Channeler's Choice (2 page)

Something tickled the back of Eren’s head, a feeling more than an actual sensation. It grew stronger until soon she realized what it meant. They were being watched. The eyes were unfriendly, carrying a heavy resentment behind them. Every hair along the back of her neck stood on end. Her eyes darted left and right, but she couldn’t see anyone. Whoever they were, they didn’t want to be seen, and they were good at hiding. Her first instinct was to tell Aiden about it, but she couldn’t do that. What if he thought she was being paranoid?

Ever since last October she had been jumping at every shadow. Luke was gone, she knew that. But for some reason she couldn’t shake her fear. Forcing herself to relax, she ignored the weird sensation until it went away.

As they ran back through the forest it started to snow again. The sparkling white flakes soon became so thick it was hard to see through their mesmerizing pattern. By then, they had reached the streets of Spruce Knoll and had the sidewalk to guide them. The snow fell so hard that if anyone was looking out their windows, they probably couldn’t even seen Eren and Aiden. Traveling under such cover eased her anxiety a little.

Regardless of the decreasing visibility, they made it to Eren’s grandfather’s bookstore and residence. Since her Uncle Alin and cousin Fane had decided to move here from Romania, there wasn’t enough room in Aunt Sylvia’s little cabin. It had taken a lot of discussion for Eren to convince Sylvia to allow her to move in with her grandfather. Of course, she would miss Aunt Sylvia desperately—except for her cooking, that is—but she only lived a few miles away and Eren visited often.

At the back door to Zolin’s bookstore, they paused and shook the snow from their hair. Eren drew her energy back into herself, leaving her face and hands feeling cold and exposed. She was able to channel her energy now without damaging her clothes, for the most part, but she still wore loose clothing just in case.

The air was cool on her skin, making her hurry to get inside. Just as Aiden stepped in and closed the door behind him, Eren’s grandfather walked around the corner at the end of the hall. He smiled warmly and beckoned for them to follow him back into the kitchen.

“
I’ve just made a fresh pot of coffee,” he said.

Eren smiled as she kicked off her hiking boots. Much to her delight, her grandfather had been quick to notice her love of coffee. Reaching back to grab Aiden’s hand, she practically speed walked after her grandfather.

The terra cotta tiles beneath her feet were a bit too warm after being outside. She forgot all about her feet when she entered the coffee-and-cinnamon scented kitchen. Breathing deep through her nose, she savored the smells as she grabbed two cups out of the overhead cabinet. Aiden poured the coffee while she got the flavored creamer out of the fridge.

Eren’s grandfather settled onto a stool next to the island in the middle of the room. Resting an elbow on the colorful Spanish tiled countertop, he sipped his coffee as he watched them both with a smile.

Unlike most of the town, her grandfather didn’t care that Aiden was Irish, despite the fact that he himself was Mayan. It wasn’t just that Eren was half-Mayan and half-Irish either. Her grandfather wouldn’t have minded them dating even if she were full Mayan. He was a good man who judged people only on their character, unlike many of the others in Spruce Knoll.

“
It’s a good thing you kids got back, there’s a powerful storm moving in tonight. I called the Murphy’s and told them you’d be staying the night, Aiden. I’ve put some blankets on the couch for you
downstairs
,” her grandfather said, giving Aiden a hard look as he said the last word.

The Murphy’s were Aiden’s foster parents. As long as he didn’t do anything illegal and didn’t get hurt, they pretty much didn’t care what he did. After his murderous adopted parents, Virgil and Camilia Moldovan, Eren knew he enjoyed the freedom. Still, she couldn’t help but think the Murphy’s could care a little more.

“
Thank you, Mr. Yaretz, but as great as that sounds, there are some books I have to have for class tomorrow. I’ll make it back all right. I’ll call to let you know I made it,” Aiden said.

“
Suit yourself. And call me Zolin, please. Mr. Yaretz makes me sound my age,” he said with a wave of his hand.

