‘Yeah…of course,’ I said, fumbling a bit.
‘You forgot,’ Dad said.
The look of guilt on my face ruined any chance I had of lying. ‘Don’t worry. Steph is coming round later so I can borrow a dress. I’ll be there.’ I had a sudden thought. ‘Umm, Dad?’ I put on my sweet voice he knew all too well.
‘Yes,’ he said, raising his brow.
‘Do you mind if I bring a couple of people?’ I didn’t see why I should have to stand around all night on my own. Dad and I both knew that he would be busy entertaining colleagues and clients. I was just there to show the united family front.
Dad looked at me, then at Phoenix. He sighed. ‘Who?’
‘Just Steph and Phoenix,’ I said.
Phoenix looked up, showing his first glimmer of interest in our conversation. He was trying to hide it, but I saw the smile.
The look on Dad’s face wasn’t so elated. ‘I guess that will be fine. I’ll let them know.’
Dad grabbed his blueprints and slowly headed for the door, jangling his keys by his side. He took hold of the door handle but stopped before opening it. ‘Vi, you should probably know that the organisers sent through their guest list yesterday.’
‘And?’ I said, taking a bite of stale croissant and spitting it back out. I really had to get out and do some grocery shopping.
‘And I noticed Lincoln’s name was on it.’
‘What!’ I screamed, jumping off my stool.
‘I swear I didn’t know until yesterday,’ Dad defended.
‘Well, I’m not going.’
‘Violet, you know I wouldn’t ask you if it wasn’t important. It’s a really big event, you probably won’t even see him.’
I couldn’t believe this was happening. The hardest part was, Dad hardly ever asked anything of me. The last person in the world I wanted to see was Lincoln but I couldn’t let Dad down. I couldn’t push him away as well.
‘Fine, fine, I’ll go,’ I said.
‘Thanks! I’ll see you…both there.’ He darted out the door.
I stood staring at it. Phoenix started moving towards me but my mouth was so dry I couldn’t even tell him to leave me alone. He put a hand on my face. Tiny sparks of energy flickered between us like little electric shocks.
I was still staring at the door, trying to make sense of what had just happened. All my hard work at avoiding everything that reminded me of Lincoln, everything that could put me at risk of bumping into him, had just gone out the window.
It wasn’t until Phoenix’s lips actually pressed against mine that my body shocked me into the here and now. As soon as our lips touched, any control I had of the senses was ripped away from me. The cool heat hit my entire body. He tasted of apple and my eyes instinctively closed. Flashes of light intensified and I was almost sure there were split-second images of day and night rotating through my vision.
Then there was Phoenix, kissing me. He was surprisingly gentle. Unlike Lincoln’s intensity, this was vulnerable and frightened me more. I was kissing him back…I think.
Before I could pull away, I got a flash of his desire…for me. I stumbled back, dizzy from the combination of sensory overload and my own head screaming at me.
‘I…I… You said I had to be the one to kiss you.’
‘I lied.’ He said it so easily, not repentant in the slightest, it struck a nervous chord.
‘You’re enthralling,’ he continued. ‘It’s as if you become each of the senses and can affect them in me. Through you, I feel birds flying around me and even feel morning and evening manifest their power.’
That got my attention away from my creeping sense of guilt. ‘Is it day and night?’
‘In a way. It’s the power that creates them.’
‘Like the sun?’ I prompted.
‘No. Like the force that creates and powers the sun.’
‘Wow,’ I breathed. How could I be feeling these things? How could my body be reacting this way?
‘By the way…’ he stepped towards me, closing the distance I had just created, ‘. . . it’s OK.’ He ran a finger down the line of my face.
I looked away, suddenly very self-conscious. I didn’t know what he was talking about but I dreaded what was coming.
He didn’t give me time to prepare myself. ‘You’re allowed to like kissing me.’ His expression was so penetrating. His usual cocky look had gone, replaced by something totally male.
I gave a shaky half-laugh. ‘You’re reading me?’
