At home, dinner was much easier than breakfast had been because we avoided the topic of me and further hunting. Rufus flatly refused to allow Felix to cook, declaring that my first dinner back should be something familiar. Instead, Rufus grilled steak and vegetables, which was incredibly appetizing. Felix, not allowing Rufus to take away his fun, defied him with dessert – good old fashioned bread pudding. It actually smelled perfect…before he poured creamed carrots over it. I didn’t care much, though. It was nice simply to be surrounded by those I love.
As was my duty, I washed and dried the dishes, with Eran’s help. Unfortunately, he kept his distance, skirting me at times when we may have bumped against each other. That, I found, was extremely irritating. Other than innocent rides on my motorcycle in which there was no way for our bodies to avoid touching, he had not made one move to come in contact with me. Typically, I could read his emotions and identify when he was interested or not. Not this time. He had mastered the ability to hide his feelings when needed, a trait required for someone in warfare, and he was using this ability now.
By the time we were upstairs and preparing for bed, I was thoroughly annoyed. Having been away from him for so long – at least while I thought I had been – had caused my emotions to bubble to the surface. I wanted to know he had missed me as much as I had missed him, but I simply did not get that feeling. Opening my balcony doors and taking a seat in one of the plastic chairs along the railing, I tried to calm myself down.
A few minutes passed when the creaking of floorboards told me that Eran was going to sit with me on the balcony. My stomach tightened with nerves at the thought of it. For the first time in a very long time, I was allowing myself to feel some emotion and they seemed to be amplified.
“
Nice night,” he muttered.
“
Uh huh,” I replied.
He sat in the plastic chair next to me, which was positioned cattycorner so although we faced each other we weren’t looking directly at each other.
“
There was a night like this in Texas…clear, fresh air, countless shooting stars. You were headed to El Paso…”
“
Johnny Marringer,” I stated, noting the name of the Fallen One I had gone to find.
“
That’s right. You had pulled off the highway and there wasn’t a single light…generated by electricity…for miles. There was only the full moon and the stars to brighten the desert floor. When you stopped, you walked out in the brush and looked up at the sky. And you stood there…looking up…for a long time.” His eyes were on me now, waiting for my response. “There was a cool breeze but other than that nothing moved. No snakes, no desert mice, no bats or owls. It felt as if we were completely alone.”
“
I did feel completely alone out there,” I reflected.
He sighed, allowing his head to dip slightly. “I can’t tell you how often I wanted to show myself, Magdalene. It took every bit of my will power to stop. Because I knew the moment I had, you would find some way to try and lose me. It was just…better to stay hidden.”
“
I understand,” I said and he looked at me skeptically. “I do. I know guarding me isn’t the easiest job in the world.”
His jaw slackened in shock. “You admit it? Do you know…you have never once admitted that to me? Not in all the centuries I’ve known you have you ever spoken those words.”
“
Well don’t expect me to repeat it.”
“
Oh,” he laughed to himself. “I wouldn’t dare get my hopes up.”
His feet swung down and landed with a thump on the balcony’s wooden floorboards. Then, to my surprise, he leaned forward and took my hands. The heat radiating from his skin was both comforting and thrilling, coaxing my stomach in to flip flops.
“
Do you know what I’ve missed most about you?”
I shook my head, unable to speak. After all these years I was still exhilarated at the very touch of his skin.
“
This…this right now. Being able to sit with you and know that you see me and I see you. It is such a precious gift…” His hands tightened around mine before he dropped his head and laughed to himself. “Before I fell, before I came here in human form, I would sit this close to you.”
My eyes widened. “You did? When? I never saw you.”
“
And you wouldn’t have. But I was there with you…always. Here on the balcony, beside you in classes at your new school, next to you at The Square. I was always with you. But I could never touch you.” He rubbed his thumb along the contours of my hand. “That was the most difficult part and that was what I went through again these last weeks.”
“
So you do want to touch me?” I asked innocently.
He tilted his head back and released a bellow of laughter. “You think I don’t?”
“
Well, you haven’t…not since I left you…” My head tilted to the side briefly. “I mean, not since I thought I left you.”
“
I was giving you time, Magdalene, to readjust.” He said this while trying to hold back a smile.
Instantly, I felt foolish. “Ah…”
He released one of my hands and I worried he might be pulling away, despite what he’d just mentioned. To my relief, he cupped my chin in his hand and said, “Your health and safety is my first priority. As your guardian it needs to be this way. My need to feel you comes second.”
I swallowed, excitement growing in me the longer he stared. “I’m healthy…and I’m safe.”
His face tightened then as a wave of passion coursed through him. I could almost see the intensity of it feverishly boiling in him.
He leaned closer, his breath quickening, and placed his lips on mine. They were soft at first but our passion took over and before I knew it, we were standing, our hips pressed against one another. My fingers were in his shaggy, curly hair; his were gripping my waist, pulling me closer.
In the heat of it, he picked me up, his arms wrapping iron-clad around my waist, and carried me in to my bedroom. A few steps across the room and the door was kicked closed. I was on my back then, his warm, firm body on top of me. His hands were in my hair now, entwining with my curls. My lips crushed his and he responded with equal enthusiasm. The bed gave way to our weight, creaking slightly, as we moved towards the headboard. His thumbs were in my jeans, pulling them down. Our bodies moved in a rhythm, following each other as they lifted and fell, twisting together until the bedcovers were tangled around us. He groaned and roughly yanked the covers aside and then he paused.
“
What?” I asked. “What’s wrong?”
He drew in a ragged breath. “Not like this…” he muttered and rolled to the side, his arms coming off me and lifting above his head. He was still breathing heavily when I laid my cheek on his shoulder. “Not like this…” He reached down and brushed the hair from my face. “You deserve better.”
