“I’ve seen some of them already,” he said, his features partially disguised by the darkness of the room, but he appeared to be staring back and forth between us. “I peeked inside when your mom and I toured the house before we bought it.”
“Who do you think they belong to?”
He shrugged. “I have no idea. We should research some history on the place. Are you two doing okay?”
“Yeah, we’re fine. I’ve just been giving Seth the tour.” Sorta, I added in my head, but not where he could hear it. No those walls were firmly up. I didn’t need my dad having a heart attack and moving us all away from here.
“Okay. Your mom and I will be in the family room watching television if you need us.”
“We’ll be down soon,” I said, though I was eager to go through the rest of the trunk and look in the other one, too. I knew my dad well enough to know he seemed nervous and uncomfortable.
“All right. Don’t be long.”
Seth stared at me, waiting for the sound of his footsteps to retreat before he spoke. “That was close.”
I nodded. “Yeah, it was.”
“It was worth it.”
“I think so, too.” Scooting closer, he kissed me, briefly. “I’d better go before we really get into trouble.”
“But you haven’t seen my room, yet.”
“Then I definitely need to go before that happens. If you take me in there right now, I won’t be leaving any time soon. I don’t want this to be my last night with you. I want to spend a lot more with you.”
“How can you be so sure? You barely know me.”
“I know enough. I know you’re honorable, kind, and strong. I see the love you have for your family. You’re talented, both magically and normally. You’ve told me of things your family has gone through and survived, and I see how you support them. Not to mention that every time I’m around you it’s like you light my match with that flame of yours. You and I—we fit. I don’t care if it’s weird to say it. I want to see where this is going.”
“It’s not weird, just unexpected.” My heart was racing, fluttering, stuttering with every word he spoke. “I want to find out where we’re headed, too.”
Laughing quietly, he kissed me, again. “We’re headed for trouble, I’m afraid. Lots of it.”
“Fine by me,” I whispered, and he laughed.
“Strangely, I’m fine with it, too.”
Chapter Eleven
Stepping away from the water fountain, I dragged the back of my hand briefly across my mouth to remove any excess water before turning and making my way back to the double gym doors and cheer practice. I was immediately brought up short when I noticed Jett leaning against one of the open doors. Football practice must’ve ended early today. I glanced around, hoping Seth might be in the vicinity, too; but didn’t see him.
Sighing, I resigned myself to another confrontation as I moved closer toward Jett, his eyes never leaving me.
“Hey, Sugar.”
“Sugar?” I replied, wondering when I’d acquired a nickname.
“Yeah. I like my girls sweet.”
I cast a glance across the room to where Megan was ordering a group of girls about. “I certainly wouldn't call that sweet. And last time I checked, I wasn't your girl.”
Flashing a half grin, Jett looked at Megan. “She's a piece of work, isn't she? I was in the mood for something tart when I hooked up with her.” His gaze swung back to me and traveled down my body hungrily. “But suddenly I seem to be sporting a sweet tooth again.”
Heat filled my cheeks at his blatant perusal, but I lifted my chin a bit higher. “I hate to disappoint you, Mr. Blackstone, but I'm neither sweet nor tart.”
His eyes brightened. “So that leaves you somewhere in the middle, doesn't it?”
I could feel a trap coming on. “Maybe,” I replied hesitantly.
He licked his lips and smiled wider. “The perfect blend, then. I always wanted a good girl who could be a little bit bad.”
Sighing heavily, I rolled my eyes. “Maybe I should also remind you that this “perfect blend” is unavailable.”
“You don’t need to remind me. I think about it almost every minute of every day.”
“Then why do you keep trying to pursue me?”
Pausing, the humor faded from his expression and he grabbed me by the elbow, dragging me just out of sight of the others at practice. “I keep pursuing you because you and I belong together and I’m hoping you’ll realize it sooner rather than later.”
