Nate stood behind Cassie, and she stared in awe. He had been dressed up for the dance weeks ago when he started the whole mess of joining the night human world via having a mate, but nothing like he was now. His dark hair—longer now and in need of a cut—was slicked back, showing off his piercing blue eyes. He appeared much older in his tux than the button-down shirt he had worn to the school dance. Nate held out a hand for Cassie, which she took without a word.
The music began a slow tune and Nate pulled Cassie closer, much closer than she had been dancing with Turner. Cassie stared ahead at his chest, trying to ignore the excited feeling in the pit of her stomach. She didn’t want to feel excited with Jared just across the dance floor, but she couldn’t help it. There were many memories all mixed together—the past, the way it would have turned out, the way it did turn out, and everything in between. There were many different ways her life could have been, but in each lifetime she always had Nate as a friend, and she always had a crush on him at one point. Her fluttering stomach told her she wasn’t exactly over her crush like she thought she was. Nate momentarily let go of her hip to tip her face up with one finger so that she would look at him.
“First official dance in the night human world and you’re dancing with a dog,” Nate said, his eyes twinkling. “Don’t you know that cats are much better dancers?” He easily broke the tension Cassie felt.
Nate moved with Cassie and all the giddy, laughing feeling of the dance with Turner was gone, and replaced by the more elegant and refined dancing of Nate. It was almost like he glided instead of stepped. Okay. Maybe cats were better dancers.
“How am I supposed to know that? Until a few weeks ago I didn’t know there were cats or dogs around,” Cassie said in reply to his banter.
“I suppose I’ll let your judgment slide this time,” Nate teased back.
They moved slowly in their place on the dance floor until the song changed a bit. It was turning into another one of the formal dances. Cassie thought she would rather dance with Turner because he wouldn’t care in the least if she screwed up. She was too embarrassed to dance with Nate and make a fool of herself with him.
“We should probably go back with everyone else,” Cassie said, trying to get out of it.
Nate didn’t let go, nor did he move.
“I drove all the way here, breaking many laws in the process. The least I could get is a dance with you.” He pouted, but it wasn’t even close to reaching his eyes.
Cassie chewed on her lip. She really wanted to tell him no and go back to sit down. She had absolutely no clue how to dance the formal dance that everyone around them was already doing. But the pout he was making was beyond cute.
Nate reached up and touched her face, keeping her eyes to his.
‘I promise you, you won’t make a fool of me or you. All you have to do is follow my lead. Easy enough.’
Cassie wrinkled her nose. Yes, she would make a fool of them; especially if her stomach kept fluttering.
Nate didn’t wait for Cassie to counter him. He pulled her hand to his shoulder and took her other hand in his.
‘It’s a waltz. You know: one … two … three. One … two … three. Easy.’
Nate’s confidence came across the bond. He wasn’t worried in the least, and that calmed her nerves a little, but not enough to make her move.
“Close your eyes,” Nate told her. Cassie pouted at him this time. “Please, close your eyes. You can feel the music better,” he added more politely.
She was going to argue, but since he was actually trying to be nice instead of bossy, she had to try.
With her eyes closed, Cassie did feel the music more. She heard the beat that Nate had pointed out. Slowly pictures in her head began to run like a movie. She could see herself in Nate’s arms, and the movements as the song played on. They wove between people and continued on their way. Her beautiful gown sparkled as they twirled around and around.
‘Not that hard, is it?’ Nate’s voice cut in over the pictures.
Cassie opened her eyes to find that they were in the middle of the dance floor, dancing beside everyone that she had just seen.
“How …” Cassie began to ask as she realized Nate had sent the pictures to her mentally just as easily as words.
Cassie looked up at him and found him not looking at the people around them, or where to dance. He was completely focused on her. Her heart picked up beating faster and faster as he stared at her. He didn’t say anything, but he didn’t need to. She could feel his feelings across the bond. Cassie stared at his blue eyes and wondered if he would say what he was thinking. A smile formed at the corners of his lips. She tried not to look because all she could think of was what it was like to kiss them.
Nate was just as handsome as ever, but something was different now. Cassie felt it just beneath the surface. Even though she didn’t want to care for either of the guys, she was really stuck. All her memories, old and new, told her that she could never not like either of them, and Nate wasn’t making it any easier to dislike him. Nate grinned at her now. Cassie wanted to cover her eyes and melt away into the floor. He could probably hear everything she was thinking.
‘Yes, I can. And I’m glad. If we weren’t in the middle of a dance floor …’ Nate didn’t finish his statement as a blush ran up Cassie’s cheeks.
“You’re so cute when you’re embarrassed,” he told her. ‘And so tempting,’ he added silently.
Pulling her tighter, Nate began to weave back through everyone. Cassie’s stomach continued to flutter as she danced with him, maybe more so now that she was close enough to feel the heat come off him. Nate leaned down so that his cheek was next to hers. The touch of skin against skin sent tingles all over her face. Her face reddened more. She was going to be a tomato by the time she was done dancing, and Nate seemed to enjoy it. The song faded off, and Cassie finally realized they were back to where they had started.
