An Eternity of Dead Sun (An Eternity of Eclipse Novel Book 2) (36 page)

Eclipse, who appeared to have removed a boulder off his chest, surveyed the woods with what looked like a newfound respect for the place.

“It is ironic that my first time deciding to celebrate my birthday would be through human means.” His chuckle waltzed throughout the woods, sounding nothing short of melodic. “My life is irony in a box.”

“Why’d you decide to celebrate it now?”

“Because I know my first real friend in the world will make it a good one for me,” he answered thoughtlessly, warming my heart. At the beaming expression on my face, his soft smile turned cunning. “You know that if this birthday flops, you’re going to have to make it up to me, right?”

My brows drew down into a frown. “Why would I owe you anything?”

“Because I’m going to make a big deal out of your birthday.”

I folded my arms defensively. His words piqued my interest. “What are you going to do for mine?”

“Something that will take your breath away,” he murmured, glancing at me with favorable eyes.

Excitement mounted over me. As much as I didn’t anticipate my birthday, I had to admit that I looked forward to whatever he would do to celebrate it. This must be why my fellow human beings loved having friends. When you couldn’t count on your family, it was your friends who would pick up the slack and celebrate your existence for you. For the first time in many years, I was beginning to feel included in this human world, even if the catalyst for this inclusion was a Demon.

“This weekend better be a good one, Teacup,” he warned again. “You know me—I collect the debt that is owed to me. If you screw up, there will be consequences to pay.”

I carefully studied his face as OinkOink padded alongside him. “What are you going to do to me if it flops?”

A grin outlined his lips. He peered down at me with sensuality radiating from his heated gaze. “A gorgeous girl like you should know how to make my birthday a good one.”

“You’re not getting my body,” I retorted, my breath threatening to escape from me. My goodness. One of these days, I was going to faint from his hotness alone.

He feigned innocence. “Why not?”

“Because of my nosebleeds.”

“We can warm you up.”

“No way!”

Those broad shoulders rose into a frivolous shrug. “Let’s hope I like the remainder of your next surprise then.”

“I’m going to punch OinkOink in the face if you don’t like my next surprise,” I threatened at once. As a warning, I lightly tapped OinkOink’s booty with my shoe, causing him to gently tumble to the side.

OinkOink whimpered. Like a turtle stuck on his back, he began to shake his paws in confusion. Stuck upside down, he had trouble getting himself upright.

Eclipse laughed, gently lifting OinkOink back up with his shoe. He dissected me with wispy disapproval. “So much for wanting to be human, Source. You think it’s humane to push your defenseless puppy to the ground?”

“I’m not human yet, Demon,” I countered, ignoring how bad I felt when OinkOink whimpered accusingly. He looked hurt that I caused him to tumble over. Saving face though, I repeated my threat again. “Like I said, I’m going to punch OinkOink in the face if you don’t like my surprise, so you better like it.”

“If you punch OinkOink, then I’m going to spank you. And then I’m going to stop being your friend.”

I knew he was joking about the latter, but I wasn’t sure about the former. I gaped at him, panic shooting through me at the thought of being spanked by him.

“Can’t wait to see what you have in store for me later tonight.” He laughed again, catching me with his next statement just as I was about to run off. “And don’t think about running away. I hid your car keys.”

“You smart bastard!” I cried, outraged that my escape plan was foiled. How could I bear to stay on this mountain with a Demon who was so hot that he put the sun to shame?

Eclipse gave me another lighthearted look before he turned straight ahead. He came to a sudden stop, looking like someone had doused him with glacial ice water.

“What—?” I froze as well, stunned at what had him so rapt.

I followed the trail of his gaze. A proud smile tilted on my mouth when I saw that we had finally arrived at my next surprise for the weekend.

Situated in the middle of the woods, under the glow of the sunset, was the cottage I rented.

When I was researching online about nice vacation spots, this particular mountain cottage came up with the most glowing reviews. All the comments describing the beauty of this cottage made my heart flutter in anticipation: magical, unforgettable, and timeless.

When I saw its picture, I knew I had to get it.

The cottage appeared more charming in person than it did on the picture I printed out. It looked like it was lifted right off of a Thomas Kinkade painting. There was a small bridge suspended over a stream, a flagstone pathway that led to the front door, and little stone lamps that sat on the property. Beside the cottage lay a decorative well while on the other side sat a man-made pond that had a watermill running over it. The trees, the plants, and the flowers around the property were simply stunning.

We walked over the bridge, strolled past the watermill, and stepped on the front steps to unlock the door.

Creak.

