Reign (An Unfortunate Fairy Tale Book 4) (5 page)

“Oh, well, in that case, Nick is in the
kitchen,” Mina teased, jumping back as Brody made a playful punch at her arm.

“That’s not funny,” Brody challenged.

“Yes, it was,” Mina laughed, “and you
know it.”

Brody grinned and stepped closer. “Yeah,
you’re right it was funny.”

When their laughter died down, she had a
moment to contemplate. “But why?” Mina immediately hated herself for doubting
his motives. It wasn’t that she didn’t believe him, but more that she wanted to
make sure he wasn’t under any Fae influence.

It was the wrong thing to say. His face
fell, and he looked irritated. “If you don’t want to go, you can just say so.”
He turned and left the library without another word. She wondered where he went
until she heard the screen door slam.

“Crud.” Mina and rushed out after Brody
into the rain. He was only a few feet off of the porch and had stopped in front
of his black car. He looked forlorn and lost as the rain ran off of him. When
he heard the door shut he turned to look at her. His face was a mirage of
emotions—confusion, want, need. She rushed off the steps and went to him.
Stopped within arms’ reach and watched him silently.

“It’s raining,” Brody said as if he just
noticed it.

“Yeah, it is,” she answered. “I’m sorry
for doubting your reasons. If the offer is still good, I would like to go with
you.” She smiled, blinking through the rain.

Brody stepped closer, and she closed the
distance. She almost leaned into him but caught herself at the last moment. He was
standing closer than was appropriate as well, and they were both staring at
each other. Neither one said anything, but her thoughts hung heavy in the air.

What
are you thinking? Do you remember me…us?

Brody opened his mouth to say something,
but closed it at the last second and shoved his hands in his pockets. She could
see them balled into fists through the denim of his jeans. His smile dropped
from his face and he looked irritated at himself.

“What’s wrong?” she asked, promptly
forgetting to breathe.

“Nothing.” He shook his head.

“Okay then.” She turned and walked in the
pouring rain back toward her dry porch. The storm seemed to have passed, but a strong,
steady rain continued.

“No, that’s not true.” Brody ran after
her.

Mina stopped and turned to look up at
him.

The rain was pelting them, but he didn’t
seem to care. “Do you ever feel like you’re losing your mind? I have these
dreams, recollections of events that I know deep down couldn’t have possibly
happened. But then whenever I go to sleep, I remember everything—clear as
day. I tell myself when I wake up, I’ll recall every detail—only I don’t.”

Mina stood there holding her breath,
refusing to believe what she was hearing. “Yes, unfortunately that’s how dreams
work. But they’re only dreams,” she said.

“Are they?” Brody looked at her sadly. He
stared at her as if waiting for her to lay his worries to rest or give him
answers he desperately needed.

She shivered at how close they were
coming to the truth, and she so wanted to believe he remembered everything
they’d shared.

But then she remembered Teague’s warning.
He could hurt her friends. Was it really better if Brody didn’t know?

It couldn’t be. How many times could the
Story mess with her friends’ memories without leaving permanent damage? “Why
are you asking me about this?” She had to know.

This time it was Brody who shivered.
“Because I dream about you. Every night, I dream of you…and me. Yet at school
we act like strangers. But I know things about you I couldn’t possibly know. I
know you hate the color red, hate being the center of attention. Love journaling,
love Asian dumplings. I’m right, aren’t I?”

“I don’t know.” She avoided looking at
him. Afraid he’d see the truth in her eyes.

He reached out to touch her shoulders. “How
could I know that your kisses taste like honey? And I would give anything for
another one, but yet…I don’t think we’ve ever kissed.”

The tears came, and Mina thanked God that
it was raining to at least hide them. “I don’t kn—”

“
Stop
.
Don’t say that again. I don’t think I can hear those words again. Not from
you.” Brody’s grip became tighter and he pulled her closer.

“I’m sorry. I don’t have the answers you
want,” she answered softly, refusing to meet his gaze.

“No, I think you do.” The water trailed
off of Brody’s cheek and dripped onto Mina’s face with a small stream. She
flinched from the splash and her movement brought Brody back to the present. He
looked around and only now seemed to notice he was holding her captive in the
middle of her driveway in the pouring rain. He stepped back, appearing upset
with himself, and ran his hands through his hair.

Mina wanted to wrap her arms around him
and tell him everything would be okay. But she couldn’t. She didn’t dare. She
was a bona fide chicken when it came to him. “I’m sorry, Brody,” she whispered.
She looked over her shoulder at him before she walked away. “For everything.”

Without warning, he grabbed her arm and
pulled her into his embrace. His lips locked onto hers, and he kissed her. She
was momentarily a prisoner of his desire, and she didn’t respond right away.
His hand lowered to her back refusing to let her pull away. He wasn’t going to
let her escape.

She didn’t try. She leaned in and met his
kiss. The ember of desire that she’d been squelching for so long started to
burn hotter. Maybe it was because Jared was gone that she felt lost…alone. She’d
closed herself off from so many other emotions that she forgot what it was like
to feel. And right then, with his kiss, she felt more alive than she had in
weeks. Her hand reached up to cradle his neck, encouraging him. Never before
had their kisses been like this. It may have started off soft, unsure, and confused,
but then it was as if something awoke in them.

Their lips remembered. Then the sparks
that have been pushed down for so long resurfaced.

He pulled away and Mina gasped for breath,
his mouth still inches from hers. His eyes locked onto her lips as if he
couldn’t believe what they had just shared. Their breaths were ragged, and he
squeezed her closer to him.

“See, we’re a natural fit. We’ve must
have done this before,” he buried his head into her shoulder, hugging her
close, the rain a forgotten thing.

