Shards of Skye (The Skye Chronicles Book 1)

by Anna Moranski

  “I don’t know of any place named Cloud.” he hesitated. “Are you sure that your mother is your mother?” He felt horrible for asking. She had been through enough in the past few days, let alone her life.

  “I always thought she was. She hates me, but I never knew why. Wait!” Skye thought for a moment. “My last vision when I had the out of body experience?” she said.

  “Astral projected.” he corrected her.

  “Yeah, that. I healed her in the memory. She looked terrified like she had no idea what was going on. Her leg was broken badly and I healed her by simply touching her. If she’s elvish then wouldn’t she already know what I was capable of?”

  “I would think so.” Maddox said carefully. He was silently cursing his powers for picking that moment out of all of them to show her.

  “She’s not my mother.” Skye said looking into his eyes. “She’s not my mother.” she repeated herself.

  “Skye, I am so sorry.”

  “Don’t be. This is good news.” Her voice was still full of shock. “She’s always hated me. Now I know why! She’s had to raise a daughter that’s not her own. She was stuck with me when my dad died. It’s not my fault she hates me.” Skye smiled.

  “Wow you are really taking this well. It’s actually kind of scary how well.” Maddox couldn’t help but comment.

  “No wonder I’ve always felt so alone.” She continued as if she hadn’t heard him. “My dad died years ago and my real mom is out there somewhere. I’ve been stuck with a bitter widow all these years.”

  “I wonder why she kept you. If she hates you so much wouldn’t it be easier to pawn you off on family?”

  “Money. It had to be for the money. My dad’s family had money, lots of it. He always told me we never had to worry about anything because of it. I bet part of his will had something in it to where she had to keep me to keep the money. It explains why she doesn’t work or worry about money. I figured he had left us a lot of money, but I didn’t think that I was part of the package.”

  “That actually makes a lot of sense. If that’s true, then I’m willing to bet the money is actually yours and by her keeping you she’s able to use the money.” Maddox interjected.

  “How do we find out?” Skye asked.

  “You said you’re seventeen right? Then you can go to a lawyer for a free consultation. If the money is actually yours, you may be able to get it now.” Skye thought about it.

  “I just want to know. I don’t know about taking it though. She may not be my mom but she… I would feel bad taking it from her.” Skye said softly.

  “Considering how she’s treated you over the years? Wow, you must be a saint.” He shook his head in amazement.

  “No, apparently I’m an earthy light creature that should wear yellow.” she teased.

  “I will never mention yellow again, I swear.” He laughed. She reached up and kissed him quickly on his lips.

  “You’re helping me find myself. I really appreciate that.”

  “I’m here for you anytime, but you should know I have an ulterior motive.” he said seriously.

  “And that would be?” she was almost afraid to ask.

  “I want to be your boyfriend.” He felt silly even saying the words, but they were true. Skye’s lips formed into a beautiful smile on her face.

  “That would rock.” she giggled.

  “Is that supposed to be a “yes”? Here I am asking all nice like and you respond with that?” he said in mock horror. She laughed loudly.

  “Yes! Yes, I would love to be your girlfriend.” Skye said kissing his lips. He pulled her to his chest and held onto her with a huge smile of his own.

  “I guess we’ve had the quickest courtship in history.” she said as she ran her fingers over his arms and chest.

  “Humans tend to take time before getting together. Supernaturals are smarter. We know that time is precious and we shouldn’t waste it. If you want someone than you should be with them. Waiting doesn’t do anything for anyone. Plus we are in high school, so why the hell not?” he answered.

  “Cool, but I’m not marrying you next week or anything.” Maddox laughed at her response.

  “Can you tell the future? Because if not, you can’t say that.” he teased.

  Skye lightly smacked his chest. He bent down taking her lips, but this time he didn’t pull away quickly. He savored the taste of her sugary lips, the smell of her breath mixed with his own, and the warmth of her body.

  Chapter Six

  “Dude, what’s up with this girl?” Buck asked Maddox as they sat in Maddox’s bedroom drinking beer.

