Evan Elemental (The Evan Elemental Series) (7 page)

When I
get back to the estate I find
Lex
sitting on the
front steps, waiting for me. I'm so elated to see him after the afternoon I
just had, that I don't care about the huge, stupid grin that lights up my face.
Lex
plays it a little cooler, standing up slowly and
casually, but his eyes sparkle with unmistakable excitement.

"Come
on," he says, grabbing my hand and pulling me along with him.

I kick
off my
heels
as we run into the house and up the
staircase, not stopping until we reach the door of a room I've seen before but
never gave much thought to.

"What's
this?" I ask, panting.

Lex
just grins and gestures for me
to open the door. I give him a wary look and turn the handle. I'm not sure what
I expect, but what I find on the other side of the door certainly isn't it. The
room has been arranged to look like a modern living room, something this museum
of a house is seriously lacking. There's a large cobalt blue sectional sofa, a
red lacquer coffee table, a flat screen TV and, best of all, my turntable set
up on its own stand.

My
records are displayed on the middle row of shelves that take up an entire wall.
Besides my records, the shelves are mostly empty and begging to be filled.
Placed directly in front of a large bay window is a sky blue velvet chaise
lounge, perfect for lying on and listening to records on a moody day. A few
modern art prints are scattered on the walls and there is a pair of end tables
that match the coffee table and are adorned with sleek metal and glass table
lamps.

For the
first time since I left Connecticut, I almost feel at home. A million thoughts
about how and why flood my mind but I push them all away. The only thing I allow
myself to feel right now is appreciation, and maybe, just maybe, the first
tentative blossoms of love. I turn to face
Lex
, who
is watching me intently. It only takes a few steps to close the gap between us.
His eyes widen slightly as I reach up and take hold of the lapels of his
leather jacket. I can hear his breath go ragged and I like that I can
effect
a man that way.

I have
to stand on my toes to be able to look into his eyes, our faces only inches
apart. We both keep our eyes open as I lean forward and touch my lips to his.
He doesn't react at first and I'm afraid that I've misjudged his feelings, but
his hesitation doesn't last long.
Lex
melts into the
kiss, his arms wrap around my body and he pulls tight against his chest. I open
my mouth and allow him access. His tongue delves into my mouth, deepening the
kiss. My body burns a throbbing endless heat, as if my every cell is on fire.

Lex
lifts me off the floor and
suddenly we're on the couch, his body pressed firmly on top of mine. His lips
break away from mine and travel down my face and neck. I exhale a soft moan as
he kisses every bare inch of my skin above the conservative neckline of my
dress.

"Evan,"
he whispers into the curve of my neck. Slowly,
Lex
pulls away and looks into my eyes. I wait for him to speak, but he's silent. I
watch a multitude of emotions dance across the inky black surface of eyes, eyes
that seem entirely consumed by his dilated black pupils. His jaw clenches and I
can sense the internal debate raging inside him. Finally, his expression
relaxes as if he's made up his mind. I don't need to ask what he was thinking
or what his decision was, because suddenly his lips are pressed to mine,
forcing my mouth open, his kiss full of an untamed, burning hunger that matches
my own.

As we
kiss, his hands slide down my sides and grasp my hips, pulling me closer, but
it's not close enough. My thighs part and I wrap my legs around his waist.
Lex
groans feverishly into my mouth and he presses into me.
He breaks away from our kiss and glides his tongue along the hollow of my
throat and takes gentle nips with his teeth at the skin there.

I throw
my head back and moan
,
my eyes so clouded with passion
that it takes a second before I notice that the bulb in the lamp on the end
table is flickering on and off. My body stiffens when I realize that all the
lights in the room are doing the same thing. As soon as I make the connection
it stops.
Lex
freezes. Slowly, he raises his head to
meet my gaze.

"What
is it?" he whispers hoarsely. "Did I do something wrong?" His
face is wrinkled with concern. He places one hand on either side of my head and
pushes himself up so that he's looking directly into my eyes.

