Dark Masterpiece (Serendipity Series 3) (27 page)

“Because I never thought—” She buried her
face against his chest, relishing the feel of him. Strong, solid,
unyielding.

“How could I not love you, Evie?” he said
softly. “You brought me back to life.”

She wrapped her arms around his waist and
held on. She was still trembling. She couldn’t help it. She felt as
if her entire world had inverted, then exploded like a supernova.
Seth… For some reason his smug face flashed before her eyes. She
would never live this down. She closed her eyes as she felt Traevyn
caress her back. More than Amy… He’d said he loved her more. She
never would have even hoped to touch that one. She would have been
content that he loved her at all. She never would have gone for the
gold medal.

“Evie,” he whispered. “Why are you trembling
so badly?”

She pulled away and looked up into his
concerned eyes. “I can’t stop,” she said with a small smile.

He wiped the remnants of her tears and gave
her a gentle smile. “Please, never scare me like that again. In one
moment I saw my entire life ending. I can’t let you go. You hold
part of my soul, remember? If you leave, it goes with you.”

“I have one year of college left,” she
stated.

He nodded and continued to trail his fingers
across her cheek and down her neck. “I know that… And I will wait
for you. I’ll be holding my breath.”

She smiled a little more genuinely, her shock
abating to let her joy through. “You know when you’re eighty, I’ll
only be seventy-one.”

Traevyn grinned. “And all the old men next
to me in the nursing home will be jealous of my hot, young
woman.”

She laughed.

He smiled, gazing at her with open adoration.
“Never doubt your beauty,” he said. “You are the most beautiful
woman ever created.”

Tremors worked their way through her body at
his words. She looked up into his eyes and was drawn into their
depths.

“I love you, Evie,” he whispered over her
lips before claiming them for his own once again.

She melted into him, fused her body to his as
much as she could. His arms tightened around her and held her there
even as she pulled away. “Say it again,” she pleaded.

He smiled. “I love you.” He punctuated it
with another kiss.

She reeled with the satiny softness of his
lips. “Again.”

“You’re greedy,” he teased.

“Very,” she agreed.

He grinned and dipped her dramatically,
causing her to squeak in surprise. He pressed a lingering kiss to
her throat. “I.” He kissed her chin. “Love.” He positioned himself
over her lips again and gazed down into her eyes. “You,” he
finished, lowering his lips to hers. One of her hands came up to
tangle in his hair as he took his time, relishing in the feel of
her, the taste of her, everything that was her.

He sighed as he pulled her back up into a
standing position. “Now, I really want to show you something,” he
said softly, “but we have to go back inside.”

She cringed.

“Don’t worry,” he assured her. “No one had
better ever insult you in front of me again.”

She smiled, marveling over how Traevyn was
so openly declaring his feelings for her. How long had he been
feeling them in silence like she had? If she had known all it would
take to get him to spill it was threatening to leave, she would
have done it a long time ago.

He took her hand in his,
leading her back into the gallery. They moved swiftly, not stopping
to make conversation with anyone, until they reached the back room.
Evie gasped as they entered. There was a large painting on the far
wall. A painting she had never seen. In it was a man she could only
assume was Traevyn, sitting on the ground, his eyes downcast and
sad. A woman stood behind with her arms wrapped around him. She was
surrounded by an aura of fire and she had great, white wings
hovering over Traevyn, sheltering and protecting him. She was
wearing the same gown as Evie, and it was apparent that it
was
Evie.

“Oh my gosh!” she breathed, going to the
painting. “When did you do this?”

“Last night and today. It’s your portrait.
You see, the fire represents your passion.”

She turned to look at him. “And the
wings?”

He swallowed and met her eyes. “Well, the
wings are because… Because you are my angel. My angel coming to
rescue me… It’s symbolic.”

Evie felt tears again, although she didn’t
know how she could possibly have any left.

“Do you like it?” he asked softly. “It’s for
you.”

“I love it. Traevyn, I—” She shook her head.
“There are no words.”

He smiled and came up close to her, resting
his forehead against hers. He closed his eyes. “Love me,” he
whispered.