Once the wooden door creaked opened, we stepped into the two-bedroom cottage. Awe hung over us as we inspected the world inside. The living room was tastefully decorated with flowers, comfy furniture, candles, antique-looking knickknacks, and paintings of other cottages. There was a small fireplace in the main room while down the hall were two bedrooms and a bathroom. Through one of the windows in the kitchen, I could also see into the backyard. With flowers and lush vegetation glowing underneath the various hues of the sunset, it exuded nothing short of magnificence.

“You rented us a cottage in the middle of nowhere for the weekend?” Eclipse breathed out, stupefied by what I had planned for him.

His shocked eyes continued to peruse over the place. In any other capacity, Eclipse would never fail to dwarf a building without effort. It was his gift—his disposition. Yet, in this cottage, even though he overpowered everything within it, Eclipse resembled a little boy who had discovered an oasis.

“Yes,” I answered slowly, beaming at him with thrill. “Do you like this surprise?”

He nodded absently. “I think my screwed up weekend has gotten exponentially better.” He turned to me and I was suddenly thinking twice about renting a cottage in the middle of nowhere. I hadn’t thought about it until now, but this setting was a bit romantic, wasn’t it?

Eclipse inhaled with satisfaction, gazing at everything with the utmost approval. In that instant, I felt like I had voluntarily locked myself in a cage with a lion that hadn’t been fed for years. He was ravenous—voracious.
A
nd there I was, offering myself up as a succulent treat for his pleasure.

“I think,” he whispered, anticipation glowing on his beautiful face, “this is going to be the best birthday I’ll ever have.”

“What do you mean?”

He bit his lower lip, grabbing a towel from his backpack and heading towards the shower. He stopped in front of me, the sexual magnetism from his body caressing me with potency.

“Your first mistake was bringing a savage like me to the wilderness.” He leaned in beside me, his lips brushing my ear. “And your second mistake was locking yourself up with me in the middle of nowhere . . . with no one to bother us.”

I dragged in a desperate breath when he pointed this out, and he laughed—a soft, sexy laugh that promised the fulfillment of my wildest and darkest fantasies.

With sleek animal grace, he disappeared into the bathroom, leaving me clinging onto the doorway in need when he finished the already intense statement by adding, “Get ready. I’m claiming you this weekend, baby.”

“To rise from my pit of despair . . .”
23
: On the Rocks

Huff! Huff! Huff!

“Where the bloody hell are you going in the middle of the night?!” Eclipse screamed out, chasing after me as I bounced away from him.

“Get away from me, you pervert!” I shrieked, holding OinkOink close as I scurried off into the shadowy night.

Holding a flashlight, I ducked underneath a tree branch before stomping over a pile of dead leaves. The cold wind whipped at my wet hair, sending shivers down my body. I had just finished showering when I snuck into my clothes, kidnapped OinkOink, slung my backpack over my shoulders, and ran out of the cottage while Eclipse was in the backyard, admiring the gardens. Needless to say, in the state I was in, I was freezing my butt off.

I suspected that Eclipse must’ve realized I was missing after my shower because after a five minute head start, I heard his screams just before his quickening footsteps came closer and closer to me. Just like prey, I continued to run for my life as my hunter sought me out. Every step I took, Eclipse came five steps closer. It got so intense that within seconds, I could hear him running closely behind me. Before I knew it, he was in front of me, stopping me in my tracks.

“Wait – wait, stop!” he panted, nearly tumbling to the ground when he stopped in front of me.

He held up a gesturing hand for me to wait for him before he placed both hands on his knees and gasped for air. Shirtless with only black pajama pants on, the backpack he was wearing drummed up and down along with his heavy breathing. Even the light from his flashlight was shaking from his exhaustion. For a considerable stretch of time, all I could see was the back of his head. I was positive his inner fat boy was having an asthma attack.

While he attempted to keep from going into cardiac arrest, I stepped behind a big tree to put some distance between us. Body still hunched forward in exhaustion, he looked up at me when he was finally able to catch his breath.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” he questioned firmly. His dark eyes met my troubled ones. “Why did you run away?”

“I’m running for my life!”

His eyes grew alert. He stood up straight and looked around protectively. “Why? Did some murderous Demon appear without me knowing?”

“Yeah,” I replied, staring straight at him. “I’m running away from you.”

He gawked at me like I was crazy. “Why?”

“Because you’re planning on killing me this weekend,” I deadpanned, the seriousness etched in my voice.

He gaped at me for an awkward second, allowing my words to gradually sink in. When he reconciled with the fact that I did say something so outlandish, he shook his head in utter amazement. A dry laugh streamed from him.