"No,"
I breathe out, my body relaxing. "It's not you."

"I'm
so sorry, Evan," he says, pulling away and moving so that he's sitting up.
"I let myself get carried away." I watch as he leans forward and
presses
his hands to his face, his shoulders tight with
guilt.

"
Lex
, stop it," I say, raising myself so that I'm
sitting beside him. I gently take his hands and pull them away from his face,
forcing him to look me in the eye. "Everything that just happened, I
wanted. So don't go trying to be noble..."

"Noble?"
he laughs, the tension melting from his body. "I'm as far from noble as it
gets." A playful smile tugs at his lips as he pulls me into his lap so
that I'm straddling him. His hand traces the contour of my neck then snakes
through my hair. My eyes flutter closed and electricity pops under my skin as
he guides my mouth to his, drawing my bottom lip between his teeth and biting
down gently. I gasp and my eyes fly open in time to see every light bulb in the
room burst.
Lex
pulls back, his eyes hooded with
desire, a sexy grin on his lips. I exhale a sigh, wishing the moment didn't
have to end.

"
Lex
, there's something I have to tell you."

.

"Magic?"
Lex
raises his eyebrow incredulously.

"I
know it sounds crazy, but I don't know how else to describe it," I reply,
not quite believing it myself.

"Evan,
it's not that I don't believe you, but, don't you think that maybe what you
claim to be experiencing..."

"Is
some sort of psychological or physical damage from the accident?" I
answer, cutting him off. "Of course I've thought about that. But it's not,
Lex
. Here," I say, taking his hand in mine and
closing my eyes. I inhale deeply. As I exhale I send a surge of power from my
mind all the way down to my fingertips and into
Lex
.
It comes so naturally to me now that it's almost frightening. I open my eyes
and find Lex's wide-eyed stare. To my surprise, he's grinning.

"So,
the rumors are true."

"Rumors?"
I ask, swallowing hard. I drop his hand and recoil into myself.

"No,
Evan, nothing unkind," he replies, taking my hand again. "There have
been rumors for a while that Ms. Price was about to come into a powerful
magical object. Nobody could have known that it was a girl."

"In
possession of?" I sputter. I yank my hand from his grip and stand,
wrapping my arms around myself. "My parents died. I was made to come live
here. I'm not some object. What does that even mean, anyway? Who the hell are
you people?" Tears spill down my cheeks unbidden.
Lex
jumps up and takes hold of my shoulders in an attempt to get me to look at him,
but I can't.

"I'm
sorry, that's not how I meant it," he pleads, his grip on me tightening in
desperation. I try to pull away, but he holds on and I'm too weak right now to
fight any harder.

"Is
that...is that why you've shown so much interest in me?" I whisper
hoarsely. "Because I might be magic, or because I might know about some
object..." A sob catches in my throat, cutting me off.

"Christ,
no. It's because..." He pauses and bites his lip as he searches his mind
for the right explanation. I hope it's a good one, because the idea of losing
him is too much for me to process. We barely know each other, but already he's
a lifeline for me. The sudden realization of how deep my feelings for him have
become is like a slap in the face.

Lex
breathes in deeply before
speaking. "When I first heard you were coming to stay, I was curious. Over
the years, I've seen many pictures of you, in Magda's office. Pictures your
mother sent, and Magda kept. I've heard stories about you growing up, heard
rumors about your potential. So, I came to find you."

I blink
rapidly, trying to keep fresh tears from spilling. I raise my gaze to meet his.
"I thought you said that you had business?" I ask, my voice
surprisingly steady.

Lex
lets out a breathy laugh and
looks away, embarrassment plain on his face.

"I-uh,"
he stammers. "There was no other business." His eyes find mine again
and I feel my face go pink under the intensity of his gaze. "I came here
that day with the sole purpose of meeting you, nothing more. But, when I saw
you that day in the hall, when I touched you. Evan," he breathed,
"something inside of me was awoken. I had to know you. And when you kissed
me? It was more than I could have hoped for."

