Heroes (Eirik Book 2) (15 page)

Her hand shot out, and the next second, I was sweeping the filthy bathroom floor with my favorite duster. I hadn’t engaged my runes, and the scales, which would have protected me, didn’t appear. My dragon must have decided not to save my ass and was unusually quiet. If someone were to ask, I’d say he was terrified of Celestia. I was the opposite. I loved it when the Witch in her came out to play.

“You pull that crap again, Eirik, and I’ll send you flying through the window, regardless of whether you are visible or invisible.”

Damn, she looked hot.

“You owe Wes an apology,” she added.

“Like hell I do.”

“What did he do to you to spill the drink all over his pants?”

I grinned. “I did?”

Her hand shot out again.

“Okay, sheesh. Calm down. He smiled at you and thought it was okay to share your straw. That wasn’t cool.”

Her mouth opened then closed. She hadn’t expected honesty.

“He’s a joke, Dimples, and you could do much better than him.”

“Really? How do you figure that?”

“Because I know you.” I leaned against the wall. “You are smart, gifted, gorgeous, strong, and funny, while Stubby out there is opposite you in every way. He talks weird. You know, like he’s whining. He’s boring and has zero game. You deserve someone to sweep you off your feet and make you the focus of his existence. Someone who will take you on adventures, celebrate your victories, and cry with you when things go wrong. Someone who appreciates your strengths and sees your weaknesses as a chance to prove himself worthy of your trust.”

She stared at me with a stupefied expression.

I had surprised myself too. “You’ll be carrying him, when he should be carrying you. Flying with you.” Now I was making a fool of myself. It was time to retreat. “I could swat him like a fly and he’d be peeling himself from the other side of your town. I thought about it, actually, but I figured you might be blamed for his demise. Date anyone but him. This town must have some decent guy worthy of you.”

Her eyes narrowed. “Brute strength is not everything, Eirik,” she said softly. “Wes is sensitive. Nice.”

“Wes references Disney movies to ante up his game.” 

She shook her head, and when she spoke, she sounded sad. “You know, I wasn’t too thrilled when your parents summoned me last night, but I’m happy they did because I needed to be reminded of how different you and I are.” Someone knocked at the door. She headed toward it and threw over her shoulder, “Stay away from me, Eirik. There’s enough crap going on in my life without you becoming my problem, too.”

I didn’t want her to leave, and begging her to stay wasn’t an option. Seeing me in pain often bugged her. Just before she turned the corner, I sat up, groaning and cursing.

“I think I broke something,” I mumbled.

“Then self-heal,” she retorted.

A rumble rolled through my chest again as I went into a partial shift. She paused and glanced back, her eyes troubled as though re-evaluating the situation. She was suspicious, possibly regretting using her powers on me. She was so softhearted.

“Something is affecting my powers. I can’t summon runes.”

Celestia bit her lower lip, indecision darkening her eyes.

“Why not?” she asked, sounding worried.

“I went flying this morning and didn’t rest before coming here to see you. Can you get my artavus? It slipped from my pocket when you threw me. I think it’s in there.” I pointed at one of the stalls.

Celestia didn’t hesitate. No matter how much I pissed her off, she cared about me, which was why she’d come back to Hel for me, a place that had caused her so much pain.

“You okay?” she asked, squatting. She was so pale I felt bad for her.

I touched the bridge on her glasses. She really looked cute in them. “I’ll be okay, Dimples. Just a few more runes and you can throw me across the room again.” As if possible, she went paler.
I’m officially an ass
.

“I’m not sorry I hurt you because you are an egotistical, infuriating, self-centered jerk.” She bit her lower lip again. I wanted to be the one doing that. Man, I’d never wanted to kiss a girl this badly. “Did you really break something?”

“A disc on my lower spine, but this”—I took the runic blade and etched runes on my skin—“and a kiss should fix it.”

Her eyes grew stormy. She jumped up. “Go home, Eirik.”

