Painfully Ordinary Special Edition (23 page)

“Talon, we
must get them out of here immediately!” Jace shouted.

“What is
going on?” Talon asked.

“The
Accendersi
portaled
directly into the house.
We have to find a
way out now!” Jace said.

Leah stood
behind him, her entire body shaking like a leaf.

I panicked.
“My mother!
We can’t leave her here.
What
if Kim brings the boys here?
Brady could get hurt!” I was heading for
the stairs when Jace and Talon caught me by the arms.

“Caitlin, we’ve
already sent word to Kim through various channels. She’ll keep the boys safe
with her. They
’re probably headed
to Sanctuary as we
speak, if they aren’t there already. Your mother’s very strong, and she has
Johr and Breeg to protect her. It’s you and Leah they want, which is why we
have to find a way to get you out of here
now
!”
Jace tugged at my arm.

We heard heavy
footsteps coming up the stairs and Leah and I exchanged horrified looks. What
were we going to do? There was no other way out.

Suddenly I got an idea, but would we be able to pull it off?

“Leah?”

She grabbed
me by the hand.
“
Caiti, I’m scared.”

I squeezed
her hand reassuringly.
“
Leah, we’re
going to create a portal and take Talon and Jace with us.”

“How in the
hell are we supposed to do that? We have no idea how we’ve done it in the past.”

I groaned in
frustration. “Just hold my hand and think of somewhere we’d rather be. I know! Think
of the beach in Maui from vacation last summer. As soon as you have that
thought in your head, grab Jace and I’ll get a hold on Talon. Hopefully we can
take them with us. We’ll go on three.
Ready?
One, two…three.”

We grasped
hands and I thought of the beautiful beach we had enjoyed last summer in Wailea,
and presumably, Leah was doing the same. I nodded at her and she reached out
and grabbed Jace by the wrist. Stretching my arm out, I seized Talon around the
waist, making sure I made contact with the skin just beneath his shirt. I could
feel the power building within me. Just as the intruders reached the top of the
stairs, I heard a deafening crash and squinted against a blinding burst of
light.

Chapter 18

Mrs.
Raikaa

I was falling and flung my arms out to catch myself, only to find
the warm haven of Talon’s embrace.
We hit the sand and he rolled me on
top on him, which kept me from
being crushed
under his
weight. I heard muffled grunts and saw Leah and Jace had made it safely through
the portal as well. Sand rained down upon us but I was ecstatic. I kissed Talon
deeply in celebration.

Even in the
dark, where the only light came from the stars reflecting off the ocean, I
could see the spark ignite in Talon’s eyes. It was at that moment when I
realized I was still pinning him to the ground. I laughed until tropical
butterflies surrounded us. I sat up putting one knee on either side of him,
allowing him to sit up too. Leah came running over and threw her arms around my
neck. She knocked me to the ground and we were soon rolling around in the sand,
hugging and squealing.

“Caiti!
We did it! We did it! You were right
!!”

“I just got
lucky. I thought about what happened the other times, and it seemed to make
sense. I’m thrilled it worked since it means three of my favorite people in the
world are safe. Jace was right—Mom has Johr and Breeg and Kim will take good
care of the boys. I guess the real question is what in the world are we going
to do? I have my cell phone in my shorts pocket along with a twenty-dollar
bill. The battery on my phone is dead and I seriously doubt twenty dollars is
going to get us through breakfast, much less pay for a room around here. Why
didn’t we think of somewhere cheaper?”

Leah faced
me with big eyes. “Oh man. I wasn’t thinking that far ahead. I don’t have
anything much with me. Should I turn off my phone? Can they track our calls?”

I was shocked
at the idea. “I don’t know. It never even crossed my mind.”

Talon and
Jace gave each other a wicked grin.

Talon jumped
up and scooped me up in his arms. “Well, Mrs. Raikaa. Are you ready to begin
your honeymoon?”

Excuse me?

I gawked at
him in shock.
“Um…uh…what?
Mrs. Raikaa? What are you
talking about?”

Talon kissed
me soundly. “What other reason could we give for showing up in the middle of
the night without any luggage? We must all be newlyweds, right?”

I giggled,
twisting a lock of hair around my finger. “It still doesn’t alter the fact we
don’t have any money.”

He placed
his finger under my chin.
“My ‘tacha.
When you have
lived as long as I have, you earn a pretty hefty line of credit.”

It always
disturbed me a little when I realized how old he really was. It made me feel so
immature and insignificant.

Leah and I
glanced at each other, and then back at the men. I wrapped my arms around his
neck. I was emotionally exhausted and desperately looking forward to a good
night’s sleep and I knew there would be nothing to fear as long as we were with
these two.

