The Two Kings (Afterlife Saga) (39 page)

“No way, you’re
bloody
shitting me!” It was rare for my sister to swear but where our cousin was concerned there wasn’t enough swear words in the English language to cover it!

“I shit you not!” I said swearing myself, which was thanks to all the wine I had consumed. I think Draven could tell I was a little tipsy so I decided to stop drinking the grape and move on to something safer or before he knew it I woul
d start singing Dolly Parton’s ‘9 to 5’
and then I really would be doomed. I don’t know what it was about that song but it always seemed to be the one my brain would favour!

“Ok
,
well that’s not going to happen!” Libby stated and I could only wish it were true. If Draven and Frank both thought me and Libby were stubborn
then
this was nothing compared
to our mother. She was hands down the queen bee of stubbornness. Hell
,
she was the reason they invented the word!

“Lib’s I hate to break it to you but I tried, mum won’t budge
,
” I said stating the obvious.

“We will see about that, wait till I speak to her
.
” This sounded about
as aggressive as
a
budgie singing to a little old lady! She looked at her watch and I could see her working out the time difference
and when she got up I knew she thought it best to deal with our mother hers
elf. Even though I knew the out
come
would still remain the same,
there was nothing stopping me from dreaming otherwise.

“Good luck
!
” I said before she walked into the kitchen.

“What is it with you guys and this evil cousin?” Frank asked before getting up himself to take out the remaining dishes.

“Just wait and you will find out, because I can guarantee she will be here in a few weeks causing trouble and making everyone crazy…including you
.
”

“You know me Kaz, Mr Laid B
ack!”

“Yeah you might be
,
but an unhap
py wife means an unhappy life
.
” From this his face dropped as now he understood my full meaning. Libby hated our cousin just as much as I di
d and from the sounds of the mur
murs
coming from the next room, she was making her full feelings known.

Frank left for the kitchen and I would bet my life that he too was now praying for Libby to win over the iron will of our mother. I smiled to myself and then turned to look at Draven but for once I found him looking away and in what seemed to be deep in thought. I knew what was coming and any minute now I would have to explain myself about Justin. I was about to speak and tell him I was sorry but he turned to me abruptly
,

“You are right, your
mother can not be swayed and Libby is not pleased
.
” He was about to say more when he stop
ped and smiled having heard some
thing
he liked.

“Now she is explaining the evening…do you want the verdict?” He leaned into me and my heart rate shot up a couple of notches. He moved the hair off my neck to get to my ear
as usual
.

“I think I have been accepted into the family
.
” He sounded pleased and the kiss that followed made me think that maybe I wasn’t in as much trouble as I had
first
thought. He pulled away and I knew the only reason
was because Libby was now stomping
back into the dinning room.

“Well
,
you were right…the bitch arrives the week after next
!
” I sighed at the idea and Libby added even more shit to the pile.

“Oh and she told mum to let you know
that she can’t wai
t till she gets here
,
as she really wants to...” She paused before continuing with a thought that woul
d have me close to screaming...

“To meet your new boyfriend!”

Chapter 18

Screaming in t
he N
ight

The rest of the evening went
by quickly and most importantly
smoothly but thankfully with no more embarrassing stories about my past. It was getting late and it was only when a vibrating sound came from Draven
’
s pocket did I look at the clock. Of course for the king of the world
’s supernatural I doubt eleven o’
clock was past his bedtime.

It was str
ange to see Draven answer a mobile
phone and it brought back memories of the first and last time I had seen it. Back then
,
of course
,
I had been terrified of him
but even then
,
my love had never faltered. It is a
bizarre
feeling to be obsessed with something you both loved and feared. Now things are different. I have swapped fear for intimidated but the obsession still remains
as strong as the day it was first imprinted
.

Draven stood and excused himself before continuing with his phone call. He spoke a language I couldn’t understand but if I were to guess it sounded from Asian decent.

“Well that’s me convinced, he’s lovely
.
” Libby whispered i
n vain as he could probably speak
six different languages, listen to ten conversations
while juggling
cars and making a soufflé at the same time. Ok
,
the scratch the soufflé part but he could order someone to make it while all this was going on! I giggled and Libby mistook its meaning.

“Pleased?”

“Yes and thank you for making him feel so welcome
.
” I said this to both of them but Frank just winked
like it was no trouble. Draven walked bac
k in as he was placing his shin
y black phone back in his pocket.

