Love Sucks! (5 page)

When the bell rang, I nearly peed my pants in relief. I had loaded up my backpack and started toward the door when Lindsey's best friend, Meredith, stopped me. “AJ! Oh my God! I have the best idea for prom! C'mon! I can't wait to tell the committee!”

If I were to gauge her idea by exclamation marks, I'd guess we had a winner. At least, I hoped it was a winner. I was sick of trying to figure out a theme . . . especially since we should have decided on one more than a month ago.

“I can't wait to hear it.”

O
h, hell no.
Hell
no. That ain't happenin'. Nope. Sorry. No way, no how. Cannot allow this idea to go any further.

Meredith had the entire committee's undivided attention as she told them about what we had just learned from Mrs. Christopher. She showed them her handouts, talked about the witch settlers and the bloodsuckers, and even had the nerve to turn to the page that had the Serpentine “S” and told the story about Hank “outing” me as a “dichamp-whatever.”

I had to fight the urge to correct her. I mean, I'm not a dichampyr. I'm a vampire—I was born this way, not created. Of course, since people thought vampires didn't
really exist, correcting her wasn't really an option.

“So, I was thinking, we should have a kind of
Twilight
meets Harry Potter prom. We could have so much fun with that! What do y'all think?”

To my horror, every girl on the committee squeed. (Why do people squee? Seriously.)

“That's kind of lame, don't you think?” I said. “I mean, both are
so over
. Like way over. In twenty years, we'll look back at our prom pictures and think,
WTF?
”
Please let them buy it. Please let them buy it.

“Well, I think this is the perfect way to honor the history of our town and to have a little fun. Plus, the whole purpose of high school is to ask WTF? in twenty years. My mom does it all the time. C'mon! This would be hysterical—magic wands, vampire teeth, backward-
S
-shaped birthmarks. . . . We need a fun theme, something like Magically Delicious.”

Magically Delicious?
As a way to describe Ryan, definitely. As a prom theme? Negatory. The committee began to mumble in agreement, and I knew I was about to be outvoted. I really, really, really didn't want to go this route. It hit way too close to home for our family. And even though nobody knew about us, I couldn't help but feel this was a very bad idea. But I could also tell it was a
losing battle. If we were going to go with this theme, then I was going to control the direction. Maybe it would make it easier for us in the end.

“Magically Delicious is a bowl of Lucky Charms. We should do a leprechaun thing instead.”

Everyone rolled their eyes.

“How about Love Sucks?” Meredith suggested. “Maybe we could play on the star-crossed lovers thing? Warring families, a vampire falls for a witch? It'll be
Romeo and Juliet
meets Harry Potter meets
Twilight
.”

“I love it!” Margaret Moore exclaimed.

“That's brilliant! Absolutely brilliant,” Tammy Peters said.

I swallowed hard. I had a very bad feeling about this.

“I'll talk to Mrs. Christopher and get this approved,” Meredith said. “And then we can get started with the planning. This is gonna be awesome!”

I'm glad somebody thought so.

 

I was barely through the kitchen door before Ryan grabbed me and pulled me back outside.

“Tree house,” he grumbled.

Ryan's mood surrounded him like a thick fog. It wasn't anger, exactly, but frustration definitely tinged his aura. I
could practically smell it and taste it with every breath I took.

I climbed in first, and my breath caught in my throat. I hadn't been up here since the wedding. Too many memories of stolen kisses and whispered secrets lingered everywhere. I had done a pretty good job of cleaning the cobwebs out of the dark corners of my mind. But being back here with Ryan made it hard to remember we had moved on.

“I need to apologize to you. I've been having a really hard time with the history of your family. I've been fighting with myself over it. I know it's stupid. In my heart I know that.”

I swallowed the lump that had formed in my throat. “Thanks.”

“That said, I have to tell you, this prom thing is a terrible idea, and I have to wonder what you were thinking when you agreed to it.”

“I didn't
agree
to it,” I said, unable to hide my annoyance. “I fought against it. I did everything I could to dissuade them, but the committee had already decided to do the vampire-witch thing. At least with me involved, I can do my best to steer things. They were gonna do this with or without me, Ryan.”

“I don't like it. It's too close to home.”