Anger infused me and I crossed my arms, staring at him pointedly. “And why would I ever want to date a guy who would try to steal his best friend’s girlfriend? For that matter, why would I date a guy who is hitting on me while in a relationship with someone else? If you’re cheating on her, you could just as easily cheat on me. I’d never be able to trust you.”
Jett stepped closer. “Because I’ve never wanted a girl as badly as I want you. Trust me when I say if you were mine, there’s no way I’d be looking at anyone else.”
“For how long?” I asked, staring into his incredible eyes. If I were being completely truthful to myself, I wasn’t entirely immune to him. There was something about him that piqued my interest—it had since the beginning. The state of his aura had immediately raised red flags for me, but Seth seemed determined to stand by him. “Until you get another sweet or tart tooth? I will never be anyone’s temporary plaything.” I started to walk away, but he reached out and grabbed me, pulling me against him.
Leaning in close to my ear, he whispered. “Trust me, when you become mine, it won’t be temporary. I intend to keep you all to myself. But you can count on the fact that I will definitely play with you, and it will feel so good you’ll be begging for more.”
“You’re a pompous jerk.” I yanked my arm free and walked away annoyed, as Jett's laughter trailed after me. He was such a butthead, so damn full of himself. I hated people that felt like they were entitled to whatever they wanted, no matter how much it damaged those around them. Jett was so selfish; all he could see was his own wants and needs.
“You okay?” Stephanie asked as I rejoined the group and I nodded.
“Yeah, sorry I took so long. What did I miss?” Casting a glance at the doorway, I noticed Jett was still standing there watching. Megan finally noticed him and went running over, and he greeted her with a pretty hot kiss.
I turned away, unable to stomach anymore.
~~~
“Who the hell is that?” Jett’s voice caused me to jump, since I hadn’t realized he was there. Turning, I found him sitting against the wall just beyond the doors to the school, an angry expression on his face, his mouth set in a hard line as he glared at me.
Glancing back to where my dad was taking off his motorcycle helmet, I watched as he smiled and waved at me. “You ready?” he shouted, and I nodded.
“Be right there. Give me one sec.” I glanced back to Jett, deciding this was just too good to pass up. “What’s it to you?”
“Well, for one, I thought you were dating Seth. You just gave me your big old high and mighty speech about two-timers and then this guy shows up.”
I shifted my books to one side as I stared at him. “Weren’t you the one who was trying to convince me that Seth and I didn’t need to be exclusive? So which is it? Am I to be loyal to Seth, or only loyal if you are the one who wants a piece of me?”
“Who is this guy to you?” he practically growled at me.
“Why does it matter to you so much?”
Jett’s eyes glittered like ice. “Because I want to know who my competition is.”
“You have no competition because you’re not even in the running.” He was so dang irritating.
“Give me time. I’ll grow on you and then you’ll change your mind.”
“Don’t hold your breath.”
“I don’t need to. I’m confident in my ability to sway you.”
“Get lost, Jett.” I turned toward the motorcycle, tired of the conv
ersation. It was like beating my head against a brick wall.
“With you? Happily.”
Glancing behind me, I saw him rising to follow and my pulse rate shot up. I needed to keep him away, just in case Dad could sense anything about Jett; but I didn’t know how to distract him. Before I could contemplate anything, Jett moved right past me, heading for my dad. I ran after him.
“Wait!” I called, but it was too late.
“How do you know Kenna?” Jett asked, his posture completely on the defensive.
My dad arched an eyebrow and glanced between the two of us. “What’s going on here?” he asked through our mental link.
“This guy is a friend of Seth’s, but he thinks I made the wrong choice. He wants me to date him instead. Now he thinks you’re competition, as well.” I groaned. This was so embarrassing.
“I got this, Firecracker. Just play along.” Dad winked at me, before turning back to Jett. “I’m her boyfriend. What’s it to you?”
Oh dear sweet heaven above! “What are you doing? I practically screamed into my dad’s head. “Don’t stir the pot!”