Mina sighed in happiness. This—this
was what she could have if she had a normal life. Brody leaned back and brushed
away a wet tendril of hair that had wrapped around her cheek. “If it’s okay
with you, I’d like to try that again, just to make sure I won’t forget this
kiss.”

Mina smiled. “I’m not going anywhere.”

Brody’s face lit up and he lifted her
chin slowly. Her heart raced with anticipation as he leaned in to seal their
kiss and their new relationship. She felt the warmth of his breath whisper
across her lips before an animal-like snarl ripped through the night, searing
fear into her heart.

Brody spun, and Mina stared over his
shoulder to see an impossibly large black wolf only feet away. The wolf’s mouth
was opened wide, teeth glaring as he lunged for Brody’s throat.

Chapter 6

Mina screamed in terror as Brody was
knocked to the ground with the full force of the large wolf. Brody lifted his
arm to protect his throat, but the wolf locked his teeth around his forearm and
continued the attack on Brody’s arms and stomach with his powerful front legs.

Brody twisted, brought his feet up, and successfully
launched the wolf off him. He rolled to his side and looked toward Mina, his face
filled with fear as he struggled to his knees. The wolf recovered from the
throw quickly and prepared to attack again.

“Brody!” Mina cried out. She rushed
forward, putting herself between the wolf and Brody. Her arms flailed wide as
she made herself a human shield. Tears fell from her eyes as she challenged the
wolf. “Come on! I dare you!”

It wasn’t fair. Just when she thought she
could recover and have a normal life, normal boyfriend, something terrible
happened. She was sick to death of it.

“Mina,
no
!” Brody warned, as he slowly got to his feet.

The wolf rebounded quickly and began to
pace in a half-circle, searching for a way to get to his target. His dark fur
bristled, and he growled in warning. He turned his canine eyes on her, and she
gasped at the intense blue that stared at her.

The rain began to pour down faster, and—as
the wolf continued pacing—Mina found it difficult to focus on where he
was. One minute he was in front of her, the next five feet to the left.

Her instinct to protect those she cared
about caused her to do something she’d been trying to avoid. Her skin began to
prickle with electricity. As the air charged with power, Mina closed her eyes
and exhaled. She focused on the pounding of her impossibly fast heart.

The screen door slammed, and she opened
her eyes. Nix rushed out of the house screaming with the fire poker in his
hand. He jumped off the porch and landed among the rocks, skittering the
smaller pebbles along the ground.

The wolf turned, zeroing in on the new
threat. Nix held the poker out in front of him, then swung the metal rod toward
the animal, trying to make the wolf back up.

The wolf dodged to the side and ran away into
the trees.

Nix watched him retreat into the darkness
before he turned around to ask, “Is everyone all right?”

Brody nodded and moved to stand near
Mina.

The black form darted toward Nix from a
different direction, releasing no warning growl.

“
Nooo
!”
Mina screamed, releasing the power she’d gathered to herself. A flash of lightning
came out of the night and struck the ground inches from Nix. The startled wolf
flew off of the Nixie, landing on his back. A second bolt of lightning struck
the wolf, burning off a patch of fur and searing the skin, filling the air with
the smell of burnt flesh. The wolf yelped in pain and disappeared into the
night. This time he did not return.

Nix blinked his eyes and looked at the
scorched earth inches from his prone body. “Well, I’ll be. I thought lightning
never struck the same place twice.”

“It doesn’t usually.” Brody answered,
coming to survey the damage. His right arm had some nasty cuts, and the teeth
marks had gone deep.

“Well, thankfully, mother nature was on
our side tonight.” Mina shivered as she struggled to release the energy zinging
through her fingertips back into the atmosphere. She had saved them—she
knew it. Mina wasn’t sure how, but there was no denying that she was the one
who called down the lightning. It had struck exactly where she’d wanted it to.

Nix stood up and eyed Mina suspiciously.
“Yeah, when you see her next, tell her thanks from me.”

Mina ignored him and went over to Brody, who
was staring off into the night where the wolf had disappeared.

“Let’s get inside.” He turned and put his
hand on Mina’s lower back, ushering her up the porch steps in front of him.

“You don’t need to tell me twice.” Nix
scampered up the steps and into the house before either of them reached the top
step.

“We should call animal control,” Brody
said as soon as the door closed. They latched the lock.

“And tell them what exactly?” Mina did
not want to be the one to call attention to her family.

“That I think a large rabid dog is on the
loose.”

“A dog? You think that was a large black
dog?” She asked in disbelief.

“I don’t know. I could have sworn it was
a wolf, but then when it attacked me, I saw its eyes. Wolves don’t have blue
eyes.”

“How do you know they were blue? It was
dark. You could have been mistaken.”

“I’ll never forget those eyes. They were
so blue they looked human.”

Mina’s stomach dropped. She’d thought the
same thing. She would never forget that shade of blue either, because it
haunted her every night in her dreams.

Chapter 7

Never in her wildest dreams would Mina have
thought Brody Carmichael would be sitting shirtless on her bathroom counter. Of
course, as dreamy as this was, his bare muscled chest was the last thing on her
mind. Okay, maybe it was the second to last thing on her mind.

The first was applying hydrogen peroxide
to the long cuts on his chest. Nix was taking care of the more serious injuries
on Brody’s arm. He’d already cleaned up most of the blood with a clean towel,
being careful of the torn skin surrounding the bites.

“I think I can make a salve for this,”
Nix said after evaluating Brody’s arm. “I’ll be back in a jiffy.” He may have
actually skipped on his way to the kitchen.

“What’s with him?” Brody hissed in pain
as Mina used a cotton ball to dab at one of the scratches. The clear liquid
immediately started to bubble as it cleansed the wound. After a few seconds,
Brody released the breath he was holding.