Origins (A Black Novel, #1) (11 page)

“I look forward to it. Good night, Adelin,” he whispers before turning and sauntering back toward the woods.

I sigh deeply and walk into the house, stopping at the appearance of Sera standing in the entranceway with her hands on her hips in a posture of annoyance. “I thought I told you to stay away from him!” she explodes as the door swings shut.

“
Y
ou didn’t
tell
me to stay away from him,” I mumble.

“You’re right, I didn’t tell you it, it was more of a suggestion. One I thought you’d listen to!” Her voice softens as she steps closer. “He’s dangerous. I don’t want to see you get hurt.”

“Vraiden’s not going to hurt me.”

“How do you know that? Did
he
tell you that? Do you have any idea what he’s done in the past?!” Her expression is a cross between anger and concern.

“I trust him and yes, I know what he’s done,” I whisper.

“
He told you?
” she asks, unabashed.

“Why is that so hard to believe? Yes, he told me. I know I don’t know him very well but I trust him and I know he wouldn’t hurt me.

If that was what he wanted he would have done it by now.”

“I wouldn’t be so sure about that,” she sighs, “but it’s your decision.

If you say you trust him then I trust your decision. Now, go get some sleep. I’m going to be pretty busy tomorrow- Moira is planning a party on Friday and I agreed to help. You’re invited, of course, and I’d love it if you’d attend.”

“Of course I will. G’night, Sera.”

“Night, Adelin,” she replies with a smile and a kiss to my cheek.

I sleep fitfully, tossing and turning throughout the night. I wake up several times, anxious and wanting- though not sure whether it was because of Vraiden, or my changing….or both. Thankfully, there had been no nightmares- at least that I could remember. When I wake in the morning, a soft yellow glow peeking in through the curtain edges, I feel expended, like all my energy had been used up and left me empty. Hoping a shower will help to freshen me up, I shuffle into the restroom and blast the hot water full force before climbing in.

The heat runs out and I’m left standing under nothing but a cold spray that I barely even notice. It takes me several minutes to gather the motivation to climb out, and when I do, I stand dripping onto the cold floor as I towel off. I slowly replace my wrinkled blue nightshirt with a clean grey tank top and search out a pair of my comfortable black yoga pants to pull on. Feeling no more energized than when I woke up, I decide to try food in the hopes that breakfast would perk me up.

Downstairs in the kitchen I search through the refrigerator and cupboards for something that looks appealing but I come up empty handed. I finally settle on a small glass of orange juice and a plain bagel that I eat slowly. The bagel tastes like I’d imagine cardboard would- room temperature, heavy and tough to swallow- and the orange juice isn’t much better. When I finish eating I place my dishes in the sink and give up, deciding to go back to bed. At least there I won’t have to find anything to do. Once in bed I pull the covers up to my chin and sigh. Too worn out to get up but too awake to sleep I stare, unmoving, at the ceiling. I watch as the soft yellow glow evolves into a brilliant white gleam before shrinking once more into yellow as the day crawls by.

“Adelin?” Sera calls with a soft knock on the door.

“It’s open,” I grumble.

She steps into the room, a skeptical look on her face as she catches sight of me. “Are you all right?”

“I’m fine,” I sigh. “I’m just worn out.”

“Your body’s probably just trying to get used to the change.” She walks over and sits down carefully beside my feet on the bed and places a hand on my knee. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you more about what to expect. I was upset. I didn’t get the chance to choose and, if I had, I wouldn’t have chosen this life. Although now I’m glad I am what I am because I finally get to see you. I don’t want this life for you. I want you to live a full, normal, healthy life. I want you to grow up and be happy. I want you to have your own normal, mortal children, not a family of Immortals.”

“I know Mom but it’s not your choice. It’s mine and I need to know everything so I can choose what’s best for
me
.”

“You’re right,” she replies with a nod. “It’s your choice. I just want you to be happy.”

“Thank you for understanding.”

“Do you have any plans for tonight or would you like to watch a movie together? We could talk some more,” she offers, changing the subject.

“Actually, I promised Vraiden I’d meet him later. Wait— ” I say, holding up a hand at her expression. “I know that you don’t like him, or trust him, but I do and he hasn’t done anything to make me think otherwise. Please, just trust me.”

