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7
Lena
Iam not cool enough to do friends with benefits or random hook-ups. I’m just not that person. Especially not when that person is Archer Warren, the man I’ve loved since forever. My sexual experience could fit on a small, unsatisfying page of a book. A brief college hook-up that made me feel empty inside, and guilty to top it all off. Rationally, I know it’s beyond idiotic, because you can’t cheat on someone you aren’t with. And Archer and I have never been together. At least, not until whatever that was the other night.
I groan and bury my head in my pillow. Every time I think about what happened at the library, embarrassment swarms me. Like I’ve smashed a giant beehive and they’re all flocking to me to remind me I’m an idiot. Heat explodes everywhere, and I start to sweat. From a memory. It’s been three days, and I haven’t been able to go back to the medieval literature section again. Whenever I get close, all I can think about is Archer’s hands on my skin, his mouth on… other places. And the bossiness. Why was that so incredibly hot? I’m mortified by how much I liked him telling me what I could and couldn’t do. Is that normal?
I couldn’t even look at Archer after all that. He’d sauntered out of the stacks like it was a normal Tuesday night. As if it was no big deal that he had his face buried between my legs moments before. Meanwhile, my brain was blown to pieces and there were literally no thoughts except for panic left behind. I don’t know which of our reactions is worse.
Archer waited for me to finish up work for the night, casually sitting in a chair by the fireplace. He read a book while I finished up some paperwork and quietly had a breakdown. Then he walked me home. I’d been awkward as hell, and he’d just been Archer. Sunny, smiling Archer.
The worst part now is that I can’t stop thinking about how amazing he made me feel. Now that I know exactly what I’ve been missing, my body has been physically aching for more of him. Craving it. Even though I shouldn’t. For so many reasons.
My brother can never find out. Oh God, he would kill Archer. Rhys is generally easygoing, but he’s always been overly protective when it comes to me. Although I’m not sure which one of us he’d be pissed at more. Archer for defiling his sister, me for getting it on with his best friend, or both of us for keeping it a secret.
Besides Rhys, there’s the fact that Archer is my friend, too. What does randomly hooking up do for a friendship?
Probably destroys it.
Not to mention there’s the damn bond looming over our heads. We’ve all pretty much figured out who our intended partner in the Axis is supposed to be, besides Rhys, whose match is still a mystery. I have no doubt that Archer is mine. That doesn’t mean we have any idea what to do about it. Should we bond? Should we avoid it like the plague, as we’ve always done? Anthony told Miri we needed his help to complete the next bond or things could go horribly wrong. Was he telling the truth, or full of shit?
God, I have to stop obsessively dissecting everything that’s going on. I’m going to drive myself crazy.
Throwing back the covers, I promise myself I’m not going to think about Archer at all today. I’m off work, so he won’t be showing up to walk me to the library. Those little trips have become the highlight and torment of my day.
No! I’m not thinking about him.
I want to go for a walk in the woods, but that is off limits because I’m not a fool. And there is no way I’m going to call Archer to come for a hike with me. My phone rings just as I open my closet in search of something to wear. I swipe it off my nightstand, checking the ID before I answer.
“Hey, Miri.”
“Hi, Lena. What are you up to today?”
“I have the day off and am trying to figure that out.”
“I have the day off too! The shop is closed today. I needed to pick one day a week to give myself a break until I can get some help hired on.”
“Yes. You are going to burn out if you try to do it all by yourself.”
“I know. Davis keeps telling me the same thing. I think he’s afraid I’m going to rope him into working for me.” Miri laughs, and I echo the sound.
Davis is grumpy on a good day. Thinking about him having to answer customer questions about moisturizer or shampoo is deeply comical. My smile grows at the visual that paints.
“Anyway, I want to have a magical experiment day. I was hoping you and Ruby will come play along.”
“A magical experiment day?”
“Yeah, I was thinking we could try to figure out what kind of magical proclivities you and Ruby have.”
I open my closet and sift through my clothes. The hangers make soft scraping sounds against the metal bar as I search. “Is that a good idea?”
“Hear me out. Anthony flicked a finger and cursed me. He killed Davis’s dad and is walking around the town like it’s not a big fucking deal!” Miri noisily draws in a deep breath on the other end of the line. Her voice got really loud toward the end of that sentence.
“We still don’t know why the rest of you aren’t supposed to bond right away. Beyond the fact that the eighth person is a mystery. Maybe Anthony is full of shit. Or there could be legit reasons why the rest of you shouldn’t form your bonds. I don’t know, and until we do, it's not worth the risk, if that’s what anyone wanted. What we can do, what little we can do, is figure out what kind of magic everyone has. To try to prepare ourselves as best we can for whatever happens next, because we all know Anthony’s not done with us. He’s waited over twenty-five years since the first Axis imploded. Just because he hasn’t come at us again doesn’t mean he’s not planning something. I just want to be prepared.”
Miri’s words hit me like a ton of bricks. Sure, I’ve been thinking these same thoughts for days now, but hearing someone else put them out into the world makes them more real. I shiver, my skin growing chilled, as the sensation of a countdown starting rattles me. We don’t know how much time we have. Can Davis and Miri be bonded, and the rest of us avoid it for the remainder of our lives? Or will there be consequences if the rest of us don’t bond?
The itch to pull out all the books I’ve gathered on the Fae, and Wild Haven Island’s lore hits me, but I tamp it down. Miri’s right. We should figure out what magic we have. It’s obvious I have some kind of healing abilities, but is that all of it? Is there something else I can do?
