Mystically Bound (Frostbite, Book Three) (8 page)

“Especially if I had no clue I was doing it.”
I settled into a comfy position on my back and pulled the thick
blanket under my arms. While the thought of seeing Kipp made
butterflies bounce in my belly, nerves lived there, too. I still
didn’t know why he left. The last time he saw me I was kissing the
jackass, Dane. Of course, now it made perfect sense why Dane went
in that direction, to ensure Kipp would leave. Oh, how fooled I’d
been, but not anymore.

My head was clear, my purpose even more so.
Still, concerns rattled me. I wouldn’t dive in without having a
sense of my own safety. I might love Kipp, but I wanted to love him
alive, not dead. “Let’s say I haven’t done this before. Do you
think I’m in any danger attempting to travel there?”

“Honestly...” Gretchen’s eyes sharpened,
darkening the gray tones. “I don’t know. Like I told you, this is
all new to me, too. Up until tonight, I’d never heard of Nettie or
her abilities. In fact, until I met you, I hadn’t ever seen
anything like this.” She sighed, glancing at the blanket and
tracing the pattern before her gaze rose. “One thing I do know is
you can’t stay there.”

“Whatever gave you that clue?” I snorted.

Gretchen shook her head slowly, taking my
hand. “If you find Kipp, get the answers you need, and get out. If
you are in REM sleep for too long, and I’ll tell by your eye
movement, I’ll wake you up and force you out.”

The concern rushing along her features made
my stomach flip-flop. “So, you are worried?”

She hesitated, drawing in a deep breath, and
her eyes saddened. “I’m more worried you’ll find him, and if he
doesn’t want to come back, neither will you.”

I could’ve retorted by saying I didn’t want
to die, but the truth stared me in the face. What would I do if
Kipp refused to come back? Could I leave him there in a place of
loneliness and not stay with him?

As those horrific thoughts rushed through my
mind, and so did the reminder that Kipp wasn’t dead. Here was my
chance to get him back as a living-breathing-man so we could have a
normal
relationship. “I want him alive, Gretchen. I have no
intention of dying tonight or staying in the Netherworld. I’ll come
back. Promise.”

“Okay, make sure that you do.” After another
squeeze of my hand, she released my fingers. “Wayde said you only
needed to be more aware. Since it seems Nettie knew she was there
it means on some level, even though you’re dreaming, you know
what’s going on.”

While that might be slightly unbelievable, I
also remembered the dream with Kipp and how real that felt when I’d
woken. Perhaps I’d been much more aware than I knew. I couldn’t
explain why the lovin’ had taken place in his bedroom and not some
weird mystical world, but then again, I had no idea what the
Netherworld looked like. “I’m guessing it’s not something I can
control anyway. If I hold the ability, it’ll simply happen as it
does with ghosts.”

Gretchen agreed with a nod. “From what we
learned of Nettie, it appears a natural gift. As Wayde suggested,
you might have been going there already, but just didn’t realize
that’s where you were. After you woke, you accepted your experience
as a dream, because it made sense to.”

Before, I never would’ve believed
wholeheartedly in something I hadn’t seen with my own eyes and also
seemed way out there, but Gretchen’s witchcraft had worked and it
did so because I believed it. The power of belief had never held
such a strong place in my mind as it did now. Besides, maybe
Gretchen and Wayde were right—maybe I’d been blind to what I’d been
experiencing. “You don’t have any handy-dandy spells to protect me
while I’m there?”

She studied me for a long moment with her
gaze, that seemed so much older than her years, and she finally
shrugged. “I don’t know enough about this to know
how
to
protect you and from
what
.” Her expression firmed, head
tilted. “But I do know you need to keep a shield up against
yourself, no matter how much you miss him. Your desire to stay with
him could be your undoing. Remember, the power of one’s soul in any
regard to the mystical world holds great strength.”

“Okay.” What else was I going to say? In
truth, I wouldn’t lie to Gretchen and even I knew it would be
difficult to see Kipp again. That was, if this actually worked, and
after I tore a strip off him for the current hell I went through to
find him.

Sure, it hurt Kipp to watch me kiss Dane, but
Kipp should’ve known better. Believed without a doubt I only loved
him. But it was do or let him die. The latter wasn’t an option.
“Sleep time, then?”