Evie couldn’t mistake the ache in his voice,
the pleading note that let her know how vulnerable he was at that
moment. He was begging her not to hurt him, not to destroy what he
had become. She wrapped her arms around him and closed her eyes,
sighing. “For as long as you’ll have me, I will love you,” she
promised. She knew it was true. Traevyn could very possibly be it
for her. She had never felt for anyone the way she felt for
him.

His lips found hers again
and he kissed her slowly, deliberately, indulging himself. He had
forgotten affection, forgotten how marvelous it felt to kiss
someone, hold someone, lose himself in someone. He had forgotten
how it felt to know his heart was beating. Evie had given him back
his life, his soul, his very breath. She
was
his angel and she
had
rescued him. He
would not take that for granted. He would hold onto her forever. He
couldn’t exist without her now. He wouldn’t know how.

He wrapped her petite frame up in his arms
and held her close to him. He felt so much. His heart seemed to
sigh in contentment, as if he could finally rest after such a long
time. He felt whole, completed. Because of her… Evie. His savior,
his world. His home.

Chapter Twenty-One

Everyone was asleep when Traevyn and Evie
arrived back at Talis’s house. They had remained at the gallery
despite Evie’s earlier requests to go home. She had figured it
would be rude for Traevyn to leave the opening of his own gallery
and, with him at her side all night, holding her hand and sneaking
kisses at every opportunity, she no longer cared what anyone
thought. She was invincible with the knowledge that he loved her.
And, as if he hadn’t surprised her enough for one evening, Jane
Meadows had come in to view Traevyn’s new painting when they were
still in there. She had given Evie a gloating smirk before turning
a critical eye to the portrait.

“Just your apprentice, is she?” she said as
she looked at the painting. Her voice was witchy and full of
malice.

Traevyn gave a smug smile and pulled Evie
into his arms protectively. “I lied,” he stated. “She’s not just my
apprentice.”

“So this sad excuse for a
little girl actually
is
your girlfriend?” she spat, looking very
agitated.

Traevyn smiled down at Evie. “No,” he
murmured. “She’s my life.” He punctuated it with the kind of kiss
that was sinful, and he continued to kiss her until Jane left the
room in complete disgust.

They entered the house quietly so as not to
wake anyone and, as soon as the front door closed, Traevyn backed
Evie up against it with a devilish grin. He took her face in his
hands and kissed her with sensual slowness. She sighed, melted
against him, and it made him smile. He slipped an arm around her
shoulders and pulled her up close, pressing his full body to hers.
It almost set her on fire.

“So, I take it things went well?”

Evie jumped almost to the ceiling as Traevyn
pulled his lips off of hers. Talis was standing in the living room,
smirking. She had only ever seen Traevyn blush once, but the way he
blushed then made up for all of the other times he hadn’t.

Talis shook his head and chuckled. “Poor
Ash,” he muttered. “He never had a chance.” He turned and headed
back to his room.

Traevyn turned back to Evie and gave her a
bashful smile that turned her heart to goo. She giggled.

“I’m going to go change,” he stated.

She nodded.

He kissed her again before turning toward
the bathroom.

Evie waited until he was gone before
slumping back against the front door and sighing in bliss. She
toyed with the fabric of her sleeve and glanced at Seth, who was
fast asleep on the hide-a-bed. She grinned and ran toward it,
jumping directly on top of him.

He groaned. “Bubbly tuna,” he muttered.

She frowned, then shook her head and laughed
as she bounced up and down on him. “Seth!” she exclaimed. “Wake
up!”

Several unpleasant words came out of his
mouth before he managed to throw her off and sit up. He blinked at
her, disoriented and irritated. “What the crap are you doing?”

She grinned and sat up. “You don’t have to
worry about your video games,” she stated.

His frown deepened. “What the heck are you
talking about?”

“Remember our deal? You won.”

He stared at her for a long time before
recognition seemed to dawn on him. He raised his eyebrows. “Are you
serious?” he breathed. “He made a move? The dude actually got off
it and made a move?”