“I’ll try,” she murmurs, “ but if he does anything to hurt you I’ll kill him myself.”

I smile. “Fair enough.”

“If you don’t have plans tomorrow we could go to the mainland to get a dress for Moira’s party?”

“I’d love to,” I reply.

She looks at the clock on my bedside table. “What time are you meeting Vraiden?”

“Nine.”

“Then you’d better get up- unless the two of you are planning to spend the night in bed?” She arches an eyebrow devilishly.

“I can’t believe you just said that!” I exclaim, eyes wide. I swat at her playfully as she dances up off the bed and out the door laughing.

Dragging myself from bed I take a quick shower to try and rid myself of the funk I was in, as well as cure my bed head. Climbing out, I wrap myself in a towel and take time to blow-dry my hair before scouring my closet. I stand there confused as I try to find something appropriate to wear. I’m not sure if tonight counted as a “date” or not. Hell, I wasn’t even sure if either of us wanted to consider a

“date” which made finding something to wear extremely difficult. A dress felt too suggestive, my slacks all too formal, and jeans too casual. I decide that casual seems the best way to go, especially since I don’t want him to assume too much. Picking out my nicest pair of dark denim jeans, I couple it with my favorite mint green V-neck and top it off with a pair of sandals. I am just fastening the straps on my shoes when the doorbell rings. After giving myself a quick once-over I head downstairs.

Sera has already answered the door and I can hear her attempting polite conversation as I begin to walk down the steps. Vraiden stands amicably in the open doorway, dressed in a pair of dark, low slung jeans and an untucked black button-up. The sleeves of his shirt are rolled up a quarter of the way, exposing his taut forearms as he leans casually against the doorframe. He looks devilishly handsome, exactly the kind of guy you didn’t bring home to meet your parents. His eyes flick towards me and follow me down the stairs, a slight smile hinting at the corner of his perfect mouth. The heat from his blue eyes makes me feel like he can see right through my clothes and I falter on the bottom step, barely catching myself before I fall. The smug expression on his face both infuriates me and embarrasses me and I blush uncontrollably.

He bows slightly as I reach the door. “Adelin,” he says seductively.

“Vraiden,” I reply with a shy smile.

“All ready?”

“Yes. Night, Mom,” I say as I give her a quick peck on the cheek.

“Good night Adelin. Vraiden.” Her voice is tight, controlled and I remind myself to thank her later for not making too big of a deal.

“Have a good evening, Sera,” Vraiden responds as he turns and offers me his arm. I can feel her narrowed eyes on us all the way to his Jeep.

“Where are we going?” I ask curiously once we’re both seated inside and moving.

“Well, this would work better if we were outside but you said no woods so we’re going to my place. I have a terrace in my bedroom.

Don’t worry,” he continues before I can open my mouth. “My mother is on the mainland with some guests. She won’t bug us and my father’s still out on business.”

“It’s not your mother I’m worried about,” I mutter.

“It’s either that or the woods…..”

“Is it too late to change my mind?” I grumble.

“I’m going to pretend I didn’t hear that,” he replies with a wink as we pull up in front of his house. He helps me down from the Jeep and leads me inside and up an extravagant set of stairs. The second floor is similar to the downstairs except instead of chandeliers there are wall lights set every few feet. The lights twinkle down onto the white marble floor, making the hallway appear longer than it actually is. At the top of the steps Vraiden steers me to the left and we head down the hall to a heavy wooden door at the end.

“My bedroom, mi’lady,” He pushes open the door and bows deeply before straightening and flashing me a sly wink.

I walk in and stop, shocked at my surroundings. His bedroom is immense- easily twice the size of my room at Sera’s- and is darkly decorated. The hardwood floor is a deep, rich red-brown, most likely mahogany, as is the woodwork on the opulent bed and other furniture. A large Oriental rug in deep shades of blue, red and green stretches across the room, disappearing beneath the bed. The bed itself is dressed seductively with red silk sheets and a span of dark blue duvet. Along one entire wall sits bookshelves, filled to the brim with ancient looking books. It’s not at all what I had expected.

Directly across from where we entered is a series of French doors accented with bright red curtains. Each set of doors is propped open, the curtains gently flapping in the night breeze, allowing a hint of what appeared to be a rather large balcony.

