Life's Blood (The Cordelia Chronicles) (2 page)

“Fine,” I huffed, kicking a stone with the tip of my shoe. “Whatever.”

“I promise you’re going to have a great day,” Chaseyn said, brushing a stray hair behind my ear and tugging me toward his car.

***

We’d been driving for about an hour, when Chaseyn handed me a silk scarf.

“What’s this for?”

“Go ahead. Put it on,” he instructed, and I proceeded to knot the scarf around my neck. “Um, not quite what I had in mind. Use it as a blindfold.”

“Huh? That’s ridiculous,” I laughed, but Chaseyn kept a straight face. “Alright, I’ll do it. But if I have to wear this thing longer than ten minutes, all bets are off.”

Considering we were in the middle of nowhere, surrounded only by farmers’ fields, I felt fairly confident I was finally going to get my way. Until I felt the gas pedal accelerate. Chaseyn had rapid-fire reflexes and outstanding control. He could negotiate even the sharpest hairpin turns at unfathomable speeds. Though I hated when he indulged in such dangerous pursuits, I knew I only had myself to blame. I had given him an ultimatum after all. Ten minutes…what a rush.

After a moment or two of death-defying driving, I felt the engine start to slow. We were no longer on the open road. Stoplights…we were in the city. 

“We’re almost there,“ Chaseyn said, his words were laced with excitement. “I know you’re anxious to remove the scarf, but give me two minutes after we stop to get organized, okay?”

“Okay,” I whispered. He had clearly gone to a lot of trouble to plan this day. A few minutes of patience was the least I could do in return.

The sounds of the city swept past me--cars honking, children screaming with excitement--and then there was silence. We were on the outskirts, traveling farther from the din. And then, without warning, the car rolled to a stop, and Chaseyn cut the engine. We were there…middle-of-nowhere North America. I went to release the scarf when I heard Chaseyn make a chastising “tsk” sound.

“Not yet,” he pleaded. “You promised.”

I listened for the sound of his door opening and closing, but it never came. Still, I knew he had exited the vehicle--clearly he had jumped over the side. I loved it when he did that--like something out of one of those old fifties movies. I did, however, hear the unmistakable thwump of the trunk pop open and the rustling of bags and boxes as Chaseyn prepared the site. All the while I was silently counting to 120 in my head.

“One hundred ten Mississip--,” I warned, but before I could finish the final syllable, Chaseyn was at my side scooping me over the side of the open-top car.

“I told you two minutes, and I always keep true to my word,” he whispered against my lips, his voice low and gravelly. “Close your eyes.”

I melted against Chaseyn’s chest and did what he said, unable to resist the urge to press my lips against his. He worked his fingers through the knot securing the blindfold behind my head, and I felt the smooth, cool silk slide across my closed eyelids and down my nose. As my feet hit the ground, Chaseyn turned my body so my back was pressed against his hard chest. He buried his chin at the nape of my neck, wrapped his arms across my waist and told me to open my eyes.

I gasped at the beauty of the lush landscape spread before me. We were standing at a cliff ledge overlooking a rolling valley, green with the overgrown grasses and colorful wildflowers of late summer. At the base of the cliff, there was a herd of deer frolicking and feeding, oblivious to the fact we were watching them from high above. I felt an unmistakable joy at sharing this most spectacular site with my one and only.

“This is amazing,” I mused, leaning my head hard against Chasyen’s chest. Our eyes met, and I felt my heart flip inside my chest. An electricity sizzled between us as we gazed deeply into each other’s eyes. I wanted to stay this way forever--lost in this moment alone here with Chaseyn. The rest of the world seemed a million miles away, like we were in another time an place altogether.

The caw of a crow as it soared overhead snapped us from our silent reverie. Chaseyn was the first to tear away his gaze, and I turned my head to follow his stare. A few feet away, he had spread a red gingham blanket complete with the clichéd wicker picnic basket. It was like something out of a fairytale, and I couldn’t help the Cheshire-cat grin that spread wide across my face.