“We need to talk.”

“No, we don’t.”

“I need your help. Please.”

She didn’t stop this time, but I had managed to look at her other arm. There were no half-moon scars from the bite of a dragon. Where had my grandmother bitten her?

~*~

CELESTIA

That arrogant, self-absorbed, thinks-he’s-God’s-gift-to-women bastard!

I was so furious with Eirik I couldn’t think straight. The floor by our table was clean when I returned, but Wes looked like someone who’d lost his dog. His burrito was in a takeout container while my salad waited for me on a regular plate.

He was so sensitive I felt like a monster even though I hadn’t done anything to mess up our date. I sat.

“Sorry about that. You’re, uh, leaving?”

He made a sheepish face. “My boss texted me. He wants me in early. Maybe we could do something tomorrow afternoon. Go to the movies?”

“I really want us to talk.”

“Sounds serious. Should I be worried?”

“Don’t be.” Why couldn’t he be the one who made my heart skip? Tomorrow, I’d tell him the truth. I liked him, but I couldn’t be anything more than a friend. My eyes met Eirik’s as he left the hallway leading to the restrooms. He grinned. I forced myself to focus on Wes. “Can I call you?”

“Anytime.” Wes stood. “Lunch is on me and, uh, we’ll
talk
later.”

“Okay.” I watched him leave then sat and stared at my food.

Eirik. How could he talk about what I needed as though he’d crawled inside my head and learned my deepest desires, then turn around and order me to find someone in this town to date?
Jackass.

He took the seat across from me. He was no longer smirking. I ignored him and forked the lettuce, but I couldn’t eat. I put the fork down.

“Okay. You said you needed my help. Start talking.”

“My grandmother bit you. I don’t know when she did it or where, but I found out last night and now you are bonded to her.”

I leaned back and sighed. “Okay.”

He frowned. “Why aren’t you surprised?”

“Because I knew she’d bitten me.”

“Where?”

“My foot.”

“Why didn’t you say something last night?” His voice rose, and a couple at a neighboring table looked at him. Completely oblivious to them, he picked up my hand and continued. “Finding out about the bite scared the crap out of me. I’m so sorry I didn’t protect you from her. I promise to find a way to break the bond. I meant to ask my mother about it this morning, but—”

“No. I don’t want anyone to know. It’s humiliating as it is.” The Grimnirs gossiped. Right now, they believed I’d fought Eirik’s grandmother with her wand. That could turn into “poor Mortal Witch was bonded to the Ironwood Maiden” fast. I eased my hand from Eirik’s and went back to stabbing my salad, anger at his grandmother and fear of what she might do welling up inside me. It was four months ago all over again. No, I had gone through this crap before and refused to do it again.

“It doesn’t matter. What’s done is done.”

“Can I see the scar?” Eirik asked.

“No.”

Eirik went quiet, but his eyes didn’t waver from mine. At least he wasn’t staring at me with pity. If he had, I would have scratched out his eyes. He smiled, but I could tell he was blaming himself for the bite. He would feel worse when he learned about the bites from him.

“This wasn’t your fault,” I said.

“Then let me see it.”

“No. It’s ugly.”

“I don’t care.” His gaze didn’t waver. “Please. I feel bad as it is.”

I sighed. “Fine.”

He moved to my side of the booth and lifted my foot onto his lap. Concentrating, he removed my ballet flats and studied the half-moon scar. It was bumpy because the wound had been deep. Interestingly, his had been shallow and had even healed faster. He stroked the scar, and my toes curled.

He found the scar from the dragon’s lower tooth and studied it. “Did they hurt?”

“Not really.” They had, and they’d taken forever to heal.

He gently massaged the scars. “You are such a liar. If I remember correctly, you whine when in pain and faint at the sight of your own blood.”

“You can’t compare landing on your mace with a bite. I had three of the spikes lodged in my chin.”

