Page 26 of Blade
Ember placed a small hand on my arm with calm understanding in her kind gaze. “I’ve seen your presentations. I attended one with my friend.”
I smacked my head with the palm of my hand.Duh. Sometimes, despite the advances I’d made and the state of my mind now, I still had setbacks. My brain would spazz and I’d be back to the broken and embarrassed woman I’d been after my ordeal. I’d have to shake it off and take several deep breaths to calm my head. It took reminding myself that I was free. I was safe. I was stronger.
My heart began to slow. I regained control.
“I’m sorry. Sometimes it’s like I haven’t made advancements. You know?” I tried to laugh it off.
“Don’t ever apologize. You’re an incredible human and an inspiration to all women,” Ember corrected. She was so sweet, humble, and down to earth. It was hard to believe she was part of one of the wealthiest families in the nation, if not the world.
Calm settled like a comforting cloak around my shoulders. “Thank you.”
“So, you want him?” Sage eagerly asked as she leaned over her mug to grin at me.
My cheeks burned hotter. “I mean, that is why I chose to come here. I told myself I wasn’t going to be a chicken. That I was going to tell him how I felt.”
“Which is?” Ember appeared as excited as Sage, and I laughed in earnest.
“God, how do I explain this?” I rhetorically asked as I looked to the ceiling. Then I met their gazes again. “From the moment I met him in Ankeny, I knew there was something about him. Being close to him felt… safe. In a way that I’d never felt in my life. He was like a calm in the storm that was whirling around me.
Sloane’s gaze was wide. “Blade… makes you feel… safe?”
Sage elbowed her playfully and Sloane grinned. “I’m kidding. Sort of. He can be a scary dude. There’s… something about him. I have a feeling there’s more than meets the eye with him. He gives off a very different energy. Like he’s resonating on a different level. I can’t quite put my finger on it.”
Ember shot Sloane a worried look that I immediately interpreted. “It’s okay, Ember. I essentially lived with the Ankeny chapter for three years. I’m fully aware of their, um, secrets. Not to mention my ‘brother,’” I made the air quotes for it. “Is also, uh shall we say, special?”
“Who’s your brother?” Sloane asked.
“Well, he’s not actually my brother. It’s a long story, but over the years he’s become the closest thing to a brother that I’ve ever had. It’s because of him that I was saved by the Ankeny boys. His name is Calix,” I explained.
Sloane fell back in her chair. “Are you trying to tell me that Calix Medici is your brother?”
“Like I said, notactualbrother,” I clarified with a confused shrug. “In fact, it’s been several months since I’ve seen him. You know him?”
“Um yes… you could say that.” Sloane blinked but didn’t elaborate.
“Ohhhh, did you and he….” I trailed off, not sure how to word it since I wasn’t sure exactly what she was getting at. Did they date? Sleep together? This could be awkward.
“Oh, good goddess, no!” She pealed with laughter. “Let’s just say my family has known him for a long time.”
The distant rumble of motorcycles had all of us freezing. The cry of several hawks set my hair on end. I still hadn’t figured out how a bunch of oversized birds were “friends,” but whatever.
“It’s them!” Ember called out from where she was peeking out the front blinds. “Oh dang, the rain quit too.”
None of us had noticed that little detail, but we were all relieved.
The sound of heavy boots coming up the stairs to the porch was followed by the code being entered in the front door. A road-weary Raptor entered with Phoenix and Ares close on his heels. They enveloped their women and the way they clung to each other made me feel like I was intruding.
As quietly as I could, I slipped out of the house. Though it was late morning, it was already hot as hell out. It was hard to believe it had been raining earlier as the ground was still dry and cracked and the sky was massive and blue. I wasn’t sure I’d ever get used to this heat. Not that I planned on staying now.
That thought pushed me into a melancholy mood, and I avoided looking down toward Blade’s little house.
As I crossed through the massive circular drive that ran in front of the small houses, I saw one of the hawks intensely watching me. He sat silently on the short fence that separated the houses from the clubhouse itself. It made me stop in my tracks. I’d always loved birds of prey, so I recognized its features as a hawk and not a larger bird. Yet I’d never in my life seen one that big. I bet its wingspan was easily five or six feet.
When it didn’t move, I cautiously proceeded up to the gate and passed through. I glanced over my shoulder to find it still watching me, its massive sharp talons digging into the wood of the top rail. It made me shiver and pick up my pace.
The interior of the clubhouse was nice and cool. One of the guys I knew was a prospect, immediately hopped up to his feet when the door opened. I smiled at him.
“Did you need anything, Miss Eliska?” he asked as he approached.