Gretchen smiled tightly before she left the
bed to hit the light switch, bathing the room in darkness except
for the bright light coming from the bathroom. I assumed she kept
the light on to keep an eye on me and I watched her settle into the
fancy chair in the corner of the room.

With a deep breath, I rolled onto my side,
focusing on Kipp. I shoved all my excitement, worry, and adrenaline
away, concentrating on relaxing. I fished through all my doubts of
mystical travels and combed through my known reality to find a way
to accept this.

Was the idea any different from my seeing
ghosts in the first place? Not really. Could it be any less
unbelievable my abilities held more strength than I knew or had
been aware of? Possibly.

I’d never noticed a tingle on my flesh other
than the goose bump feeling I experienced with ghosts, and I had to
wonder if that’s what she meant. The more I thought of how I
received the gifts I did, the more I realized I didn’t care to
figure it out. If I needed to be open,
feel
everything I’d
refused to, keep my mind clear from my typical skepticism, then
that’s what I needed to do. If it brought me to Kipp, it didn’t
matter how I got into the Netherworld, only that I did.

Truth be told, Wayde might think I held an
interest to know about my gifts, but he was entirely wrong. I
wanted Kipp. I needed, with a desperation piercing my heart, to see
him again. If I had to accept all this as blatant truth, then I
would.

That simple.

With the motivation to see my ghost holding
strong, I allowed myself to touch on my mind in a way I hadn’t
before. I didn’t ignore sensations and even paid more attention to
them. I felt the usual ease of relaxation wash over me as I drew
into sleep, but slowly, I noticed something…

Maybe now looking for it, it became obvious,
but there was a sensation seeming far away. Exactly like Nettie
explained, a tingle right there lingering in my soul. The same
sensation I experienced when a ghost was near, or maybe what I felt
right before and just hadn’t realized it. Almost like a spark of
electricity coursing through my veins.

I zeroed in on that single sensation and my
body warmed. Energy flowed like hot lava through my veins. I felt
lighter, tingled all over, and was instantly flooded with a
desperate need to grab onto that one sensation.

Yanking myself closer, I left any thought
behind, surrounding myself with the spark drawing nearer, and the
pulsating energy pulling me closer.

With an explosion like fireworks, but
concentrated in my veins, I was dragged forward and sucked right
into the sensation. A buzz surrounded me and filled my head with
loud noise. The harsh sound was…felt…intense. It quaked against me,
inside me, and all around me. My soul was hauled along a path with
rapid speed, and I knew I travelled, but seemed to stay still at
the same time.

When the buzzing ceased, a loud crash
followed and then dead silence. Only a split second later, a flurry
of heady coldness encased me and I tumbled into darkness.

Sudden awareness washed over me, and it became
blatantly obvious I crossed into the Netherworld, because I wasn’t
awake. My mind was fully coherent and I remembered falling asleep,
knew my purpose to find Kipp, and was mentally focused. If I’d been
dreaming, I doubted I’d hold the level of concentration I had now.
More so, I was overwhelmed by the fierce need to locate my
ghost.

“
Kipp,” I heard myself whisper.

The second the words cut through the silence
around me, my thoughts held even more clarity and I couldn’t
believe what I’d sensed as I had fallen asleep. I’d always thought
I got goose bumps from the coldness of ghosts and their nearness,
but in reality, it had been the touch of the Netherworld. The goose
bumps were the result of the cool energy of this place, not the
ghosts themselves.

Beneath my closed eyes, the Netherworld
remained dark, but I realized things were different. I felt
different. In fact, I felt like I wasn’t there at all, as if here,
only my soul existed.

“
Tess.”

At someone calling my name, the darkness
cleared and I forced my eyes open, my breath catching in my throat.
A haze remained in front of me, almost like fog mixed with bright
colors. I glanced down at my body, realizing I did, in fact, remain
intact, even if I seemed lighter.

I raised my arm in front of me, moving it
back and forth through the haze, and it didn’t look any different.
Glancing in front of me and squinting, I fought through the
haziness trying to make out what stood in front of me. Shapes
slowly formed, colors weaved together as if a puzzle joined.

