Lunacy (8 page)

“All clear!” I said loudly, sitting down on the edge
of the four-poster bed as he opened the door.

Jynxx arched a dark brow as he looked around,
whistling in awe as he took it all in. My room was sizeable, and
aside from the bed with its gauzy crimson curtains, there were a
few old and restored pieces that matched the Victorian theme of the
rest of the house. Two parlor chairs and a loveseat almost big
enough to be a couch took up some space towards the other end,
along with a TV, a few game systems, my computer, and two large
speakers for my sound system. It was like having a living room
inside my bedroom.

I was letting my gaze wander around the room, taking
in all of the possessions I had. Things most people would say I
should be thankful for. Sure, I had lots of stuff. But I would
rather have my parents home than have them buy me anything I
blinked at twice to attempt to fill the space that they just
didn‘t.

I felt the soft mattress sink down beside me and I
nearly jumped out of my skin. I hadn’t even heard him move! Was I
really spacing out that badly? Maybe I was more tired than I’d
originally thought. Jynxx chuckled at my girly squeak, but I let it
go. I was more concerned with the fact that, not only was there a
boy on my bed, but it was the guy I’d been mentally drooling
over.

He gave me a small, masculine smirk and I looked away
quickly, afraid he’d be able to see the place my mind had run off
to if our eyes met. “Kacea..?”

“Hmm?” I made a point of not attempting to articulate
any words or looking at him.

“Why are you blushing?” I felt the bed move slightly
beside me as he moved closer and I forced myself not to give him
any ground. I muttered my reply to the floor and he leaned in so
close that I could feel the heat of his skin as it nearly touched
mine. “What was that?”

I crossed my arms, almost hugging myself as I said a
little louder, “I’ve never had a guy in here, okay? Not like… You
know!” I added the last with a touch of angry embarrassment.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa…” Jynxx said, the light touch of
his fingertips on my chin turning me to look at him. “You mean
you’ve never..?”

I was silent a moment, my embarrassment becoming pure
rage. “Oh, fuck you!” I half-shouted at his amusement, grabbing a
pillow and whacking him in the chest with it. It bounced off
harmlessly as if he was made of stone and I’d tossed a marshmallow
at him. However, Jynxx wasn’t the type to take such an assault
lying down. He grabbed a pillow of his own and it left me
scrambling to grab something to defend myself with. That simple
attack turned into the most epic pillow war of my life. We chased
each other for the better part of ten minutes, and when I say “we”
I mostly mean that I was running like hell and somehow managed to
evade being captured.

I ended up standing in the middle of the bed, slowly
attempting to retreat without taking my eyes off him, my black and
white striped pillow held before me like a shield. His pace slowed
and he stalked me, like a predator that knows they have their prey
cornered, and now they just want to play. He hit the edge of the
bed and crawled towards me on all fours. His movements were slow,
sinuous, and made my pulse race through my veins like a classic
Corvette full of premium fuel. His face was serious, and I had a
moment where fear pierced my heart, only compounded when he sprang
and tackled me off my feet. I was effectively trapped just by the
sheer size of him looming over me, even though he didn’t touch me
or hold me down.

My breathing was already erratic from our game of cat
and mouse, and having him above me like that, I fought internally
not to struggle or actually try to fight him. It was just a game
after all… Right?

Everything around me narrowed down to the warmth of
his body thrumming against my skin, how thick his eyelashes
actually were from this close up, the soft curve of his lips and
how they were slightly parted, the way some of those thick locks of
ebony hair fell forward to cast shadows on his face, and the slight
amber tinge around the center of his pupils… The amber tinge that
was rapidly starting to fill up and devour the darkness of his
irises like the morning sun chases away the night. I was so tired
that I was seeing things. What the hell?

On a subconscious level, I felt like it was something
more than that, and I managed to skitter out from underneath him
before anything else could happen. I probably wouldn’t protest if
things were to go farther, and I wasn’t totally comfortable with
that. “…Sorry.” I said, my ears burning hotly once more. I hopped
off the bed, grabbing a pair of shorts and a tank top for bed. “I’m
gonna go change. You can get dressed down for bed. Just… Don’t be
naked when I come back, alright? I think I’ve had enough excitement
for tonight.” I added the last bit jokingly, hoping that I hadn’t
somehow offended him by not giving in to his affections. I wanted
to, but… I also didn’t want to be that easy.

