Stone Passions Trilogy (33 page)

Ferris’s frown melted into a dazzling smile and she beamed, “Exactly.”

Vaughn’s brows were pulled into a frown as murmured in warning, “Melanie.”

She shook her head, waving off his concerns, “Rhys has been a far worse influence, Vaughn. He….”

Her words faded away as she saw one of those stupid, green creatures again. It was sneering at her with too many sharp, pointy teeth in its wide, ugly mouth. Slowly, she stood up and looked around, wondering who was going to be trying to attack her this time. The incidents were increasing as the days passed: strangers would randomly come up to her and try to start a fight; friends would call up and divulge a dark secret, even if they didn’t pull a full Peter on her; customers were complaining about her chocolates, which nearly brought her to tears.

The imps mostly left her alone when Vaughn was nearby and simply watched her from a distance, but the moment he turned his back they would circle. She didn’t want to worry him and make him feel like he had to hold her hand all of the time, so she mostly ignored the creatures. There were more than she could see but she didn’t know how she knew. She figured they were like cock roaches and for every one she saw, a hundred more were lurking in the darkness. To see one when Vaughn and Rhys were nearby was alarming and made her very uneasy.

“What is it?” Vaughn asked, standing up and swooping Ferris up into his arms.

“It’s nothing,” she murmured distractedly, watching every person that came near her, waiting for the imp’s persuasion to set one of them on her. Her hand went to the medallion between her breasts, the burning heat both familiar and dismaying. Where was the attack going to come from?

Maybe the pendant Omari gave her was defective, maybe it attracted these stupid imps. It wasn’t like she knew all that much about the elusive man; she didn’t even know what he was. She would find the card he had given her and pay him a visit, ask him why he would be so cruel as to give her a cursed amulet. It wasn’t like she was a threat to him; she was merely a human.

“Hey, sis,” Jenna called out as she and Rhys joined them in front of the ice sculpture. “We thought we lost you guys when we turned around and you weren’t there.”

“Ferris wanted to spend a little more time examining this sculpture,” Vaughn answered when Melanie didn’t say anything. Exchanging a glance with Rhys, he cleared his throat, “She’s still fascinated by gargoyles.”

Rhys’s laughter filled the night air and several people – several women – turned their heads to stare at the gorgeous man. He reached out and tousled Ferris’s hair, winking at her, “Nothing wrong with that, little one. Do you know that I’m partial to gargoyles, too?”

Ferris reached her arms out and transferred from Vaughn to Rhys, giving the long haired man a smile that would melt the stoniest heart. Rhys didn’t have a heart of stone and had lost his heart to the little girl. He had quickly adapted to having a little human underfoot and had enjoyed playing games with her, flinging her onto his back and giving her rides. Rhys quickly became one of her favorite people, even if he wasn’t Armand, indulging her with tales of gargoyles and dragons and fairies.

A loud
crack
rent the air, making the crowd of people jump. Melanie spun around, desperate to discover the source of the sound so she could be prepared because she just knew that the imps had gotten to someone. Her pendant was hot now, really hot. Was it a beacon to the devil imps? Reaching up to take the cursed thing off, she was suddenly pushed to the ground, landing painfully hard on her back, as the large gargoyle sculpture crashed right where she had been standing.

The wind was knocked from her lungs as the man landed on top of her, the oddly familiar scent of cinnamon and nutmeg clouding her head. The sounds of the carnival receded as she fought for breath as a large hand rubbed her sternum and a low, silky voice murmured, “Breathe; just breathe.”

She didn’t want to open her eyes; if she opened her eyes she knew what she would see and she didn’t want to see him. But he was giving her back the ability to breathe and he had just saved her life. Grudgingly, she forced her eyes open and saw him grinning down at her, his brilliant eyes sparkling in his unlined face. “Omari. Why am I not surprised?”

“Melanie,” he beamed, still rubbing her sternum, even though she could breathe freely once again. “My favorite human.”

With a frown that he would talk so freely, she looked around and saw that they were in their own little bubble. Everything else was frozen, including Vaughn who wore an expression of utmost terror. Returning her attention to Omari’s face, she glared, “What have you done?”