Jace bowed
low in front of Leah. “Mrs. Adair, are you ready to go to your room?”

She giggled.
“Are you going to carry me over the threshold?”

“Of course.
I would allow nothing else,” he replied.

We headed up
the path from the beach with Talon still carrying me close to his chest. I nuzzled
against his neck and sighed. As the path
became better lit
,
it dawned on me where we were, and I struggled to get down.

“What is
wrong?” Talon asked, concerned.

“Talon, this’s
the Grand Wailea. I can’t ask you to pay for rooms here. Leah and I stayed here
last summer on vacation, and it’s very expensive.”

Leah
giggled. “Yeah, and it’s worth every penny too.”

I couldn’t
argue with her at all. The atmosphere was magical.

He sighed. “Would
you stop worrying? Did you enjoy yourself here?”

“Well, yes.
It’s a fairytale hotel, with one of the most amazing spas I’ve ever
seen.
It was probably the best vacation we have ever taken.”

“Caitlin, as
far as I’m concerned nothing’s too good for you.
Nothing.
Understand?
Furthermore, now that I know you two
enjoyed the spa I’ll make sure you spend a day there as well.”

Tears gathered
in the corners of my eyes as my heart pounded within my chest.

“This’s the
most amazing faux honeymoon anyone has ever given me. I can only hope when someone
tells me he wants to spend his life with me it’ll be half as wonderful as this.
How can I ever thank you for all you’ve done for me?”

I gazed at
him, hoping with all my being that that man would be him.

Talon wiped
away the tears. “
Ves’tacha
, your
happiness is all I need. I assure you, one day you’ll be a stunning bride and
be treated like the princess you are.” He leaned down and kissed me gently.

I bit him
gently under the ear. “I think I truly love you, you know that? I have never
said that to anyone in my entire life, well except my family.”

He let my
feet touch the ground and crushed me to his chest. “I’ll hold you to that.” He
took my hand in his and we walked to the front desk to check in.

Talon walked
up to the check-in desk. He exuded confidence and could be
really
intimidating
when he wanted. I twisted my hair around my finger as Leah
nervously picked at her fingernails. Jace was the picture of tranquility, plopping
down in a rattan chair and propping his feet on an ottoman. He reached up and
pulled Leah into his lap and she went down in a ball of failing arms and
squealing.

The agent
behind the desk snapped to attention as Talon approached the desk.
“Aloha, sir.
May I help you?”

Talon stood
at the desk with complete authority. “Yes, we’d like to reserve a couple of
your deluxe suites.
Connecting, if you have them.”

Surprise
flashed across the agents face before it returned to a look of customer service
perfection.
“Yes, sir.
How long will you be staying?”

Talon winked
at me. “We’re celebrating our honeymoon. Decided we couldn’t wait any longer
and eloped tonight. I’d say we’ll be here about a week.”

The front
desk clerk kept dropping his pen; I guess he got a little excited.
“Absolutely sir.
We are honored you chose the Grand Wailea
to celebrate your special event.”

Leah giggled
again. Jace grabbed her on either side of her face and kissed her to silence
before she gave us away.

The clerk
gave Talon two keys. “Can I have someone get your luggage, sir?”

Talon winked
at him. “No luggage. However, can you tell me when the shops open?”

“Absolutely, sir.
They open at nine a.m.”

“Fabulous. Can
you give them these instructions? My wife is to have anything she wants and have
it put on my tab.”

The agent
nodded quickly. “Yes, Mr. Raikaa. Consider it done.”

Talon leaned
in, whispering something to the clerk, who grinned at me and nodded his head.

A young
bellhop walked up. “Mr. Raikaa?”

Talon nodded
“Yes?”

“Please
allow me to show you to your rooms.” He motioned for us to follow him. He
pointed out the main points of the resort as we walked to our room: the swim-up
bar, spa, restaurants, beach access and cabana rentals. I trailed the group and
walked around in my own personal fog.

Looking
around me in disbelief, I couldn’t believe we were really in Maui. Everything
was exactly as I remembered it – lush and gorgeous. I was so busy looking at
the amazing surroundings that I didn’t notice the bellman had stopped in front
of a door and I crashed into him. Talon caught me as I bounced off the
bellman’s
back.

The bellman
was the picture of professionalism and behaved as if nothing had happened. He
put a key in the first door.

“Mr. Adair,
this is your room.” He held the door open for them. Leah, still giggling, went
in first. She glanced back over her shoulder as I gave her a wide grin and
waved my fingers at her.

He walked a
few steps further to another door. “Mr. Raikaa, this will be your room.” He
stepped inside and held the door open.