  “What about her?” Said Maddox, immediately defensive. His best friend, who happened to be his cousin, threw another beer to him.

  “That’s exactly what I’m talking about!” Buck said taking a swig of his beer. “When you’re away from her you talk about wanting to see her. When you’re with her you won’t let anyone near her. Are you in love with this chick?”

  “Buck, I really don’t know what to tell you.” he said dismissively.

  “How about the truth? Damn Maddox we are cousins and we have been friends our whole lives. If you can’t tell me you can’t tell anyone.” Maddox opened his beer eyeing his friend.

  “What do you want to know?” he finally gave in.

  “Are you in love with her?” Buck asked, causing Maddox to spit out some of his beer.

  “Shit! You just go right for the gold don’t you?” Buck waited patiently. “I really like her. I care for her. Love isn’t something I’m thinking about right now.”

  “I never thought I’d care enough to ask, but why not?” his friend laughed.

  “Buck she’s… good. She’s been through hell in her life and I don’t want her involved in my drama.”

  “Then why be involved with her at all? If you’re so worried about it then don’t date her. There, problem solved. You’re welcome.” Buck finished his beer, throwing the empty can into the waste basket.

  “Life must be simple in your world but, welcome to the real world… or this version of it at least.” Maddox grunted. “I can’t stay away from her. I care for her and not being with her just sucks. We’ve been dating for weeks now and I’ve barely managed to go a day without seeing her. Go ahead call me “whipped”. I don’t give a shit.” Maddox said honestly.

  “I don’t see her leading you around by a leash so I won’t call you “whipped” just yet. But doesn’t she wonder why you don’t invite her over or introduce her to your family and friends?”

  Maddox couldn’t let anyone know that Skye knew what he was. Buck was a demon as well, and as loyal as he was to Maddox, he knew that a friend’s loyalty wasn’t always enough when it came to loyalty of your own kind. Skye would be too tempting for Buck to resist. He would want to feed off of her and possibly kill her. The thought made Maddox’s fist clench. His teeth were grinding together in anger. He glanced to his friend and then quickly calmed down.

  “She has her own family issues. She just thinks I have similar ones.” Maddox shrugged.

  “Fine so tell me about her. What does she even look like?” Buck wondered.

  “She’s more than beautiful. She has long pale blonde hair, bright blue eyes, full lips, and an amazing body. She’s also really short and it’s actually adorable.” Maddox knew he didn’t sound like the fearsome demon he was, but when it came to his feelings for Skye he didn’t care.

  “Awe man, don’t tell me she’s the cheerleading type. Those girls drive me crazy when they start talking.” Buck rolled his eyes.

  “Not even close. She’s a skater. She rides bikes. She wears more black than I do half the time. She’s into heavy metal and indie rock music. She’s smart as hell too. I can’t get much past her.”

  Maddox smiled at the thought. Buck smiled at his friend. He had once thought that Maddox would be so busy hating everything in his life that he would never take time to just enjoy it. He was happy to be wrong.

  “She sounds awesome.” Bu
ck said after a moment of silence.

  “She is.” Maddox smiled. “She did pick me after all.” They both laughed. Buck stood up with a lazy groan.

  “I’ve got to go see your dad Luke. He has a new job for me apparently. You’re lucky. You get to go to high school and be normal. Well, most of the time. Your dad has a new mission for me almost weekly.” Buck said. Maddox nodded.

  He had stopped asking what his missions were. After hearing what a few of them had been, Maddox decided he didn’t want to know anymore. Maddox had done evil things for his family and knew more things were expected of him. But he was lucky enough that his father had followed his mother’s wishes in letting him at least complete school before being a ‘full time demon’, as she put it.

  After Buck left Maddox pulled his phone out about to ask Skye what she was up to when he saw she had sent him a message already. “Come see me?” she had texted him. Maddox immediately responded, “On my way!” and quickly rushed out of the house.