His smile widened and his fingers leisurely wandered off her sternum towards her breast. When she pushed his hand away, he chuckled and sat back on his heels, pulling her up into a sitting position as well. He was still straddling her legs and she found herself very close to the gorgeous, frightening man. “Is that anyway to treat the man who just saved your life?”

She snorted, “I thought you said this amulet would do that and yet it doesn’t seem to be working.”

He tsked, letting his fingers run over the pendant between her breasts. “It works perfectly. None of the attempts at harming you ever came to fruition. After all, you survived a fall from the fourteenth floor.”

Her brow furrowed deeper as she gave his words some thought, “I suppose that’s true. But if it worked properly, shouldn’t the railing have stayed in place instead of breaking off in my grip?”

“Ah, my little skeptic," he chuckled, tapping her on the tip of her nose. "You know the amulet works, why are you being so stubborn?”

“I’m not stubborn,” she protested, trying to stand up but he refused to move, keeping her pinned between his firm thighs. With a resigned sigh, she remained seated. “Why are you here, Omari?”

“Simple,” he shrugged his broad shoulders, meeting her gaze unflinchingly. “You were about to remove the amulet and that would have been unwise.”

“I thought it wasn’t working,” she explained feebly, putting her hand over the now-cool pendant. Glancing away from his too perceptive gaze, she exhaled, “I always see the imps and within moments, the amulet heats up and something happens. Tonight it was particularly hot, as hot as the night I fell.”

“Because they’re running out of time and tonight the imps' plan was particularly audacious,” Omari explained. He froze suddenly, as if finally hearing what she said, and he looked at her in disbelief. “You can see them?”

“Sort of,” she crinkled her nose and tried to explain, “I think that I see them but when I try to focus, they’re gone. And there are so many of them! Even when I can’t see them, I feel them watching me. At first I thought I was crazy…..”

“You can see them,” he repeated, his voice deepening with… arousal?

“I said I could,” she countered, frustrated, glaring at the man whose only response was to laugh. No, he wasn’t aroused; he was laughing at her. Of course he wasn’t aroused. Huffing out a disgruntled breathe, she muttered, “I don’t see what’s so funny.”

“No wonder they’ve taken a liking to you!” he chortled, wiping imaginary tears from his eyes. “Most humans are unaware of their presence so you must be an exceptionally tempting morsel!”

“I don’t understand,” she scowled, her eyes drifting to the immobile Vaughn, her sister and Rhys, and Ferris. Ferris’s gaze seemed to be tracking Omari and it was strangely disconcerting being that Ferris was frozen and she and Omari were not. She would have asked if that was normal but he started talking and she didn’t have a chance.

“They feed off panic, fear, lust, adrenaline… any strong human emotion, though they really prefer terror. You’re aware of them therefore your responses are like a drug injected directly into the bloodstream,” he explained, oblivious to the watchful, little girl. His eyes moved over her face, lingering on her lips as she digested his words.

“They’re using me to get high?”

“Yes… no,” he shook his head, his eyes losing a bit of their focus as he continued to straddle her legs. He drew his fingers along her jaw and his hand trembled as his breath becoming slightly ragged. Squeezing his eyes shut, he took a few deep breaths before he looked at her once more. He was no longer laughing. “Forgive me. I am not used to being around humans and I find myself sexually drawn to you.”

Her heart trembled as her panicked eyes flew to Vaughn, wishing he wasn’t frozen. But the golden man was still staring down at her, his unmoving expression one of alarm. Omari’s soft, uneven laugh drew her attention back to him, “Don’t worry, human. He has marked you well and I will not violate the gargoyle’s property. I
can
control myself and I know that you are not meant for me. Now where was I?”

She expected him to tell her more about the imps but instead he pushed her back down and lay on top of her, as he had been lying when he saved her from the ice sculpture. Putting her hands against his shoulders, she shoved but he wouldn’t budge. There was a subtle shift and then the world came rushing back with a whoosh and she grunted, “Get off.”

A stranger’s face was looking down at her apologetically. He was in his twenties and had dark hair, bloodshot eyes and several days’ worth of beard stubble. Whiskey fumes wafted from his mouth as he stammered, “I am so sorry miss! I wasn’t watching where I was going….”

As the man continued to ramble on, he clumsily stood then grabbed her arm, pulling her to her feet. Melanie was unable to speak and could only stare at the man who had been Omari just a moment before. Where did Omari go?

