by RM Walker
The broken glass glinted in the sunlight, a reminder that cut as sharply as the shards. Her anger had brought a wind, smashed a mirror. It was only Drew’s command that stamped her fury down and made it stop.
Her mother was scared of her.
She was scared of herself.
“A wolf in sheep’s clothing.”
What the fuck happened here?
Jake’s thoughts echoed through Josh’s head.
Hell, if we know. C’mon, let’s clean this up. Josh sighed. “We’ll clear up for you, Mrs A.”
They didn’t wait for a response and went into the kitchen.
“She was hugging him,” Jake hissed.
Not out loud. Josh projected his thoughts to his other half.
Being able to communicate without speaking was something they’d always been able to do. It was another reason why they knew they were one person. They were extensions of the other in an identical body.
She probably argued with her mum. She’s not scared of Wendy, so it wasn’t anything he did. Josh took out the dustpan and brush from under the sink, and they went back into the living room.
Lily was in front of the fireplace, her arms around her waist. She looked terrified, her face as white as a sheet. Nate and Matt looked lost, and her mother was hovering, wringing her hands. No one was speaking, and the tension in the room was thick enough to cut.
Josh cleared his throat. “So, yeah, it might be worth us taking the vacuum over after to catch any little bits. Where is it, Lil?”
The blank look he got told him she hadn’t registered. “The vacuum?” He smiled at her.
“Oh, yes! Of course, hang on.” She darted into the kitchen, Matt and Nate right behind her.
Lynda moved to follow, but Jake blocked her way. “Are you okay? Did you get hurt?” he asked.
Her lips tightened as she shook her head. “No one got hurt, it was just an accident. Nothing to worry about.”
“She told us he’s her dad,” Josh said, sweeping the glass into the pan.
“Be careful, don’t cut yourself.” She ignored what he’d said, looking at the closed kitchen door. “I should make sure she’s okay.”
“Matt will make sure,” Josh said, checking to see if he’d missed anything. “We don’t really know Drew that well, isn’t he nice?”
“No, he’s not a nice man. He puts out this aura that he’s trustworthy, kind, gentle. A wolf in sheep’s clothing.” She took the brush and pan from Josh. “Thank you.”
“No problem. Do you believe in seven years bad luck?” Jake pointed at the broken mirror.
“I don’t believe in that rubbish.” She sneered.
“You don’t want to bury the glass under the moonlight then?” Josh asked.
She stared at him as if he was mad.
“We always do it. Y’know, just in case. No harm in covering all your bases.” He grinned, but she didn’t respond, just went towards the kitchen. Jake touched his lower back, and they followed.
Lily was cuddled into Matt’s arms, her face turned away from them. Nate caught their attention, the short shake of his head told them she hadn’t said anything.
“I need to talk to you, Lily.” Her mother showed no reaction to Matt hugging her.
Lily stepped away from Matt, wiping her eyes, and an urge to scoop her into his arms swept through Josh. It was like an itch under his skin, made worse by the fact Jake was feeling the same. He moved closer to Jake and rested his hand on his shoulder, easing the itch a little.
“Boys, I think you should go now.”
They stepped closer to Lily, not about to leave her yet. She needed them, more than ever.
“It’s fine, Mum, there’s really nothing to talk about. I’m sorry I shouted at you and lost my temper. It’s been so...” She flapped her hands as more tears ran down her face.
Bloody hell, what a mess. Josh itched to envelop her between them.
Amen.
Lily straightened her back and took a deep breath. “It’s fine and I’m sorry. It won’t happen again.”
Lynda’s fingers worked at the hem of her jumper, her gaze flicking between them. “It’s been too much. Lily, we need to talk—”
“No more. Not tonight.” She shook her head. “I can’t do any more tonight. I’ve had enough.”
“What do you want to do, Lily?” Matt asked.
“I need some air.” She rubbed her face, her hands shaking.
“We can walk through the woods for a bit. It’s not dark yet,” Nate suggested.