He
raises my hand to his lips and kisses it gently before pressing my palm to his
cheek. All of my apprehension fades away. At this second, there's nothing else
in the world besides us; I revel in the feeling.

"Evan,
I have to tell you..."

"No,
don't," I plead. "Not yet. If there's another secret or a lie that
needs explaining, I don't want to hear it right now. Can you just..."

Lex
pulls me into his arms before I
can finish. He presses his face to my hair and holds me as if he's afraid I'll
dissolve without the pressure. I let the warmth of his body envelop me, and the
beat of his heart still the storm inside of me. For one moment, for one
afternoon, it's perfect.

After
Lex's revelation about Magda I had a million questions, but I had to wait
because he was called away to some business or other. He promised to come by
the next day, and he did.

We take
a long walk through the apple orchards that lie beyond the garden. I soak in
the peaceful vibe that I always feel out here. The sun filters lazily through
the tree limbs and a light breeze stirs the leaves. The petals from the young
apple blossoms fall around us like soft pink snow. A stray petal catches in my
hair and
Lex
stops to pluck it out.

I feel
a tiny warm bubble swell in my stomach whenever he's so close. I have to try
hard to resist the temptation to throw my arms around his neck and pull him
down in to the grass and ravage him.
Answers
first, then ravaging
, I think, smiling to myself.

"So,
Price Industries is what, exactly?" I begin, biting my bottom lip to keep
the flow of questions to one at a time.

Lex
gives a half smile, his eyes
straying to my lip caught between my teeth. I let it loose and he smirks.
"The name is sort of misleading, on purpose," he says finally,
directing his gaze to the path in front of us. "We deal with art and
antiquities."

Just
like my parents. The realization hits me and leaves me a little breathless, but
I put that thought aside for dwelling on later.

"But,
you said that you had heard about her coming into some magical object? Is this
a normal thing?" I ask, having only a vague notion of what this might have
to do with art and antiques.

"Yes,"
Lex
replies. He's suddenly very interested in the
rough, peeling bark of a birch tree at the side of the trail. We're at the edge
of the orchard where things turn wild and the forest eats up our path.

"
Lex
, you're going to have to be a little more forthcoming
than that." I place my hand on his shoulder and gently urge him to turn
and look at me. Our eyes meet and I can see a world of pain in them. He reaches
up and brushes his fingers along the side of my neck before dipping them below
my collar. I breathe in sharply, painfully curious of what he might do. Instead
of continuing to touch me, his index finger loops around the chain of my
necklace. Gingerly, he pulls my pendant from its hiding place.

"The
first time I saw you wearing this," he says quietly, "the day I took
you to the record store, I was shocked. I had only ever seen sketches of it.
It's supposed to be lost and we've been looking for it for a long time."

The
warmth I always feel near him evaporates. An unnatural calm settles over me and
I take a step back.
Lex
lets the pendant fall against
my chest. His eyes travel up to meet mine, and the pain there breaks my heart.
Even so, I resist the urge to wrap my arms around him and, instead, wrap them
around myself. He's waiting for me to say something, but I stay silent. I don't
want to make this easy for him, because it's not easy for me. Not by a long
shot.

"There
are so many things that I won't be able to tell you,"
Lex
says, his voice almost pleading.

"Then
tell me what you can," I snap, unable to tolerate any excuses from him,
from anybody, anymore. If one more person lies to me I swear I can't be held
accountable for how I react.
Lex
seems to understand
this and find it amusing; his lips curl into a tiny smirk. "I told you
before that I don't want to lie to you, and I won't. But, you'll have to allow
me some omissions."

I start
to protest, but he closes the tiny distance between us in one smooth motion and
places his hands on my waist. The warmth is back and it's hotter than ever. I
give my head a slight shake to clear away the fog that his touch put there.

He
leans down and rests his forehead against mine. "I can't tell you everything,
but I can promise that someday this will all make sense." I don't like it,
but I nod in understanding, anyway, because I believe him.