‘Just enough.’ He ran his finger down the opposite side of my face and then slowly to my neck, following the line of my collarbone. I didn’t know if the tingling down my whole body was the senses or just me…or him.
‘You promised you weren’t going to do that.’ My words were breathy.
His mouth curled at the sides, pleased with my reaction. He spoke slowly. ‘What I said was that I wouldn’t influence you and…I haven’t.’
I blushed, wanting desperately to get out of this conversation. I had no idea what that kiss meant to me – or him, for that matter – but I knew it wasn’t something I could try to figure out with an empath reading my every emotion.
I stepped back again, breaking our contact. It helped clear my mind enough to stumble quickly through my next words. ‘Can we just…go to the movies?’
It was pathetic, I knew, but it was the most I could muster.
‘Sure,’ he said, heading for the door and holding it open for me.
As I walked past him he rapped his fingers on the doorframe. ‘Well, that went well anyway. I think your dad likes me.’
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
‘It is an awful, an appalling thought, that we may be, this moment and every moment, in the presence of malignant spirits.’
Richard Whately
The day sped away from me, leaving no real time to prepare. I was glad and worked at keeping busy so I didn’t have to think about seeing Lincoln that night.
Phoenix left during the afternoon, promising to return to pick Steph and me up at seven. We had successfully managed to avoid talking any further about our ‘moment’ and I was relieved he’d let it go…for now.
Steph turned up with a tonne of dresses cradled in her arms. For the past six months, she’d been collecting invites to formals from all the nearby schools. She called it a ‘hobby’. Needless to say her wardrobe had expanded greatly and I suspected that had been the driving motivation. This wasn’t the first time I would benefit as a result.
After setting aside the dress she was planning to wear, she laid out the rest for me to pick from. The choice was easy when I saw she had included the black strapless one I had been eyeing up for months. I had tried to fight it in the past – mix it up, wear colours – but the fact was, I liked black and black liked me. The dress was simple, but I knew that with my curves and the sharp slit up the side, I would look about as hot as I could manage. When Steph dangled a pair of strappy black Jimmy Choos in my face, I said a prayer of thanks we were the same shoe size. One of the perks of having a father away on work constantly was that he always had his PA arrange gifts for her and Jase on his return. Steph was now great friends with her dad’s PA. She basically supplied her with a shopping list of designer clothes and shoes and – presto – packages laced with this season’s best would arrive on her doorstep.
‘Are you sure you don’t mind if I wear these?’ I asked, even though I had no intention of giving them up.
‘No problem!’ Steph called out from the bathroom, where she was applying her final touches of make-up.
‘Thanks. So how are things going with you and Marcus?’ I said, feeling guilty I hadn’t been paying more attention to what had been going on in Steph’s life. It was time to start being a better friend.
She came whirling out of the bathroom into my room. ‘Great! What else do you expect? He’s gorgeous, smart, sexy and going places. Not to mention his family is about as high up as you can get.’ Her tone was so matter-of-fact, I couldn’t help but laugh
.
‘OK, but I meant more along the lines of – do you care about him?’
She looked at me like I was missing the point completely. ‘Violet, honey, I just said he’s hunky, smart and full of potential – what more is there to make me feel all warm and gooey inside?’
I couldn’t argue there.
‘Anyway, enough about me. What’s going on with you and Mr Catch-a-damsel-in-distress?’
I prepared myself again to tell her everything. I wanted to be able to confide in her, but like before, when I actually tried to physically tell her I couldn’t muster the words.
‘We’re friends,’ I said finally, sitting on my bed, buckling my shoes.
‘Uh-ha.’
‘We are.’
‘So you’re telling me you haven’t had any warm tingly feelings when you’re around him?’
‘No. OK, yes…maybe.’ I shook my head, as much at myself as at Steph. ‘I’m not looking for that kind of thing, anyway.’
‘Yeah, well, want it or not, you got something,’ Steph said.
I gave a moan, dropping my face into my hands.
‘Vi, it’s OK if you like him. Why don’t you just try having a bit of fun? It won’t kill you.’