Eren smiled behind her raised coffee cup. She was pretty sure there wasn’t a title that could make her grandfather sound his age. At three hundred ninety-eight years old he had transcended age- proclaiming titles. As channelers go, he was just starting to move past middle aged and hardly looked a day over forty-five. While they weren’t immortal, at this point in Eren’s life, five hundred years seemed like forever.

“
Aiden, can you help me finish up my paper on Irish history before you go?” Eren asked.

“
Yeah, we should get started on that,” Aiden said.

When Zolin turned his head away Aiden gave her a wink that made her stomach do flip flops. She couldn’t help it; he was so incredibly cute when he did that.

“
You kids don’t stay up too late now,” Zolin said.

Eren promised him they wouldn’t and kissed him on the forehead before they left. By now the warm tiles felt good beneath her feet as she led Aiden up the stairs across the hallway. Halfway down the hall on the second floor, Eren stopped and reached up to pull down the attic access ladder. Keeping a careful eye of the sloshing surface of her coffee, she climbed up one handed. Whistling softly in appreciation, Aiden was quick to follow her. Eren slugged him in the shoulder once they were off the ladder.

“
Stop watching my butt,” she whispered.

He grinned and wiggled his eyebrows at her. Sighing in exasperation, she spun and walked off.

“
What? Just appreciating the view.”

When first coming up the ladder, they entered a small sitting room with a comfy loveseat and lots of book shelves. As a late Christmas present for Eren, Zolin had added a flat screen TV. Hardwood floors led into a huge bedroom through an archway beyond the seating area.

Eren walked into the bedroom while Aiden veered off into the bathroom where he had an extra set of clothes. Moonlight shined in through a huge, round window filling the painting nook just opposite the bed with a soft glow. It bathed a painting that hung upon the wall in a ghostly light. It was the first painting she and Aiden had done together, an impressionistic piece of a man and a woman done in only pinks and blues. Almost every square foot of her walls were lined with both her own paintings and those she’d done with Aiden. Aunt Sylvia liked to refer to her room as the art gallery.

And it practically could have been one. Eren’s painting were that good, or so everyone told her. Aunt Sylvia kept trying to convince her to show some of them, but Eren wasn’t ready. It wasn’t that she didn’t trust Aunt Sylvia’s judgment, she did. Sylvia was an art curator with an amazing eye for talent. Eren just wanted a little more time to get used to the idea of the whole world looking at her very personal work.

Setting her coffee on the bedside table, Eren slipped out of her wet clothes and into her favorite pair of drawstring shorts and a tank top. Picking her coffee back up, she went to stand in front of the window. At both five feet tall and wide, it allowed for a fantastic view of the town center. The window was something Eren had convinced her grandfather to add. As a painter she had to have natural light and Colorado weather didn’t always allow her to paint on the rooftop gardens.

Besides the light, it offered a beautiful view of the huge, elevated roundabout that was at the center of the four roads which divided the town. The roundabout stood four feet above the street level with four sets of stairs leading up to it coming off each road. It was covered in brick pavers and was circled by four sets of benches separated by the stairs. More than the lovely, old world look to it, she loved the
feel
of the place. It vibrated with energy. Her grandfather said it was a place of great power.

The view of the massive, two-story Tibetan Monastery on the corner just opposite from her didn’t hurt either. The architecture of the sprawling structure was reminiscent of Chinese architecture and its red, yellow and gold accents were breathtaking. Eren felt blessed to live among so many unique cultures. Only a few months ago she hadn’t felt that way, but things had changed.

Soft footsteps sounded behind her and a moment later Aiden was wrapping his arms around her. She sighed and leaned back against his chest.

“
It’s beautiful isn’t it?” he asked.

“
Um hum,” she murmured in agreement.

She didn’t have to ask to know he meant the Monastery. Aiden loved architecture and was fascinated by both the differences and similarities among the buildings of various cultures. He wanted to be an architect just as badly as she wanted to be a painter. Some of the plans he had drawn up for buildings and homes were amazing and flawless down to every detail. All of his plans were environmentally friendly from the foundation up.