“What do you think?” Vraiden asks, shutting the door to lean back against it as he gestures widely with one arm. “Do you like it?” Like it? I’m entranced by it. If the devil had a bedroom, this is what it would look like- only instead of bookshelves, there would be chains and shackles. Not that I’d much mind that either. The air is thick, electrified. Not trusting myself to speak I nod my approval.

“Better than the woods?”

“Much,” I say after clearing my throat.

“Well don’t be shy….make yourself comfortable. I figured we could do this out on the terrace if that’s all right?” He pauses to take off his shoes then walks across the room towards the open doors, trusting me to follow. I hesitate, leaving my sandals on, and then join him outside. The air is slightly warmer up here, for which I’m grateful since I didn’t bring a jacket. The balcony is decorated with a small black wrought iron patio table and chairs, along with two decent sized benches covered in thick red upholstery. Vraiden takes a seat on one of the benches and motions for me to follow suit.

He turns to look at me as I sit. “Before we begin there’s something I’d like to ask you. My mother is throwing a party this Friday night…” I nod. “Sera mentioned it.”

“The party takes place once a year, the first week of July, in celebration of Immortality. It’s always a big deal and Immortals from all over the world show up to attend.”

“Really? Why the first week of July?” I interrupt again.

“I’ll answer your question but first answer mine. Will you come with me to the party?”

“I already told my mom I’d go. We’re supposed to go shopping tomorrow,” I reply.

“No, I meant will you come
with me
? As my date?” His voice is sexy, confident.

“As your…?” I gulp. A date? Vraiden was asking me on a date? And to a huge, no doubt fancy, party?

“Yes, my date,” he clarifies with a coy smile.

“I—Uh….” I stutter as a blush creeps over my face.

“I’ll beg if you’d like…..”

“No, no begging. I’ll go with you,” I say, squaring my shoulders as I try to maintain some of my dignity. I doubt I’d be able to turn him down if I wanted to.

“Thank you,” he beams. His smile is bright enough that it could be used to direct a plane in the dark, making my mouth turn upwards automatically in response.

“What time should I pick you up Friday?”

“That’s not necessary. I’ll just get a ride with Sera and meet you here.”

“Are you sure?” he asks with a frown.

“Yes, I’m sure. What kind of sense does it make for you to come pick me up when the party’s here, at your house?”

“Point made. All right, you can meet me here….but that means you’ll have to guess who I am.” His eyes twinkle mischievously.

“Huh? That doesn’t make any sense,” I point out.

“It will tomorrow when you go shopping,” he replies cryptically.

I blink at him, my brows furrow together confused as I try to decipher the riddle he has presented. “I give up,” I shrug. “Guess I’ll unravel the mystery tomorrow. Are you ready to do this now?”

“My, aren’t you romantic?” he taunts. “You’re not even going to offer to buy me dinner before we ‘do it’? And here I thought you were such a nice girl!” His hands come up to rest over his heart, feigning hurt, a wounded expression further accentuating his devilish mouth.

“I told you I wasn’t going to play innocent with you,” I tease.

He gazes at me, eyes smoldering. “Sunshine, when I’m through with you there won’t be an innocent bone left in your delicate little body….” The look in his eyes coupled with the syrupy smoothness of his voice causes my heart to trip and falter before resuming at a thunderous pace. He flashes me a seductive smile as he inches closer. “Are
you
ready?” he whispers.

I nod my assent, breathless. He reaches into his pocket and extracts the same silver pocketknife from the woods. He snaps it open and regards it quietly for a moment before flicking his eyes toward me, a troubled expression masking his face. “What?” I ask curiously.

“Don’t take this the wrong way but I’m trying to figure out how to do this without it ending in us having sex, or more accurately, without it ending in another argument.” He continues hurriedly at my sharp look, “I promised I wouldn’t let my emotions overtake me.

That’s going to be extremely difficult with my finger in your mouth….” Oh. My. Lord. I squirm with the thought of it as a fire ignites deep within. His tongue peeks out and whispers softly along his lips erotically before he continues. “Any suggestions?”

“Um…..uh….you could close your eyes?” I offer.