He didn’t answer, simply staring at Jett who now had some sort of pained grin on his face as he turned to look at me. “You’re such a damn liar, you know that? A two-faced, two-timing liar.”
“Don’t you talk to her that way,” Dad said, swinging his leg off the still running bike and I groaned. I knew my dad. If he felt I was being threatened in any way, he’d go ballistic.
“I’ll talk to the little cheat any way I want.”
“Stop it! Both of you!” I yelled, stepping between them. I stared at Jett. “He’s not my boyfriend, you idiot. He’s my dad; and he was testing you. I’m pretty sure you failed.”
Jett’s expression changed from anger to horror as he realized his mistake, immediately trying to recover. Holding out his hand, he spoke. “I’m Jett Blackstone. Nice to meet you, sir.”
Dad merely stared at Jett’s hand. “Sorry, kid. Too little, too late.” He glanced at me. “Are you ready? I have a surprise planned for you.”
“You do?” Smiling, I slipped my belongings into one of the saddlebags. “Then let’s go.” The two of us climbed onto the motorcycle while Jett sat there and watched.
“See you tomorrow, Kenna,” he said loudly when my dad revved the engine.
“Stay away from my daughter!” Dad shouted back, pulling away from the curb and quickly putting a lot of distance between Jett and us. I breathed a sigh of relief.
“Thanks, Dad.” I muttered into his head.
“I’m serious. Stay away from that one. He’s not right for you.”
“That’s my plan.”
“Good, you’re a smart girl. You said he’s friends with Seth, though?”
“He is. They play football together. Seth has known Jett for many years. He said he used to be a lot nicer, but things have happened in his life that have kind of hardened him.”
“Hmmm. You know he’s a warlock too, right?”
“Yes, I know. Seth told me. I understand there are a few families similar to ours in the area.” That was the complete truth—families with mixed fresh-blooded witches and contaminated demons.
“Well, I’m not kidding. I want you to stay away from this guy.”
“Why? What’s wrong?”
“There’s bad energy around him. I can sense it.”
I knew he would. That’s why I’d hoped to keep them apart. “I know. I do, too. Seth seems to think he’s redeemable, though.”
Dad grunted. “That’s not exactly a glowing endorsement, you know.”
“What do you mean? I thought you liked Seth. We all had a great time at dinner.”
“That was before he made out with my daughter all over my house.”
I blushed. “How did you know?”
“I didn’t,” he replied with a laugh and I groaned, realizing I’d fallen right into his trap.
Several seconds passed and I waited for him to continue with his conversation. When he didn’t, I did. “Are you mad at me?”
“Not at all. I know guys are going to like you and I know that you will like them, too. It’s totally natural. I’m just not too happy about it. You’re still my little girl. I don’t think I’ll ever be comfortable with seeing the way these guys look at you.”
“How do they look at me?” I asked, suddenly curious.
“Well, Seth, he looks at you like the sun rises and sets with your every movement. His eyes are constantly on your lips, like he might die if he doesn’t get to kiss you. The chemistry practically radiates off the two of you when you’re together. But that Jett kid? He looks at you like . . .” He trailed off.
“Go on.” I encouraged, wanting to know what he’d been about to say.
“Jett looks at you like he’d like to kidnap you, haul you off to a cave and teach you everything he knows about sex over a month of Sundays.”
“Oh.” I didn’t know what else to say. I was pretty sure my dad had never been this blunt with me before. Blushing furiously, I flipped up the visor on my helmet, trying to cool my face.
“Be careful around him, Kenna.”
“I will, Dad. I promise. I want nothing to do with him.”
“Don’t lie to yourself, either.”
Wait. What? “How am I lying to myself?” I asked, ready to argue.
“I can tell you’re attracted to both of them.”
“Really? And how’d you manage that?”
He chuckled. “Have you forgotten I’m a demon warlock? I can smell the magic in your blood. I know when it races faster, and I can smell the pheromones that dump into your blood stream whenever you’ve been near Seth and now Jett. Attraction is easy for me to spot.”