‘Yeah, maybe. I just can’t stop thinking about…’ I couldn’t even bear saying his name.
‘Then it’s probably a good thing you’re going to see him tonight. You’ve just built Lincoln up in your mind like he’s some god, but he’s not, Vi. When you see him tonight, you’ll see.’
Yeah…that’s exactly the way it’s going to go. I sucked it up and put on a brave face. ‘You’re right. I can do this.’
‘Yes, you can. Plus, in that dress, he’ll probably fall flat on his face when he sees you.’ She stood in front of me and sprayed me with perfume a couple of times. ‘It’s marginally annoying that you look better in my own dress than I do.’
I looked in the mirror. She wasn’t lying; the dress definitely highlighted my assets. Steph was thin and beautiful with rich olive skin and shoulder-length blonde hair, always perfectly styled and edgy. But she had nothing up top. She always joked about it, but I knew she envied my curves.
‘And,’ she continued in her scheming voice, ‘if all else fails, you’ll have Phoenix there as the perfect jealous accessory.’
I hadn’t thought of that angle. I didn’t know if that was a good thing or not, but couldn’t deny I liked the idea of having extra ammo.
Phoenix picked us up at seven on the dot. He was annoyingly punctual. When we walked into the lobby of Dad’s building, it was like walking into a wonderland. The entire place had been draped with millions of fairy lights. They blanketed the ceiling and shimmered down towards the ground like stalactites raining down on the crowd. There was a band playing in the corner with a woman vocalist singing in a husky sweet voice. Waiters glided around the room in white tuxedos balancing tray upon tray of champagne. A sea of glamorous people filled the room, covering the entire ground floor and spilling out onto the terraces, which had been opened up for the night. All the guests were dressed in way too much of everything. I had a flash of self-consciousness and hoped I had dressed up enough, feeling a little bare with no jewellery and my hair down.
As if on cue, Phoenix whispered in my ear, ‘You’re so sexy, I’m struggling to keep my hands still.’
I stopped fidgeting and smiled. The whole reading-my-emotions thing did have its benefits, I guess.
Steph fitted right in, wearing a stunning emerald green silk dress that floated around her olive skin. The fact that she had an elaborate string of pearls around her neck made her stand out even more.
Phoenix looked hot. No tie or jacket, but it suited the look. Dressed entirely in black, his hair looked incredible. It was the deepest plum, almost black, with splices of dazzling silver.
Wherever he walked, women turned their heads, blinded by his otherworldliness. It was like he left a lingering aura behind him that attracted them. He was aware of it, but seemed unimpressed – and while he paid Steph and me all the right compliments, his eyes never left me.
We mingled and Phoenix brought us a glass of champagne each.
Dad found us not long after we arrived. After a quick hello to Steph and barely a nod to Phoenix, he dragged me off to meet and greet all the people he’d wanted me there to see. It didn’t take long for the formalities to be over and I was free to return to Steph and Phoenix. I considered just grabbing them and leaving, but I knew Dad would probably want me for a second sweep of the room later.
The idea of seeing Lincoln dominated my every thought. My head turned at the smallest sound. Every time I heard a man laugh or felt someone walk behind me, I spun to look. I hated that I was vulnerable and hated even more that he would be able to see right through me.
Just when I thought maybe Dad had been right, maybe Lincoln wouldn’t turn up, I saw him. A group of people beside us started to move away, clearing the path that led straight to him. He was barely ten metres away from me.
My legs almost gave way right there and then. It was like seeing him for the first time and my breath caught in my throat. Even after everything that had happened, he was still simply the most beautiful person I had ever laid eyes on.
He was dressed in a perfectly tailored suit. Crisp white shirt, open collar, black pants and jacket. Leaning against one of the polished concrete pylons in the centre of the room, hands in pockets, he looked incredible. But also different – even from a distance I could see that his face was a little gaunt and his eyes seemed tired, like he hadn’t slept in days.