“You’re lucky you’re the prettiest thing in creation because your cute personality aside, you are the single most paranoid looney tune I’ve ever met.” His judgmental gaze dissected me. “What would possess you to think I would kill you this weekend?” His outraged eyes scanned over our mountainous surroundings. “I mean, I climbed a bloody mountain for you! Why would I voluntarily make myself miserable if I could’ve thrown you off a cliff when I had the chance?”

“You threatened me,” I said flatly, the vigilance never leaving my face.

He remained baffled. “
How?
”

“‘Get ready. I’m claiming you this weekend, baby,’” I uttered, repeating what he said in a deep, sexy voice. My imitated Eclipse voice was anything but sexy compared to the original, but it got the point across.

“You’re running away like a maniac because I was flirting with you?” he echoed incredulously.

The way he phrased that made me sound more unreasonable than I was.

I pointed the flashlight at his face, insulted that he was trying to lessen the severity of my legitimate concerns. “You know what you meant when you said those words to me. How dare you take advantage of my kindness by making death threats like that?”

He pointed his flashlight back at me, nearly blinding me with its glare. He was just as bitter. “I was showing you my appreciation for your surprise.”

“Well, good going,” I fired back. “You can stay in the cottage all by yourself because I’m not going to sleep there and risk you seducing me to death.”

A self-satisfied curve materialized on his tempting lips. “You know, flirting with me is only life-threatening when you give into temptation. If you’re talking about your nosebleeds, then I always stop when you get them. I don’t see why you’re so worried.”

“It doesn’t matter,” I snapped, dismissing memories of him teasing me until I got a nosebleed. I couldn’t tempt myself. What he said in the cottage was right. I screwed myself over when I rented a place away from civilization. If I were him, then I would’ve thought I was inviting him to seduce the hell out of me too. “My Source instincts tell me that you’re a threat. If you lose control, then I’ll die. Since I still want my entire soul back, I’m not ready to die yet, buddy.”

“Let me get this straight,” he summed up, pointing his flashlight into the shadowy woods around us. “You’d rather take your chances in the dark woods than in a romantic cottage with me?”

He made himself sound so innocent when he was actually the most dangerous creature in existence.

“Don’t try to make it seem like I’m overreacting. You’re the most dangerous thing out here.” I jutted a finger at the forest. “If I get attacked by whatever animal is out there, I would have a remote chance of surviving. With you, one simple slip and I’m done for.”

“Okay, okay,” he mollified, acknowledging that I had a valid point. He raised his hands in defeat. “I admit that I was fantasizing about”—he paused to find the right way to phrase it tastefully “—
intimately
fooling around with you, but I’m not going to tease you like that if you’re really afraid of it.”

I relaxed marginally.

“Do you mean it?” I breathed, coming out from behind the tree and lowering my flashlight.

He nodded earnestly. “Yeah. I’ll just flirt. No sexual advances whatsoever unless you can handle them.” When he noted my hesitation, he heaved another sigh. “Come on, Teacup. My whole body is dying from the hike. I can’t handle chasing you around the goddamn mountain anymore.”

With my backpack weighing down on my shoulders, I took a cautionary step out of the shadows. I warily ambled over to him with OinkOink blinking quietly in my arms. My body was in agony too. I didn’t think I could make it any further in the wilderness.

“You have to keep your word,” I told him with soft desperation.

I drew closer to him, my big brown eyes imploring him to give me confirmation that he understood my terms.

This time, he nodded tiredly before raking his fingers through his hair. After taking a second to consider his current state of affairs, he suddenly burst out laughing.

“Holy—” His laughter became louder. “Holy shit, I can’t believe this.”

“What?” I asked, eyeing him as though he had lost his mind.

Even OinkOink, who had been quiet this entire time, was barking in confusion.

“I am the Demon of Lust,” he started after his laughter subsided. He assessed me like I was the strangest creature in the world. “I am the embodiment of everything that is sex, fantasies, and extravagance, and here I am, chasing after a paranoid human girl who made me promise her that I won’t fulfill her sexual fantasies.” He shook his head self-deprecatingly. “If I had known my life would get this pitiful, then I probably would’ve thought twice before purposely becoming a Fallen Demon.”

My eyes narrowed. “You think me fearing for my life is funny?”

He merely smiled, delicately cupping my chin with his hand. His eyes intently examined the features of my face.

“You know . . . every day I tell myself that it won’t be long before I get bored of you. And every single day, the more I get to know you, the more I find myself hooked.” His features grew warmer, so much warmer that it caused butterflies to come alive in my stomach. “You’re lucky I like you, Teacup, because I wouldn’t put up with this shit for anyone else.” My heart went pitter-patter at how he stared at me. He lightly tilted his head towards the direction of the cottage. “Now let’s go. No sexual advances unless you can handle it. I promise.”