When the shapes finally solidified and the
haziness cleared, I spun in a slow circle, totally confused. Under
my feet was a sidewalk, and all around me, I recognized the
historic buildings that lined the paved road. The scent of the
Wonder Bread factory at the edge of downtown swept through my
nostrils. Even the King’s Palace Café, with its red and white
striped awning, stood in front of me.

I fought to understand why I now stood in
downtown Memphis. “What the hell?” Okay, maybe I was dreaming, only
a dream I was wide-awake for. Couldn’t I have come up with
something a little better than this? At least, more original, and
maybe not of home? Then again, perhaps my missing Memphis was why I
dreamt of it now.

“
Tess.”

At my name again, I instantly realized my
error. I wasn’t dreaming. I wasn’t in Memphis. The sound of that
low voice drifting over me in the warmest embrace physically hurt
me now. I held my breath, tears filled my eyes, and a warm presence
closed in on my back.

On a long exhale, I turned and looked into
the face I’d begged to see again. I stared into his eyes, one blue
and the other brown. A chiseled face, sculpted lips, and a body
that usually made me melt, but now only brought forth sadness I
couldn’t possibly control. “You went away.”

Kipp’s eyes saddened. “I did.”

How to understand that? How to know what to
say in this moment? Maybe I thought it wouldn’t work—thought I
wouldn’t succeed. I scrambled to think straight so I could get the
answers I needed. “Did Dane force you here with a spell?”

“
A spell?” Kipp looked genuinely surprised
with wide eyes, but then his expression shifted, still intense and
almost angry. “No.”

His answer didn’t appease me, since it meant
he chose to come into the Netherworld. Instantly, he reminded me of
all the pain, the betrayal, and the heartbreak. “You’re staying
here willingly?”

He gave a slow nod. “I am.”

Tears swept down my cheeks and even if his
eyes were more pained than I’d ever seen them, it could not erase
the misery he’d caused me. “Are we safe?”

“
Tess Jennings,” his voice became a near
growl and eyes blazed dangerously, “What are
you
doing
here?”

“
My gifts allowed me to come,” I snapped.
“Answer me; are we safe?”

Kipp’s pause was long, his gaze burning
beneath his narrowed eyes. “Yes, we’re safe.” He hadn’t blinked or
moved, and continued to stare at me with a hard look. “You better
not be dead.”

“
Do I look dead?” I hesitated at his harsh
glare. “Okay, maybe a little, since I’m here, but I’m not.” I
scowled in return. “And that’s beside the point.” I gritted my
teeth and with all the fury that had been driving me to a totally
insane place for too damn long, I slapped him across his face. “How
could you put me through this?”

The second my hand lowered, all arguments
left me in a ragged exhale. The sting on my fingers was so
shocking, I could do nothing but hold my breath. I looked at my
hand, spotting the redness on my palm and then raised my gaze to
Kipp’s flaming cheek. “Oh. My. God. I. Touched. You.”

Kipp slowly turned his head, recovered from
the blow, and drew in the longest, deepest breath. One second, he
stood in front of me. The next, he slammed me up against the brick
wall behind me.

I gasped as my back took a hard hit from the
full weight of his body pressed against mine. He tangled his
fingers into my hair, yanking me closer and holding me in an
unforgiving grip. A low groan rumbled from his chest when he sealed
his mouth over mine and kissed me so deeply, I whimpered.

His lips were all over me and this was not
love-making, but brutal passion of ownership. As his teeth trailed
down my neck, I couldn’t get enough of him either and returned the
force of his claim. His kisses were bruising and mildly painful
with bites, but I welcomed the attack and understood his fierce
nature.

Real, raw, and long overdue.

When his erection pressed against my bare
stomach, I realized I was now naked. But as I’d seen with Kipp’s
ability to shed his clothing in his magical way, I assumed the same
power worked here. Besides, it didn’t matter. I hated any barrier
between us.

His teeth grazed the side of my neck and I
panted, crazed over the feel of him. I loved Kipp—loved him with
intensity even I had a hard time understanding. To experience his
touch, his passion, not from a distance, but in full force made me
rub myself against him in an urgent demand for him to take me in
the most primal form.