old enough to live alone so it’s okay for them to travel when they need to. We agreed to finish school here, and then we’ll be out on our own.”
“Do you have any brothers or sisters?”
“Not biological ones, no. But I think of Dec as my little brother. We’ve hung out since we were pretty young, and I try to keep him on a short leash, but you know him. He’s always doing something.”
Dec was a clown, and I wished he was my brother.
“What about Killian?” I couldn’t imagine him as anyone’s brother . I wasn’t even sure he was human!
A shadow passed over his eyes. “Uh, Killian’s complicated. He’s important--just like you are.” He paused, looking oddly regretful.
I reached over to squeeze his fingers. I didn’t like to see anyone sad, but I was a definite sucker for puppies and black-haired blue-eyed Irishmen named Sean. We sat for a long time, each lost in our own thoughts. My head was swimming with this new Sean. Some truth at last! He explained the accent and the secrecy. But that didn’t really explain everything… I thought back to the video tapes from the night I got home so mysteriously. Then there was the strange energy that surrounded him. There was definitely something more to him than he’s telling me. But for now, I would pretend to believe it and see what happens. I would have to hope he didn’t read minds!
As if on cue, Domino thumped her tail against my leg. I glanced over at Sean to find his eyes closed. Was he sleeping? His normal fierceness was gone, and in its place was a gentleness that was surprising. A rush of emotion brought a lump to my throat. I stared at his hand in mine. It was heavy with sleep, fingers long and beautifully shaped; a sprinkling of fine, black hair was scattered at the wrist. Hesitant to wake him, I stroked it softly. He hadn’t moved so I traced the muscle in his forearm, marveling at the blood pulsing close to the surface. That was funny. I’d never noticed that before. I considered my own arm. Did my skin feel that way? I couldn’t check though since I was still holding his hand.
His fingers twitched against my palm. I held my breath. Oh, please don’t wake up! I’m not done exploring yet! He relaxed again. Unable to resist the urge, I got really bold and ran the back of my hand along his arm. The fine hairs were soft against my hand. Once again, I could almost feel his blood surging like a river beneath his skin. Suddenly my fingertips started tingling. I rubbed them together, enjoying the sensation. Oddly numb… Puzzled, I dropped my eyes to his arm for clues and nearly fell off the damn bed in shock. Sean’s entire body was surrounded by a soft golden haze. I blinked several times, but the faint light was still there--and it was getting brighter by the second. What the hell?
Sean’s eyes snapped open in a startling blaze of blue fire.
I yelped and launched myself off of the bed. His hand flew out and grabbed me before I fell. I didn’t see him move. He reeled me in until we were up close and personal.
Nose to nose, he growled, “Oh, no you don’t. You’ve been playing with fire.”
I tried to squirm away, but he held me too tightly. I wasn’t going anywhere. I tried to wrench my wrist away and just managed to hurt myself. He was still tense, but his face was under control again. He didn’t look capable of setting me on fire with his eyes anymore. Surely that was a good sign?
“I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to wake you up or… whatever. You were so warm I couldn’t resist touching you. I’m sorry.” I really, really was. And scared out of my mind. Yep. That too.
Taking a deep breath, he sighed like a man praying for patience. After another second of staring into my eyes, he scrubbed his fingers through his hair, making it stand up in spikes like a porcupine. I stifled a smile. The worst must be over. He didn’t seem mad, and hey, he wasn’t glowing anymore. That was a relief.
His face went through a series of
“Do you have any brothers or sisters?”
“Not biological ones, no. But I think of Dec as my little brother. We’ve hung out since we were pretty young, and I try to keep him on a short leash, but you know him. He’s always doing something.”
Dec was a clown, and I wished he was my brother.
“What about Killian?” I couldn’t imagine him as anyone’s brother . I wasn’t even sure he was human!
A shadow passed over his eyes. “Uh, Killian’s complicated. He’s important--just like you are.” He paused, looking oddly regretful.
I reached over to squeeze his fingers. I didn’t like to see anyone sad, but I was a definite sucker for puppies and black-haired blue-eyed Irishmen named Sean. We sat for a long time, each lost in our own thoughts. My head was swimming with this new Sean. Some truth at last! He explained the accent and the secrecy. But that didn’t really explain everything… I thought back to the video tapes from the night I got home so mysteriously. Then there was the strange energy that surrounded him. There was definitely something more to him than he’s telling me. But for now, I would pretend to believe it and see what happens. I would have to hope he didn’t read minds!
As if on cue, Domino thumped her tail against my leg. I glanced over at Sean to find his eyes closed. Was he sleeping? His normal fierceness was gone, and in its place was a gentleness that was surprising. A rush of emotion brought a lump to my throat. I stared at his hand in mine. It was heavy with sleep, fingers long and beautifully shaped; a sprinkling of fine, black hair was scattered at the wrist. Hesitant to wake him, I stroked it softly. He hadn’t moved so I traced the muscle in his forearm, marveling at the blood pulsing close to the surface. That was funny. I’d never noticed that before. I considered my own arm. Did my skin feel that way? I couldn’t check though since I was still holding his hand.
His fingers twitched against my palm. I held my breath. Oh, please don’t wake up! I’m not done exploring yet! He relaxed again. Unable to resist the urge, I got really bold and ran the back of my hand along his arm. The fine hairs were soft against my hand. Once again, I could almost feel his blood surging like a river beneath his skin. Suddenly my fingertips started tingling. I rubbed them together, enjoying the sensation. Oddly numb… Puzzled, I dropped my eyes to his arm for clues and nearly fell off the damn bed in shock. Sean’s entire body was surrounded by a soft golden haze. I blinked several times, but the faint light was still there--and it was getting brighter by the second. What the hell?
Sean’s eyes snapped open in a startling blaze of blue fire.
I yelped and launched myself off of the bed. His hand flew out and grabbed me before I fell. I didn’t see him move. He reeled me in until we were up close and personal.
Nose to nose, he growled, “Oh, no you don’t. You’ve been playing with fire.”
I tried to squirm away, but he held me too tightly. I wasn’t going anywhere. I tried to wrench my wrist away and just managed to hurt myself. He was still tense, but his face was under control again. He didn’t look capable of setting me on fire with his eyes anymore. Surely that was a good sign?
“I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to wake you up or… whatever. You were so warm I couldn’t resist touching you. I’m sorry.” I really, really was. And scared out of my mind. Yep. That too.
Taking a deep breath, he sighed like a man praying for patience. After another second of staring into my eyes, he scrubbed his fingers through his hair, making it stand up in spikes like a porcupine. I stifled a smile. The worst must be over. He didn’t seem mad, and hey, he wasn’t glowing anymore. That was a relief.
His face went through a series of
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