“I’m afraid
I have just been informed that I have some business to attend too, so I must say goodnight but I thank you both for your hospitality.” My heart sank at the thought of spending a night alone. It’s funny how all those years I coped
not knowing anything different
but now after less than a week of spending every night in his arms
,
I didn’t know how I was going to face being alone.

“Keira
,
my driver is outside
.
” He said nodding to the door and I knew I had to say goodbye
,
but all I wanted to do was sit here and sulk! I wondered if it was actually business
that was taking him away from me o
r was I being punished for the ‘
Justin
thing’
.

He was shaking Frank
’
s hand and then he gave Libby a kiss on the cheek as he thanked them again. I
,
on the other hand
,
looked as though I was going to start sucking my thumb. I walked him to the door, while Libby and Frank remained in the den to give us some privacy.

He took my jacket off the hook and started to hold it out for me.

“It’s ok I don’t need it
.
” I said thinking it was odd as I was only going to be out there for a short while, unless he knew I would be clingy.

“Keira it is cold out there tonight, look
, there’s a frost
.
” H
e was right as when I opened the door we were met by a sparkly blanket that covered the earth and was shimmering under the porch light.

“Yeah
,
but I won’t keep you
.
”
He frowned
at my reason.

“You do not want to come with me? I already told
you,
I will not be angry…”

“Wait, you want me to come?” His face soften
ed as my
mistake became clear. His hands took me by the waist and he pulled me into him roughly.

“Of course I want you to come with me…Keira
,
I never want to be apart from you, not even for one single night.” My lips curved into a shy smile which made him let out a
low
groan at the sight. He loved it when I went all shy.
He turned me around and tapped me lightly on my lower cheeks and made me let out an excited scream.

“Right go and get your jacket on before
you freeze this perfect behind.
”
He said jokingly.

“Wait I just need to grab some stuff and…”
He stopped me and whispered into my hair.

“Keira don’t make a fuss but no you don’t. Just go and tell your sister you
’
r
e
going and I will wait for you in the car
.
” I frowned but even though he couldn’t see it as my back was to him, he still knew it was there as he laughed lightly before kissing the top of my head and letting me go.

I ran back inside wondering why he had said that I didn’t need anything but
I
pushed it to the back of my mind before it started to overload with worry. I quickly explained to Libby that I was going with him but that I would see her tomorrow. I also promised to make
a
Sunday dinner
just to get out of there quicker
.

I grabbed my jacket and ran out
of
the door to find a huge black Rolls Royce in the drive waiting for me. A man in a grey coat and black hat was holding the door open for me
,
only it opened the other way compared to
other
conventional cars.

It looked like a
deadly creature under the moon
light, with its angry square
grill that looked as if
it
would take a bite out of the Aston
Martin that was behind it waiting to be driven by another of Draven’s men
. Its emblem gleamed sliver and I was sure I remembered th
e winged figure was called the ‘
Spirit of Ecstasy
’.
Well that sure was fitting. I don’t think I could think of a better description and I wasn’t just talking about the car!  I
stepped forward cautiously as though
it wanted to eat me and only when I saw the figure of Ecstasy himself sat there waiting
,
did I hurry my feet.
As soon as I ducked to get in I had Draven
’
s hand
held
out to help me.

This car reminded me of two different forces fused togethe
r. The inside was the complete
opposite to the outside.
The inside being made with pure luxury in mind and the outside had you gulping at the si
ght. It was a bit like Draven, h
alf of him you wanted his soft touch and caress all over you and the other half you
just wouldn’t want to mess with.
 

I ran my hand over the soft cream leather seat and thought it to be far to
o
comfortable to be in a car.
The back seats we
re more spacious than I expected
and there was a clear screen between t
he driver and us, its passengers.
As alw
ays Draven watched me like prey as I looked around at the walnut finished and cream carpets that also held foot rests.

“You seem to like this car
.
” Draven’s voice was deep and smouldering
making me jump
at the sound
and when the doors locked
before we pulled away
I added a gulp
.
Like this it was easy to see him as a King. He sat back casually like he’d know
n
this level of luxury all his life and I felt like Oliver or Annie being taken under his wing.
I bit my lip at just how different our lives were and prayed to God for not only opposites to attract but for them to be able to withstand anything.
I needed Draven and it pained me to know my need was far greater than his….it had to be. Anything else just wasn’t plausible. I mean he could have anything he wanted and I didn’t know if I would ever understand why he would
ever have wanted me
!