Sergius: #4 (Luna Lodge: Hunters of Atlas) (3 page)

People started gathering around them. Some whispered about what had just happened. Jade glanced among them, fidgeting even more than she had been before.

Sergius looked over to Rem, who seemed undisturbed by the number of people who had seen what it happened. If they hadn’t been saying witch before, they certainly would be after this little incident.

Rem looked over to him. “Help her home. And make sure she gets there safely.”

With the last statement, Rem looked back to the crowd of people who had gathered, a stern expression on his face.

Sergius recognized the look as a warning to anyone that might think about messing with her. Although Rem might be somewhat easy-going, he wasn’t one to be crossed. By anyone.

Jade watched the people around her move back towards their lives.

“Did you see that?” a woman whispered. “She knew what was going to happen before it happened.”

“How?” another man whispered.

“Do you think she set a trap? Maybe she felt bad. Even spies can get an attack of conscience.”

The man shook his head. “You heard what was said in the meeting. She knew. Just like she always knows.”

Similar conversations occurred among the other people as they walked away.

Not only was the whole thing strange, she had no explanations for any of it.

Sure, she was good at guessing a few things here and there lately, but she assumed that was just because she’d gotten better at picking up on small details during her time with the Azilians and could apply it in a less strange, well, relatively less strange anyway, environment.

She was just applying that skill. That had to be the explanation. She certainly never had some sort of weird predictive daydream before.

Sergius stepped easily over the broken step and was now standing next to her. Everyone else had moved on.

“I’m fine,” she said, avoiding looking at him.

Sergius moved close to her. His warmth settled over her.

“Either way I’d still like to make sure you get home safely,” he said.

“No, really,” she said and turned to step away. She didn’t want his help. It was bad enough she’d rushed forward to save him from a step that she had seen break in some sort of vision. It was crazy, and the whole thing made her feel crazy. No wonder no one trusted her.

She took a step but swayed and stumbled forward.

Strong arms wrapped around her body as Sergius pulled her against him easily. She breathed heavily against the solid chest that now held her cushioned against him. Jade looked up and found his piercing blue eyes staring back at her.

She opened her mouth to say something, anything, but the words didn’t come. Instead she felt her world sway slightly again.

“You don’t seem to be fine,” he said softly to her.

She took in a deep, shaky breath as his scent surrounded her. The smell of aftershave and fresh grass set her body at ease and gave her an odd sense of comfort that she’d never known.

“I’m fine,” she said again.

Her words were much softer now.

Sergius chuckled. “Lord, you are stubborn.” His voice was gruff, but she could hear the smile in his tone.

He lifted her into his arms, comfort settling over her just before her body went limp and blackness surrounded her.

Chapter Four

Sergius couldn’t help but stare at the beautiful woman who had captivated him for the past two weeks. Now suddenly there she was, laying on his couch like it was totally normal. It was hard for him to focus on anything else, but he pulled his eyes away from her to concentrate on his cooking.

He returned to stirring the pot of macaroni on the stove. The water boiled, and steam from the pot filled the air. It wasn’t going to be a great meal, but it was better than nothing he supposed. And unlike some of the other hybrids, he had never learned to do much cooking on his own, so this was about as good as it got for him.

The thought had crossed his mind more than once that maybe he should have just brought Jade back to her own house. In the end he couldn’t bear to part from her. Having her limp in his arms like that had called to the primal side of him, the side that wanted to protect her and keep her safe.

There also was the question of what he’d witnessed. He still wasn’t completely sure, but after the comments in the meeting, he couldn’t just ignore the truth.

Something was happening with Jade. Everyone knew it, and even she seemed to know it, given how cagey she’d acted.

Whatever it was, he couldn’t seem to protect her from, and that thought really frightened him. This wasn’t something he would voice out loud, but he felt the fear deep inside, fear that he would lose the one thing that meant the most to him. She was his chance at finding true happiness.