“
Eran, I’m already your wife,” I reminded him.
“
No…I mean yes. You are my wife spiritually.” He shook his head, still trying to catch his breath. He groaned then and slapped a hand over his eyes, brushing the hair from his forehead in aggravation. Then he explained, “Magdalene, when was the last time we made love?”
“
I don’t remember.” Now I was thoroughly confused.
“
I do and it was on our wedding night.” He said this with such declaration I couldn’t have misunderstood his meaning.
My breath caught in my chest. “We’ve only made love once…”
“
Only once and over a hundred years ago,” he confirmed. “And…” he sat up, lifting himself off the bed, “…I’d like it to be more special than a quick roll in the covers before our housemates find us.”
“
You’re going to leave me like this?” I asked, dumbfounded.
He laughed mockingly at himself. “No, Magdalene. I’m leaving myself like this…at least until I can find a way for us to be together without any inhibition, without housemates, without time constraints.” He started for the door, almost as if he was fearful of second guessing his decision.
When he had nearly reached it, I said softly, “I’m sorry watching over me is such a challenge.”
He stopped, sensing the concern in my voice. “You’re worth every frustrating moment,” he replied with a smirk, trying to turn my statement to a more lighthearted one.
I started to ask, “Do you ever…”
He paused and turned back to me. “Ever?” he prompted.
“
Do you ever regret the decision to be my guardian?” The words came out with a struggle, half of me needing to hear the answer and half of me abhorring the truth.
He marched across the room, took my hands, and then waited for me to look at him. When I did, I found his expression softened, almost sympathetic. He knew how hard it was for me to ask that question.
“
Never,” he declared, which allowed me to breath easily again. His signature smirk rose up then. “If I weren’t your guardian, if you weren’t my ward, and we were in the very same situation as we are now I would be behaving the same way. I want you, all of you, and I want you tonight and every night for the rest of our existence. This has nothing to do with being your guardian, Magdalene. This has to do with ensuring we can make love without getting caught.”
I couldn’t help myself then. I laughed and soon he was laughing with me. Despite being hundreds of years old, he suffered from the same classic dilemma as any other teenage boy, and that we found humorous.
As his laughter settled down, he said tenderly to me, “I
do
love you. I
will
find a way for us to be together.”
“
Good,” I said firmly.
“
Now,” he released me and stepped across the room, placing his hand on the light switch, “go to sleep. The afterlife is waiting.”
He turned off my lights and closed the door.
I sighed heavily and then spent the next several minutes before sleep overtook me trying to quiet my craving to slip across the hall and into his bedroom.
The last thing I thought before I awoke in the Hall of Records was very reassuring: Thankfully, Eran always kept his word. I just hoped he would fulfill his promise soon.
CHAPTER THREE: WELCOME BACK
Ms. Beedinwigg had been a teacher at the private high school that Eran and I attended for exactly three months and already she had built herself a reputation.
Mr. Warden, our principal, liked her even less than he disliked me.
And that was saying something.
I discovered this important fact at breakfast the following morning, the very same morning that I planned to ask Ms. Beedinwigg to help convince Mr. Warden to allow Eran and me back to school.
Ezra, true to her nature, was awake for hours before me. Because of her early risings, she had already been on the phone with Ms. Beedinwigg by then. When I entered the kitchen she was leaning against the counter nearest the phone, grasping her steaming coffee mug, and staring at the tiled floor. When my movement caught her attention she looked up.
“
I’m not sure how she did it but Ms. Beedinwigg got you back in…”
“
Really? How?” I implored more surprised than excited. After all, we were talking about school.
Ezra shook her head. “She is one resourceful woman,” she added glancing at me. “Do you know Mr. Warden placed her at the top of his so-to-speak hit list after you failed to show up on campus again?”
“
No,” I said, stunned. Ms. Beedinwigg was my favorite teacher so I would gladly have taken her place. My heart softened even more for her in that moment, knowing personally how malicious the warden could be. Then something occurred to me. “How could she possibly have gotten me and Eran back in then?”
Ezra shrugged. “You’ll have to ask her…tomorrow morning at 8 o’clock sharp.” That was a clear hint not to be late to my first scheduled class.
“
What happens tomorrow morning?” asked Felix as he entered the kitchen.
Eran was directly behind him, his eyes already on me, a sly grin showing that he was remembering last night.
In response, I actually felt my cheeks heat up.
He grinned deeper and, while passing by, leaned towards me allowing his lips to graze my cheek before whispering in my ear. “You’re blushing, my love.”
That, of course, intensified it.
Thankfully, Ezra showed no signs of noticing, although experience told me that she had. Instead, she recounted the phone conversations between her and Ms. Beedinwigg this morning as they plotted our return to school. I took a seat at the kitchen table and allowed most of my attention to follow Eran around the room.
Inside, my stomach was doing somersaults each time he glanced in my direction.
Just as Ezra finished, Rufus entered the kitchen.
“
The Warden,” he muttered with unmasked contempt. “Sharp as a beach ball, that one…”
Eran chuckled lightly as he pulled two bowls and a box of cereal from the cabinet.
“
Tut tut tut!” Felix stopped him, physically taking the bowls and cereal to replace them in the cabinets. “This calls for a celebratory breakfast!”
Those very words whisked away any hunger pangs about to rise up. Eran lifted his eyebrows at me, showing he was just as hesitant.
To our surprise, Felix came through for us this meal. He prepared a traditional New Orleans breakfast of Eggs Nouvelle Orleans or specifically poached eggs served on a bed of lump crabmeat and topped with a brandy-cream sauce. It left me full while still wanting more, something that had never happened with any of Felix’s culinary treats. Unfortunately, he was back to himself by the end of the meal, suggesting he make oysters in raspberry sauce for dinner.