by Brea Viragh
Astix grabbed her glass like a lifeline and downed the rest of her wine, liquid courage to continue. “She tried to take my hand and pull me back. It only made things harder. I hadn’t been back since then, not until they called me a few weeks ago. Not until they needed me.”
Leo felt his anger rise to the surface at the thought. Especially knowing his father had something to do with the decision. “You cannot let this shape you anymore. You can’t let the actions of other people dictate how you feel and how you live your life,” he told her with impatient sympathy. He imagined the young woman, little more than a girl, not knowing what had happened to her or the full implications of what it meant. “You might have been forced out, but you didn’t have to hide. You could have gone anywhere you wanted. Been the woman you were meant to be from the start.”
She sighed, resting her chin on her hands. “And where would I go that the Claddium couldn’t find me? I was fifteen with five hundred bucks in my hand. I stayed close because this is what I know. I’ve tried not to feel this way, honestly. But you can’t help what happens to you.”
“No, but you can help your reaction to it,” Leo countered.
Astix moved her shoulders and continued with her story. “I should have gone. I know.” She rubbed her eyes. “I was stupid to stay.”
“I can understand. This is your home. I’m sure you’ve heard this a million times, but there’s a purpose to everything we do. Sometimes it’s not evident at first.” He plated the duck and accoutrements together, making sure to wipe away any extra grease before setting it down in front of her. “Fate was at work. You were meant to be here. Meant to stay close with the eclipse coming. Try it.”
“Or I didn’t have the good sense to get away when I had the chance.” Abruptly switching subjects, Astix gestured toward the plate and grabbed a bite. Her face transformed in an expression of pure ecstasy. “Maybe you weren’t lying when you said you could cook.”
“I dabble.” Leo slid a knife across to her, using the opportunity to grab her hand. He liked the way they looked together, her porcelain tone against his dusky gold. She left her hand in his, let him hold her.
With his free hand, he plated some for himself and moved around the island to join her. He appreciated the opportunity to wine and dine her. Candles, romance, the whole shebang. Knowing Astix as he did, she would be skeptical at first, but in the end he hoped to win her over. Leo doubted anyone else had ever taken the time to do so.
He would love to take her dancing, to see the way their bodies fit together in time with the music, the heat, the experience. Letting his imagination take flight, Leo pictured them together as he swung her into his arms, gripping her hips and flinging them both across the floor.
He wanted to make an impression, a lasting one. The gesture tonight would be a first step. A snap of his wrist produced a lighter and with a flick the three tapers he’d set aside burst to life. They ate in silence as he dug in, lustily dragging his fork along the plate to scoop up the sauce.
“So where did you learn to cook?” Astix asked between bites. “Because I know your father didn’t tie the apron strings on and open a Julia Child book.”
“It was my mother. Before she discovered the joys of wine she used to be a regular whiz in the kitchen.”
“She sounds like my mom. Except she was never any good. And had a distinct preference for champagne.”
“After I ditched the idea of being a football superstar, I definitely toyed with opening up a restaurant.”
“Oh? What happened there?”
“I went to work for the Claddium instead.”
“Ugh, do you have to bring them up while we’re eating? I’m going to lose my appetite.”
Leo chuckled. “It was a summer internship the year I turned sixteen. Pretty much mandatory because my father was in line to head up the Earth Elemental department. I like to think of it as a take-your-son-to-work few months, but really I think the old man wanted someone else to make him look good.”
“How so?”
“I was a straight A student, valedictorian and a slew of academic awards. Having me there with him was another notch in his belt.”
Astix turned away, giving her plate her undivided attention. Here she was, barely able to finish high school because of her isolation. It had her feeling uneasy, inferior.
“Hey.” He spun around to face her. “You don’t need to feel bad about not completing your schooling. You are an intelligent woman. A diploma doesn’t prove anything.”
“How do you know I didn’t graduate?”
Leo cleared his throat. “You said your parents kicked you out at fifteen.”
“It’s true.” She sighed, spearing the last of her duck and raising the fork to her mouth.
“How did you get into the DJ business?” he asked. “Not your first show, but the business side of it all.”
Astix took her time in answering. “I’m not sure. I’ve always been interested in music, possessed a certain musicality. It only takes one person to impress, one show to make an impression. I stumbled into a bar one night because I was hungry. Bernardino gave me a sandwich on the house. I kept going back because he was kind to me, and eventually I let him listen to one of my demo tapes. Now he makes enough off managing me to keep his wife in fancy footwear.”
“Somehow it doesn’t fit with your love of solitude.” Leo chuckled. “Being in front of a crowd of people.”
“Astix might be an introvert, but DJ Tix…she’s everything. She’s outgoing and adventurous. Talented and popular and…and frisky. She doesn’t have this terrible, unnatural power or this awesome responsibility hanging over her head. Who wouldn’t want to escape?”
Leo grasped onto one word to use to his advantage. “Are you feeling frisky tonight?”
Astix swallowed. Hard. “What?”
“I’m a man. It’s always on my mind.” Leo knew he shouldn’t push her. He should go with the status quo for a better relationship in the end. His pulse thickened as he took her in, the slight hesitation in her eyes and hitch to her voice. He knew he would not let her go for the world.
