Consumed (17 page)

Saying goodbye was not getting any easier.

Keegan’s heart felt like it was tearing in shreds when they separated at the airport. She glanced at her watch—she still had an hour and twenty minutes before her plane would leave. Of course, she and Rourk were on different concourses. She was hungry, so she slowly trudged to a little shop to grab a snack. She noticed a wedding magazine on the rack and flipped through it. Unable to resist, she added it to her purchases. She still couldn’t believe she was going to get married in a little over a month. What she
really
couldn’t believe was the idea didn’t freak her out at all. She was young, but so what? So were all the other elves that got married. They seemed to be doing fine. She couldn’t imagine her life without Rourk in it.

Keegan picked up her phone and called Anna to fill her in on the news.

“Guess what?”

“No idea. You saw the yeti?”

“Close. Rourk and I are going to get married next month!”

“Seriously? That’s awesome, Keegan. I’m envious of you guys. I guess that means we won’t be roommates.”

Keegan hadn’t even thought of that. “I’m sorry. I didn’t even think of that. I was really looking forward living with you.”

“It’s ok. You’re a slob anyway and that would have driven me crazy.”

“I’ve gotten better.” Keegan laughed.

“I’ll just find a studio for myself. I have to get out of these dorms. At least we’ll be in the same city. So, what’s the big plan?”

Keegan told her how she wanted to get married on Thanksgiving break at her parents’ property.

“The timing is great since we all planned on going home for the holidays. Don’t make me wear a horrendous bridesmaid dress. I’m serious, no bright yellow or big ruffles.”

Keegan paced around the seating area. There was so much planning she hadn’t thought about. “I promise your dress won’t be ugly.”

“Make sure Rourk brings some of his hot military friends.”

“You’re too much, Anna. Ok—I’m at the airport. I’ll call you soon. I can’t wait to see you again.”

Keegan still had time to kill, so she opened her magazine. Most of the dresses were way too fancy for her taste. She pictured herself wearing a flowing, simple ivory gown in chiffon. She could feel the stress rising when she wondered if she would have time to find the perfect dress. Her body temperature was quickly dropping. Taking a few deep breaths, she tried to center herself; she closed her eyes and thought of Rourk. Her body relaxed when she pictured him walking onto the plane. He stopped mid-step and smiled. She knew he realized she was thinking about him. Crisis averted—she didn’t freeze the airport. That would not be good, especially with all the cameras and security.
Imagine explaining
that
to Mom
.

Chapter 17

K
eegan wasn’t sure how she made it through the week without Rourk. It felt like the longest week of her life. Her classes dragged on. The only thing that made time speed up was when she volunteered at the wildlife shelter. Having the computers certainly helped, but it just wasn’t the same.

This weekend, they were meeting in Washington, and Rourk was bringing his friend Tommy so they could check out the area and the apartments Tommy had seen online. Keegan was excited to meet a friend of Rourk’s. She still couldn’t get over his close call with the accident and was very grateful that her mother was a healer. She was also a little nervous—she felt like she needed Tommy’s approval.

Anna was waiting outside the gate when Keegan came out of the security checkpoint. Anna had once again morphed her looks. Today, she had an ultra short pixie cut and her hair was almost black. Her crazy green eyes stood out even more with her dark hair and light skin.

Keegan squeezed her tightly. “Your hair looks amazing. I have no idea how you can pull off so many looks. You’re like a chameleon.”

“Please tell me this isn’t your attempt to hook me up on a blind date with Rourk’s buddy.”

“You wish!” Keegan laughed. The thought had crossed her mind, but she wanted to meet Tommy before she pawned him off on one of her best friends. She wanted to make sure he was good enough for her.

“You’re right, I was hoping.” Anna bumped Keegan with her hip. They laughed and headed to a nearby cafe.

They caught up and talked about the wedding plans. “I think we’ll just let Lauren pick out the dress, if that’s ok with you?” Keegan raised an eyebrow.