“Yes, please, can we?” Lily’s relief was apparent.
Anger flashed over Lynda’s face. “Take a coat and don’t stay out after dark.” She let Lily pass but stopped Matt from following.
“What has she told you?” she demanded, when Lily was out of earshot.
“She told us Drew is her biological father, and you’re her biological aunt. We know her mother died in a car accident, and you’ve looked after her since she was a baby,” Matt answered.
“Is that all?”
“She said you don’t trust Drew.” Matt shrugged. “He is odd.”
“I know you’re dating her, Matt. Don’t take advantage of her,” she told him.
“What? What do you mean?” Jake demanded.
“He knows what I mean, don’t you?”
“I won’t take advantage of her, Mrs Adair, I promise you that,” Matt replied.
“You’d better not. It won’t matter whose son you are if you take advantage of how emotionally unsettled she is now.”
Bloody hell, can you imagine the freak fest when she finds out?
We’ll deal with that when it happens, hopefully not for a long time though. Josh squeezed Jake’s shoulder.
“I’m ready.” Lily came into the room, putting her coat on.
“Don’t be out late,” Lynda warned.
“I won’t.” Lily crossed to the back door and went out with Matt behind her.
Josh let go of Jake, and they followed, murmuring goodbye to Lynda. She slammed the door behind them, making Lily jump. Matt caught her hand as they headed to the stile in the hedge.
The itch flared under Josh’s skin, made twice as bad by the itching under his twin’s skin. They were desperate to get their hands on her, to find out what was wrong and fix it.
Are we going to be able to keep how we feel about her hidden?
Josh looked at Jake. “We have to. We don’t have a choice.”
Dance with the devil
Lily jumped to the ground and was enveloped by the twins. Jake pushed his hands up her coat sleeves. “Jesus, that’s better,” he muttered and kissed her cheek.
“What’s better?” she asked.
“Needed to touch you, baby.” Josh kissed her cheek.
Nate tugged her into him, and she went willingly, wrapping her arms around his waist, her cheek on his chest.
Matt rubbed at his forehead, the urge to drag her away from them was strong. He knew she was theirs as much as she was his, but knowing it and seeing it wasn’t the same. Especially when he knew she was hurting and needed him.
“I’ll text Jonas and tell him we can’t make it tonight,” Nate told her.
“Thanks. I’ve had enough today,” Lily replied.
“C’mon, let’s get to the treehouse, and we can talk about it.” Nate kissed the top of her head before releasing her to text Jonas.
Matt went towards her but was beaten by the twins grabbing her hands and tugging her with them. He clenched his fists, stuffing them into his jacket pocket as he followed them.
MATT LISTENED AS SHE talked. He could hear her guilt and regret, but he wasn’t surprised she’d lost it. Her life was in a tailspin, she wasn’t going to be all sunshine and daisies.
“He didn’t seem to think it was a big deal, said he’d help me learn to control it.”
The twins were sitting either side of her, and it was driving him up the wall. He couldn’t get anywhere close to her without them baring their teeth at him.
So much for sharing her.
Nate nudged his shoulder sharply, and he realised he’d missed something.
“What? Sorry, I was miles away.”
“We’re going to get her to try again now.” Nate frowned at him. “We need to keep our wits about us in case it gets out of hand.”
“I have no idea how I did it then. How can I do it now?” Lily asked.
“Try and use the secret name?” Matt suggested. “Im is the name of wind.”
“She doesn’t use fire’s name, why would she need air’s name?” Josh pulled a face and Matt gritted his teeth.
“Just do what you do with the candles but use wind instead.” Jake nudged her shoulder. “Just try, Lil.”
“Clear your mind and concentrate on bringing up a breeze,” Nate added.
Matt knew she could control fire, but air was a different thing. It was much harder to control and manipulate because it wasn’t a tangible element. Maybe it was too soon, she was tired and upset. They should probably wait for another day.