He stirred the pasta, as he reminded himself not to force things. Just because they were meant to be together didn’t mean he couldn’t scare her off.

Jade stirred on the couch. She moaned softly and turned on her side.

He watched her, not certain if he should step over to where she was. He turned off the heat on the stove and let the pot sit.

A quick trip to a cabinet netted him some pain killers. He filled a glass with water and then made his way toward Jade.

His pace was deliberate and cautious. He didn’t want to scare her when she opened her eyes. Having a huge man standing directly over her would probably be shock enough.

She tossed her arm over her eyes. Her face was far paler than it normally was, which made her lips stand out against her snow white skin.

Jade moaned softly. Sergius knelt beside her. He tapped her on the arm gently. She pulled back her hand and peeked through her fingers at him. The pain in her head was visible in the tortured expression on her face.

He held out some pills and glass of water.

“These will help,” he said.

Jade stared at the blue pills in his hand and then back at him. She reached out and took the pills from his hand, popping them into her mouth, before following them with a sip from the glass of water.

“Thank you,” she said quietly.

Her voice shook slightly as she spoke, and he knew that the toll of what happened earlier was still weighing on her.

She slowly sat up on the couch. Sergius stepped back to give her some room to move. He watched as she stretched a little and tried to find her bearings.

“Where am I?” she asked as she looked around the room.

Sergius turned his back on her and walked back into the kitchen, his heart racing. For some reason, having her look at his space made him nervous as hell. It wasn’t like he expected her not to like the place, but he just hoped she did.

“My house,” he said.

He pulled the pot of now done noodles off the stove and drained the water into the sink.

Sergius could hear her moving behind him on the couch but didn’t dare turn around until he was able to calm himself some.

He set the pan of noodles back on the stove and squeezed the cheese packet in with the hot noodles. Slowly, he stirred the pot.

She moved directly behind him, and he sensed her before she even spoke. A warm, sweet scent filled the air around him the closer she moved in.

“Macaroni?” she said.

Sergius chuckled. He could hear the question in her voice.

He glanced over his shoulder to her and gave a small smile.

“It’s about all I can make,” he said. “But I’ve gotten to be pretty good at making it.”

She laughed softly, and he realized it was the first time he had heard her laugh since coming to their community. The sound of it filled him with warmth. He was so surprised he nearly dropped the pan.

“Can I help with anything?” she asked.

“The cabinet to the left,” he said, nodding to the cabinet next to him. “If you want to get bowls out, I’ll dish us some dinner.”

Jade walked over to the cabinet and pulled out two mismatched bowls. Unlike several of the other hybrids, he hadn’t really cared what he’d purchased. They were an oddball set that he picked up at the local market in town, and it never really bothered him until that moment.

He took the macaroni and placed it in the bowl. It was late evening at this point, and the smell made his stomach rumble. He glanced over to her to see if she had heard. She gave a knowing smile.

“A big guy like you must be hungry.”

Her words filled him with warmth. Somehow being called big by her made him glad that he was large. Usually that was the thing that kept the others away, but his size didn’t seem to be a problem for her.

They grabbed their bowls and brought them over to the couch where they sat down quietly. The two quietly ate their food, and he watched her from the corner of his eye.

Color started to come back into her cheeks the more she ate, and he was glad to see it. The strange prediction was unnerving enough, but the fact she’d passed out so soon after it was almost terrifying.

He didn’t know what to believe about her, or if she did have any abilities, but he didn’t even want to think about the idea that she might suffer.

A part of him imagined a life with her. Their evenings spent together eating, talking, just enjoying each other’s company. It was something he’d never really thought of much before.

Then again, he’d not been so close to his Vestal before.

He shook himself. Now wasn’t the time to start thinking about those things. Whatever was happening with her, he needed to find out to protect her, whether from other hybrids who feared her or even herself if necessary.

