Son of Eden, a Paranormal Romance (Tales of the Guardian)

by Brianna Merrill

  The melody was slow with long drawn out notes, and never once did Alexander fumble or make a mistake. Emily could appreciate the power of music; it was a huge part of her life, but this song seemed to have an actual physical effect on her. Each note put her deeper and deeper to sleep. Before Alexander was finished playing, Emily was sound asleep.

  *********

  The clanging of pots and pans in the kitchen woke her.

  Emily was stunned to see light flooding into her bedroom from the window. It was morning already. She had slept straight through the night. Stretching her arms up above, she breathed in deeply. From the corner of her eye she could see Alexander’s silhouette at the side of her bed. The light shone brightly around him, outlining his perfect shape.

  “He may not be an angel, but he is close enough.”

  “Good morning.” Alexander smiled.

  “MMMM, morning.” Emily gave a little yawn.

  “Did you get enough sleep?” Alexander whispered.

  “Yeah, I did. What time is it?’ Emily glanced at the clock on her nightstand.

  “Eight-thirty.”

  “Wow, I slept a long time.” Emily stretched again.

  “Yeah, you are a good sleeper…and a good snorer.”

  “No!” Emily covered her mouth, completely mortified at the thought. “I don’t snore, you’re teasing me.”

  “How would you know if you snore?” Alexander protested.

  “I guess I wouldn’t, but snoring is something old men do—not me.”

  Alexander gave a boisterous laugh. “I guess it’s just for me to know then.”

  Emily put her finger to her lips signaling Alexander to be quiet. But as she did so she heard laughter coming from the kitchen. She paused to listen more carefully.

  She recognized her father’s laugh but there was someone else with him. Emily shot Alexander a questioning look, but he just raised his shoulders in response.

  Throwing back the covers Emily leapt from her bed and rushed from her room. The laughter echoed down the hallway once more, but this time she recognized the second voice.

  There was no hiding the shock on Emily’s face as she rounded the wall into the kitchen. At the island, where the stovetop was located, stood her father and Xavier. Her father was cracking eggs over a bowl while Xavier sliced vegetables. The two men looked up to see Emily’s confused expression.

  “Mornin’ sweetie,” her father called out.

  Emily didn’t respond, instead she just stood there staring, her mouth half open in disbelief.

  “Why do you look so surprised? You know Xavier.” Her father motioned to his left where Xavier stood beside him.

  “Do you?” Emily was troubled.

  There were now three male voices laughing out loud as she felt Alexander move up behind her.

  “It’s okay Emily, he knows everything.” Alexander placed his hands on her shoulders.

  “Yeah, surprise!” Xavier threw his hands out to the sides.

  “What do you mean he knows everything?” Emily concluded that she had to be dreaming, the scene before her just didn’t make any sense.

  “We discussed this last night, remember? You said that this is what you wanted.” Alexander was rubbing her shoulders now.

  “Yeah I remember that all right, but when on earth did all of this happen?” She pointed toward her father and Xavier.

  “Breakfast always happens in the morning Emily, you should know that,” Xavier teased.

  The three men laughed again. Emily thought they were all enjoying this a little too much.

  “Last night, after you were asleep, your father came home and we spoke with him then.” Alexander led her to the barstool at the island.

  She felt for the chair beneath her and sat down, never taking her eyes off of the two men before her. It was silent for just a moment as they all waited for Emily to respond.

  “So I take it you’re okay with all of this, Daddy?”

  “Yeah why wouldn’t I be?” Her father whisked some milk in with the eggs.

  “I guess I just thought you would be a little shocked, maybe in denial, uhh concerned, confused… I don’t know, take your pick.”

  “I was all of those,” her father answered. “I haven’t really slept all night. It took me a while to absorb all of this new information. But just like you, I got to a point where I couldn’t deny it and just accepted it for what it was.”

  “How did you guys convince him?” Emily glanced at Xavier and then Alexander.

  “Hey now, you guys promised not to tell her.” Her father pointed a finger at each of them.

  “Tell me what?”

  “The information Xavier disclosed to convince him that we are around watching, when no one else is. Also, his initial reaction to watching Xavier appear out of thin air,” Alexander explained with a smirk.

  “Hey, hey, hey, that’s far enough,” James scolded him.

  Emily couldn’t help but give a little laugh. This was all so unbelievable, and here her father was concerned with some possibly embarrassing facts about himself. “That’s okay Dad, I don’t need to know how. I’m still shocked that you believe all this.”

  “I guess I’m still trying to recover myself. I didn’t even realize it was morning until Xavier suggested that we whip up some breakfast. You know Xavier here is quite the chef. He has got some great ideas and awesome recipes.”