A warm breeze tickled the hairs on the back of Matt’s neck. It picked up into a stiff breeze that blew around them, messing with his hair. The playing cards on the floor shifted and whipped up into the air in a vortex.
She’d done it. She’d bloody well done it.
Her eyes sparkled with happiness, dimples on show, and it made his stomach flip with desire. He wanted to drag her onto his lap and kiss her. She was amazing, and she was his. The cards fell to the floor and the breeze dropped. He swept a hand through his hair to get it out of his eyes.
“Well done.” Nate laughed, clasped her face between his hands, and kissed her.
Matt looked away. She was his. But she was theirs as well.
“How did you do it?” Nate asked, and Matt looked back at her, taking a deep breath. Now wasn’t the time to think about it. She needed their help, and he had to concentrate on that.
“I imagined it.” She sounded unsure.
“The tablets will be out of your system now,” Josh said. “Try something else.”
“Like what?”
“See if you can move things around,” Jake prompted her.
She looked at the playing cards. They were still for a few moments, and then they shuffled into a neat pile. “I did it.” She laughed happily.
The cards shot into the air and scattered around them. A single card fluttered into Lily’s lap—the Queen of Hearts.
“Who did that?” she asked with a laugh.
“We did,” Josh said, and the cards shot up in the air and spun in concentric circles in suit order.
She clapped her hands, meeting Matt’s gaze. He winked at her, and she blew him a kiss.
“What do you want to do about Drew?” Nate caught her attention.
Her smile faded. “Do? What do you mean?”
Nate took his glasses off and used the hem of his t-shirt to clean them. “We haven’t been exactly supportive of you.”
“You want to get to know him, don’t you?” Matt asked, and she nodded. “Then we’ll try as well.” Surprise registered in her eyes, and it made him feel bad they’d let her down already.
“You don’t like him.”
He didn’t deny it. There was no point. She wasn’t stupid, just a little naïve when it came to Drew. But to protect her, they’d dance with the devil until they found out his price.
“We don’t like the way he scared you, the damage he did. It’s not exactly the best way to make us trust him,” Nate said.
“Yeah, I know. You’re right. He said he lost his temper because it didn’t work. I can’t say anything about tempers though, I struggle with mine sometimes.” She shrugged. “Must have got it from him.”
“What we’re saying though, Lil, is that we’re going to back you up. It isn’t our decision what you do anyway.”
Matt took her hands in his. “But we want to help you with magic. Jonas does as well, with all of us, it’ll be better for you.”
“I don’t understand why they have conflicting stories.” Her fingers curled around his, and he tightened his hold.
“We don’t know. Neither does Jonas.” Josh caught her attention, sliding his arm around her neck.
“Maybe they’re both right,” Nate said, sitting up straight.
Lily pulled her hands free and knuckled her eyes. “What do you mean? How can they both be right?”
“Maybe Jonas is right with the number of magical people, but Drew is right about magic remaining in nature.”
She picked at the laces on her trainers. “I don’t know how either of them can know for sure.”
“He’s done research though,” Jake pointed out.
“What sort of research?” she asked.
“Well...He’s...Nate?”
“He’s been about a bit, travelled a lot of places, met others, I guess.” Nate looked at him, pulling a face.
Now he thought about it, he couldn’t remember Jonas telling them how he knew, but he must have at some point.
“Drew said we don’t advertise who we are to anyone.” She fiddled with her laces, not looking up at them.
“It’s too dangerous,” Jake agreed.
“So, there’s a chance that he hasn’t found them because they’re hidden too well.”
“Jonas wouldn’t say if he didn’t know,” Nate pointed out.
She shrugged but didn’t reply. Matt could see that she wasn’t as convinced as they were. But that was fine; she didn’t know Jonas like they did. They’d get Jonas to prove it and then she’d see that Drew was feeding her lies.
“Do you feel happier about calling up air now?” Josh changed the subject.
“Yeah. I just need to control my temper,” she said ruefully.