Sergius stood and walked back to the kitchen to get another helping of macaroni. Better to fill his mouth than to say what he was really feeling.

Jade watched as the large man walked back to the kitchen and scooped up more of the macaroni and cheese.

She looked down at her bowl of bright orange noodles. She couldn’t help the smile that spread on her face.

It was sweet. He was sweet. It was a small gesture, but it meant everything to her, especially after the day she’d had.

All her life she had been made to feel like she was second best. With Sergius she never felt that way. He always seemed to know just what she needed and went out of his way to make sure to check on her.

Sergius came back from the kitchen and sat back down on the couch. She watched him for a moment as he ate his dinner.

“How’s your foot?”

She knew what it meant when she asked him, but she had to know. She had to say something about what had happened. There was no denying something weird occurred, and she didn’t think that Sergius was going to tiptoe around the subject for much longer.

He paused, his spoon midair, and looked over at her. He set the spoon back into his bowl and placed the bowl on the table.

“It’s fine,” he said. “I’m still not sure how you knew, but in the end, I guess I’m glad you did.”

Jade shrugged. She didn’t really know what to tell him, but it was good to know that he didn’t think she had any malice in what happened. She doubted many of the others nearby were as accepting.

“Can you explain it?” he asked her.

“It was out of nowhere,” she said, shaking her head. “It was like watching a movie. I saw you, and then I was moving in real time.”

He didn’t say anything as he watched her speak. She couldn’t tell what he was thinking, but maybe that was for the best. What she was describing sounded insane even to her own ears.

She jumped when his warm hand clasped her own. His large fingers nearly engulfed her.

“Thank you,” he said softly. “I am in your debt.”

She blushed. The warmth from his hand seeped through her like a wildfire. She swayed forward and licked her lips in anticipation of his lips on her.

The burning flame of desire had flared just at this touch. Was she so starved for affection and understanding that such a simple act would cause so much? Maybe her time with the cult had warped her more than she wanted to admit.

His eyes flicked to her mouth, and she knew he could see the desire on her face.

No. She had to get control. This was ridiculous. She barely knew the man.

Jade jumped up and pulled her hand from his. This couldn’t happen. Not now, not ever.

“I really need to go,” she said quickly.

Sergius stood. Confusion rested on his face, and sadness panged through her mind that they couldn’t just see where things went.

Her rational mind reasserted herself and reminded her she didn’t the man, and didn’t really know the hybrids, for that matter.

“But what about dinner?” he asked.

Jade shook her head. “I’m really not hungry,” she said quickly.

As fast as she could, she made her way over to the door and turned the knob. Sergius was close behind her, but she didn’t stop to look at him.

“Thanks for the help,” she said. “Have a good night.”

She stepped out the door and raced down the stairs back to the safety of her own cabin.

Chapter Five

Jade remembered returning to her cabin and falling asleep, but somehow she wasn’t at all surprised when a strong arm pulled her back against a hard chest. She’d been aching for this for some time now.

She rolled over in his arms and turned to face Sergius, his strong jaw and soft lips closer than she’d ever seen them. He stared at her, his bright blue eyes shining on her from the hazy darkness. Not pausing Jade reached her arm up around his neck and pulled him in for searing kiss.

His mouth was hot against hers. Her tongue tasted the seam of his soft lips as they caressed her own and made her ache deep inside.

Jade deepened the kiss, her tongue sliding between his soft lips. He moaned against her mouth and opened to her. They battled one another, stroking one another in smooth motions. She squirmed against his body, aching for more.

She shuddered when she realized they were holding one another skin to skin. Her soft breasts pressed against his hard chest. Her nipples tightened and scraped along the deep contours of his muscles. The feel of him pressing against her made her center throb even more.

His hands roamed freely over her body, sliding over the silky skin and eventually rested against her bare ass. Sergius pulled her hard against him. She could feel the ridged thickness pressed against her stomach and couldn’t stop herself from rubbing against it.