Trusting his words—and dizzied by the butterfly-inducing moment I had—I shadowed after him obediently. I didn’t realize how far I ran until we walked back. The cottage appeared to be a world away. While walking along the fast moving stream, I could feel my legs cramp up. I fought past the throbbing pain, but after a good fifteen minutes, I couldn’t prolong the battle anymore.

“Wait. Wait. Wait, time out,” I announced breathlessly, sitting on a rock beside the stream when my muscles tightened even further. “I-I can’t hike anymore. My whole body hurts.”

Eclipse shifted his eyes from the direction of the cottage to me. “The cottage is still a bit far off from here. If you can’t go on, I guess we’ll have to sleep out here for the night.”

I gawked at him, floored by his answer.

“Really?” I fidgeted uncomfortably, not liking the suggestion. There was a reason why I rented a cottage this weekend as opposed to pitching tents. I may have been a hiker, but I wasn’t a camper. I cast him a wary glance. “You can’t carry me home or something?”

“Not unless you allow me to break my promise and carry you to my bed,” he negotiated with a crafty grin. “Let me know if you’ve changed your mind and I’ll be happy to carry you back home.”

“You don’t want to help me out of the kindness of your heart?”

“I don’t have a heart,” he replied, amusement lurking in his delivery. “I have a girl who is putting me through the wringer.”

I bitterly wrinkled my nose. Of course he would use this moment to his advantage. Well, I wouldn’t give him the satisfaction.

Sleeping outside it is then.

“Have you made your decision?”

“Yeah,” I said, kneeling on the ground while taking my backpack off. “We’re sleeping out here.”

He smirked as if he anticipated this answer.

“Out here it is then,” he mused before stalking away.

“Hey, where are you going?” I watched Eclipse climb onto several rocks beside the stream. There was a rock with a flat top that looked big enough to rest on. I frowned from the ground. “Are you sleeping on the rock tonight?”

His lips curled slightly. He chucked his backpack onto the floor before sitting on the rock. “I don’t sleep on the ground if I can help it.” He patted the space beside him. “There’s room for you here too.”

I bit my lips, unsure of what to do. It didn’t escape me that the rock was smaller than a bed and it definitely didn’t escape me that I was playing with fire. Fortunately for me, my dilemma ended when Eclipse said something that solidified my decision.

“If you sleep on the ground by yourself, who knows what’s going to bother you tonight . . .”

I knew he was trying to scare me. To his credit, he succeeded. I wasn’t afraid of creepy crawlers, but who knew what other type of animal roamed around this place? If something attacked us, then I could push Eclipse into the fire before I could get hurt. The way I saw it, Eclipse was my shield. Since we were camping outside, I wasn’t going to let my weapon of choice sleep far from me.

Without another bout of hesitation, I approached him and dumped my backpack beside his. I unzipped it and withdrew my “blanket” for the night. I layered my pink bathrobe over my black workout tank and khaki shorts. Bless my taste for the finer luxury items in life because as soon as that fluffy bathrobe came over me, it chased all the wilderness chills away.

After tucking myself into something warm, I made sure to bundle OinkOink in my white sweater to keep him warm as well. The little ball of fluff yawned lazily, his eyes fluttering shut as the lyrical flow of the stream filled his senses. He looked so peaceful that the sadistic part of me wanted to plunge him into the cold water for fun. However, my adoration for him overrode such yearning. Instead, I gave him a gentle peck on the head before I gingerly burrowed him into my backpack as his shelter for the night. I made sure he was tucked far enough into the backpack so that he wouldn’t get cold, but I also made sure a sizeable gap was given to allow air to trickle through.

When I was done tucking my oversized rat in, I went to sit with Eclipse on the rock while the big stream continued to gush past us. Under the direct radiance of the moonlight, the coursing water looked like it was glistening with diamonds.

“How’s OinkOink?” he asked, handing me a protein bar once I settled beside him. He had already taken out two water bottles and handed me one to drink.

“Sleeping,” I replied, taking the protein bar and water bottle. I placed the water bottle on the rock close to me and began to unwrap the snack.

Eclipse chuckled. “The little pup must be exhausted.”

“Yeah,” I concurred with a laugh.

I took my first bite of my dinner for the night and I nearly whimpered in elation. You know you’re hungry and exhausted when a protein bar tastes like Heaven. With a groan, I continued to munch on my food, the sudden inactivity in my body making me realize how stiff and exhausted my joints were.