about me?”

  He leaned closer. “Are you crazy about me?”

  I blushed. How could I not be? He was walking perfection, beautiful and kind, thoughtful and wise. But I wasn’t going to give up that information quite so easily. “Maybe,” I admitted.

  “Me, too.” He sighed. “I really shouldn’t be doing this,” he said as he leaned closer to me. His lips touched mine, gently at first, then firmly as he drew my lower lip into his mouth.

  I pressed myself into him, weaving my fingers through his thick black hair, pulling his mouth closer to mine, trying to breathe in his cool scent, fresh and clean and deliciously sweet.

  He pulled away, shaking his head. “I just can’t seem to stop myself when I’m around you.”

  “So don’t.” I just wanted him to kiss me again.

  He held me at arms length. “I’m not doing this,” he said, more to himself than to me. “I’m not going to be Leo.”

  Noel took a step back and offered me a small smile. “I’ll see you tomorrow. At school. Sleep well, sweet Valerie.” He disappeared into the night.

  Chapter 34

  It was Monday morning and I wasn’t ready. I worried as I showered and dressed for school: what would the day be like? Would Leo be there, ready to launch his hypnotic assault once again? I hesitated for a moment before stowing my stone in my dresser drawer again. Best not take any chances, I thought. If Leo really wanted it and could charm me into doing anything, I would remove temptation and simply leave it at home. I hesitated once again before donning the pendant Hope had given me. While getting ready for bed last night, I realized I was still wearing it. Noel had seemed unaffected by it and I immediately doubted its power. However, faced with Leo’s impending assaults, I decided to keep it on. What did I have to lose?

  After arriving at school, though, I discovered I’d worried needlessly. Noel greeted me, alone, outside of the main building on my way to my first class of the day.

  “Good morning,” he said charmingly. “You look beautiful.” He eyed my floral sun dress, his gaze lingering on my legs and I felt the heat rise in my cheeks.

  It was the first time I had ever worn a dress to school. Thankfully, my mom had refrained from commenting when I’d appeared in the kitchen for breakfast that morning.

  “Thanks,” I murmured. I glanced at him, my thoughts mirroring his. He looked like a god today, I thought, dressed in black jeans and a fitted white t-shirt, his signature sunglasses perched on top of his head.

  I glanced around. “Where’s you-know-who?”

  He grinned. “Not here. He hasn’t come back yet.”

  “Really?” I felt like a rescued Atlas, the weight of the world lifted from my shoulders.

  “Really.” He took my hand and, ignoring the looks from several girls, walked me to my class.

  Later, Noel sat with me at lunch. He pushed past Ashley, ignoring the acid look she gave him as he made his way to my table.

  “You’re not making any friends,” I commented.

  “What do you mean?”

  I nodded my head toward Ashley and he laughed. “Believe me, I’m not missing out on anything there. Nothing I haven’t encountered a million times before.”

  I could only imagine, I thought. I wondered then, how often he came here, to be among people. Were Celtic gods like the Greeks, indulging in affairs with mortals on a regular basis? It wasn’t something I could comfortably work into a casual lunch-time conversation so I said nothing. I concentrated instead on squirting ketchup onto my plate.

  He wrinkled his nose. “That is disgusting. Why do you ruin perfectly good food with that sauce?”

  I dipped a french fry. “Ketchup? You don’t like ketchup?” I popped it into my mouth.

  Noel shook his head. “It’s revolting.” He ate a french fry and grimaced. “These aren’t too appetizing on their own, though, are they?”

  He ignored the remaining fries and picked up his burger instead.

  “So,” I said. “That was quite an entertaining story last night.”

  Noel grinned. “It was pretty good, wasn’t it? I’m not used to being a teenager, having to answer questions from concerned fathers. Especially about my lack of parental supervision.”

  “It was very convincing,” I said, trying to keep my voice nonchalant. I ate another fry.

  His expression changed. “It was a story,” he said quietly. “A necessity of the situation. I won’t lie to you, Valerie. To others, to explain why I am here, I will. I have to. But I won’t lie to you.”

  I nodded. “I believe you.”

  “Good. It’s the truth.”

  I tried changing the subject. “Where do you think Leo is?”

  He furrowed his eyebrows, a puzzled expression on his face and I said quickly, “Not that I want him to be here. It just seems odd. I mean, if he wants the stone so badly, why has he suddenly left me alone?”

  “He’s probably just lost track of time,” Noel said. “He does that, especially if he’s enjoying himself. Most of…us…stay for a few days or weeks. Leo has been known to stay for months, to return year after year. He really does delight in the pleasures of this world. Especially this time of year.”

  Days? Weeks? I couldn’t believe that was all the time I had left with him.

  Noel continued. “Of course, there is something tangible that will eventually draw him back. Back here, back to you.”

  The stone.

  “So what do I do?” The remains of my lunch lay untouched. I’d lost my appetite.

  He finished his burger. “We wait. I’m not going anywhere, Valerie. Not while you have the stone and remain…undecided.”

  “And how long can I remain undecided?” I asked. “Forever?”

  “I don’t know,” he admitted. He pushed his hair off his forehead and held his head for a moment, thinking. “This situation hasn’t happened before—at least not in recent history. And each day you wait…” He didn’t finish.

  “Each day what?” I demanded. “What?”

  He looked torn, as if he was debating whether or not to tell me something.

  “You said you wouldn’t lie to me,” I reminded him. “Tell me.”

  “Each day you wait means
that one of us grows stronger and our desire for the stone grows stronger,” Noel said. He looked at me, his eyes troubled. “Right now, it’s Leo. But soon, it won’t be him—it will be me.”

  He looked so worried and so anguished that I felt the stirring of those same emotions in me. “I don’t understand. How can that be? How does it happen?”

  He shook his head ruefully. “It’s one of those things I can’t tell you.”

  But I wasn’t about to give up. “Well, how long do we have? How much time before the tide turns, before you turn into Leo?” I spoke his name as if he were a revolting bug I’d just discovered hiding in my bedroom.

  “A month or so…”

  A month? I breathed a sigh of relief. The change, whatever it was and whatever it entailed, was not lurking immediately on the horizon. I didn’t have to worry about Noel turning into Mr. Hyde, at least not any time soon. But then I thought again. A month? I had one month to spend with him before the Noel I knew disappeared, replaced by someone like Leo, someone deliciously seductive, whose sole mission was to relieve me of my mysterious stone. I wondered again what would happen if I simply got rid of it on my own—maybe I could return it to the place I found it or dispose of it some other way. I’d only asked Noel what would happen if I kept it, I realized, not what might occur if I willingly gave it up.

  I decided to ask. “What would happen if I threw the stone away? You know, got rid of it somehow? Dropped it in the ocean or something?”

  “Well, that would definitely solve a lot of issues. Leo would leave you alone.”

  My mood brightened. “So why don’t I just do that? Get rid of it? Maybe I could just go and bury it somewhere.”

  A fresh surge of possessiveness swept over me but I held it at bay. I was confident I could overcome those feelings, especially if my safety was at stake.

  I smiled at Noel but he didn’t return the sentiment. “What? You just said that would solve everything. Leo would go away, go back to wherever he came from. Right?”

  “Yes.” Noel nodded, his eyes cast downward. “But I would, too.”

  I froze. “What do you mean?”

  “Valerie, the only reason I’m here is the stone. Once it’s gone—once you’ve either given it to one of us or gotten rid of it—I’ll leave.”