AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Oh trust me, he knows it.”
I couldn’t stop grinning at this, but then when I saw Orthrus nearby, I pushed through them and grabbed his brother’s hand, now pulling him over.
“Mom, Dad, I want to introduce you to Jared’s brother, Orthrus, and, well, he’s like my brother as well,” I said, nudging his shoulder and for a second I thought I went too far making that claim because both Orth and Jared both looked shocked. But then his lips spread out into a huge shit eating grin and Jared followed, smiling down at me before draping an arm around my shoulders and pulling me in close.
“You’re so fucking sweet, you know that?” he whispered as Orth was shaking my parents hands and introducing himself by making small talk. Of course, as soon as Orth asked,
“Now someone has to tell me, but where the hell did this girl of yours learn how to play poker?”
At this my parents laughed and, honestly, the sight caused a lump to form in my throat as our families finally met. As if this was something so real, that I could see the future all laid out in front of me. It was a wonderful dream I never wanted to end.
Especially when my aunt and uncle also joined in and, soon, we were all laughing and telling stories about the things Amelia and I used to get up to as kids. Someone who was quick to join as soon as she heard her name being mentioned. Of course, Lucius hung on every word being said, as if he couldn’t ever tire of hearing of the childhood antics his wife used to get up to. But then, one look at Jared, and I knew Lucius wasn’t the only one.
But as I looked at the happy couple, I couldn’t help but feel sad that I had missed their wedding, despite everyone missing it. They had eloped and married in secret, making me wonder if an actual wedding wasn’t going to soon be on the cards. I certainly hoped so because I knew it would mean so much to everyone, including her parents.
Now as for my own parents, it had become very obvious how much they liked Jared because just after my father asked my mother to dance, he turned back to Jared and shook his hand again. But he also granted him a strange look I couldn't decipher… my mother seemed to be beaming up at him too. Once again, the warm acceptance of Jared into my life from my parents made me feel emotional. Who knew I was such a sentimental being? Had becoming a Summoner somehow brought with it an overload of emotions?
But then I knew what the real cause of it was, it was like the calm before the storm. Waiting for it and bracing yourself, while asking why it hasn't arrived yet and what's the catch. It's too good to be true, it's going to happen soon. And the moment it did, I knew that it would rip away at my foundations because I honestly didn't know how I would survive another stretch of time being apart.
I realized then that if I didn't say something soon to him, I may be too late to convince him otherwise. I couldn't let him go. I just needed him to stay, and if that meant begging and saying to hell with my pride, then I would do it.
I think if I'd have been wearing a watch, I would have looked down at it a million times and ended up coming across as the most bored person at the party. I had never wanted midnight to come so much in my entire life, knowing then that the whole point of this party was out of the way and that we may make our excuses and leave. All so we could have this conversation in private.
But until then, we continued to mingle and I tried not to make it look too obvious how nervous I was. At one point, I finally found myself in the bathroom and the sight of Amelia coming out of one of the stalls was like a life raft after being tossed round the choppy seas.
“There you are, didn't think I'd get a minute alone with you without Jared by your side.” I laughed at that.
“Says the one with a needy Vampire husband who can't take his eyes off you.” She smirked, moving to the sink and ran the tip of her finger along her lips, taking away her smudged make up because clearly, someone had been making out and wasn’t wearing long-lasting lipstick like I was.
“Yes, well, thanks to my recent trip down Vampire memory lane, let's just say he's a little bit reluctant to let me out of his sight.”
“We sure do know how to put those kings through the ringer, don't we?” I said with a sigh, knowing how I had unintentionally done the same.
“Yes, but in all fairness, they certainly know how to do it back to us when… oh, Ella, what's wrong? What did I say?” This last part came at seeing the tears in my eyes as a sob broke through, then she put an arm around me and tucked me close, giving me a hug.
“I just get the feeling that Jared’s going to leave me,” I confessed, making her suck in a quick breath.
“Oh, Ellie belly… no, not ever.”
I pulled back the second I could tell that she had mistakenly thought that I meant forever.
“No, I don't mean like that… we were at the cabin and I overheard a conversation he was having with his brother. He's been off all week, quiet, and at first I thought it was just after everything that happened, the things with his wife… it's been a lot, you know?” I said, knowing that I wouldn’t have had the time right now to tell her all of it, but at the very least giving her an idea.
“It has been a lot, of course it has, for you both… but honey, just because he's struggling, it doesn't mean that he's planning something, some things are just harder to process and take longer to work through in our minds, that’s all.”
I nodded weakly, only half comforted by this as it didn’t alleviate all my fears.
“I guess, I just feel as if he's keeping something from me.” She grinned and squeezed my shoulders, telling me
“Have faith, Ella, have faith in Jared.”
“I have faith in you, does that count?” I commented wryly, considering her name, and making her laugh.
“Come on, let's go dance and really punish our men.” She winked at me and I felt better as she pulled me from the bathroom. We couldn't help but laugh when we saw that Jared and Lucius were both waiting for us. However, with my cousin being the way she was, she simply walked in between both men and before passing them, she slapped both of them on the chest as she said,
“Sorry, fellas, you're going to have to wait, this chick's got a date… ha, see what I did there? Totally rhymed… oh, my auntie Pip would be so proud!” Then she reached back for my hand and walked me to the dance floor. This was just us an upbeat song started to play, making us both shake our hips to the rhythm of the music.
It was the perfect distraction that I needed.