Channelers lives were directly tied to the earth and they were therefore very passionate about preserving it, Aiden especially. It was a part of him that Eren had come to find very charming.

“
Doesn’t it give you a headache being so close to that thing?” Aiden asked.

Looking up at his face, she saw that his attention had shifted to the turnabout.

“
You mean the turnabout?” she asked.

“
Yeah.”

“
What’s the energy feel like to you?”

His brow furrowed and he scrunched up his lips in a cute way. “Kind of like the pressure the Rectors can give off when they want to, only stronger.”

Eren thought about this for a moment. “You block the energy out, don’t you?”

“
I never really thought of it that way, but I guess I kind of do.”

It didn’t surprise Eren. In fact, she should have realized he’d naturally resist the energy. When the power had first come to Aiden, his adopted father would force his energy back into him so he couldn’t channel. He’d been easier to chain up that way. Because of it, Aiden had learned to block the energy of others and stop it from affecting him.

The memory made Eren feel bad for bringing it up. The man was dead, but that didn’t erase the pain of what he’d done. She idly stroked Aiden’s arms, offering him the comfort of her touch, wishing she could do more.

“
Drop your guard for a moment. Let the energy flow through you. You’ll like it, I promise,” she reassured him.

Eren knew from experience that letting the energy of that sacred place run through her was like drinking a quadruple shot espresso. No doubt that was why the town had chosen the spot for their meeting center.

Like a shift in air pressure, she felt Aiden drop his guard. It felt sort of like when a plane leveled out. It wasn’t quite like this with everyone. She could feel the power of other Rectors, channelers, and of the meeting place, but Aiden’s was very different. His power called to her. She craved it like she craved ice cream or coffee, only more so.

Aiden drew in a sharp breath and cursed in Irish as he let go of her and stumbled back. She spun around in time to see him fall onto her bed. Pushing himself up onto his elbows, he grinned as he stared at her with wide eyes. In only a pair of shorts, with his wet brown and black hair spiked in disarray, he took her breath away. At nearly seventeen he was built more like someone five years his senior. But it wasn’t so much his looks that blew Eren away—though that certainly didn’t hurt—it was the amazing person behind his beautiful eyes.

Yeah, she knew she had it bad.

“
That was awesome, like a caffeine overload!” Aiden exclaimed.

Eren set her coffee cup down and he grabbed her and pulled her onto the bed next to him. His body was vibrating, kind of like it did right before he channeled. He leaned over and kissed her and his lips were tingling. He definitely had a powerful effect on her, but this had never happened before. His lips parted and power poured down her throat in a warm rush. Rather than make her gag, her body responded by drinking it in, which spread the flush all the way to her toes.

Aiden finally drew away and held her back. She shook her head and tried to get control of herself.

“
That was weird,” she said breathlessly. It was as if the power they were sharing had dropped her inhibitions and kicked her instincts into high gear. And her instincts wanted Aiden.

“
If we don’t stop your grandfather will drag me out and throw me in the snow. While that sounds kind of good right now, I really don’t want to sleep in it,” Aiden said a bit breathlessly.

Eren laughed and sat up, putting a little distance between them. It was hard. The last thing she wanted to do was move away from him. Strange, she always had such good control over herself. That and the fear of taking the next step usually made it easy to stop.

A blush worked its way to her cheeks. “That was different.”

“
You didn’t tell me it would have
that
effect.”

Eren struck him in the shoulder. “I didn’t know it would, silly! How could I have?”

Propping himself up again, he traced a finger along her calf, making her fight off a shudder.

“
All right, I forgive you,” he sighed.

He didn’t mean that and she knew it. He enjoyed it as much as she had. But she knew if she didn’t redirect the conversation soon, they’d start kissing again and that would lead into dangerous territory. Besides, tonight’s outing had been about more than just spending time together.