Wilder: The Guardian Series (37 page)

Roman just shook his head. “Shouldn’t you be getting in the
shower?”

“Don’t you let her go,
Roman.
It
will be the biggest mistake you’ve ever made.”

“That sounds like a story right out of
Buffy The Vampire Slayer
– the TV show not the movie,” said
Brian when Celeste finished.

“Yeah, only there were way fewer hot guys!” said Celeste
laughing. It felt good talking to Brian like this, not having to keep anything
from him.

 
“I’m really glad
you’re alive, Cel. I know I joke around about it, but that is some pretty crazy
stuff.”

“I know, but it’s my life now.” She paused and took a sip of
her iced tea.

“What are you going to do when you’re in college? I bet
there’s a ton of demonic activity in New York City.”

“Great, thanks Brian. I hadn’t even started thinking about
that yet.”

“So how does Roman feel about you leaving?” he asked, trying
to be nonchalant.

“I don’t know. We haven’t really been talking much lately,”
she said, looking away.

“Why not?”

“It’s complicated…”

“Come on Cel, you can tell me.”

“It’s kind of about you,” she said awkwardly.

“Me?”

“He thinks that I would be better off with you than him…”

“Well, I can’t argue with him there,” he said with a smirk.

“He knows how you feel about me, and he wants me to be happy,
have a family and all that. He can’t give me that so he thinks he should let me
go.”

“This guy is already planning a family for us?”

“Brian! Stop joking around, this is serious,” Celeste
demanded.

“Okay, okay, don’t hit me! You know I love you Cel, and I
probably always will. But I’ve been thinking about you a lot over the past few
days, and I don’t want you to choose me because I’m the safer choice or the
more comfortable option. I want you to choose who you love and who you can’t
see yourself living without.”

“But I love you both, and I can’t imagine my life without
either one of you in it,” she said, taking his hand in hers and squeezing it
tightly.

“But in different ways, right? I see the way you look at him,
and I’ve never gotten a look like that from you.”

“Brian…”

“It’s okay, though, because I want someone who
will
look at me like that.”

“You will Brian, I know it. You’re going to make some lucky
girl very happy one day. I just hope it’s not Lacey Green.”

He chuckled. “And don’t worry Cel. I’ll always be there for
you, especially now that you’re going to be living in New York City. I’ll be
coming up to visit every weekend!”

Celeste took a couple deep breaths and gathered her courage
as she stood in front of Roman’s apartment. As she lifted her hand to knock on
the door, it swung open and Roman stood in front of her wearing the same fitted
black t-shirt and dark blue jeans he had worn on the first day they officially
met. His stunning looks still had the same effect on her, even after everything
they had been through.

“Hi,” she said slightly breathless. “Are you going
somewhere?”

“Yes, actually I was heading over to your house,” Roman
admitted.

“Really?” she asked.

“Yes, I wanted to talk to you. Come in, please.” He took a
step back and opened the door so that she had to brush against him as she
entered. A wave of electricity surged between them as their skin touched and
their eyes met fleetingly.

“I’ve missed this place,” she said, looking away.

“It is nice to be back,” he said, gathering his composure. It
had only been a few days since he’d seen her, but he’d already forgotten the
intense effect she had on him.

“Is Nico home?” she asked.

“No, he went over to Natalie’s. He’s been over there a lot
since we got back. Now that I think about it, I think he may have a thing for
her.”

“You’re just realizing that now?” she said with a giggle.

“I suppose so,” he said grinning.

“So, you wanted to talk to me about something?” she asked.
They had stopped in front of the floor-to-ceiling window, and they both stared
out onto the tranquil lake ahead.

“Yes, I do, but if you came all the way over here, I imagine
you have something to say as well?”

“Fine, I guess I’ll go first,” she said, steeling her nerves.
“I’ve been doing a lot of thinking lately, about college, about my life as a
Guardian, about Brian and about you.”

“And?”

“At first I didn’t want to listen to what you were saying,
but after these past few days of reflecting on the realities of my new life, I
realized you were right.”

