were finished, Mikey’s eyes were drooping.
“Right, it’ll be dry in the morning. You better get to bed.” Charlie steered Mikey towards the hall.
Mumbling thanks to Charlie, his little brother sleepily stumbled his way up to bed, calling a lazy goodnight out to his mom as he passed the sitting room.
Sighing wearily himself, Charlie went back inside the kitchen to see Ari had miraculously cleared everything away in seconds. He smiled at her gratefully as he pulled his backpack up off the floor.
“I suppose I better get going.” Ari yawned and then eyed him as he took out the math chapter he had to finish for tomorrow’s class. “You haven’t done it yet?”
Charlie shook his head. “I got waylaid, remember.” At her silence and unwavering stare, Charlie frowned. “What?”
She smiled at him suddenly and impulsively reached over and kissed his cheek. Charlie felt his skin burn hot where her lips had touched him and he
laughed a little nervously.
“What was that for?”
“You’re such a good brother.” She slipped onto the stool beside him. “I’ve finished this chapter. I can help you get it done quicker.”
“You don’t have to, Ari. What I did tonight… it was nothing. It was a stupid lampshade.”
“A stupid lampshade that meant a lot to Mikey. I wish I had someone like you. Admit it.” She nudged his shoulder playfully. “You’d do anything for your
brother.”
Huffing, Charlie rolled his eyes. “Are you helping me or what?”
“Not until you admit it.”
Seeing she was serious, Charlie smirked, giving in. “Fine. I admit. I’d do absolutely anything for the little creep.” He shoved the math book at her. “Now will you help me or not?”
… Charlie gazed at the ceiling, light from the street lamps outside casting shadows across it. He watched shadows of the leaves of the tree outside dance in front of him and wished, like he wished every day, that he could dance the shadows out of his soul. Not a day went by when he didn’t have a flashback to some ordinary day with Mikey – ordinary days that had suddenly grown extraordinary now, if only for the fact that they alowed Charlie to talk to Mikey again in his memories.
Part of him kept waiting, like Ari kept waiting, for him to come to his senses. To let this dangerous plan for vengeance go. But the need was just getting stronger. A few weeks had passed since his and Ari’s arrival at the Roe’s home, and Charlie stil hadn’t let go. He was training every day with Jack, learning more and more about power. Tempted every day to take out the emerald Red had given him. So far he’d been strong enough to resist.
Jack had started searching for the Labartu for him and they could both feel the bitch getting closer to them. Jack understood. He knew. He got it. Charlie had spent his young life doing everything for Mikey, looking after him, keeping him safe, keeping him happy. Wel… this was the one last thing he had to do for him.
And it helped having Jack. But it also helped having Falon too. She was like the most non-judgmental person he’d ever met.
Sighing, Charlie sat up in bed and glanced back down at Falon. She was sleeping peacefuly, her hand tucked under her chin like a little girl. A rush of affection washed over him and Charlie tried hard to push it back down. But he couldn’t. It was too exhausting. Reluctant to wake her but knowing Jack would be waiting for him, Charlie brushed her cheek until her eyelashes fluttered open.
“You better get back before your parents notice you’re gone,” he told her softly and enjoyed the sight of her as she sat up, stretching languidly.
She yawned and then shot him a wicked smile that did funny things to his insides. “It’s not even light out. Is that why you’re up so early? To wake me and protect my reputation?”
Charlie chuckled. “No. Jack likes to train early.” He eyed her thoughtfuly. “You want to train with us today? It was fun last time.”
Shaking her head regretfuly, Falon slipped out of bed and shuffled her short but gorgeous legs into her jeans. “Can’t. Got my own training with Ari. That girl is awesome. Dad’s realy impressed with her.”
Her name made Charlie tense, an inexplicable feeling of guilt chipping at his good mood. He didn’t know what had happened with Ari and Jai but he wasn’t fooled by their pretense that nothing had happened. He had a feeling they were keeping their relationship on the down-low to protect Jai. So Ari had moved on. Why did Charlie then feel like he was cheating on her? He’d always felt that way, ever since Mikey… every time he fooled around with another girl, he felt like an unfaithful boyfriend.
Falon sighed and Charlie glanced up at her from under his eyelashes, wary of the heaviness in that sigh. “Charlie, you know you just think you’re hung up on her, right?”
“There is no think about it,” he replied gruffly, not wanting to hurt her but prickling at the condescending suggestion that he didn’t know his own mind. Confused, he shook his head. “Anyway, you stil had sex with me knowing what the deal was.”
“Yeah, I did.” She shrugged nonchalantly before puling on his Twin Atlantic shirt. He should be pissed that she’d borrowed it without asking because it hadn’t been easy to find… but she looked realy hot in it. “You and I have been vibing since we met. You seriously think you can honestly be in love with Ari and stil want to fool around with other girls?”
“She doesn’t want me. I’m moving on.”
