Soul Seers Complete Set (29 page)

My phone’s vibration pounded angrily against the wood table next
to my head and startled me from a deep sleep. Noticing it was nearing four in
the morning, I sprang into a sitting position and looked at the caller ID.

Seeing Ella’s beautiful face on my screen made my heart nearly
leap from my chest.

What could be going
on at this hour?

“Hello?” I mumbled. Even though my heart and mind were now
wide-awake, my lips obviously weren’t.

“Jonah…” she sighed.

“Ella, what the hell? Are you okay?” I asked frantically.

“Yes, I just can’t get back to sleep now. My heart is racing.
There’s so much to tell you.”

“Okay, I’m here. Tell me.” Wiping at my face, I forced myself to
wake up so I could concentrate on her beautiful voice.

Ella’s words filled my ear as she told me all about Jesse’s story
and her personal reasons for involving herself in our lives. My heart weighed
heavy as Ella uttered the words, “She had to kill her own grandfather, Jonah.”

“Damn,” I muttered, completely at a loss of what to say or how to
respond. Then it dawned on me… this was Ella’s story—injured, needed
blood, blood drove one mad, mad person was executed.

“Ella, what does this story mean exactly? Is Jesse worried you’ll
follow in her grandfather’s footsteps?” I asked with worry making my voice
crack.

“I spoke to her about that. Her grandfather went over the edge
rather quickly—within two weeks of his hunting accident. She’s hoping
because I’ve had your blood in my system for many years, I won’t suffer the
same fate. This very reason is why she hasn’t approached the Sideri with her
findings yet. She wants to make sure of our situation before speaking to them
about us.”

I wasn’t sure what to say. Should I have been happy? Should I have
been concerned? This blood transfusion shit was far more lethal than I had ever
imagined.

“Jonah?”

“Yes, love?”

“I’m fine.”

Her simple words made me smile. “Yes you are. Thank the heavens
for that.”

“Now… think you can try to distract my mind? Maybe we can talk
about something other than our problems?” she asked. Even though my head was
still spinning from the story she told me, I knew the importance of
distraction… and I had the perfect idea.

“What are you wearing?” I asked. After all, it was the typical
question to ask when playing this game, right?

I was immediately rewarded with a light giggle. “Did you seriously
just ask me what I’m wearing?”

“Yes, I did. You asked for it. You want me to distract you and I
plan to do just that. Plus, you’re avoiding the question,” I joked.

“You know I could lie to you, right?”

“Yes, but I plan to tell you to get naked anyway—so what
you’re wearing doesn’t really matter in the end,” I told her honestly.

“Well, I’m wearing a white, spaghetti-strap tank top and little,
purple night shorts. Now it’s your turn to reveal your attire.”

“Typical boxer-briefs for me,” I admitted. “Take off your shorts
and tell me what’s underneath.”

“I don’t have to take them off to know what panties I’m wearing,
Jonah,” she said as she laughed at me through the phone.

“Humor me, Ella. I want to hear you follow my lead.”

“In that case, yes sir,” she chimed. I could tell she was
partially joking but was also enjoying this bit of playfulness just as much as
I was. “They’re black satin bikinis.”

I couldn’t help my groan, which echoed through the cell phone. My
throat felt dry as I said, “Oh, hell. You’re perfect. Maybe it’s not such a
good idea to do this when we’re so far away from each other.”

“Oh, no, Jonah. You can’t stop now,” she said with confidence.

“Tell me something… Can you see your nipples through your shirt?
Are they hard?”

“Yes, I can see the darker color through the thin fabric… and yes,
they’re very hard now that you’ve been talking to me in your fuck-me tone,” she
said, obviously proud of her seductive ways.

“Fuck. Ella. Ok…” I paused and took a few deep breaths. “Will you
do me a favor?”

“Anything,” she said with sincerity.

“Touch them. Pretend it’s my fingers, my lips, and touch your
nipples through your shirt.”

“Oh, God. I’d give anything for it to be you touching me instead,”
she breathed.

“Me too, love—more than anything. Are you comfortable in bed
yet?”

“Not yet. I was waiting for your direction. I need you to tell me
whether to take off my panties or leave them on,” she said with a slight
innocence to her voice, even though she was being anything but. I could tell
she was enjoying the fact that she could tease me so easily.