“I was?” he asked, a look of disappointment crossing his
face.

“Yes, I should be able to have a normal life, go to college
and be the Guardian. If my father did it, then I know it’s possible for me. I
still want to have the whole human experience.”

“You should. It’s what you deserve,” he said, turning away
from her.

“But I want to have it with you,” she said, reaching for his
face and turning it back towards her.

“With me?”

“Yes Roman.
 
A
normal life wouldn’t mean anything to me if you weren’t in it.”

“But--” Roman interrupted.

“Let me finish,” she said placing a finger on his lips to
silence him. “I know that you are trying to protect me from a dangerous life
filled with
supernaturals
, but don’t you see that
that is the life I was destined for? And I need you to protect me from it, to
stand by me and make me stronger.
 
I
can’t do this without you.”

“Celeste, you have no idea how happy I am to hear you say
that, but how about five or ten years from now? What sort of future could I
possibly give you?”

“While I’m flattered that you are already thinking about us
in the long term, technically we haven’t even been on our first date yet!”

He couldn’t help but smile. “You are
all
that I see in my future, Celeste. You have been since the first
day I met you, but--”

“No, no ‘buts’ Roman,” she said taking hold of his face and
looking into his troubled eyes. “I’m a Guardian, and as much as I hate to admit
it, I don’t think we have the longest life span. Let’s just think about now.
You asked me to make a decision and I did so now you have to respect it. I
choose
you
, I want to be with
you
, and I love
you
.”

“I love you too Celeste, so much,” he said. His body longing
for hers, he wrapped his arms around her and kissed her desperately.

Celeste looked into his smoldering blue eyes and could feel
all the love that he felt for her and the pain that haunted him. She never felt
so close to anyone in all her life. As they kissed heatedly the rush of
emotions that took over her were more powerful than anything she had ever
experienced. Celeste finally understood what real love was. It truly was
nothing like in the movies; it was a thousand times better. So when he looked
up at her questioningly, she nodded smiling and he picked her up in his arms
and carried her into his bedroom.

When Celeste opened her eyes, she found herself in front of
Dante and the rest of the Council.

“What am I doing here?” she asked nervously.

“Congratulations Celeste Wilder, you have passed Guardian
training successfully. In fact, you have done better than most of our
candidates ever have. You have a bright future ahead of you,” said Dante smiling
proudly.

“Yes, congratulations,” echoed Sierra, Seraphina, and
Balthazar, whose names Celeste had recently learned after the battle with
Fabian.

“Thank you,” she said. “I didn’t know I was being tested.”

“Well it’s more of a trial period really,” said Sierra.

“There is just one more thing before you officially become
the new Guardian,” said Dante.

“What’s that?”

“You have to make a choice.” Celeste looked at him with a
confused expression on her face. “We chose you to become the next Guardian, and
I believe we made an excellent decision. But now it is your turn to choose
whether you want to accept this duty.”

 
“You mean I don’t
have to be the Guardian?”

“No, Celeste you don’t,” said Sierra.

“It has always been our custom to select a Guardian, but it is
ultimately their choice to commit to the responsibilities,” explained Dante.

“What would happen if I didn’t accept it?”

“Your powers would disappear, and your memories of everything
that has taken place over the past few months would be erased. You would no
longer have any knowledge of the supernatural world, and you would simply go
back to being an ordinary human.”

“You can do all that for me?”

“Yes, and we have. It hasn’t happened very often, but once in
a while a nominee is not suited for this life, and they are set free.”

“Can I have a moment to think about it?”

“Yes certainly, take all the time you need Celeste,” said
Sierra with a warm smile.

Celeste’s mind was racing as she thought about the
possibility of a life without the responsibilities of being a Guardian. She
could go to NYU and have a normal college experience, she could live a long
life, get married, even have a family. She wouldn’t get terrifying premonitions
anymore or have to spend hours training or living in constant fear. All of it would
be over.