“Let me think about this. I could spend hours trying on dresses or let Lauren pick. I think I’ll go with Lauren.”

Keegan nodded. “As much as I hate to admit it, she does have the best taste out of the three of us.”

“You won’t hear me complaining.” Anna bit into a peanut butter cookie, and then filled Keegan in on the apartment she had just rented. Keegan couldn’t recall the last time Anna had been so exited about something. She was curious to see if the place lived up to Anna’s descriptions. One of her new witch friends had recommended it, and Keegan was certain magic had been involved in securing the apartment and moving in so fast.

Keegan was getting anxious to see Rourk. As much as she enjoyed seeing one of her best friends, time seemed to stop when she was waiting for her chosen. She kept glancing around and checking the clock on her phone. When she wasn’t with Rourk, it was as if the clocks stopped, and sadly, time sped up when he was around.

“He’ll be here soon. Calm down,” Anna chastised, reaching across the table and snagging Keegan’s phone.

Keegan touched the necklace she had grown to love. “I know. I just miss him so much.”

Rourk was impatient to see Keegan. Tommy was talking his ear off, but he only heard half of what he was saying. He tried to nod at the appropriate times. He realized he was tapping his foot and immediately planted his foot firmly on the ground. Keegan was the only person that had been able to get under his skin. He didn’t feel in control when it came to her. Not that he minded. When was this plane going to land? He looked at his watch yet again.

Finally, he heard the landing gears and a wave of relief washed over him. It wouldn’t be long now. The excitement was building in his chest as they walked towards the greeting area.

Keegan raced to him as soon as he passed security. He loved that she was as excited as he was to be back with her. “I missed you,” he whispered in her ear.

“It felt like it took you forever to get here.” She pressed her body to his.

“I know.” He buried his head in her hair inhaling her scent.

Tommy cleared his throat. “Are you going to introduce me or what?”

Rourk jerked away from Keegan and cleared his throat. “I’m sorry. I forgot you were here.”

“Thanks…”

“Keegan, this is Tommy—my friend I’ve told you about.”

Keegan took in the tall, slender blond boy with kind blue eyes and freckles scattered across his face. There was nothing remarkable about him, but he had an infectious smile. She found herself liking him immediately. Keegan turned to introduce Anna, but she wasn’t there.

Where did she go?
Keegan glanced around and didn’t see her anywhere. Great. She grabbed her phone out of her pocket to find out where she went and noticed she had a text from her.

Went to get the car meet you out front.

“Anna’s waiting out front.” Keegan wrapped her arm around Rourk’s waist and smiled up at him. “Let’s go. Where is your hotel?”

“We got a place close to Anna’s to try to limit the inconvenience.”

“That was a great idea.”

Keegan steered them towards Anna’s old beat-up brown Buick. She had no idea how that thing was still running, or how it had made the cross-country trip. Anna jumped out and ran around to open the trunk. She looked up and nearly bumped into Tommy. “Oh.”

Tommy inhaled sharply. “You’re Anna?”

She nodded slowly. “You’re Tommy?”

They reached for the trunk at the same time and pulled back their hands quickly as they touched.

“You shocked me!” Anna laughed.

“You shocked me. You’re, like, electric.” Tommy gave her a crooked grin.

Rourk and Keegan watched the exchange. There was obviously a mutual attraction going on.
Maybe I’m not so bad at match making after all
, Keegan thought with a smirk.

As if Rourk knew what she was thinking, he grinned and shook his head while he opened the front door for her. “Stay out of it.” He reached down and kissed her, and she wished they were alone. It was going to be hard to share him this weekend. She wanted him all to herself.

Anna took off down the road. She kept glancing in the mirror at Tommy and smiling. Keegan couldn’t believe it—she had never seen Anna take to someone so quickly. It was good to see that she had moved on from her long time obsession with Xavier.

Keegan turned in her seat. “Do you guys want to be dropped off at the hotel or go to Anna’s for a bit?”

“I’m not in a rush to get to the hotel. I’d like to see where Anna lives.” Tommy looked at Rourk. “If that’s ok with you.”