He made a face at my exaggeration. “My mace has a name now.
Gunnlögi
.” He grinned with pride. He really had a sexy smile, part cocky and part sweet. Made me want to forget we were discussing a serious matter and that he’d just acted like a complete jerk to Wes.

“What does it mean?” I asked instead.

“Battle blaze. I’ll show you some time.” His hand moved up and down my leg, and I realized it was still on his lap. He was an amazing foot masseur.

“Can I have my leg back now?”

“No. I’m making up for letting this happen to you in the first place. Eat. As soon as I learned about the bite, I came here to tell you, but you weren’t at your house.”

“I slept at Hayden’s,” I said, stating the obvious since he’d just seen me that morning.

“I know. But there was a party going on, so I couldn’t just appear out of thin air. I waited around for a while and no one left, so I went home.”

“Tammy hosted a bunch of Witches because of what happened. I don’t know if you’ve heard, but five Witches were killed last night.”

“Echo filled me in. He even sent some Grimnirs to add protection runes to your car and house in case the people after the Witches came after you.”

“Aw. He’s sweet.”

Eirik snorted. “Sweet? He’s an arrogant ass, but I forgave him all the crap he’d done in the past because of what he did. Anyone who looks out for you deserves a second chance.”

Heat crept up my face. I had no idea when I’d picked up the fork and gone back to eating. Damn dragon bond was making me obey him. I eased my leg from his lap and pushed the food aside. I sipped the drink Wes had ordered for me and tried to pretend my heart wasn’t pounding a little faster because Eirik had replaced Wes.

“So when you were outside my house this morning, you didn’t know about the Witches?”

“No. I was worried about the blood bond and whether or not you were safe from my grandmother.” He eyed my salad. “Are you going to eat the rest of that?”

“No.” I pushed it toward him.

Instead of eating it, he went to the counter and ordered more food. Then he came back to the table and demolished my salad.

“What is a blood bond? And how did you find out about the bite?”

“Last night, I had a long talk with an old Jötun who claimed he’d sensed the bond when he saw you in the banquet hall.”

“Did he have graying hair and a full beard, carry a silver cane, and wear a red and gold cloak?”

Eirik grinned. “That’s him. Chief Skavnir. My grandmother bit him when he was a little boy, and he can recognize anyone bitten by her. In fact, he said anyone bitten by my grandmother would have this weird connection. You can feel each other. Did you feel anything last night?”

I’d felt plenty, which was scary if it had something to do with my bite. Did that mean I was bonded to his grandmother and not him?

“I’m not sure if what I felt was the connection, but he had a distinct energy, as did several guests. Also, when I arrived, I felt the same energy near the cave. Only it was much stronger. I mean really, really strong. It had a weird effect on me, like it was calling to me. You should ask Echo. He stopped me from going to the source. I couldn’t resist it.”

Eirik cursed. “That must have been my grandmother. Chief Skavnir said that after she bit him and the other orphans, she could find them anywhere and they could find her. When she said she could call my sister, I had no idea what she meant. She must use the energy link to lure those bonded to her.”

“Pull,” I corrected him. “It’s something evil Witches do. Most of us can find a thread of energy and follow it to its source, but it takes an evil Witch to trap and manipulate someone’s life force. She must be directing hers to those she’s bitten, then grabbing their energy and pulling them to her. That’s how I felt last night. A sudden surge of a seductive energy I had to connect with, then a tug. I thought it was normal. That it was Helheim’s magic, so I linked with it. The next second, I was stumbling through the darkness, walking away from Echo, following it.”

His crazy, senile, dragon-shifting grandmother had bitten me first. Not only was the bond between us strong, I couldn’t fight its effect on me. A waiter brought a tray with four burritos, nachos, and an extra-large drink. For the next thirty minutes, I watched Eirik demolish everything. People stared. If I didn’t know about his dragon appetite, I’d say he was stress eating. In between bites, he explained about his grandmother and the orphans, and how the Norns had taken them.