  “Well I don’t like to brag but…,” Xavier began.

  “Yes you do. You brag all the time, so don’t feed us that line,” Alexander interrupted.

  “Yeah, I guess he’s right, I do like to brag, I am awesome in more ways than one, no doubt about it.” Xavier gave a big grin as he turned to the fridge to fetch more ingredients.

  Emily turned her attention back to her father. “Have you gotten used to that?”

  “What’s that?” her father questioned.

  “The way these two go at it. I was around it yesterday evening and it’s like watching two eight year old boys on the playground.” Emily rolled her eyes.

  Alexander laughed. “That is not fair at all. Xavier is the trouble maker.”

  Emily just gave an ‘I told you so’ look to her father which made him smile.

  “They can be amusing, that’s for sure, but I have to say it’s nice to have some other guys around.”

  “Yeah a little more testosterone in this house is a definite need.” Xavier placed the cheese down and pounded his chest.

  Emily shook her head.

  “My life will never be the same.”

  “So then, Dad, you’re okay with Alexander? I mean, you know, him and me… together,” she stammered.

  Xavier now erupted in a wave of laughter, as though Emily had just told some sort of joke. “You should have been awake last night, Em. After we convinced your dad about everything, Alexander then gave him the more interesting details. You know, about you and him.” He laughed again, but then pulled himself together to finish his thought. “I don’t think I have ever seen Alexander sweat bullets like that. Your dad was giving him the third degree like none other. I wasn’t sure Alex here was going to make it.”

  All the men gave an agreeable snicker, but then Emily noticed her father look over her shoulders at Alexander and smile. She knew that somehow even in that small amount of time, in the dark of night, they had bonded. Her father had accepted him.

  “I’m okay with everything. I can’t say that I didn’t initially want to go get my bat and shoo him out the door, but I know his intentions are honorable. He’s a true gentleman and those are scarce these days. Besides it’s not like the bat would have done me a lot of good,” her father joked.

  “Thanks James,” Alexander said quietly.

  “I still don’t see how everything is going to work out in the future for you two, but I’ve seen some changes in you these past weeks. I wasn’t sure you were ever going to come out of that shell you had formed around yourself. I now know that Alexander was the reason you broke through those
barriers. The happiness he provides you is all I could ask for as your father.” He looked somewhat teary-eyed.

  Turning around to finally look at Alexander, Emily could see the same emotion in his eyes. This was still so like a dream and she expected to wake up at any moment.

  “What more could I ask for? I have the man of my dreams; my father knows everything and is okay with it. This can’t get any better.”

  Her joy was overflowing in that moment, but then was quickly diminished as she remembered all that had transpired the night before. Emily didn’t realize that her thoughts were so clearly expressed on her face until Alexander frowned at her.

  “What is that look for? I thought you were happy?” Alexander asked.

  “Oh, I am, I’m so happy. It’s just a little overshadowed by everything else we need to worry about right now. Did you tell my dad all that stuff too?”

  “Yes we did,” Alexander said.

  Emily turned back around to meet her father’s face but he had already dropped what he was doing and was making his way around the island.

  “The boys told me everything. Emily, I think you need to know that I have complete confidence in their ability to protect us. We did some planning last night and I’m sure everything is going to work out. You don’t need to worry, sweetie.” He gently brushed the top of her head with his hand.

  “You sound too much like Alexander,” Emily groaned. There she was, permanently sandwiched between two slices of unfailing optimists. It wasn’t a bad place to be, except it only made Emily feel all the more displaced.

  “Why am I the only one that thinks negatively? What is wrong with me? Aahh, there I go again, I have got to snap out of this.”

  Her father paused a moment, he knew she struggled to see the bright side of things ever since her mother’s death. Emily had a hard time accepting hope without dousing it with her doubts and fears. He weighed his words carefully.

  “Emily, I’ve been around for a while, not as long as these guys.” He glanced at the two Guardians. “But long enough in my life to know that everything happens for a reason. And even though I don’t know the reason for what is happening, I can’t help but feel that it’s not to have you come under any sort of harm. There is something bigger here for you, in fact, the both of you. I just know it. Call it parental intuition.”

  Emily could feel the tears beginning to form in her eyes.

  She was blessed with such a loving father and she couldn’t help but be grateful for his constant support and wisdom. She leaned forward and gave her father a tight embrace. Her only hope was that she too would somehow receive a confirmation that all this chaos had purpose. She wanted to hear that internal voice that could not be doubted or dismissed—the feeling that drove her father and Alexander to be so confident, so strong.

  “Thanks Daddy,” she whispered as she gained control of her emotions. Emily had done enough crying last night and she didn’t want to start again; it was too early.