  Skye was waiting for him on her front steps when he pulled up. He tried not to smile like a love sick puppy, he really did, but he failed. Miserably. She stood up and walked into his open arms as he approached her. He bent down kissing her softly on the lips and was pleased to see her smiling at him.

  “Hope I didn’t tear you away from anything important. I’m just bored as hell. Mom and George left last night and haven’t been back.”

  “Are they okay?” He didn’t care about them but he was nice enough to ask for her sake.

  “Probably out drinking or passed out somewhere.” She shrugged. She led him into her house and straight into her room. They sat on her bed holding hands.

  “Have you ever even asked her about the fact she can’t possibly be your real mother?” He asked.

  “I’ve been dropping hints about how we look so differently, things like that. She tenses up but never confesses anything. I’m going to flat out confront her soon. It’s weird. I was so happy she wasn’t my real mom but now it’s sad. I don’t know my real mom and my dad is gone. I feel like an orphan.” He shook his head.

  “Skye, you have parents. One may be gone and the other we just don’t know where she is.”

  “I know but it still sucks.” Skye took a deep breath then let it out slowly. “Okay we’ve been avoiding the vision for a while now. I want to talk about it.” Maddox had been dreading her saying that.

  “A demon was hunting you.” He said. He felt like a ton of bricks had been lifted off of his shoulders.

  “Yes, and I could be affected by it somehow apparently.” She added.

  “I don’t know who it was if you’re wondering. Demons hunt all sorts of creatures and elves are a favorite of ours.” He paused realizing he had said ‘ours.’

  “Maddox, we can’t sit here and pretend that you’re not a demon. I know that but I like you, so let’s put that aside for now. The reason I’m bringing it up is because if we can figure out who it was that was hunting me, then they may know about my real mom.” Maddox nodded.

  “But they also killed your dad.” He had to say it. Skye flinched but nodded in agreement. “How are we supposed to try to find this person and question them while the whole time knowing they murdered your dad?” He asked.

  “I don’t know! I don’t know if I can. I want to know where my mom is and who she is, but facing my dad’s murderer… I don’t know if I can.”

  “I’ll tell you now that you can’t. Not only because it would hurt, but because they could try to attack and kill you. No, they would. There’s no might about it. They would try to kill you. I’m willing to fight for you, but I’m not willing to let you get hurt.” He said sternly. Skye thought for a moment then sighed.

  “There’s no winning is there? I’ll never be able to get over this, but then I may never get the answers I need either.” She growled. Maddox tried not to smile, but her growling was adorable. She shot him a look.

  “I’m sorry but when you growl, you sound like a mad little kitty trying to be scary.” Her mouth curved into a smile.

  “I can totally be a bad ass okay?” she said. Maddox laughed harder.

  “I believe you.” he said watching as she licked her lips, preparing to come back with a smart ass comment. He stopped her by grabbing her and pulling her onto his lap where she straddled him. He took her mouth with his and held her face in his hands. Skye gasped at the kiss, always amazed at how fast he could make her head spin. He always managed to take her breath away.

  “Maddox,” she whispered into the kiss.

  “Baby,” he mumbled back. He wanted to say more, but when her body was so close to his he would lose control of his own thoughts. Skye pulled her lips from his pausing. She pulled her shirt over her head letting it fall on the side of the bed. She had on a black bra with lace around the top and all the blood rushed from his head finding another place to settle.

  “Am I… is this…?” Skye stuttered, unsure of what to say. Maddox peeled his eyes off of her chest and back into her bright eyes.

  “You are beautiful.” he whispered. He pulled his own shirt above his head tossing it aside. He didn’t want her to feel self-conscious and he wanted his skin on hers. Skye’s eyes drifted to his chest.

  “You’re hot.” she smiled and then bit down on her lip shyly. Her hands touched his chest. Her fingers slowly ran across his muscled chest and stomach. She flattened her hands on his pecks and gently slid one hand over his heart. As if on cue, she felt his heart jump.

  Maddox started to pull her face back to his, but she quickly jumped off of the bed. He watched her as she slid her shorts to the ground revealing white silk panties. The part of his brain that still registered thought loved the fact that she didn’t have matching underwear. She really was different and he loved that about her.