Nate pulled back, leaving room between them. Cassie was disappointed at that, even though she would never tell him. Something about dancing with Nate felt right, like maybe she’d discover they had done it before in one of the memories she was still sorting through. Cassie glanced up at Nate one more time and found he was looking at the head table, nodding to the large man that was Turner’s father. She had only a moment to study him without him looking at her or reading her mind, and all she could do was stare at him. Had he always been that handsome?
CHAPTER 6
It was past noon before Cassie woke the next day. The guys still were in the bedroom as she gazed out the tinted windows in the main room. It looked like a sunny day, but she had no way of telling unless she went out. Cassie sat up quietly. There was no sound from the open door to the bedroom, beyond the snoring which had to be one of the guys, though she didn’t know which one.
Grabbing her sweatshirt, Cassie slowly opened the doorway to the balcony, hoping that neither guy would hear, so she would be alone.
The dinner had been stressful, and the dance was almost as bad, once she was back at the table and between Nate and Jared. Not only were they barely civil to each other, Nate found out what Owen had tried. He was holding it together, but she was sure that there was a lot of mental yelling going on as Owen occasionally flinched.
The worst part was when they returned back to Turner’s home. Nate was given the room next door, but refused to let Cassie be alone with Jared. He kept insisting that Jared move over to his room, and he be allowed to stay with her. Cassie really didn’t want to be in the middle of anything and told the guys she was sleeping on the couch, and they could have the bedroom. They actually listened, or rather neither would move to the second room. She didn’t know which it was, but she slept on the couch, and they were both in the bedroom.
Cassie slid the door shut and sat down in the metal chair on the balcony. It was cool, but nothing she couldn’t stand in exchange for a few minutes of fresh air and freedom. The guys worried about her, and she really did understand. Night humans were
scary and all the ones she saw the night before confirmed that, but she needed to be able to breathe. Their concern was a bit stifling.
“Coffee?” Arianna asked as she appeared beside Cassie, making her jump in her seat.
Okay, maybe night humans were more dangerous than Cassie gave them credit for.
“Sorry for startling you,” Arianna quickly apologized. “I’m seriously not used to day humans that have so much strength not being able to sense night humans.”
Cassie scrunched her nose in confusion. Day humans weren’t supposed to have power. At least, that was what everyone had been telling her. The witches trained and developed strength, but just being a day human meant you were basically nothing but food to night humans.
Arianna held out a cup of coffee to Cassie as she pointed to the empty seat. “Can I join you?”
Cassie nodded as she wrapped her hands around the hot cup. It was cooler outside than she realized, and the warm coffee thawed her a bit just by holding it.
“I see I confused you again. Gosh, I remember those days well. What did I say this time?” Arianna asked, sipping on coffee that had to be too hot to drink.
“Day humans and strength. Isn’t that a night human thing?”
The dance had been confusing with Jared’s talk of strength and then her friends debating each person as they arrived at the dance. Cassie sensed none of it and had been really lost by the conversation.
Arianna shrugged. “That’s the way I was taught it was, but I’ve seen otherwise. Without being a night human, Devin was always able to sense them. He was a lot like you. As a day human, he had the same type of strength we all measure ourselves against, even though he never was, and still isn’t, a night human.”
“Could he tell the difference in power?” Cassie asked. Jared had explained that there were power differences, but Cassie didn’t see anything.
Arianna shrugged. “Honestly, I don’t know. He has always been, and will always be, a mystery to me.” Arianna’s eyes focused on the mountain scene before them. She was content to just sit.
Cassie snuck a glance at her. Aside from just showing up on a third-floor balcony without coming through the room, Arianna looked like she could be a normal teenager. Cassie wanted to know more. How did a normal teenager become a night human everyone was bowing to in three years’ time? What more secrets was she hiding? From what Cassie saw so far, the girl beside her was anything but normal like Cassie. Then again, Cassie was finding she wasn’t exactly normal either.
“Turner said that you wanted Devin to talk to me about my father,” Cassie interrupted Arianna’s silence.
She nodded. “Yeah. I think he’s the best one to tell you everything.”
“Does that mean the person you wanted to check with confirmed that my father was their kind of night human?”
Cassie wanted to be more direct, but she couldn’t. She had a lot of feelings and hunches, but it really was nothing more than feelings. There was nothing concrete. That sidhe woman had the same eyes as her father, and felt like family, but then again, Cassie could have been imagining it. Heck, Arianna and the sidhe lady didn’t have to be looking at her when she went chasing her at the dance. They could have been looking at someone else. With time to think, Cassie was worried that she was overreacting and imagining things.
“Sorry, listening in again.” Arianna smiled sheepishly.
Cassie blushed. She had been guessing and second guessing all night. Now she was admitting it without speaking. It was a bit embarrassing.
“Yes, I think your father was a sidhe and that lady you met yesterday is named Fiona. She was part of the sidhe village Devin lives in now but was kicked out. She lives here now. I asked her to meet you and see what she thinks. She agreed with me. We both think your father is sidhe, but we don’t understand why you aren’t. Remember how I told you when you have two parents that are night humans, you end up one or the other? Well, night humans tend to be dominant over day humans, and Fiona explained that she didn’t know a single person born to a sidhe and day human parent that didn’t end up being a sidhe. That’s why I wanted Devin to come talk to you about everything.”