“Sit,” Chaseyn instructed, fanning his arm toward the blanket. “Today is all about you.”

“Sounds great,” I giggled as I sat cross-legged on the blanket, smoothing away the pebbles beneath the blanket.

Chaseyn kneeled next to me and began lifting contents from the basket--tuna sandwiches, pickles, macaroni salad, a thermos filled with minestrone soup, and coleslaw. He handed my a paper plate and napkin before telling me to dig in. I started piling food onto the plate while he poured us each a glass of sweetened iced tea, complete with a lemon wedge.

“Did you make all this yourself?” I asked teasingly. I knew Chaseyn had never so much as buttered a slice of bread his entire life. His mother, Mina, had more than catered to his every whim and wish--not to mention she was a master of the culinary arts, despite the fact that she herself dined solely on platelets and hemoglobin.

“I helped,” he replied, taking his eyes from the task at hand to look me in mine, as though he knew I’d never believe him if he didn’t stare me straight in the eye. “No, really. I did.”

“Uh, huh,” I said. “What did you do, stir the soup?”

“No. I grated the cabbage for the coleslaw.”

I was much more impressed than I would have been had anyone else given me the response. But, knowing Chaseyn’s aversion to being in the kitchen, I was actually quite overcome by his gesture. He was smiling so big with pride I thought the apples of his cheeks would burst.

“I’m touched,” I said, holding my hand over my heart. “You must really care about me.”

“Silly girl, I love you,” he said, leaning in to place a gentle kiss on my cheek.

I loved when he used outdated expressions. It reminded me of the innocence of the “olden days” my grandma told stories about when we watched the old black-and-white movies she had enjoyed so much as a kid.

“Well, I guess you’re kinda okay yourself,” I replied, through a mouthful of sandwich. I shrugged and washed down the sandwich with a big gulp of iced tea.

“Whatever,” Chaseyn replied, trying his best to seem like he didn’t care one way or the other, but I knew he was squirming underneath his cool demeanor. Even after everything we had been through together, he still doubted that I could love him as much as he loved me.

“I’m just teasing you,” I said, shoving his shoulder playfully. “How can you still be so insecure?”

“I’m working on it,” he replied bashfully before sweeping me to his side.

“I’m glad.”

We sat in silence for a while, enjoying the serenity of our surroundings and each other’s company. We’d had a shaky couple of days, and we desperately needed this time to decompress.

When we were done eating lunch, Chaseyn pulled a rhubarb pie from the basket and cut each of us a generous portion. I had eaten so much was sure I would bust the button off my jeans before I took my last bite, which would be such a shame since these were my favorite pair.

By the time we were done, the mid-day sun was beating strong upon us. Between the heat and the weight of our heavy meal bearing down on me, I felt my eyelids begin to droop. Chaseyn must have sensed my exhaustion because he laid flat on his back and urged me to slide up beside him, laying my head on his chest. Soon, the steady sound of his heartbeat and the gentle pull of his fingers as his stroked my hair lulled me into a deep sleep.

Hours passed before Chaseyn’s gentle touch woke me from my slumber. He must have dozed off too because when I opened my eyes, he looked back at me through hooded lids.

“Hey, love, I hate to wake you, but we’ve got to get going soon, and there’s something I need to show you before we head home,” he said, planting a kiss on my forehead.

“Hmmm,” I mumbled. “Do we have to?”

“This is really important to me, and I think you’re really going to like it too,” he replied as he pushed up on his elbows. My head slid down his chest as he did.

“I like surprises,” I said, as I smoothed my hair. Not that it helped.

Chaseyn got up and walked to the edge of the cliff. He squinted his eyes and pointed a finger.

“See that?” he asked.

“See what?”

“That. Over there.”

“What? Over where?”

We were starting to sound like an Abbott and Costello skit. And we both started laughing. Chaseyn regained his composure first, and he walked to the car, grabbing a pair of binoculars from the glove compartment of the Mustang.