“I agree, but there's nothing I can do to stop it.”

He nodded. “I know we're on the same side, AJ. It's just hard when you factor in our pasts. I don't wanna be doubtful. I'm trying not to be. But that demon really seemed convinced you would betray us and join the snaky side of your family. Like it knows something we don't.”

I wanted to be angry with Ryan for asking these questions—for drawing these conclusions. I wanted to scream at him for being unfair and hurtful. But the truth was, he was looking at the situation with an eye that nobody else in the family dared to. Because if we actually dug deeper, we would all see the same parallel. The Serpentines betrayed their allies because of a prophecy that might never have happened. And now they would do anything to make sure it
didn't
happen.

Part of that “anything” seemed to include bringing me back into the fold of the clan.

Ryan was right to question things, not because I had any intention of joining the family, but because if we ignored such an obvious connection, we wouldn't see the whole picture. I took a deep breath and looked into his eyes.

“I understand. I do. And I'm not angry or hurt. I just
hope you know that
this
is my family. You. Rick. The boys. Aunt D. Y'all are my family. Not those stupid power-hungry snakes. Okay?”

He wanted to believe me; I could see it. But his eyes gave him away. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't hide the doubt that lingered. In that instant, they made another permanent mark on my heart.

“Can we search for the runes together?” I asked. “That way you can keep an eye on me and if I do anything suspicious, you can just smack some sense into me.”

He laughed. “Maybe I can get Dad to teach me a proper smacking spell.”

I lowered myself out of the tree house, the one place that I had always thought of as ours. Now it was just another casualty of our complicated relationship.

I sat in the tire swing and watched Ryan walk away. It was such an odd feeling, living in the same house but feeling worlds apart. There was no anger, no hatred, but no . . . connection, either. It was like an earthquake had shaken the ground open and now we stood on either side of the crack as it continued to grow wider. I was glad to be over him, but I really missed our bond. It was lonely on this side of the crack.

Where are you
? Auntie Tave's voice sounded like a bass
drum in my head. I was not in the mood for her intrusion. Obviously, I couldn't hide my emotions when it came to Ryan, but I had to try.

I took a deep breath and tried to clear my mind, but a very male, very British voice interrupted.
Hello, love, we'll be right round
.

Was I hallucinating? And if so, who the hell did I just dream up? Despite my affinity for all things British (thank you, BBC America), the last thing I needed was someone else in my head.

“A thing for us Brits, eh? Good to know,” the guy attached to the voice said as he approached the swing. He was tall, probably six-four, with cropped reddish blond hair, a goatee, and a smile so cocky that I was torn between wanting to slap it off his face and wanting to stare at it for hours.

“I prefer the latter of those two choices, if you don't mind,” he said.

“Quit that!” I said, jumping out of the tire swing. “Get out of my head, asshole.”

He lifted a pale eyebrow and cocked another smile. “Asshole, is it? No, love, the name is Lex.”

“Lex, behave. You're impossible,” Tave called as she crossed the yard. Another man was with her, not nearly as
hot as Lex. He had a sweet look about him, harmless and kind, with saddish eyes. He reminded me of a turtle.

“Now, that's funny. I can totally see it, too. Hey, Robbie, slow and steady wins the race, mate.”

Robbie flipped him the bird, and Lex barked with laughter. “That's a lad. C'mon, Auntie Tave, get over here so I can stop messin' with your girl.”

“That was your choice, Alexander.”

“Well, I do love having a bit of fun.”

“Tave, would you please tell me what the hell is going on?” I said, frustration causing my voice to pitch. “Why can he read my mind? At least you only read my emotions. I don't need this jerk in my head, I don't care who he is.”

Lex's laughter spilled over me like a warm shower. Sadly, that warm shower did not clean up the dirty thoughts that traveled through my head. The more I tried to stop them, the more they came.
Dammit. Stop. Don't look at the hot guy. No. Don't think about the hot guy. Dammit. Don't think hot.
Where was this coming from?

My cheeks burned. Lex winked at me, and I noticed his right eye was brown and his left eye was ocean blue. I swallowed hard and concentrated on thinking about marshmallows and baby ducks.

He chuckled then, low and throaty.

Dammit.

“Alexander Archer, get out of her head. Now.”