  Her father eventually pulled away and went back to work making breakfast. Clearing his throat a few times, he tried to make sure his own tears were dammed up.

  “So there are some things we need to do before we leave,” her father began after he had himself fully composed. “I’m going to go into the office later today to get some affairs in order. Today and tomorrow we’ll do some packing, and then on Monday I’ll go to your school and get as much of your work for you as possible. You already missed the last few days, so I’ll tell them you’ve got something like mono and that should be a good enough excuse to have you out of school for the next few weeks.” He glanced up to see if Emily was following what he was saying.

  She gave him a nod, and then her father continued. “I want you leaving as soon as you can, and as soon as I have everything in order here I will meet up with you.”

  “Are we going to the lake house like Alexander suggested, then?” Emily asked.

  “Yep, I think that’s the very best strategy. I feel confident that Alexander will be able to keep you safe there.”

  “And you, you’ll be there, they’ll keep you safe too.”

  “Yeah, me too,” he guaranteed.

  Xavier was hovering over the stove waiting for the exchange to end so that he could interrupt. “Now that that’s all settled, let’s eat. I’m not hungry but I do like hot food, and I bet the two of you could use a good meal.” Xavier moved the omelets off the stove and over to the small square table on the other side of the island.

  The four of them sat down at the table, already set with plates and utensils. Alexander, as always, pulled Emily’s chair out for her and then seated himself. Breakfast was delicious. Emily hadn’t realized how hungry she was until she found herself craving another omelet and more hash browns. Glancing over at Alexander’s plate, Emily evaluated whether she would look like a pig if she went for seconds. She was disappointed to see that he had only eaten half of his serving.

  Alexander caught her eyeing his plate and chuckled. “Don’t worry about me, eat what you want,” he encouraged.

  She glanced at her father’s plate and then Xavier’s. They were both on their second helpings. Emily was bewildered with Xavier. She had expected to see the same display on his plate as she had on Alexander’s, but instead, the exuberant Guardian was shoveling his food in, scraping up every last bit.

  “Alexander is right, he is totally opposite.”

  Emily reached for another omelet. She decided that it would probably be a good idea to eat a big breakfast since she would be busy packing and preparing to leave today.

  Emily could feel Alexander’s eyes on her as she silently ate her food. She knew it wasn’t because she was eating more, he didn’t care. He just seemed to have a quirky habit of watching her.

  “Before your father leaves for work I need to run a quick errand of my own. It needs to be done prior to us leaving for your home in Cooperstown,” Alexander said directly to Emily, making sure he received her approval.

  “Okay, that will leave Xavier here as bodyguard then,” Emily teased.

  “I promise I don’t have to go far, I’ll be back soon.”

  “Do you have to go back to the Guardian Realm?”

  “No, I need to go visit Carl. He has something of mine that I need.”

  Emily wasn’t sure what Carl could possibly have that Alexander needed. If she remembered correctly, Carl was the man who Alexander knew at the Morgan Library and Museum. But, he wasn’t another Guardian, he didn’t fit the profile.

  Emily shrugged off her curiosity. She had experienced enough for the morning and didn’t want to snoop any further. Alexander could explain later. One can only handle so much information, and Emily felt like her brain was on overload.

  Chapter 14

  * * *

  Gifts

  The two-hour drive to Cooperstown was made in an hour and a half, as Alexander had pushed the BMW to high speeds. Emily was a little apprehensive when they first got outside the city limits and Alexander had accelerated, but her anxieties didn’t last. He maneuvered the car as though it was a part of him, making the ride extremely smooth. She also reminded herself that Alexander was her Guardian and that his job was to keep her safe, not get her into an accident. So, she trusted him, even when the speedometer shot to one hundred and twenty miles per hour.

  The house was cold and dark when they arrived but Alexander worked quickly to get all the lights on and build a fire. This time Emily had remembered to pack plenty of her newer, cuter clothes and excused herself to go unpack in her bedroom. Alexander busied himself stocking the cabinet shelves with the groceries they had brought with them.

  After fifteen minutes Emily emerged from her room in a pair of soft pink sleep pants and a fitted dark brown tee. She tied her hair up in a messy bun as she entered the kitchen. She could hear the sizzling of butter in a pan and could smell onion and basil in the air. Alexander had begun cooking dinner and it was making Emily’s mouth water. She hadn’t eaten much that day since breakfast be
cause she was so busy packing. Emily was grateful she had eaten that extra omelet after all.

  “So how is it that you Guardians are such good cooks?” Emily asked as she hopped up on the counter where Alexander was slicing some fresh green beans.

  “How do you know I’m a good cook? I haven’t made anything for you yet,” Alexander chuckled.