"So,"
I begin, biting down on my bottom lip again, his grip on my waist tightening,
"what does my necklace have to do with anything? Why are you, or I should
say, why were you looking for it?"

"Honestly,"
he replies smiling wryly, "and I am being honest, I don't know."

I groan
in frustration. "
Lex
..."

Lex
presses the tips of his fingers
against my lips, hushing me. "Let me finish. I rarely ever get so much as
an explanation for a task I'm assigned, and I never have a reason to question
anything I'm told. Until now." He pauses, letting his words sink in.
"It's kind of crazy actually. I've spent the last three years looking for
that necklace, and then you show up and there it is." His gaze drops to
the stone then lifts back to mine, a question in his eyes. I know exactly what
he's thinking.

"Yes,"
I say answering his unspoken question. "I started to "change"
the moment I opened the box my mother left me and pulled this thing out."

We both
drop our eyes to the necklace where it sits unassuming on top of my black Hold
Steady t-shirt. With shaking hands I reach up and unclasp the chain.

"Here,"
I say, offering the necklace to
Lex
, proud that I'm
managing to keep my hands steady. He hesitates, so I press it into his hand and
step back. I feel queasy letting go of the last thing my mom gave me, but I
suddenly can't bear to look at it anymore. If it ended my involvement in
whatever was going on here, then I'm glad to be rid of it.

Lex
stares at the stone, apparently
dumbfounded.

"Look,
if that's what you all have been searching for," I gesture to the necklace
in his hand, "
then
there you go. I don't want in.
Maybe things will go back to normal now and I can move on with my life." I
start to walk away when something occurs to me. I backtrack my steps and stop
in front of
Lex
who is still standing where I left
him. His expression is glazed over, as if he's trying to work out something
really complicated. "
Lex
, tell me
something." He blinks and his expression clears. He nods once, letting me
know he's listening. "If you knew I had that, then wouldn't Magda have
known I had that?"

His
eyes widen slightly, and it becomes clear what he was just thinking about so
hard. "I would be more surprised if she didn't,"
Lex
says finally, his voice quiet and tinged with defeat.

"And
you said before that there were rumors about some object, some magical object.
Is that it?" I ask, gesturing again to the necklace. He starts to shake
his head no, but stops, his mouth falling slightly open.

I can't
stop the panic that fills my chest and the tears that fill my eyes.

"Do
you think," I choke out, the tears falling freely, "do you think that
she knew, that Magda knew that my parents were going to..." I trail off,
unable to finish the sentence.
The taste of salt washes over
my lips and the soft sunlight that's shining over us is cut off by a black
cloud that's wandering by, leaving us enshrouded in shadow
.

"I
don't see how that's possible."
Lex
replies
softly. He takes a tentative step toward me. When I don't move he wraps his arm
around my shoulders and pulls me close. "Besides, the rumors all indicated
that it would happen in December. A lot of it is fishy, but everything I heard
was very clear that Magda was expecting something to come on December 18
^th
."

I grow
still, my
body suddenly ice
cold. I slowly start to
shake my head but it doesn't stop the thought from forming.

"Evan?"
Lex
asks gently. He places his finger under my chin
and tilts my head so that I'm forced to look into his eyes.

"December
18
^th
is my eighteenth birthday," I whisper. "What does
that mean
Lex
?"

When he
doesn't respond, I pull away from him and begin backing away. Without so much
as a backward glance, or a second thought, I turn and break into a run. I'm not
exactly sure what it is I'm running from, but I desperately need to think and
running is the only way I can anymore. The world rushes by in a blur and I tune
out all sound except for the crush of dirt beneath my feet and the echo of my
footsteps.

I don't
stop until I reach the edge of the lake. There isn't a single swimming pool at
the estate, but it does have its own lake, and it's the color of green glass in
some spots and turquoise in others. There's a handy little plaque that explains
how
the coloring is caused by bacteria
but, with recent
developments, I'm not so sure if I believe that.