“Apartment sounds good.” Rourk had just got Keegan; he wasn’t ready to part ways.

Keegan turned back and gave him a grateful smile.

Tommy leaned forward in his seat and draped his arm over the front seat. “So, do you like living in Washington?”

Anna glanced over her shoulder and flashed him a dazzling smile. “I love it here. It’s so beautiful, even with all the rain. There’s so much to do outdoors and tons of cool coffee shops.”

“Eyes on the road before you get us killed,” Keegan said, poking Anna in the arm.

Anna gripped the steering wheel tightly, her eyes back on the road. “You’re right. I just get so excited about this place. It’s home now.”

“How far is your apartment from here?” Tommy asked.

“It’s not too far. About another twenty-five minutes.” Anna turned up the radio and tapped her fingers along with the music. She kept glancing the guy in the backseat. She had joked about meeting Rourk’s friend, but she had no idea he would be so incredible sexy. He probably thought she was a weirdo. She never had any luck with guys.

Anna eased the car into her parking lot. She couldn’t remember if she had picked up around her place before she left or not. She had been too excited to see Keegan. Oh, well. Too late to do anything about it now.

The guys grabbed their backpacks and followed Anna and Keegan up the cobblestone walkway. Keegan was surprised by the flowers that paved the way. There were daisies and peonies in a variety of colors, flanked by bushy spider plants and tall, yellow black-eyed Susans. The lawn was emerald green.

“Anna, how do you keep your flowers alive?” Keegan asked. “I can’t even keep a houseplant for more than a couple of weeks.”

“Magic,” Anna replied casually.

Keegan sucked in a breath and looked at Tommy to see his reaction. He was unfazed. It must have gone over his head—or he thought she was joking.

“Good one.” Keegan laughed.

Anna fumbled with her keys and unlocked the small, bright blue door. She pushed it open, switching on the light as they walked though.

Keegan gasped—it was beautiful. Anna’s new home was a tiny studio apartment that felt like a hidden oasis. Pots of herbs perched on all the windowsills and crystals were scattered around every available surface. A small altar occupied a corner of the living area; Celtic music played softly in the background. The whole apartment smelled of patchouli. She still had a few unpacked boxes in the corner.

The place seemed like it was made especially for Anna. It was obvious that she loved the place from the way she cared for it—from the pressed pagan tapestries on the walls to the shiny, clean hardwood floors. Keegan could see why Anna had fallen in love with it.

“Do you guys want coffee?” Anna threw her keys on the counter and walked into the kitchen.

“Sure. I could use a cup.” Tommy dropped his bag at the doorway and followed her to the kitchen.

Keegan and Rourk looked at each other and shared a smile. Keegan pulled him towards the black suede futon. “I’m so glad you’re here.”

“Me too.” He buried his head in her hair. “I missed your smell.”

Keegan laughed. His voice sent chills down her spine.

“Just think—next month, I will be Mrs. Kavanagh. Keegan Kavanagh. I like the sound of it.”

“We’ll have to start calling you K-squared.” Tommy laughed as he walked back into the room.

“K-squared has a nice ring to it.” Anna trailed behind him, holding a mug in her hand. “Do you guys want a cup? If so, help yourselves.”

Rourk glanced at Keegan. “Want me to make you one?”

“Sure. Milk and two sugars. And no one is calling me K-squared.”

Rourk stood up, and Tommy went with him, staying silent until they were in the kitchen. “Holy shit, Rourk. Why didn’t you tell me that Anna was a goddess? I don’t think I’ve ever met anyone so incredible in my life.”

“I never noticed.” Rourk shrugged. He opened several cabinets searching for Anna’s coffee mugs before Tommy indicated the right one.

“Never noticed? It’s blinding,” Tommy said in a hushed tone.

“I feel the same way about Keegan. She’s the only thing I notice when she is around.” Rourk looked over the counter at Keegan who was sitting on the couch with her feet tucked beneath her while she talked to an animated Anna.