Eternal Echoes, Emblem of Eternity Trilogy Book 2 (31 page)

“Wait!” I said, stopping to catch my breath. “What if someone walks in on us?”

He was preoccupied with pulling my shirt the rest of the way out of my pants and unbuttoning it while he kissed his way up my stomach. I gave a muffled cry, a little preoccupied myself. “Took care of it,” he mumbled in the general direction of my belly button.

Judging by the short, incomplete sentences, Alex seemed to be lacking blood in the brain area as well. “You took care of it?” I asked, lifting myself up on my forearms and raising my head. “What, did you take the farmer’s soul?”

He stopped, sparing me an annoyed glance. “I paid him.”

“To leave us alone?”

“To leave. Period.”

I’d had a point to make…I just needed to remember what it was. Seeing Alex on top of me—showcasing his CrossFit results—was distracting. I closed my eyes and shook my head, hoping the cobwebs would recede. They did. “Alex, we are not having sex for the first time with an audience of farm animals. I’m laid-back about most things, but when it comes to this, I have standards. A bed would be nice.”

Alex’s biceps bulged as he held himself over me while we had our little chat. “I’m sure we could find one around here somewhere.”

I rolled my eyes.

His mouth curved in a half smile. “Evie, I’ve been waiting centuries to make love to you. You don’t honestly think I’d let it happen in the middle of a barn, do you?” He paused to take in my reaction. My eyes were almost as thin as my lips. “You should know me better than that.”

I glanced down at my half-off shirt, and felt the straw pieces pushing into my back that I’d undoubtedly be picking out of my clothes and hair for the rest of the night. “It kinda seems like that’s where things are heading.”

Alex shook his head slightly. “I’ve waited far too long to rush this, Evie. There are plenty of things that come before sex. I want to try them all.”

Alrighty, then. Glad I knew where I stood…or, rather, lay.

With that declaration, Alex went back to concentrating on my buttons. It didn’t take long for him to get them undone and my breath started coming faster. He moved his hands—not too soft, but not rough, either—over my stomach, pushing my shirt open until it fell to my sides, under my arms. He paused, taking me in, like he was memorizing every detail. I was glad I’d worn a pretty hot pink and black lace bra. Judging by Alex’s expression, he was glad too.

He slowly ran the tips of his fingers over the lace, feather light. I breathed a ragged sigh and met his eyes. He smiled while his hands moved from the edges of the fabric and cupped me. He bent his head down to start kissing my chest when we heard a
hmm
,
hmm
cough from outside the stall we were rolling around in. It certainly didn’t sound like a horse. I sat up, pushing Alex off me as I quickly started buttoning my shirt. Alex stood slowly, reticent to leave me half-clothed in a pile of hay, and leaned over the stall gate.

I heard a woman’s voice. “Dinner is ready, dear.” The voice was high and sweet. It reminded me of my grandma. And if getting caught having almost-sex in a barn wasn’t enough to sour the mood, the humiliation of getting caught having almost-sex in a barn by grandma certainly was.

I stood, tucking my shirt back in before finger-combing hay from my hair. “Thanks, Mrs. Fisk. We’ll be there shortly,” Alex said.

He turned back around, completely unembarrassed. He pulled his sweater on, his t-shirt lifting with the movement to reveal a rock-hard stomach. Grandma, I told myself. Think about grandma.

“I thought you said we weren’t supposed to be bothered. Maybe you didn’t pay him enough.”

Alex had all his clothes back in place now and came over to help me with the straw situation. Considering my hormones were still screaming
pounce him!
I didn’t think his help was the best idea, but I needed someone to excavate the hay.

“I guess dinner got done early,” he said, one hand on my waist as he helped with my hair.

I scowled. “You should have warned me. That was embarrassing.”

Alex smiled, amused. “She heard the noises. She stopped before she got to our stall. I’m sure this wasn’t her first experience with people kissing in the barn.”

“That really doesn’t make me feel any better.”

“You can apologize at dinner,” he said, tapping me on the shoulder to let me know I was hay-free. I turned and he slipped his hand into mine. “Come on.”

Great. Grandma made us dinner while we were making out. This would be an awkward meal.

Dinner wasn’t as uncomfortable as I thought it would be. Alex explained the house was actually a romantic Bed and Breakfast. He’d rented out the whole place for Valentine’s Day. We weren’t staying the night—which I had mixed feelings about—but we got to have a fabulous homemade dinner.

Grandma had done some winking when we mentioned putting the horses away, but for the most part, she’d just shown us to a table decorated with a lacy pale pink tablecloth, and brought us our meal. Another large vase with pink orchids was on the table, reminding me of the flowers at home, and the date Alex had planned for me at his house last summer. We ate, talked, and laughed, watching the candles melt in the process. When we were finished, we said goodbye to Mr. and Mrs. Fisk and drove back to Gunnison.

Ending dates with Alex and Emil felt weird. Saying, “Thanks, see ya next time” seemed too informal, but inviting them up to my room wasn’t an option either. And considering how kissing had gone with both of them lately, that didn’t seem like the brightest idea, anyway. Even though the date was over, they were still staying at the house making sure no Daevos got me in my sleep. I also hoped they were watching for spiders. I’d read a statistic that said people eat eight spiders a year in their sleep. I was way more concerned about that sleep security issue than the Daevos sneaking in to take my soul. I’d wake up for a soul theft, but spiders on a suicide mission are sneaky.

I dropped my purse on the table as we went in the house. “Do you want something to drink?” I asked, opening the fridge. “We have Pepsi, milk, water, juice, and energy drinks.”