“You’ll get there. Nate has a nasty temper, and he doesn’t blow us all away every time he loses it.” Jake snorted with laughter.
“Only because your mum would cry herself to sleep,” Nate retorted.
“Ah, but Nate, you’d miss us too.” Jake launched onto Nate’s lap making loud kissing noises against his cheek.
“Get off me, you fucking nutter!” Nate shoved him, but Jake clung on.
“Aww, mummy’s baby doesn’t like being teased?” Josh cooed.
“Matt! Get them off me!” Nate was now under a pair of twin bodies, helpless against their combined weight as they pinned him down.
“Nah, you’re okay. They just love you.” Matt jumped to his feet, holding his hand out to Lily. She took it, and he helped her up. He’d seen a chance and he was going to take it.
“My glasses!” Nate roared. “Watch my glasses, you bloody degenerates!”
“Lil. Catch!” Josh threw something at her, and she just managed to catch Nate’s glasses.
The teasing had descended into a scrap that wasn’t stopping soon.
“Should we stop them?” Lily asked, her eyes held a shade of worry.
He took the glasses and put them on the trunk. “There’s no point. One of them will get bored and use magic. Probably Nate.” He led her up to the top level of the treehouse.
She stopped at the railing and leant on it. “It’s beautiful here.”
He wrapped his arms around her waist and drew her back from the railing. “It’s probably safe, but I don’t want to chance it.” He kissed her cheek, relishing the shiver that went through her. She rested against his chest, and he rested his chin on top of her head.
“Drew said there aren’t any ley lines around here.”
“Maybe he hasn’t been in the right spot.” He slid his hands to her hips. He didn’t want to talk about Drew.
She turned, lifted herself on her toes and his pulse quickened at the brief brush of her lips over his.
“Matt?”
“Yeah?”
“Will you kiss me? Like you did in the car?”
Hell, yeah, he’d kiss her.
Sliding his fingers into her hair he tilted her face and brushed his lips over hers. It wasn’t enough. He kissed her gently, slowly
, closed mouthed kisses. She made a noise in the back of her throat as her fingers brushed across the back of his neck. The tip of his tongue touched her lips, asking for an entrance he craved. The brush of her tongue against his set his blood on fire, and he lost himself a little. He moved his hands down her back until his fingers brushed the edge of her sweatshirt. Inching his fingers under the material, he grazed the warm skin of her back, and he groaned.
Tugging his hair, a moan escaped her, and it spurred him higher. He stroked the skin of her back above her waistband, aching to slide his hands inside and squeeze her butt, but he wasn’t sure she was ready.
She was so soft and warm, he wanted to get his mouth on her, to lick and kiss his way up her back. Sensations zinged down his spine as his fingers nudged her bra strap. It would be so easy to unsnap the clip and bring his hands around to cup her.
Their kisses deepened, becoming more urgent, and he brushed his thumbs against the swell of her breasts. She jerked violently, crying out into his mouth. He’d moved too fast for her. He wrapped his arms around her, bringing her face into his neck. “I was too fast, I shouldn’t have pushed you, sorry.” He pressed a kiss against her hair.
“Matt, you aren’t pushing me,” she said.
Goosebumps broke out over him as her tongue flicked over his skin. She licked under his ear and his eyes rolled back in his head. “Jesus, Lily, that isn’t going to help me to slow down.” His arms tightened around her as he took deep breaths, willing himself to cool off.
“It’s not me that’s stopping you.”
Her words sank in, and he lifted his head. She smiled at him, a shy look in her eyes that made his stomach flip. She had a control over him he’d never experienced before. He knew what being led by his cock was like, but this was different, this was Lily, and she affected him much deeper than a physical response.
He splayed his hands over her lower back, stroking her warm flesh. Her mouth met his, and he groaned as her fingers left his hair to trail down his back. She slid them under his hoodie, and he was lost the instant her fingertips touched him. Urgency fuelled their kisses as she pressed closer to him, making amazing noises in the back of her throat as he trailed his fingers over her skin.