I can
feel Lex's presence nearby, even though I didn't hear him come after me, but I
don't acknowledge him. Instead, I close my eyes and inhale, easily pulling the
energy in the air toward me until I can feel it vibrate against my skin, aching
to come inside. I remember that I'm no longer wearing the necklace; I'm doing
this all on my own. With a sharp intake of breath, I let the energy flow in to
me in one controlled, intense, rush. I am overcome with the heady feeling of
oneness.

My eyes
close as I allow myself to feel everything. In my mind I conjure a scene of
white-pink petals raining down on me. I feel the breeze begin to pick up and I
concentrate harder on the image. My heart thrums against my rib cage as the
power inside me swells and erupts.

The
scent of apple blossoms fills the air and my eyes snap open. The air around me
is consumed in a cyclone of delicate flower petals. I can almost hear them
whisper to me; can almost feel their delight. I take another deep breath and,
exhaling, pitch my arms forward sending the blossoms scattering over the
surface of the lake.

The
power I feel evaporates slightly, but I can still feel it there, a gentle
vibration just below the surface of my consciousness, and it's like nothing
I've experienced. I turn to look for
Lex
only to find
him standing just a few feet away. I blush slightly, but not because I'm
embarrassed, but because I am so incredibly turned on.
Lex
might be repulsed by me
,
he might think I'm a freak, but I don't really give a fuck.

I tilt
my jaw up and look deeply into his eyes. What I find there is not repulsion or
even fear; there is only desire. He closes the gap between us in an inhuman
instant and grabs hold of my hips, pulling them hard against his own. His mouth
seeks and finds mine, and he kisses me with a desperate hunger that I match
eagerly. I feel his hands inch up under my t-shirt, searing my skin with
delicious white heat as he glides them over my bare skin. Too soon,
Lex
pulls back from our kiss and presses his face to the
curve of my neck, inhaling deeply. A soft, animalistic moan, muffled by my
skin, escapes his lips.

"What
is it?" I breathe. "What's wrong?"

Lex
raises his head slightly so he
can speak. "You smell amazing." I feel his lips curl against my skin,
his breath icy hot as he inhales deeply and exhales making me shiver.

"Yeah?"
I whisper, a foreign huskiness in my voice. "What do I smell like?"

"Cedar.
And lilac. And chocolate." I shiver again, something that will probably embarrass
me when I remember this later. Right now, it's all I can do not to melt into a
puddle on the bank of this lake.

"You
can smell all that on my skin?" my voice trembling slightly when I speak.

"No,"
he answers, raising his head until his mouth is close to my ear. "In your
blood."

I
should be afraid, I should be damn near terrified, but I lean in closer,
diminishing the already miniscule space between us. Lex's grip on me tightens
and he presses his face into my neck again. I feel his tongue, hot and rough,
run along the vein that throbs there. He pauses, his breath still.

"Evan,"
Lex
whispers after a tense second, "I'm afraid
I..."

"Going
for a stroll?" The deep, gruff voice cuts through the air like fire
consuming oxygen. Lex's body stiffens against mine. Slowly, he straightens up,
pausing to look deeply in my eyes before stepping away. When his hands fall
from my sides I feel weak with ache and longing. The feeling quickly gives way
to an intense fury that I am prepared to unleash on the unwelcome stranger. As
if sensing my emotions, Lex's hand shoots out and grabs mine, his touch
instantly calming me. Even so, I'm still pissed.

I
clench my jaw and turn to see a tall, breathtakingly beautiful man, with sandy
brown hair and
eyes
the color of nickel, standing
cockily just a few feet away. A white thermal t-shirt clings snugly to his
broad shoulders and tapers to a narrow waist. He's wearing tight jeans and
brown leather boots and can't be older than twenty-five. Maybe twenty-six. He
flashes me a golden smile, but his eyes are hard and unyielding.

"Anders.
Good to see you,"
Lex
says through his own
clenched jaw.