  Skye’s fingers went to his belt. Maddox grabbed her hands as if to stop her. He silently cursed at himself for doing that and then helped her remove his pants. He left his red boxers on. He needed the small barriers they still wore to remind himself not to lose control. He grabbed her by the waist, pulling her back to the bed. She squealed happily and landed back onto his lap.

  Maddox’s lips kissed hers reverently unable to believe his luck at finding such an amazing girl. She was someone he never imagined he would ever deserve to be with, let alone have in his life. He felt Skye’s body start moving on top of his. He grabbed her hips, groaning as she slowly rode his body. The small pieces of clothing that separated them were not enough to leave a lot to the imagination. Maddox fought the urge to take her.

  She had confessed to being a virgin and she knew that he wasn’t. He knew if it had been any other girl on him like this he wouldn’t have hesitated, but the fact he was falling in love with her did hold him back. Maddox’s mind reeled at the thought. He was falling in love with her and he had known it all along.

  “Maddox,” Skye moaned his name. He let go of her hips so that his hands could roam her body. One hand held onto her back pressing her against him faster while the other hand slipped inside of her bra. She gasped at his touch.

  Skye’s body felt like it had been set on fire. She was starved for his touch. When she had him near, she felt almost savage about her feelings for him. She cried out as her body fell over the cliff she had been on for several moments. She moaned lustily at the sensation. Maddox had a smile on his face and she loved seeing it. She bent over licking his lips softly.

  He pulled her off of him and tucked her into his side. She pouted, batting her eyelashes at him. Skye wasn’t ready to stop touching him. She had felt her release and it had her body still shaking from pleasure, but she wanted more. Maddox kissed her temple as he stroked her hair.

  “Maddox, I want to be with you.” she whispered. His smile was that of pure masculine joy.

  “You have no idea how badly I want to be inside of you right now.” His words made her shiver with anticipation. “I just want to make sure you’re ready.” he said softly. Her heart skipped a beat.

&nb
sp; “I’m ready to be with you.” As Skye said the words, she knew in her soul that they were true. Maddox rolled his body gently on top of hers. She looked intently into his eyes and he felt humbled by the trust she put in him.

  “I just want to make you happy.” he smiled and teasingly licked her neck once. He then bent over grabbing his jeans pulling a condom out of them. Skye blushed.

  She was ready but this was all so new and foreign to her. She knew he would take care of her, so she let him take the lead. Maddox gently removed her remaining clothes, then his own before slipping the condom on himself.

  He kissed her softly before slowly entering her body. She held onto his arms, digging her nails into him slightly. He kissed her again for reassurance then slowly, inch by inch, moved inside of her. He paused when it came to her virgin barrier.

  “It might hurt a little. I’m so sorry.” he said breathing hard trying to remain in control. She nodded her head letting him know she was ready. Maddox thrust himself hard inside of her and gasped at the moment he felt her hymen break. She bit down on her lip, but never flinched. “You okay?” he managed to ask.

  “Yes!” she moaned. He smiled at his strong brave woman then felt her hips lift under him. He groaned at her enthusiasm. He began moving inside of her, slowly at first to let her adjust to him, but she was moving wildly underneath him. Her body was rising to meet him thrust for thrust. He gave up on being careful with her and just enjoyed the unbelievable feeling of being inside of her.

  “Skye,” he grunted.

  “Maddox!” she cried out his name.

  Skye had never known pleasure could be this intense. He was making her body come completely alive. She felt whole with him inside of her.

  She pleaded for more and he gave her more. She begged for faster and he pounded as fast as he could. She screamed his name as she felt the full force of her orgasm hit her, but Maddox never slowed.

  He growled, then bit her neck as he moved inside of her faster and harder. Skye’s body tensed as she felt another orgasm about to hit. She thought surely she would die from the pleasure, but she couldn’t find it in herself to mind. Maddox roared her name loudly as he found his release the same time she found hers again.