“Yes, ma'am,” Lex said, totally without remorse. And then I heard his voice in my head:
You're a tasty bit of yum yourself, love
.

Lex Archer was bad news, and strangely enough, I couldn't seem to wait to read all about it. Two minutes ago I was reminiscing over my lost love, and now I was in heat over some asshole Brit who looked good enough to eat.

I felt another set of eyes on me. I glanced up to Ryan's room and saw him watching from the window.

“Bloke's got it bad, he does,” Lex said.

“For me?” I laughed. “He's my stepbrother.”

“Hmm, complicated. I like complicated.” Lex stepped next to me and held out his hand.

I took his hand and nearly leaped off the ground when the spark jolted from my palm through my body, throwing me slightly off balance.

“Complicated indeed,” he said, confirming he'd felt the spark as well. Our gazes met, and for a moment my mind was blank. Totally free of thought or emotion. I may have even stopped breathing for a minute.

“Alexander, let go of her hand. She's not ready for you, and you know it.”

“She will be.”

Tave gave him the stink-eye and he chuckled again. “I'm sorry, hon. I tried to stop him, but my nephew has a mind of his own,” she said. “So you've met Lex. This is his brother, Robbie Archer. And they're going to train you.”

“Train me? For what?” I asked.

“Hang on, we need all the kids here.” Auntie Tave put her fingers to her lips and whistled. “Ryan, round up the troops. Bring Aunt D, too.”

I laughed. “I see Mississippi has rubbed off on you, Auntie Tave. You whistle like you were born here.”

Ryan disappeared from the window, and in record time all the kids were standing in the yard with us. Oz, Rayden, and the twins were goofing off with each other, but Ryan stood there as somber as a funeral director.

“Your parents, Doreen, and I had a long talk last night,” Aunt Tave began. “It's apparent that none of you are in any position to fight a Bborim. And with AJ struggling to keep the Serpentines out of her head at night, it won't be long before they decide to bring in an empath.” She turned to me, grabbed my hand, and squeezed. “If they do that, you're screwed, sweetie.”

“Gee, Tave. Don't hold back. Why don't you tell me how you really feel?” I said, smarting from her bluntness.

“What does that have to do with us?” Ryan asked.

“We know the baby is in danger and we all have to work together to protect it. We also know the Serpentines believe that AJ is the key to the runes—which they are desperate to get hold of. They'll use whatever weakness they can against AJ. Including you guys. So I brought my nephews Lex and Robbie here to train her. They're gonna work with y'all a bit, too, but basically, AJ's the main target, so she gets the most training.”

“Oh, dude! Are we gonna learn how to do some fancy vampire-ninja moves?” Oz was practically bouncing with excitement.

“Actually, dearie, I'll be trainin' you lads. We've got to up your spell-castin' level. Yer little pranks won't get ye very far with the likes of a Bborim.”

“But we'll be workin' with you, too,” Robbie said. “You need to learn to keep empaths out of your mind as well. Just remember, some of us are very strong and can read most everyone's minds, and some of us,” he looked at Lex, “can only work with one person at a time.”

Lex rolled his eyes. “Believe me, one is plenty.”

Robbie smiled at me, blushing slightly. Now that Robbie and Lex were standing next to each other, you could tell they were brothers. Actually, they could have
been twins, except for a few slight differences. Robbie was an inch or so shorter than his brother and carried himself with less confidence. His eyes, though, were the mirror image of Lex's. His left eye was brown and his right eye blue. His hair was a little more brown than strawberry, and he kept it shaggy, compared to the short crop that Lex wore. Robbie also had a dusting of freckles sprinkled across the bridge of his nose. I gauged both guys to be in their early twenties, but they could easily pass for younger if necessary.

“You gauge right,” Lex said. “I'm twenty-one, Robbie here is twenty. But for the next few weeks, we're both eighteen. Going back to school will be fun.”

Tave let out an exasperated sigh. “Really, Alexander. You shouldn't do that to her unless you're in training. You should be more respectful than that.”

“I'm training her right now, Auntie. If she wants me out of her head, she has to work at it.”

Ryan eyed Lex with suspicion before he stepped over to him, held out his hand, and introduced himself. “Ryan Fraser.”