Her heart fluttered as she tried to comprehend everything. It was confusing as it was, but Arianna was confirming what Cassie already kind of expected, at least until she second-guessed herself.
Arianna stood up and looked over the railing. “Andrew is getting impatient. I have to leave, but I need to give you these.”
Arianna handed over three small plastic tubes that were almost as long as Cassie’s thumb, but were as thin as pencil lead and filled with something red.
“This is my blood. Keep it for when you need it, but don’t tell anyone you have it. My blood is healing and can change people to what they are meant to be. It might change you into the night human you are supposed to be, but don’t take that lightly. It may seem cool to have all these abilities, but it also comes with a curse of needing blood. I can’t guarantee what you will end up being if you take it, but I can’t deny you the change if you want it.”
“Do I need all three?” Cassie asked. She wasn’t sure she wanted to be a night human either. The guys didn’t seem to drink blood that often, but she wasn’t around them all the time.
“No. One should be enough to change you, and if it won’t change you, it will give you temporary super strength. Day humans can use night human blood to get strength and power.”
“But I won’t turn into one if I’m just a normal day human?” Cassie wasn’t sure how it all worked.
Arianna smiled. “No. Turning a regular day human into a night human takes more than a little bit of my blood. My blood is more like a super healing potion and super strength potion combined. I just don’t know with you, though. One vial could turn you into a night human because you already have night human blood in your veins. The other two are for your mates. I have the gift of sight from one of the night human clans, but it’s not close to what you can do. All I know is that they are going to fight to protect you, and they will need it.”
Cassie nodded and tucked the tubes into her sweatshirt pocket as Arianna climbed on top of the railing.
“One last thing,” Arianna said, turning to face Cassie where she was still seated. “Don’t doubt yourself. You have a power stronger than either of the guys you are bonded to. Once you figure out how to use it,” Arianna put a finger up to stop Cassie from interjecting, “and believe me, you’ll figure out how to use it. Once you do, they’ll be looking to you to save everyone. You’ll become the leader of your clan.”
Arianna stepped back and vanished. She didn’t fall over the edge or anything; she simply vanished. Cassie’s head spun with all sort of new thoughts. She didn’t know what to think. Night human blood, she was possibly a sidhe, but more so Arianna said she was stronger than both her mates. That couldn’t be possible. Nate and Jared were the next alphas to their clans. Cassie couldn’t be stronger than that.
The door to the patio slid open.
Cassie glanced back to see Jared step out.
“Your new friend, back this early?”
She shrugged while she fingered the tubes in her pocket. “She brought me coffee, and good thing she did since it’s freezing out here,” Cassie told him.
Jared nodded like there was more to it than that, but he wasn’t about to say anything. “Did you sleep okay?” he asked, sitting beside her.
“I’d rather be home in my own bed, but yes. Okay, I guess.”
Cassie stared ahead at the mountains. Her life was getting too messy. What did it mean if her father was a sidhe? Even more so, what did it mean if she wasn’t?
“How’d you sleep?” she asked, trying to keep her thoughts from straying far enough for Jared to hear them.
“Not much at all. Nate snores like crazy. I’m surprised you slept through it, or for that matter that Whitney and Owen got any sleep. I think tonight you have to make him change into his night human form. A tiger can’t compare to how loud he was.” J
ared laughed.
“Hey,” Nate said from inside the room, “I don’t sit around complaining about you when you aren’t there. It’s not fair that you are.”
Cassie smiled. They might have been acting like crazy jealous guys half the time, but the rest of the time she could still feel the friendship between them. They were still Nate and Jared, even if their lives had been separated for years. They had been best friends once, and it was still there, probably always would be.
Standing with her coffee in hand, Cassie moved to go back inside. Jared reached out from his seat and gently touched her arm.
‘It doesn’t matter to me who your father was, or what kind of night human you are. You are and always have just been Cassie to me. Your father doesn’t change that.’
A warm calm came from Jared’s words. She was worried what it would mean if her father wasn’t part of the clan, but Jared was right. Her father didn’t define her. She defined herself, and she would be who she chose to be. Cassie smiled down at Jared. His touch didn’t send the same excited tingles down her arm like Nate, but his words made everything better for her. He knew her better than she knew herself, and he knew exactly how to make her world better. Cassie didn’t want Arianna’s words to be true; she didn’t want to have to choose between them. Cassie wanted to have both Nate and Jared as her friends forever, but she had a feeling that if she chose one, the other would be gone. She already saw that happen in a future she never had. She didn’t want that. She just wasn’t going to choose, and then they would have to stay her friends.
Whitney tugged on Cassie’s arm, trying to make her walk faster, but Cassie instead dragged her feet, making the whole group go at a snail’s pace.
“Too tired,” Cassie pretended to complain.
She actually slept fine and was well rested. She was just as excited to get to the seer as Whitney, but she had to tease her friend. After Whitney spent hours and hours teasing her about Jared and Nate, it was Cassie’s turn for some payback.