“Here,” he said. “I forget you don’t have the added benefit of vampire blood running through your veins and improving your eyesight. Guess I should have picked a better spot to park.”

I was glad he hadn’t. This was the perfect spot, and it had been the perfect afternoon. But I didn’t say anything. I just took the binoculars and peered into the distance.

“What am I looking for exactly?” I asked.

“See the little log cabin?”

“Oh yeah. It’s cute. Do you know the people who live there?”

“I sure do,” he said with a grin. “And so do you.”

“I do? Really?” I asked. “Who is it?”

“Us.”

***

I suddenly felt woozy. Perhaps it was the heat from the sun, but I doubted it. I think it was the shock of the words Chaseyn had just uttered. The binoculars feel to the ground, and I soon followed suit.

“Cordelia? Are you alright?” Chaseyn shouted as he caught my body before it hit the ground. “Love?”

As I slipped into an unconscious state, all I could think about was how much I loved the way that word rolled off his tongue…
love
. I could listen to him say that over and over again every day for the rest of my life. And as I slumped limp in his arms, I hoped that’s exactly what would happen. He would call me that every day, until the day we died. Moving in together was the first step toward making that dream come true. It was a big step, but it was inevitable. My eyes opened, and I felt him exhale a hug breath.

“Thank goodness,” he sighed. “I thought you’d fainted.”

“I think I did,” I replied breathlessly. “That was one heck of a surprise.”

“I know you were planning to live in residence at school, but the thought of being away from you was too much for me to bear,” he explained. “This place was on the market, and it’s just a short drive from town…”

“My mom is gonna freak when she finds out.”

“So that’s a ‘yes’? You’ll move in with me?”

“Of course I will Chaseyn, but there is no way my mom is going to be okay with it. She’ll never let us live together in sin.”

And like that, Chaseyn dropped to his knee. The pink glow of the setting sun silhouetting him. He reached into his jeans’ pocket and pulled out a little velvet box. He popped the lid to reveal a brilliant cut diamond in an etched white gold setting with two smaller diamonds on each side. Nothing too flashy. I wasn’t that kind of girl.

“I know, Cordelia, but I can’t stand to spend even one day without you at my side. You are my love, my life, and I want to spend forever with you--whatever forever comes to mean for us. Will you be my wife?”

“Oh, Chaseyn,” I said, my lip quivering and eyes filling with tears as I dropped to my knees across from him. “What will everyone think?”

“I don’t really care what anyone else will think. You’re the only one that matters to me.”

“I don’t know what to say,” I said, nuzzling my face against his chest.

“Say you’ll marry me,” he whispered as he wrapped his arms around me. I could feel the small box where his hands pressed against my back.

I simply nodded my reply. Slowly, hesitantly, at first, and then I drew back so he could see my face as my actions became more exuberant.

“Of course I’ll marry you, Chaseyn,” I blurted, and he kissed me hard. My lips tingled with the passion and heat. “But not until I graduate from university.”

“I don’t care when or where, just as long as you will one day be my wife,” he shouted, pulling me to my feet. He pulled the ring from the box and slipped it on my finger--a perfect fit.

“I sized your finger with a piece of string one day while you were napping,” he said, as it he could read my mind. We were so in sync I sometimes thought he could.

“I’m serious, Chaseyn. We’re not getting married until I’ve crossed some pretty basic items off my to-do list, so don‘t get too excited,” I warned.

“I hear what you’re saying, and I am in total agreement. Now let’s go take a look at
our
new place.”

***

A short drive later, Chaseyn and I were standing on the front porch of our soon-to-be home together. The words sounded weird on my tongue,
our home
, but they were so sweet. Chaseyn jiggled his key in the lock and twisted the knob, swinging open the door to the log cabin. I started to put one foot in front of the other to take my first steps inside when Chaseyn lifted me into his arms.