He nodded, a soft smile on his features that told me
without words that he understood. I was almost to the bathroom door
when he said after me, “The naked part can wait until tomorrow
night.”

My whole face turned scarlet and I hid in the
bathroom for a few minutes, listening to him laugh about my virtue
and rolling my eyes. I grumbled under my breath as I changed into
the strappy camisole and black shorts. Before I headed back out, I
cleaned and redressed my wound one more time, not wanting to drag
it open while I was sleeping. It was actually healing quite
nicely.

Emerging, I only got a step outside the bathroom when
the sight of the smooth, pale muscles of Jynxx’s back stopped me
dead in my tracks. “Sweet Jesus…” I murmured, unable to keep the
words from escaping me in awe. He turned at the sound of my voice
and it took every ounce of willpower in my body to keep my jaw from
dropping onto my toes. I managed it, somehow. Bully for me!

The sight of his bare torso from behind was amazing,
but the front view… He was the stuff wet dreams were made of.
Sculpted arms, a broad chest that led to perfect washboard abs that
sank even lower to… My train of thought derailed at that moment.
His jeans were unbuttoned and I could just see the edge of the
waistband of what appeared to be black silk boxers. Oh my…

With a pointed effort, my eyes met his and he tried
not to laugh. “I know you said get comfortable, but I wasn’t sure
if you were ok with no pants, or not.” After a moment of me
stammering and managing nothing intelligible, he did laugh, and
fastened the button. “I’ll take your award-wining speech as a sign
that keeping them on is the better choice, for now.”

For now?! I had the grace to squash the color that
rose in my cheeks, for the most part. “You’re probably right.”

“Did you want me to crash on the couch, or..?”

I shook my head. “The couch is comfy for sitting, bad
for sleeping. That bed’s big enough that I probably won’t even
notice you’re there.” I made it sound as casual as possible,
succeeding for the most part.

“You’re the boss,” he said with a little smirk,
turning down the covers.

We climbed in beside each other and I rolled onto my
side, facing away from him and towards the door. I mentally focused
on slowing my breathing so I’d be calm enough to get to sleep. He
clicked off the light and I said quietly, “G’night, Jynxx.”

With a yawn, he responded, “Sweet dreams, Kacea.”

Buddy… You have no idea.

Chapter 9

I was running. I didn’t know why, but I was running
for my life. Something was after me, and I knew that if it caught
up with me... Being dead would be the least of my worries.

I dashed through the trees, branches snagging at my
clothes and tangling in my hair like skeletal fingers as I ran. My
breath came in desperate and ragged pants, chest heaving as I tried
to suck in enough air to keep my legs moving. I could hardly see
where I was going in the sparse moonlight that filtered through the
branches, trusting all other senses to keep me alive.

Then I could hear it coming up close behind, crashing
through the brush as though nothing was there to obstruct its path.
The thing stalking me had no need for stealth; it knew it was going
to catch up. A strange whimpering noise surrounded me, then I
realized it was coming from my own lips in frustration and fear.
The being following didn’t seem tired in the slightest, drawing
upon inhuman stamina. I was a sprinter, not a distance runner; my
endurance was starting to falter.

My left knee buckled as I tripped, falling forwards
onto the branch and leaf littered ground. Catching myself on my
forearms, twigs and small rocks scraped my skin raw, the coppery
scent of my own blood assaulting my nose as it oozed from my
shallow wounds. With a terrified moan, I rolled over onto my back,
intending to get up and start running again. But it was too late,
the beast was upon me. Heart pounding wildly in fear, my pulse
roaring in my ears, breathing so shallow that I was nearly
hyperventilating, I swallowed convulsively and gazed up at my
pursuer.

