Read Duality: Vol 1, Melancholia (A New Adult Paranormal Romance) Online
Authors: Elle Casey
“Believe me, when Ho Ho farts, you’ll think she
is
a dragon shooting fire out of her ass,” said Kootch, breathing heavily as he walked back into the room. “Trust me. Nostril hairs are a thing of the past in this house.”
He had globs of white goo on his pants.
“Um, Kootch?” Rae pointed to them with a shaking finger.
Kootch grabbed some Ding Dong wrappers off the table, using them to pull the stuff off. “Fucking dog. Drools like a goddamn rabid werewolf.” He made an annoyed sound as the plastic just smeared the gooey substance into the fibers of his pants. “Next time you’re getting her off the leash.”
“A guard dog,” Rae said. “What kind is she?”
“Canary Island Mastiff. Baddest badass dragon dog of all time. Trained by my dad.”
“The baddest badass human of all time,” said Kootch. “Trust. The guy is all kinds of scary.” He threw the plastic down on the table, ignoring Jasmine’s sharp intake of breath, probably over the germs if her expression was any clue.
“See, the funny thing about Ho Ho,” explained Kootch, “is that she’s the dirtiest, sloppiest, most disgusting pig of a dog there ever was. So you’d think Miss OCD over there would have a stroke just looking at her. But noooooo. She vacuums my ass crack every time I walk through the door, but Ho Ho? She could take a shit right here on the floor and Jasmine would say it’s adorable.”
“Hey! Ho Ho would
never
shit on our floor. She is house trained, unlike
some
people.” She patted the dog on the head and smiled before looking back up at Rae. “Rae, Ho Ho will keep you safe, I promise. You have nothing to worry about.”
“But what about your parents?” Rae asked, not sounding very convinced.
“Oh, trust me. When my parents see what you can do and hear about what happened, they’ll insist you stay.”
Rae’s face fell. “But see, that’s the problem. They won’t do it because they want to. They’ll do it because that’s just what happens. And then they’ll become Rainbows.”
I felt like total crap as soon as the words came out of Rae’s mouth. The solution was simple. But I couldn’t do it.
Jasmine smiled confidently. Then she looked at me. “That’s not going to be a problem.”
I shook my head, tensing my muscles all over my body.
Run! Just run!
“Don’t you shake your head at me, Malcolm. You’re staying too.”
“No, I can’t,” I said, still shaking my head. “I can’t do that.”
“Why not?” asked Kootch. “You said you live in a shithole and you’re leaving anyway. Why not just come here?”
It made perfect sense on paper. All of it. Except for the part where Holder and Derek were trying to take Rae down; there was nothing I could do to help her with that problem. I have no reason to stay. I should just disappear. That had been my plan all along, the only thing that could work for me.
Until Rae had come along, of course. Until Rae had come and given me another option. The problem is that I didn’t know if I could trust it, this illusion of another way. My life had been nothing but one tragedy followed by another. I had no reason to believe I’d have anything but darkness surrounding me, smothering me, until the day I died.
Rae was the light. The yin to my yang or the yang to my yin. Whatever it was, it was nothing I’d ever known before. Joy. Happiness. Rae brought me hope. And hope was a dangerous thing, because it made you dream big and do stupid risky things.
“Fine. Just a few days until we get things worked out. And only if your parents say it’s okay, Jasmine. Can you email them?”
“Yep.” Jasmine looked at Rae, beaming. “You in?”
Rae shrugged, looking shyly at me and then more confidently at Kootch and the dog. “Okay, I’m in. It’s the only way I’ll be able to stay for a little longer.” She looked at me again. “And I’d like to stay.”
Chapter Thirty-Two: Rae
I COULDN’T BELIEVE IT. SOMEHOW Jasmine had managed to convince Malcolm and me to stay with her. I felt like I was walking in a dream. Could this really be happening? Was I running away from my house and my family? Doing the thing I’d dreamed about for as long as I could remember?
“Where will we sleep?” I asked, wondering if it was going to be in the secret room under her house. Maybe I should have been freaked out about that, but the idea of hiding while surrounded by guns sounded like a great idea after dealing with Derek tonight, even though I knew I could never shoot a human being or anything else for that matter.
“I think it’s best if you and Malcolm are near each other,” she said, all businesslike now. “Kootch, can you take Ho Ho back out?”
Kootch walked to the back door. “Come on, Ho Ho. Out you go. Go light up the night, why don’t ya, you smelly beast.”
“Go on, Ho Ho. Outside,” said Jasmine, nodding towards the back door.
Ho Ho the beast-dog ran out, her drool swinging around her head as she went. There was a special kind of confident sway to her stride, as though she knew she could tear our throats open with little effort. She feared nothing. A shiver of respect ran up my arms. I rubbed them to get the goosebumps off, wishing I could be as brave as she is.
“We can’t sleep together,” said Malcolm.
My face heated up. “Of course not. No one was saying we would.” Total rejection sucked. I was getting the distinct impression that Malcolm wanted nothing to do with me or this whole situation. I couldn’t blame him, though. That kiss we’d shared had been mind blowing.
He probably thought he was a Rainbow. I had no idea how I could convince him otherwise, except to have a crappy kiss. And I honestly didn’t think any kiss with him could suck, even if I tried to make it bad. But I had bigger things to worry about, namely my parents finding me and bringing in a SWAT team to rescue me, so I let it go. For now, at least.