Wonderful. “You’re wrong, Dad. I’m not attracted to Jett—I mean, he’s super hot, but he’s a jerk. You must’ve sensed my irritation with him.”
“And I will tell you, again, what I said a minute ago. Stop lying to yourself. Just because you find him attractive doesn’t mean your feelings for Seth are any less real.”
“I thought you didn’t want me to date anyone. Now you’re pushing me toward Seth?”
“I’ve seen the competition and I’m touting the lesser of two evils,” he replied with a wry chuckle. “Speaking of Seth, I was surprised he wasn’t with you.”
“He left before the end of school. The football team had some passing league today with a neighboring school.” A text from Seth was waiting for me after practice and had filled me in on the details.
“Then why wasn’t Jett with him?”
I shrugged. “I think Jett plays defense. Seth is the quarterback.”
“I hope both those guys play fair and don’t use their powers to give them an athletic advantage.”
“I guess we’ll find out when the season officially starts, won’t we?”
Pulling into an unfamiliar parking lot, he shut off the bike. “You’re probably right. I just don’t care for cheaters.”
“Where are we?” I asked normally, removing my helmet.
“Essex Street,” he replied. “Remember, I said I had a surprise for you? Well, this is part of it. I want to introduce you to someone.”
Draping his arm around my shoulders, he gave me a squeeze as he guided me toward the street of shops that was closed off to vehicle traffic and only open to pedestrians.
“So, what is this surprise?”
“You’re gonna have to wait a few minutes. Patience.”
“Yeah. I get my patience from you.”
Laughing, he squeezed me, again. “I know and I’m sorry. I promise it will be worth the wait.” Leading me to a metaphysical store called Bell’s Book and Candle, he held the door open and I went inside, looking around the welcoming, well-maintained space.
“Vance!” I heard a shriek and suddenly a pretty dark haired woman practically launched herself across the space between us. Grabbing him, she hugged him tightly, laughing and smiling as he did the same. Pulling back, she placed both hands o
n either side of his face and kissed him full on the lips.
Who the hell was this lady and why was she kissing my dad? More importantly, why was he letting her?
As if they sensed my discomfort, they broke apart and both looked over at me.
“Please forgive me,” the woman spoke and I noticed she had an accent, but it seemed a bit muddled to me—maybe British? Or Australian? I wasn’t really sure. “You must be Kenna. Your mum and dad have told me so much about you.”
“Portia wanted to come see you, too, but there was a minor emergency she had to help take care of at work,” my dad said. Their conversation caused my hackles to lower. Obviously Mom knew of and liked this woman. “Kenna, this is Belinda Bell.”
“Bels,” she corrected with a smile as she warmly shook my hand. “Everyone calls me Bels.” She glanced back at my dad. “You have no idea how much I love your father.” Um, I was pretty sure I did after her enthusiastic greeting. There was definitely something going on between them.
“He’s a great guy,” I agreed, still feeling displaced and awkward. I was sure I’d never seen my dad kiss anyone besides my mom—other than family, and that was usually a hug and maybe a kiss on the cheek for his mom.
“Your dad saved my life, once, and the life of my mother, too.” She explained.
“Not really her mom,” Dad interjected. “She wasn’t actually in any danger.”
“True, but we didn’t know that at the time.”
I gave up trying to guess what was happening. “Can someone please explain? I’m so confused.”
“Your grandpa, Damien, came here and stole Hecate’s Box from Bels, then kidnapped her to use her blood in the ritual to claim possession of the souls in the underworld. He intended to kill her.”
“And I would’ve died in that hellish circle had your dad not been able to pull me out of it. As far as I’m concerned, he has my devotion for the rest of my life. So when he called and asked if I’d be willing to give you a job, I was ecstatic.”
“I’m going to work here?” I glanced back and forth between them and my dad nodded.
“Your mom said that you want a car and you’re willing to work to pay for it. I thought that was a great idea. So, if you’re good with this, Bels is offering you a job to help you make the payments.”