Jynxx stood over me, his black shirt hanging on his
thickly muscled milk-white frame in tatters. The moonlight cast
half of his face into shadow, his eyes that darkly golden amber I'd
seen them flash to a few times, the ferocity and feral look in them
far from human. He slowly ran his tongue across his lips, elongated
canines glittering sinisterly in the pale light of the moon. He
grinned at me, showing a maw full of the teeth of a predator and
throwing his head back, letting out a bloodcurdling howl.
Frightened beyond the point of conscious thought, all I could do
was scream.

Then everything became warm. Almost too warm. A
heavy, comforting heat like an old and familiar blanket I wanted to
wrap around myself and bury my face in overwhelmed me; the panic at
the sight of the creature before me started to abate. The smell of
that heat was just as homey. Rich, earthy, and intense like being
in an evergreen grove after a warm summer rain. I was drawn from my
half-slumber as the source of that heat made contact with me and
almost scalded me with the temperature of it. It jolted me from my
nightmare as Jynxx rolled over behind me, wrapping one of those
thickly muscled arms around me and pulling me close to the curve of
his body. I fit in the effective prison of his arms like I belonged
there, as if we were made for each other. He buried his face in my
neck, his chin resting comfortably into the hollow of my shoulder,
and his breathing leveled off. He was very much deeply asleep, and
I was now very far from it.

My panicked heart beat was so loud in my ears that I
half expected the din to wake the boy sleeping behind me. He
murmured something unintelligible against my neck and settled more
fully into sleep. He was so tight against my back that I was
grateful he’d left his pants on. I mentally counted to ten, using a
bit of the meditation I’d learned in karate class to forcibly slow
my pulse, my breathing that was nearing hyperventilation, and
calming myself enough for my eyelids to start feeling heavy.

“Kacea?” I heard a voice, soft and muffled as if it
had to travel a great distance to reach my ears. I was about to
ignore it, but a loud series of knocks on my door jolted me awake,
and nearly threw me out of bed in the process. I glanced at the
clock on my nightstand and the red LED told me it was almost nine
a.m. I must have fallen back asleep, even though it didn’t feel
like I’d slept at all.

“Yeah, Mom?” I said back loudly through the closed
door.

“You waking your skinny ass up?”

I smirked. It’s not that skinny. “I am!” I said
aloud.

“Your father and I are heading off to work, so don’t
sleep the whole day away, alright?”

“Alright!” I listened to her footsteps fade away,
apparently satisfied with the level of alertness in my
response.

Jynxx groaned into my shoulder, “So loud, Kaysh.
Can’t you see I’m trying to get my beauty sleep?”

I scoffed loudly and elbowed him in the stomach. It
was like knocking my elbow into flesh-covered concrete. “Your ass
needs a few nights of insomnia so the rest of us feel worthy of
your presence then, not more sleep!”

I felt his weight shift behind me and I turned to
look up at him, propped on one arm while his other hand slid to
rest on my hip. His midnight black gaze met mine and I felt my
breath hitch. Some of that glossy black hair fell forward to frame
the perfect porcelain of his face and he said simply, “I am not
that pretty, Kacea. Not in the slightest.”

I blinked at him slowly, disbelief obvious on my face
and hoping that my restless sleep hadn’t left me with dark circles
like a raccoon under my eyes. My expression also detracted from the
fact that I’d grabbed a pillow from behind me. I managed to
successfully whack him with it a few times before I was disarmed.
His big hand easily encircled both of my wrists with room to spare.
Either I had mega tiny and delicate little girl wrists, or his
hands were a lot bigger than I’d originally thought.

“Remember how this went last night?” he said softly,
practically purring his words into my ear.

It was easier to resist his charms when I wasn‘t
looking into his eyes. I didn‘t miss a beat as I countered with, “I
do. And resistance isn’t futile, damn it!” I managed to catch him
off guard with a bit of my grappling skills picked up from the
mixed martial arts class Dad had let me enroll in. Using all the
weight of my body and a lot of force from my legs, I rolled
backwards and ducked inward, ending up on top of him with my arms
crossing over each other… and my wrists still trapped in Jynxx’s
grip. Epic fail, on my part.

He wiggled his eyebrows at me and a purely masculine
grin took over his features. “Is this why you ran last night?
Didn’t know you were a take-charge kind of girl, or that flexible.
If you wanted to be the top, all you had to do was ask.”