Vaughn’s arms came around her waist and pulled her into his protective hold. His hands quickly moved over her face, her body, checking for any pain. His eyes were grave when he looked at her, “Are you all right, love”

“Yes,” she murmured distractedly, scanning the growing crowd for Omari but he had disappeared. She had so many questions for him, so many doubts that she wanted erased. Why did he have to vanish?

The drunken man continued to apologize until he looked at the shattered ice sculpture and swallowed convulsively, “Oh, man, did I knock that down, too?”

“Get lost.” At Vaughn’s low, warning growl, the drunk nearly pissed his pants. His eyes widened in his face as he finally looked at Vaughn. He spun on his heels and tried to stagger away but a bystander caught him by his arm, holding him until security arrived.

A crowd was gathering around the shattered ice sculpture and the security personal were asking questions but Melanie was only peripherally aware. Her attention was captivated by the green creatures dancing around, maniacally laughing as they beckoned her to join them. She was powerless to look away, not quite believing that they were being so open in their pursuit of her.

After God knows how long, a warm weight was in her arms and she found herself holding Ferris, the little girl’s arms wrapping around her neck. Little fingers moved over Melanie’s face much as Vaughn had done earlier, bringing her back to the present. “Are you all right, Aunt Mellie?”

“Of course,” Melanie assured her, returning the sweet hug as she put aside all thoughts of removing the necklace. She looked once more but the imps had disappeared and she didn’t want to know what they would do if she wasn’t wearing the pendant. “Of course I’m all right, sweetie. I’m sorry if I scared you.”

“Fucking imps,” Rhys snarled, glaring past the crowd that was scattering.

“Language,” Jenna scolded, making him blush as he stammered his apologies. “And what do imps have to do with any of this? A man, drunk off his gourd, crashed into the ice sculpture and then into my sister.”

Ferris opened her mouth and Melanie had the dreadful feeling that the little girl was going to say something about the little green creatures and that would have been disastrous. There was no point in letting the imps know they had another source to feed their addiction. Hugging the little girl closer, Melanie grinned tightly, “He doesn’t mean anything by it, Jenna.”

“Of course I didn’t,” Rhys stammered, his face flushing further, making the auburn color of his hair even redder. “It was simply an… insult, you know, fucking imps?”

“Language, idiot,” Vaughn chided, punching his brother affectionately on the shoulder. As Rhys rubbed the tender spot, Vaughn’s laugh was a little strained as he tightened his hold on Melanie. Jenna took her daughter back and set her down so that she could walk herself.  Turning his head, he lowered his voice and asked, “Are you okay?”

She nodded, grateful that he was there. Offering a shaky smile, she kissed him lightly on the cheek, “I am but I think Ferris wants to talk about the imps and….”

"No problem.” Raising his voice to capture Rhys’s and Jenna’s attention, he called out, “Come, let’s go see the ice castle.”

That was effective in distracting Ferris from whatever it was she was about to say but Melanie’s thoughts were still racing a million miles an hour. She didn’t much care for the idea of imps liking her, not if they went about showing their affections by trying to kill her. Quite frankly, she was surprised her hair wasn’t white from the number of “close calls.” Ever since meeting Vaughn, her life had become an adventure, and while she adored Vaughn, she could have done without the imps. Was her life with him always going to be plagued by the vile, little creatures?

God, she hoped they would grow bored with her and find a new hobby instead of plaguing her to get high. Maybe if she acted like she didn’t see them they would get the hint and go away. Unfortunately, it was nearly impossible to pretend to not see something that shouldn’t be there in the first place.

“It will be okay,” Vaughn’s soothing voice interrupted her thoughts and she turned to him with a startled smile. His expression was grim as he gazed at her with absolute love and devotion. Strong emotions played out over his features as he stared at her, as if memorizing her face. It was almost as if he was afraid of losing her, which was ridiculous since she wasn’t planning on going anywhere. Touching her cheek with the tips of his fingers, he whispered, “It will be okay.”

“I know,” she assured him, leaning into his caress until he cupped her cheek in the palm of his hand. She knew that as long as he was by her side, everything was going to be all right, even if the imps refused to leave her alone. Holding his gaze, she brushed her lips against his skin. “I know.”