Talon swept
my feet out from under me, carrying me into the suite. It just seemed so…
dramatic. He tipped the bellman handsomely, locking the door behind him. I wandered
around the suite and gasped. It was exquisite. Walking around the room, lightly
touching the furniture, I gave Talon a brilliant smile before heading to the
doors leading to what appeared to be a private lanai.

Pushing the
doors open, I stepped outside. It faced the ocean and had a comfortable sitting
area, as well as a place to have meals right outside. I leaned on the railing
and sighed contentedly.

Talon
wrapped his arms around me. “Are you okay,
Ves’tacha
?
I thought this would make you happy.”

“Talon, the
fact you, Leah and Jace are here and safe makes me happy. This amazing room is
like the icing on the cake. I could just stay out here like this forever.”

I jumped at a
sudden knock on the door.

“One moment–let
me get that,” said Talon

He came back
to the lanai with a bottle and a bowl full of chocolate-covered strawberries.

“You are
quite the charmer, aren’t you? You’ve thought of everything.”

He grinned
and poured us both a glass of an orange frothy liquid. I had no idea what it
was and didn’t want to embarrass myself by asking. He handed me a glass and
picked up a strawberry holding it to my lips. As soon as my teeth sank into the
strawberry, his eyes exploded into sapphire sparks. I licked my lips and knew I
was treading on thin ice, but I was feeling reckless.

How many
chances was I going to get like this in my lifetime?

I pulled
away with shaking hands. My eyes darted around nervously while I shifted from
one foot to the other.

“I want to
see the rest of the suite.” I abruptly walked back through the den down the
hall to the bedrooms. “Which room is mine and which is Leah’s?”

Talon gave
me a roguish wink. “You can have whatever room you want. Leah’s room is next
door.”

I stared at
him in astonishment. Was he really saying we had this entire suite to
ourselves? He was always so careful to keep the lines in our relationship very
clear based on the
Ethereal
laws. This was really going to make those lines very fuzzy. I examined the
closed door leading to the hallway, waiting for some yet unseen complication to
come bursting in. When no one appeared, I decided I was going to make the most
of this before his damned sense of duty took over, or worse…Johr and my mother
found where we had portaled.

I walked to
the second room, which had a stunning bathroom with a tub overlooking the
ocean. I hopped on the bed and then threw myself backwards across the large mattress.

I rolled to
my side. “I think I’ll take this one.”

Talon smiled indulgently. “You
got it. Then I’ll sleep—”

I
interrupted him before he could finish. “You’ll stay here with me. I don’t want
the
Accendersi
or anyone else being
able to sneak up on me in the middle of the night. My nerves
are
frayed
. My only regret is we don’t have a change of clothes. I wish I
had some PJs to change into.” I shrugged my shoulders. “I’ll figure something
out.” I gave him a timid smile and knew a blush began in my cheeks. “Do you
mind checking on Leah and Jace while I take a quick bath? I’ve got sand
everywhere.
”

He chuckled.
“Of course not.
I’ll wait in the den until you are
done. Take your time.” He kissed me on top of the head and walked out.

I ran the
faucet, slipped into the
bath
and let the warm,
scented water of the honey-mango bubble bath swirl around me. I was in heaven.

I finally
soaked most of the kinks out of my shoulders, decided I’d had enough, got
out
and dried off with a towel. Opening the closet, I found
a fluffy, white robe. Slipping it on, I decided it was decent enough to wear
around the suite. I mean, we wear them around in the spa, don’t we?

I stepped
out of the bedroom and walked timidly through the sliding doors of the lanai.
Talon and Jace had their heads together and were talking
animatedly.

“Hey you two.
What are you up to now?
Planning
your next security detail?
I’m not really sure how you are going to be
able to top this one.” I teased.

Talon’s eyes
devoured me like a starving man. Jace winked at me, and I grinned. My anxiety
prevented me from making direct eye contact with Talon. I stared past them at
the sparkling water rushing back and forth across the beach.

“Wow, pixie
girl. I’d forgotten your hair was so naturally curly. It’s cool.”

My hand
immediately went to my hair. Crap. I’d forgotten it was still wet. Talon had
only seen it like this once. I hoped he liked it. I snuck a look out of the
corner of my eye and, based on the expression he wore on his face, I had
nothing to worry
about
. My hands shook slightly and I
hoped no one noticed.

“Here you
go.” Jace handed me a glass of the orange liquid.

“Hey,
where’s mine?” Leah glided through the door, ironically wearing the same robe.

Jace kissed
her and handed her a glass before moving to the far side of the lanai to talk
privately with Talon.

“Can you
believe these rooms?” she mouthed.

I giggled
quietly so it wouldn’t catch the attention of the men talking on the lanai.
“Nope.
Talon really knows how to impress, doesn’t he?”