She hid her smile in another bite of vegetables. “Here I was starting to think you didn’t have an ulterior motive for the evening.”
“You never answered the question.” At his statement, Astix opened her mouth to respond and closed it quickly. Leo took it as a sign. “I should tell you something,” he began, picking up the dirty dishes to clear them. “I want you to get used to me being around.”
“You plan on hounding me more?”
“I plan on touching you. Often. You should be prepared for that, too.”
“I don’t like to be handled,” she stated unnecessarily, watching him pile the dishes in the sink.
“Don’t think of it as being handled. Think of it as seduction.” That said, he walked around the island and hooked his fingers under the seat of her stool, dragging her closer. It pleased him when she didn’t scoot away.
He skimmed his lips over her chin and cheeks, using a hint of teeth before moving up to her nose. The lights from the amber were a warm, smoky honey color, playing off her hair, her skin. He nibbled at her earlobe and delighted in her shiver.
“What are you doing to me?” she whispered, attempting to lock away the yearning.
“Let me show you.”
Leo leaned over to sample her with eyes half closed. She tasted of wine, rich and deep with a hint of something spicy. He enjoyed the way her lips shifted beneath his own. They were soft and plump without being wet, moving against his in a perfect tempo. When he pushed for more, she opened for him. Their tongues tangled together and Leo had to remind himself to keep it light. Casual. Even when he wanted more, felt his blood pressure rising at the thought of being with her for one night. He told himself he had been prepared for the lust and sharp pervasive heat rising the minute he saw her. The kind that took away all his resistance. What he had not prepared for was the sweetness, the gentle tug at his heart.
&nb
sp; He was unprepared when she broke things off.
Finally, Astix looked at him, and Leo saw the proverbial walls drop. “I can’t do this,” she murmured. “I can’t. This is not a good time.”
Leo twirled a bit of her hair around his finger, playing with the soft strands. “What can’t you do?” He purposely kept his tone bright.
She pushed him away with a sharp slap of palms on his chest. “This!” Astix gestured back and forth between them. “I’m not equipped for romance. It’s not who I am.”
“Maybe it’s exactly who you are.”
“No, no. All of this…” She waved her arm around to encompass the kitchen, Leo included. “All of this is a show. A distraction. My family needs me to stay focused. I can’t afford to get wrapped up in a show.”
Now that pissed him off a little. “It’s not a show. And definitely not meant to be a damn distraction. It’s me trying to show you I have a feeling.”
“A feeling?”
“Despite your skepticism, yes. A feeling.” Succinct, man, he admonished himself. “I’m not going to categorize it yet, but it’s there. It’s real. This is real.” Seeing the anxiety and vulnerability in her gaze, he bent to give her a second kiss. “We fit together, Astix. You don’t believe me?”
Overwhelmed, she took a moment to answer. “No, I don’t.”
Leo couldn’t help himself. Ice crept over the warmth so prevalent before, brought a feeling eerily like anger to the surface. He felt the stirrings of it as he tried to temper the frustration. “Then I’ll give you time.” Instead of saying something he may regret, Leo pushed away from the island and straightened. “I’ll give you all the time you need.”
He felt her watch him as he set the kitchen to rights, gathering up things and putting the rest of their uneaten feast in the refrigerator.
“You’re leaving?” Astix asked.
“You said you can’t do this. So I’ll give you time to think. To decide about this, and about me.”
He didn’t want to admit it to himself, but her reaction bothered him. He was unused to rejection, certainly, but it went deeper. He wanted her to be certain about him. As he was about her. With the veil thinning and the eclipse coming, he wanted to be at her side. To help instead of hurt.
Leo refrained from touching her again. After donning his coat, he walked to the door before shooting a final look over his shoulder. “Good night, Astix. Thanks for letting me cook for you.”
Silence met his final statement. He let himself out and listened to the door close behind him.
CHAPTER 11
Leo stomped out to the car and slid behind the wheel, fighting off the urge to fume. He wasn’t one to sulk or pout. That wasn’t him. He didn’t want to act like a hormonal teenager or a love-struck fool who lived for the attention of his woman.
The dismissive way Astix had kicked him out set his teeth on edge. He drove back to the office with his hands clenched around the steering wheel and his emotions at war. He wanted to be strong for her. To be the kind of man who stepped up when there was trouble. No mistake about it—the woman was swimming in an ocean of the stuff. She just made it so damn difficult to be there when he knew he wasn’t wanted. What was it about her that made him keep coming back for more?
Was it the way her eyes gentled when she accepted and used her gift? The way her smile warmed around the edges when she dropped her walls? There were too many things to count.
Her sweet vulnerability was one of the many things he admired. It brought out the protector in him, made him want to shove her behind him and roar. He wouldn’t let his temporary banishment from her house deter him from pursuing what he wanted. The lump on the passenger seat caught his attention, and Leo reached over to finger the worry doll made in Astix’s image. Now he was glad he hadn’t told her about it.