“Leave them on, please. They sound so sexy,” I whispered. “But you
can remove that little tank before you slide into bed.”

I heard a bit of shuffling on the other end as I began to get more
excited with the image of her beautiful, bare body.

“Ok. I’m now comfortable in bed,” she told me. “The sheets feel
nice against my bare skin.”

I took a deep, shuttering breath, trying to keep control over
myself. Then I said, “Good, love. I’m glad you’re comfortable. Now, tell me.
What would you like me to do if I were there next to you?”

“Mmmm…” she moaned.

“That good, huh? Tell me what I’m doing to make that heavenly
sound leave your mouth,” I coaxed.

“Just having you here would please me,” she said quietly.

“Me too, Ella. But I want to hear what it is you want me to do.
What would you like me to do with my mouth?” I boldly asked.

“God, that mouth. There are so many wicked things I’d let you do
to me with your mouth,” she whimpered.

“I’d devour you inch by ever-loving inch, woman,” I growled.

She didn’t say anything, but I could tell she was smiling.

“I can hear you smiling, Ella,” I said in an accusatory, yet
amused, manner.

“You’ll never be able to prove it, Mr. Chantrey,” she said with an
obvious grin sugar-coating the tone of her voice.

“I only wish I was there to witness the smile I bring to your
face. Tell me, are you still touching yourself?”

“Yes,” she answered, causing a sharp inhale to hiss through my
teeth at the thought of her hands touching her soft skin. “I love that I have
such a strong affect on you,” she added.

“You have more of an affect on me than you can possibly imagine,
Ella.”

“Does it help for you to know that I’m now touching myself lower?”
she asked, knowing it would drive me plum crazy.

“Aww, hell. I’m never going to calm down enough to go back to
sleep after this,” I said with slight humor in my tone.

“Would you like me to stop?” she said, continuing her
innocent-as-pie act. I knew she had no intention of stopping.

“Hell no. I want you to please yourself. Pretend I’m the one
taking care of you. Think of my fingers gliding between your warm, wet pussy,”
I said rather seductively.

Pushing my boxer-briefs down a bit, I arched my back and picked up
speed with my hand, feeling the desire build inside me. I groaned at the
thought of her fingers circling her clit and the sensation of touching myself
at the same time.

“Tell me what you want to do to me, Jonah. If you were here, what
would you want?” she asked with an irresistible confidence.

“At the moment, I am feeling rather selfish. I would love to watch
you pleasure yourself first. Watch those dainty fingers of yours get slick and
wet with your juices. Watch you close your eyes and moan as your fingers play
with your sweetness—although, I probably wouldn’t be able to keep from
touching you for long. Just thinking of your slick fingers touching and
circling your clit makes me want to lick them clean and then make you come with
my tongue.”

“Ahh… Just the mention of your tongue on me gets me excited,
Jonah,” she admitted.

“I bet you taste divine. I can’t wait to taste the sweet honey
between your legs,” I said with eagerness.

I could feel each pump of my hand and imagined what it would be
like if it were my tongue taking her to the edge.

“Oh, God,” she whimpered.

“Damn. What I wouldn’t give to watch you touch yourself. Come for
me, Ella. Let me hear how wonderful your touch feels.”

“Come—with me—please,” she begged between pants.

“Shit. I will. Just the sound of your pleasurable cries will push
me over. Come for me. I want to hear you say my name as you explode.”

Quick, short breaths emanated through the phone and it was all the
evidence I needed to know she was getting close.

 
“Oh, God, Jonah!” she
cried out as she burst in every conceivable direction and rode the fierce wave
of her release.

The sound of her climaxing was my undoing and an uncontainable
shudder rolled over my body. It started deep and radiated outward to every
nerve ending in my hypersensitive skin.

Just as I closed my eyes to control the sudden burst of pleasure,
I groaned and panted, “Fuck, Ella. Oh…”

As our ragged breathing began to slow and steady, I moaned, unable
to get my mouth to work properly to form any coherent words.

“Damn,” I chuckled.

“Mmm…” was all she could manage with an obvious smile in her tone.

“Was that enough distraction for you, love? Think you can sleep
now?” I asked with tenderness.

“Mmm… yeah. I think I’m good and sated,” she admitted with a slur
to her words.

“I’m glad, Ella. I’ll be by to pick you up in just a few hours.
Just get some sleep until then, ok? I plan on working you hard later and need
you to be rested,” I said, making my double meaning obvious.