But all of my memories
would be gone too…

Celeste wouldn’t remember anything about the supernatural
world including the existence of vampires like her love Roman and her dear
friend Nico. And if she
wasn’t
the Guardian, Stellan,
her mentor, would never have existed for her either. And she would lose all of
her gifts and the incredibly empowering feeling she felt when she held her
sword. She would also undoubtedly lose her ability to visit with her father in
her dreams. Celeste didn’t know if she could give all of that up to go back to
being just a normal human. Suddenly, the thought of being normal didn’t look so
attractive to her when she realized all that she would lose. It ended up being
a much easier choice than she had expected.

“I accept. I want to be the Guardian,” she blurted out
loudly.

All of the Council stopped their idle chatter and stared at
her in surprise.

“We are very pleased to hear that,” said Dante. “You were
born to be the Guardian, and of that I am sure.”

“So what happens now?” she asked.

“You go on living your life, and on occasion we will summon
you if you are needed. And of course you will continue to have premonitions,
which will help guide you to those that are in danger. It is your duty to help
them wherever they may be. And if you ever need our counsel, you know how to
contact us.”

Celeste unconsciously reached for the Wilder key hanging from
her neck. “Okay, thank you Dante. Thanks to all of you. I will do my best to
make you proud.”

***

“Listen up everyone, I have an announcement!” said Celeste.
She looked gratefully around the table at her dearest friends. They were all
together at Ralph’s for a farewell dinner for Natalie, but all eyes were on
Celeste.

“Natalie, I want to wish you all the best at Richmond
College. They are so lucky to have you, and I’m really going to miss you!”

Natalie smiled with tears in her eyes.

“And about college,” continued Celeste, “I’ve given it a lot
of thought, and I’ve decided to postpone going to NYU.”

“What?” everyone said in unison.

“Why aren’t you going?” asked Brian.

Out of everyone there – Roman, Nico, Natalie, Brian,
and Dani Lynn (Stellan had cloaked her with a glamour spell so she could go out
in public without being recognized), Natalie was the only one who didn’t know
the truth about who Celeste was. Celeste knew she had to be careful about what
she said in front of her.

Roman glanced at her and gave her a reassuring smile, and she
continued.

“Before everyone freaks out, I’d like to point out that I
said ‘postpone’. I already spoke to the university, and they have agreed to
defer my enrollment for a year. As all of you know, I’ve been having some
family issues to deal with, and I thought it would be a better idea for me to
stick close to home for a year until I figure a few things out.”

“So does that mean you will be going to community college
with us?” asked Nico.

“Exactly. I enrolled this morning, and starting next week I
will be an Oak Bluffs Gator!”

“Wow Cel, that’s awesome news for us anyway. It looks like
you’re stuck with me for at least another year,” said Brian.

“So now I’m the only one that’s leaving?” asked Natalie. “I’m
going to miss out on all the fun!”

“Don’t worry, I’ll come visit you,” said Nico with a wink.

“We’ll all come visit you,” echoed Celeste.

“And you have to come to my games now that I’m going to be
leading the Gators to victory,” said Brian. “I’m thinking a regional
championship at least!”

As everyone chattered happily about the future, Roman turned
to Celeste and whispered to her, “Are you sure about this?”

“I’ve never been more sure about anything,” she said and
leaned in for a sweet kiss.

“
Aww
!” said Natalie. “I think it’s
more than just family reasons making you stay in Oak Bluffs.”

Celeste smiled happily.

“Excuse me,” said a pretty girl with fire red hair as she
approached the table. “I couldn’t help but overhear you all talking about
college. I just moved into town, and I’m starting at Oak Bluffs Community
College next week too. My name is Marie.”

As Marie introduced herself to everyone, Celeste’s evil radar
gave a slight pulse. She looked around in alarm, and not seeing any immediate
danger she focused back in on Marie. She had a sweet smile and a few cute
freckles on her nose, so she seemed harmless enough. Still, Celeste was
definitely getting a vibe from her: it was clear Marie wasn’t a vampire or a
wizard, but also that she definitely wasn’t human. Celeste looked over at Roman
for assurance, and he smiled casually.