Autumn Storm by Lizzy Ford

school. He won’t think
twice about ordering a few more.”
    His wink made her flush. Both twins were
charismatic. Any other place and time, she’d be floored they gave
her the time of day. With Beck’s gorgeous eyes and body, the subtle
magick and his awkward attempts at being gentlemanly, he was a
cross of sexy and endearing. His brother was right. In a normal
world, Beck wouldn’t be anywhere near her. He’d be with girls of
Dawn’s caliber: the kind beautiful enough to be models.
    After a hesitation, she spoke. “I don’t get
you.”
    “I’m easy. What you see is what you
get.”
    She said nothing, silently disagreeing. He
had the arrogance of a guy who only dated blond models. It seemed
at odds with his kindness towards her.
    “Okay, I have to tell you this,” he said,
grinning. “When we’re touching, I can sometimes see what you’re
thinking.”
    “Are you serious?”
    “Yeah. It’s an awesome skill when you’re …
ah” he fumbled “with someone. I’ll just leave it at that.”
    Her face grew redder at the image in her
thoughts. She tugged her hand away from him, not wanting him to
see. The awkward silence lasted until they entered the main house.
Beck paused in the living area.
    Jenna waved from her spot on the couch with
Adam and a few others. Autumn returned the gesture.
    “I’m going to rest,” she told Beck.
    “I’ll be around,” he replied. His eyes went
to the stairs, and he rubbed the back of his head. “You … um, don’t
take this the wrong way, but you want an escort? For the stairs.
Not your room … just the stairs.”
    Autumn shook her head, amused. “I’ll be
okay.”
    He gave a salute and walked into the living
room, nudging Biji over on the couch so he could sit. Autumn smiled
at the small girl’s objection. Unconcerned, Beck squeezed between
her and the arm of the couch.
    With a deep breath, Autumn tackled the
stairs. Beck’s magick wore off too fast, and she was in pain
halfway up the stairs. She forced herself not to pause, afraid of
showing anyone else how weak she was. When she reached the top of
the stairwell, she steadied herself against the wall in the shadows
of the hallway before proceeding to her room.
    She was relieved to see Dawn and her
entourage had left. Autumn closed the door behind her and sat on
her bed. Removing the brace, she stared at her leg.
    Sometimes, when she was alone, she felt
anger at the part of her that was so weak. The visible scars, the
immobility. Why did this happen? What had she ever done to deserve
pain for the rest of her life? Wasn’t taking her family from her
when she was four enough?
    Frustrated and fatigued, Autumn propped up
her leg on a pillow and lay back in bed. It’d take awhile for the
swelling to pass. She normally read a book. Today, she felt too
tired and closed her eyes to nap.
     

Chapter Seven

     
    Come with me.
    The whisper pierced her sleep. Her eyes
opened, and she blinked, surprised to find it dark in her room. She
didn’t mean to sleep the rest of the day. She’d hoped to take a nap
then venture outside to recover her iPad in the hope it survived
the snow.
    Autumn sat up. The swelling in her leg was
gone. The room was chilly, and a glance out the window showed it
still snowed. Dawn was sleeping deeply, and the time on her alarm
clock read a few minutes past midnight.
    Standing, Autumn waited for her body to
balance then crossed to the bathroom. She refused to turn on the
light, telling herself it was because she didn’t want to wake Dawn.
In truth, seeing the dark-haired girl in the middle of the night
scared her too much to fall back asleep.
    When she returned to the bed, she caught a
glimpse of movement from the Square. Autumn pushed aside the sheer
curtain to gaze into the quiet gathering place, lit by a single
light on the back of the main house.
    She gasped. Standing below her window,
gazing up, was the dark-haired girl from the mirror. Her body was
ethereal and surrounded by black fog, her pale