“I won’t put you in the same bed, but I will put you in the same room. It’s not to couple you up or anything, because honestly I have no idea what that could do to any bystanders, but we have to be careful about the influence you have on people. If one of you gets around my parents without the other, I don’t want them to get hurt, you know what I mean?”
“This is a bad idea,” I said, imagining her parents getting injured. Jasmine was the only person in the world who’d ever tried to help me, and I couldn’t repay her by hurting someone she loved.
“I agree,” said Malcolm, looking at the front door, his hands clenching and unclenching over and over.
“It’ll be fine. Maybe they’ll be Neutrals like me,” Jasmine said. “Anyway, come on. I’ll show you to the guest room.” She pulled her phone out of her back pocket and pressed buttons on the keypad as she walked down the hall.
Malcolm and I followed her, the glowing screen in her hand and a nightlight near the floor guiding the way.
Jasmine pushed open a door at the end of the hall, still staring at her phone and speaking distractedly. “This is our guest room. There’s a trundle bed under the main bed. Just pull it out. It’s on rollers. Sheets are folded on top.”
Her phone beeped and she clicked a few buttons. She finally looked up, all smiles. “My parents said you can stay.”
“You didn’t tell them about us,” said Malcolm, hesitating in the doorway.
“Yes, I did.”
“You couldn’t have said all that stuff that fast.”
“All I had to do was say one word and that’s all it took.”
“What word?”
“I could tell you, but then I’d have to kill you.” She stopped smiling. “Lights are there, but I suggest you leave them off all the time. Shades are down, so no one can see in, but let’s not tip anyone off that the room is being used. Keep your voices low. Bathroom’s down the hall. Rae, I’ll bring you some PJs. Malcolm, you’re on your own.”
She left us standing in the doorway.
Neither of us moved at first.
“So,” said Malcolm, looking down at me.
“So,” I said back, staring up at him.
“Are we really doing this?” he asked, his voice going softer.
“Yeah, I guess. I’m not even sure what it is we’re doing, though.”
“We’re cutting free. That’s what I see. It’s what it feels like.”
“Being free is scarier than I thought it would be.” It felt good to admit that.
“Yeah. Me too.” He sighed, looking less serious and more just like the boy I’d played basket ball with.
Had it only been today that we were in the gym together?
“Did you ever imagine when you saw me in English class that you’d be standing with me here right now?” I asked, unable to stop the hint of a smile from sneaking onto my face.
“Not in a million years,” he said, the right side of his mouth twitching up.
I looked at him for a few more seconds before walking into the room. I moved slowly, letting the dim nightlight plugged into a hallway outlet guide me.
“It’s dark in here,” I said, holding my hands out, trying to feel my way and make sure I didn’t bump into anything.
“Story of my life,” he said, his hand brushing against mine.
He grabbed my fingers and held on, sliding his around to tangle ours together.
My heart stopped beating for a second or two and then raced to catch up. My ears burned. He was touching me, and it felt so nice. I didn’t want it to stop. Both joy and pain warred within me.
Please don’t let this be our influence over each other making this happen. Please let this be real
.
“Maybe you just need a little nightlight,” I said, my voice trembling.
“Yeah. Maybe I do,” he said, pulling me into his arms and holding me gently. “A friend once told me that all it takes is the single spark of a match to light up a whole room of darkness.”
“And get rid of the stink at the same time,” I said, giggling into his chest.
He tipped his head down, putting his cheek next to mine. It made me feel warm and cared for, wanted for who I am and not for how I make people feel and forget.
And then I knew.
It has to be real.
It just has to be.
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Other Books by Elle Casey
War of the Fae: Book One, The Changelings -
FREE!
War of the Fae: Book Two, Call to Arms
War of the Fae: Book Three, Darkness & Light
War of the Fae: Book Four, New World Order
Clash of the Otherworlds: Book 1, After the Fall
Clash of the Otherworlds: Book 2, Between the Realms
Clash of the Otherworlds: Book 3, Portal Guardians
Apocalypsis: Book 1, Kahayatle
Want to get an email when my next book is released?
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Elle Casey
is an American writer who lives in Southern France with her husband, three kids, Hercules the wonder poodle, Monie the bouvier, and a few other furry creatures. In her spare time she writes women’s fiction and young adult novels (you can find her Women’s Fiction work under the pen name
Kat Lee
.)
A personal note from Elle …
If you enjoyed this book, please consider leaving positive feedback on Amazon, Goodreads, or any book blogs you participate in. More positive feedback means I can spend more time writing! Oh, and I love interacting with my readers, so if you feel like shooting the breeze or talking about books, please visit me. You can find me at …
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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Super hugs first to my readers. With every book I write, I become more grateful for your involvement in my life and my career. Thank you ever so much for your support and kind words. You keep me writing, even on the days it feels like work. An extra shout out to my Elle’Mental readers who took the time to read the ARC and get your reviews out there for the world to see.
Thank you to Luke Bailey, a young man very dedicated to his craft, for the covers for the whole series. To Theresa and Margaret for your beta reading and red pen work. I think we’ve found our groove!
Thank you to Lady O for being my cheerleader and delivering me breakfast and tea while I wrote in her cave. Those last twenty-five thousand words happened there, and they were the most fun to write!
To my husband who always manages everything around me so I can dedicate myself to the writing. And this time around he packed the whole family up for a trip to Scotland while I typed my fingers off. He really deserves a medal for all he does. And to my children who know when to force-cuddle me and when to let me write, I give my warmest hugs and happiest smiles. You will always be my babies, no matter how big you get.