My body started moving instinctively towards him – like one magnet being pulled towards another. But as the rest of the crowd parted, I froze in my tracks.
Lincoln was not alone.
A woman was with him. As I watched, she leaned in close and brushed the top of his shoulder, tidying him up, as if she were the person in his life who could assume this role.
I hated her.
Lincoln looked over through the space now open between us and saw me. I stopped breathing. He straightened.
I felt emotion surge through me; jealousy and something else I couldn’t be sure of. All I knew was that it was very intense – and it wasn’t mine. I glanced at Phoenix still standing beside me. I wanted to reassure him, but my eyes darted back to Lincoln. I stared as he, too, looked at Phoenix and then back to me. He said something to the woman he was with and then started to walk over. My heart was pounding so hard I could feel it thundering through my body. Phoenix inched a little closer. I tried to block out the emotion he was leaking into me.
I expected Lincoln to be business-like. Actually, I don’t know what I expected, but I thought it would be awkward. But when he neared me, he just kept coming through the polite personal boundaries I’d expected him to maintain. He grabbed my hand, pulling me into him, hugging me tight. In surprise, my natural instincts took over and my body melted. For the first time in weeks, I exhaled completely and I hugged him back. He pulled me tighter until I couldn’t breathe, but I didn’t care. Oh God, just this moment. I need this. I can’t let go. Not yet.
‘I’ve missed you,’ he whispered in my ear. Tingles ran down my spine. I wanted to get closer, hold tighter, never let go. Then I remembered. Grabbed some semblance of my mind and remembered the pain. I stepped back and he let me go.
Phoenix took my hand. It wasn’t the hand I wanted, though I tried hard to hide it.
Lincoln straightened and visibly composed himself, tugging slightly at his jacket. He cleared his throat. ‘I’m sorry, I’m being rude,’ he said formally, looking at Phoenix through narrowed eyes. ‘I’m Lincoln. I believe we met briefly on Violet’s birthday.’
Shit. I’d forgotten about that.
‘Phoenix.’
Lincoln put out his hand in offer to shake. When he extended his arm, the sleeve of his jacket pulled back, revealing the silver band secured snugly around his wrist.
Phoenix remained still. He saw it too. I got the distinct i
mpression that was what Lincoln had intended.
‘I’d rather not,’ Phoenix said.
Lincoln’s eyes darted from Phoenix to me. ‘I knew it! Violet, he’s—’
I cut him off. ‘I know what he is. He never lied to me about who he was, Lincoln.’
I looked him in the eye, the first of my uncooperative emotions threatening to spill over. Steph shot me a questioning look. I just shook my head; I couldn’t deal with her questions right now.
Lincoln turned his attention to Phoenix. ‘What are you doing with her? Why are you so hard to sense? Is this a game for you?’ Lincoln’s whole demeanour had changed; his presence was now strong, threatening.
Phoenix tightened his grip on my hand. ‘It’s no game. Violet needed someone to help her through this time. I’m sure you’re aware she’s more powerful than most. Were you not concerned for her safety?’ I could feel his anger rising.
Lincoln returned it with interest. ‘Of course I was concerned! But I respected her right to be left alone until she was ready.’
People were starting to look.
‘You were careless. She’s like a walking neon sign. You weren’t there for her. I was.’ Phoenix tried for matter-of-fact, but none of us missed the territorial testosterone oozing from his words.
Lincoln laughed. ‘And she’s supposed to feel safe with you? What? You have a crush on her? She’d never be with someone like you!’
Phoenix didn’t say anything for a moment; he just looked straight at Lincoln, a dangerous smirk creeping onto his face. He swung the hand that was holding mine in the air a couple of times and shrugged.
‘And yet…’ He tilted his head, looking at our joined hands.
Lincoln’s jaw was clenched so tight it looked like he was about to pop a vein.
‘Stop!’ I almost yelled. Things were getting way too heated way too fast. It was a bad idea putting these two in a room together.
‘Look.’ I took my hand from Phoenix. ‘I don’t need a hero protector, so you can both just stop!’