“Right. That’s why you’ve been flirting with me since the get-go, before you knew for sure Ari didn’t want you.” She shook her head at him, not angry but almost pleading. “Even though Ari and Jai won’t admit to how they feel for each other, Jai hasn’t looked at one other girl but Ari since I met him.”
Glowering now and hating where she was leading with this, Charlie growled, “Your point?”
“I’m saying, when Ari’s around you’re al teasing and affectionate and close. But not like in a needy, have to be with you kind of way. Like a friend, close. When Ari is in the room with Jai, that guy is totaly focused on her. When she’s not looking, he’s watching her. It’s like a freaking Jane Austen novel.”
“That doesn’t mean anything,” Charlie argued. “We’re totaly different guys.”
“Right,” Falon agreed, “You profess to be in love with a girl, then you give up on her without a fight, and then you screw around with her newest bestie. I doubt Jai is screwing around with anyone. I bet he hasn’t screwed around with anyone since he met her.”
“If you’re trying to say I don’t love Ari, then you’re wrong.”
“I think you love Ari. I just don’t think you love her enough.”
It was like she’d slapped him. He blinked rapidly, his heart racing a little too fast as her words brought back Ari’s own words to him. Those exact same words.
“Babe, I’m sorry.” Falon brushed a gentle hand down his cheek as he gazed down at her, lost. “I didn’t mean to go al serious on you.”
He shook his head slowly and brought her hand to his lips, pressing a forgiving kiss to her fingers. “It’s okay. Not many girls would have this conversation with a guy they’d just slept with.”
She grinned mischievously. “Wel, I’m not like other girls.”
“Yeah, I’m getting that.”
“I had a lot of fun last night. Like a lot. Like… more than I’ve had before.”
He grinned back at her now, wrapping his arms around her waist and breathing her in. She smeled like him, and Charlie felt a rush of possessiveness he hadn’t been expecting. “You saying I’m the best you ever had?”
“Wel, according to rumor you’ve had a lot of practice.”
In retaliation he began to tickle her, until their fighting tumbled them back down onto the bed. Charlie pinned her there, his eyes hypnotized by the cute little bow of her mouth. She was so adorably gorgeous, but the exterior hid a sharp mind, biting wit, and openness that he found refreshing. He liked her. Smiling at the realization and feeling a little freer for it, Charlie asked softly, “Was last night the kind of fun you’d want to repeat with me?”
Seeming to enjoy being pinned down by him, Falon made a soft little humming sound before nodding slowly. “Oh definitely.”
As their kiss deepened, Charlie grew even more relaxed. Other than Jack, Falon was the only one he could talk to about his revenge without her flipping out on him—like Ari. No, Falon would just listen, let him talk it out. She was kind of turning into his best friend here. He stopped, puling back to look at her.
“What?” she whispered.
His smile was a little shy as he replied, “I like you.”
Grinning now, Falon nodded. “Yeah. I like you too, Charlie Creagh.”
11 - You Fear What You Don’t Understand.
I’ve Always Understood What I Feared.
It had been weeks now. There was no sign of curious or dangerous Jinn. No sign of The White King. Al was quiet. Too quiet, as far as Ari was concerned. She felt anxious al the time, waiting on something to happen, and she buried that anxiousness into her training with Falon and Jai. Every night she fel into bed physicaly exhausted from being beaten and bruised and battered as they tried to catch her up on years of defensive training, touching mostly on kickboxing and Krav Maga. Other days, they concentrated on Ari’s defensive magic. Out of everything, it was the hardest to control. They’d thrown bolts of energy at her, used their magic to send gym equipment flying at her—anything around them that could be used as a weapon was used as a weapon, to simulate what a real attack from a Jinn would be like. The three of them fought but they were always thinking ten steps ahead, remembering that any time they used magic it had consequences. Some Jinn wouldn’t do that, and Ari had to learn how to fight back without causing a ripple with her magic. That was the hard part. Every time she thought she’d come up with something clever, she’d realize that her defensive tactics could cause a ripple. Three times she’d tried something and then realized what she was doing, only to stop and then nearly get battered by a training weight or sliced by a knife. Ms. Maggie, who had returned the day after she’d settled in with Falon’s family, had saved her ass too many times to count.
Only yesterday, and when Falon’s mother, Caroline, had been watching too, Falon had conjured the neighbor’s Doberman. Vicious guarded the driveway of the
Doneli’s large home along with his brother, Terror. Dazed, scared and confused, Vicious had taken one look at Ari in that smal gymnasium, drew back his teeth and charged her. She knew she could use her own energy to create a shield that he would hit off, but her defensive energy, she’d learned, actualy hurt. Dog lover at heart, Ari didn’t want to hurt the beast. Without thinking, she’d created a pocket in the air around her and Vicious had slammed into it with a confused grunt. Immediately, he'd disappeared as Falon had thrown her ember-bright hands out, transporting him back from whence he’d come.