“Water would be great,” Alex said from the living room.

I filled two glasses with filtered water from the fridge and took them into the living room. Alex motioned for me to sit down. “I haven’t given you your Valentine’s Day present yet.”

I stared at him. I hadn’t gotten him—or Emil—a present. I’d forgotten the holiday completely. “I didn’t get you anything.” I was dating two guys and couldn’t even remember to get them a gift for the holiday that celebrates love. Girlfriend fail.

Alex waved me off like I shouldn’t feel bad.

“You planned a beautiful date for us,” I said. “That was enough. You don’t need to give me something, too.”

He moved over, crouching down in front of me, his hands on my knees. “Evie, I’ve been waiting years to spend Valentine’s Day with you and give you a gift.” He searched my eyes. “Let me do this.”

I stared. “Okay,” I answered. It didn’t ease my guilt, but it was something he wanted to do, and it was important to him. That meant a lot to me.

He reached around the couch and handed me a large, slim rectangular package, wrapped in metallic pink paper with a silver ribbon off-center around the right side. A matching bow was perfectly placed on top of the ribbon.

I took it from him, quickly deciding it might be easier to open if I put it down. I placed it gently on the coffee table, and scooted forward onto the edge of the couch, looking from the gift to Alex. He moved back against the overstuffed chair next to the couch and watched with bright eyes. “Open it.”

I lifted the gift, gently pulling the tape from the folded paper on the back. It came undone easily. I repeated the same thing on the other side. The paper fell away, revealing a beautiful painting of a lake, the bright blues and pinks of the sunset reflected in the water and the lake surrounded by hills and mountains in the background. I’d seen this painting before. I’d been particularly enamored of it on Alex’s wall in his house. “Alex,” I said, a little breathless. “It’s beautiful!” I stared at it and the same familiar feeling that had hit me the first time I looked at it hit me again, but I couldn’t place it. I glanced up. Alex was watching me carefully. “I remember it from your collection.”

He nodded slowly, studying me for a few seconds longer. I wasn’t sure what he was looking for, but knew he hadn’t found it when his face fell almost imperceptibly. He gave the ghost of a smile. “It’s by Richard Wilson. It’s one of my favorites.”

I could tell the painting meant a lot to him. “I can’t take this, Alex. It’s too special.”

He smiled again. “Yes, it is. And that’s why I gave it to you.”

I shook my head, prepared to protest. He put a finger to my lips silencing me. “Nothing could be more special than you.” He kissed me lightly and I put my arms around him, kissing him back. Thanking him for the painting, the day, and for all the years he’d spent taking care of me and making sure I was safe. Even if we didn’t always get along, sometimes he had moments of flawlessness. Today had been one of them.

I pulled back from the kiss, worried about ending up in the same position as the barn again. “Will you help me hang it?” I asked.

He nodded and stood, pulling me up from the couch with him. We settled on a spot next to the dining room table. It was visible from any part of the room and far enough from the fireplace that we wouldn’t have to worry about the heat affecting the paint. He had also brought a protective glass cover for it. We ended the night cuddled on the couch under a throw blanket, watching the flames of the fire, content.

I was getting ready for class when I heard a loud banging on the front door. I threw on my robe, pulling my hair into a ponytail as I went down the stairs. Alex made it to the door before me. I stood on the stairs and watched as Emil and Tate came into the house. Tate had a bruise around his eye. I furrowed my brow, wondering what had happened. Alex locked the door behind them.

Emil walked into the room with so much focus he didn’t even see me. No one did. Something was clearly on his mind. He took a deep breath, about to say something, but stopped, frozen, when he saw the wall. He stared at the painting for several beats, a vein near his temple pulsing. He was not happy. He turned, staring straight at Alex. Alex crossed his arms over his chest like he was standing his ground and preparing for a fight. “Really?” Emil said in a brooding tone with narrowed eyes. “Lake Avernus?”

Alex shrugged unapologetically. “You gave her the necklace and earrings.”

I looked from Alex to Emil. Obviously, the painting had something to do with my past, but I hadn’t remembered it yet. I really wished they would stop having conversations about our history together and not cluing me in.

“Spending Valentine’s Day with her wasn’t enough, you had to give her that, too?”

Alex shrugged.

“What did you do last night?” Emil asked Alex, folding his arms across his chest and taking a wide, intimidating stance with his legs.

Alex held Emil’s stare. “We went on a date.”

“Must have been a pretty incredible date,” Emil mused. “My bond with her was barely noticeable.”

Alex’s smile was slow and full of insinuation. “Mine wasn’t,” he said. “In fact, it was burning up.”

Emil’s hands tightened into fists. He looked like he was about to launch himself across the room at Alex. I rarely saw Emil this upset. Tate stepped between them, attempting to stop an altercation.

I came down the remaining stairs. “What do you mean your bond with me was barely noticeable?”

Emil turned. “Evie.” His frustration melted away in layers, replaced by a soft smile. “Good morning.”

“Yeah, morning. So, what’s this about our bond?”

“It’s nothing,” Alex answered.

I raised my brows.

Emil took a deep breath and exhaled it. “I can feel when you’re getting closer to someone else. Alex can too.”

I glanced at Alex for confirmation. He sliced his head down once.

“It’s always been like this?” I asked.

They both nodded.

“Can you feel anything else through the bond?”

They both shook their heads. It didn’t make me the least bit comfortable. Not only did I already feel guilty about my feelings for them both, but now I knew I couldn’t even hide my liaisons. They were both completely aware when something sexy was going on. “What do you mean you can “feel” it?”