She grabbed Seth’s hands and gripped them in
excitement. “He told me he loved me.” She whispered it like it was
some great secret.

Seth reacted as if someone had just smacked
him in the face. He jumped back in surprise and his eyes bulged.
“Dude!” he shouted.

“Shhh!” She giggled softly. She looked up to
see Talis come back into the kitchen, a sly smile on his lips. He
poured himself a glass of water, then walked over to Evie, where he
bent and pressed a kiss to her forehead. She blinked in
surprise.

Talis smiled. “Evie,” he said, “go to
breakfast with me in the morning, would you?”

She frowned. “Just you and me?”

“If you don’t mind.”

She shrugged. “No, that’s fine.”

He nodded and winked at her before turning
back to his room.

Evie frowned and looked at Seth. “Why does he
want to take me to breakfast?”

“Probably to say thank you. We were talking
the other night when you and Traevyn were at dinner. He was telling
me how worried he’s been about Traevyn, how he and his other
brother thought he’d never come out of his depression.”

Just then Traevyn emerged from the bathroom,
silencing their conversation. Seth grinned at Evie as she stood and
grabbed her pajamas, making her way into the bathroom next.

Traevyn watched Evie pass and breathed a
soft sigh. He bent to fix the pillows and covers on his side of the
bed, deliberately avoiding eye contact with Seth. When Seth
apparently got irritated at him not looking, he punched him in the
arm. Traevyn blinked and rubbed at his shoulder, frowning. He
looked up at Seth, who was grinning from ear to ear. Traevyn
chuckled.

“Traevyn,” Seth said, “you have redeemed
yourself.”

He frowned. “From what?”

“From being an idiot.”

Traevyn rolled his eyes. “Would you shut up
and just go back to sleep?” He smiled.

Seth lay down, stilling grinning, and turned
on his side away from Traevyn.

Traevyn sat down, waiting for Evie. She
finally came back out in her monkey pajamas and he felt his heart
swell. She met his eyes from across the room and flashed him a
smile as she placed her gown in the garment bag and zipped it
up.

He held his arms out to her as she
approached and she went into them willingly, closing her eyes as he
pulled her up onto his lap and against his chest. She buried her
face against his neck. “Your brother asked me to go to breakfast
with him tomorrow,” she said. “Don’t freak out on me, okay?”

He smiled. “Talis is no competition for me,”
he said with arrogance.

Evie feigned irritation. “Whatever. I happen
to love medieval tattooists.”

He chuckled and cradled her close, drinking
in her warmth. “Lie next to me,” he whispered. “Please?”

She pulled back and frowned at him. “All
three of us on this bed?”

He grinned. “I’ll just have to hold you
extra close.” He reached up and threaded his fingers through her
hair. “It’s been so long since I’ve been close to someone. Forgive
me if I seem too attached.”

She giggled and wrapped her arms around his
neck, resting her forehead against his. “Do I look like I
mind?”

He smiled.

She climbed down off of his lap and let him
get in bed, her heart beating erratically as he pulled the covers
back and motioned for her to climb in next to him. She had never
slept next to a man. Only in her craziest daydreams. It made her
want to tremble to think that she would be sleeping next to
Traevyn, the most beautiful man ever created. He was her idol, her
mentor, her inspiration… More than that, he was the only man she
had ever really loved.

She managed to make her body not shiver as
she slipped into bed next to him and felt his arm go around her
waist, pulling her flush up against him. She closed her eyes,
unable to believe that she was actually lying next to him with his
arms around her, that he was holding her like she was something
precious and desired. It made her want to cry all over again.

“Evie,” he whispered.

His breath brushed against the back of her
neck, tickling her and sending delicious shivers up her spine.
“Yeah?”

“I love you.” He nuzzled his nose against her
neck and hugged her tighter.

She squeezed her eyes shut as tears
threatened. “I love you too,” she choked out.

“Aw, I love you guys too,” Seth mocked
suddenly.

Evie burst into giggles.

“Dude,” he continued in
warning, “if you guys even
think
about doing the dirty while I’m laying here you
can just forget it right now.”