He pulled into the parking space boasting his name on an engraved plate and indulged in a moment to take stock. All right, so maybe he hadn’t planned to seduce the woman tonight. She deserved all the finesse he could muster. The rejection still stung.
A keypad controlled the door and allowed him entry once he punched in a code. In a matter of moments, he was striding down the limestone-paved hall toward an office directly adjacent from a broom closet. Upward mobility, his father called it. Leo considered it calling in a favor based on hierarchy. At least his position gave him the opportunity to help the community. He couldn’t ask for more.
In any case, he’d made his bed with the Claddium. Nothing else would suit him now. He was too dedicated to his power, to the wellbeing of all elementals in the Great Lakes region. They were his people and his responsibility.
When Leo opened his office door to see his father seated complacently in the mahogany rolling chair, he was unsurprised.
“I heard you paid Astix a visit today,” Orestes said in lieu of a greeting. “Did you not get enough information out of her the other day?”
Leo closed the door behind him and waved a hand to make sure they could not be overheard. “I hear you did the same. Nice of you to tell me beforehand. Was staying late at the office for this little meeting a courtesy?”
“It was necessary.” Orestes studied his flawless nails, feigning disinterest.
“Scaring an innocent woman was necessary? I see. She seemed pretty shaken up when I got there.”
“And what, exactly, where you doing there?”
“There were things to discuss.”
“About her brother?”
Taking into account the dry heat blasting from the wall unit, Leo unburdened himself of his coat. His father would not move from his seat, so Leo went around him. Then he pulled up an extra chair and faced the stern façade of the man who raised him.
“Did you find anything out?” Orestes pushed. “I can tell you, I found my own conversation most interesting. She was like an open book.”
Refusing to be intimidated, Leo propped his feet up on the desk. “I don’t know what your plan is with her and I’m sure you won’t tell me.”
Orestes held his palms up in a gesture of openness. “There is no plan. I simply want her watched with no involvement. I believe she is important to the future.”
“And Zenon?”
“You are no longer involved there. From this point on, you are limited to a position of strict observation. Can you handle the task, Leonidas?”
Leo scowled, hating the way his father said his name. Like each syllable held the weight of nations. “She may have inherited her father’s magic, but she doesn’t warrant such strict observation. We should be expanding our focus outward. Her entire family warrants observation, in my opinion. They have information about the eclipse they’re not giving up.”
“There is a looming threat and I truly believe the girl holds the key to overcoming it.” Orestes ignored his son’s words, focusing instead on his own agenda. “Or at least part of a key. I can’t sense the whole picture. It’s beyond me yet, although everything will soon come together.”
“Do you feel a disturbance in the Force, Obi Wan?”
“As ever, I do not find your humor tolerable,” Orestes retorted dryly.
The old frustration turned up a notch and threatened to boil. Leo tried swallowing it, tried thinking happy thoughts, anything to keep from placing a less than delicate slap on his father’s cheek. It would have been preferable, a physical outlet for years of frustration. Instead, he choked on it. “Of course. I’m sorry.”
Orestes stood, working his jaw without grinding his teeth. He squared his shoulders and assumed his usual position of indifference. “I can see you are not in the mood to be an adult. I can come again later when you are more inclined to think and act your age.”
“Oh yes, feel free to come anytime. I’ll be waiting for you.” Leo busied himself reorganizing the papers scattered about.
Orestes let himself out without a word to the contrary. Leo knew he’d come back if only to have the last word when it was least expected. He shook his head. They never got anywhere whe
n they spoke. Which was not often. Orestes always had an ulterior motive for everything he did and it rubbed Leo the wrong way. It always had.
Orestes did as he pleased, with little consideration for his wife and young son, with his entire attention focused on advancing up the ladder one rung at a time. Leo told himself then he would never follow his father’s example. There were more important jobs. Yet here he was with an office down the hall, and all he had he owed to the man who had never once said I love you.
Funny how things worked out.
**
Leo stewed for the better part of two days before unexpected news jolted him out of his stupor. He was sitting at his desk twirling a pencil between his thumb and index fingers, wondering if he had the ability to control the lead within the wood. A beep had him jumping like a startled cat, although he managed to stifle the yowl.
The text came from an unlisted number and held only:
Concert Major Dunbarton 11pm
He pondered the message for longer than it warranted before coming to the conclusion that Astix had sent it after he’d left his card on her counter. Though he would have given anything for sleep, he knew he couldn’t miss the concert. It was her way of reaching out. Extending the olive branch. He’d be stupid not to take it.
The building affectionately dubbed Major Dunbarton was located in Chicago’s uptown neighborhood and appeared derelict, named so for its odd Gothic architecture and lines reminiscent of a Civil War-era mausoleum. There were no signs expressly stating to be cautious but the exterior looked prime to collapse. Leo regarded it with apprehension born of natural restraint.
A bevy of cars littered the empty lots on either side. Some were beat up with rust spots and bumpers held on with zip ties and duct tape. Others bordered on the $150,000 price range with chrome polished to a shine.
While the exterior of the building appeared dark from the outside, he knew the inside was bustling. It had to be with so many cars.
He drove into a small space several blocks over and walked the rest of the way. The watch on his wrist flashed 10:55 p.m.