“Sounds good, Jonah. Can’t wait to see you,” she mumbled.

“Sweet dreams, love.”

“Mmm… love you.”

As we hung up, I let myself get taken by the sandman and praised
the comfort of my pillow.

I probably looked like shit on a stick as I climbed into Jonah’s
Charger the next morning.

“Morning, beautiful,” he said in a chipper voice, while leaning
over the center console to peck me on the cheek. “You don’t look like shit, by
the way. You look perfect.”

Wow. No matter what my mood was, his smile always made everything
better.

Ella, wait.

Looking out the car window, I saw Jesse running toward us. One she
approached the car, she leaned over and gave us both a shy, apologetic smile.

“Sorry to hold you up, Jonah. But, we’ve never really talked about
my shifts at Lavendine and I don’t want to leave you hanging today. Do you
still want me to come in this afternoon?”

“Yes,” I said, interrupting before Jonah could even voice his
answer. Looking over at Jonah, I added with a shrug, “Sorry. I just really want
her to.”

“Well, I guess that’s that then. Whatever Ella wants, Ella gets,”
he said with a forced smile.

Damn. Don’t be
pissed about it
, I projected.

I’m not. No worries
, he thought as he
grabbed my hand from my lap.

“Okay. I’ll see you guys at two. I’ll even bring a bite to eat,”
Jesse said before patting the top of the car with her fingertips and turning to
walk away.

After pulling away, I felt the need to apologize for my
abruptness. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to make the decision for you when it
comes to your business.”

“It’s no problem, really. I just wanted to talk to you about it
first before I said yes to her,” he said, sharing a sincere smile while he
drove. “Plus, I really wasn’t looking forward to spending all day and all
evening there. Of course, I did already tell my teachers I wouldn’t make it to
class this afternoon.”

“Oh no!” I exclaimed. “Well, if Jesse is going to be at the studio
now, you can always go anyway, right?”

“Actually, I probably won’t. I’m way ahead in all of my classes
and, honestly, the teachers know I’m there just to get the credits for my
degree. They’ll usually let me know if there is going to be something too
important for me to miss.”

Watching Jonah work at the studio really made me appreciate how
together and responsible he was. This studio was a perfect business for him. He
moved around and handled things with knowledge and ease. Anytime a member had a
question, Jonah had an answer. I had no idea why he felt the need to have me
work here as well. I’d probably just screw things up.

You won’t screw
things up
, he projected, effectively interrupting my internal thoughts.
Plus, I like spending time with you and you
definitely have a way with people. Everyone loves you.

Blushing, I decided to keep myself busy and continued reorganizing
the supply cabinet.

Jesse walked in at about half past one with several bags of fast
food in her arms. I was so glad to see her, but my stomach was even happier.

“Thank you,” I said as I helped her carry the food to a clean
table in the kitchen area of the studio. “I’m so hungry.”

“Good. Eat up!” she responded.

Several moments passed in near silence, except for our constant
munching, which was beginning to drive me nuts. Finally, Jesse broke the
silence…

“They said my time is up.”

Jonah and I both stopped chewing for a moment and looked at her
with confusion.

“What do you mean, your time is up?” I asked.

“They don’t want me observing anymore. They want to meet you
themselves instead,” she explained with a nervous twitch of the hand.

Jonah and I just looked at each other, fear and perplexity obvious
on our faces.

“I had a video meeting with one of the council members just a few
hours ago. I explained this case is completely different than anything I’ve
ever witnessed before and that they should consider the possibility you’re no
threat to anyone,” she explained. “So, they want to meet you. They won’t tell
me what their reasons or goals are though. They basically said I was dismissed
from the case and they would contact me once they have another assignment for
me.”

“Assignment?” I croaked. I had no idea we were considered an
assignment
.

“What they don’t realize is, this is not a job for me. I truly
just want to protect people from experiencing the same thing I went through.
They act like everyone is just a number and I can hop away from one number and
go to the next without my heart breaking into pieces.”

I could tell this was truly bothering her, but I couldn’t escape
the reality that these men wanted to meet me… meet us.

“Were we your first
case
?”
Jonah asked, making air-quotes as he said the word
case
.

“Yes. I’m only two years older than Ella. I started tracking you
about a year after losing my grandfather,” she said with sorrow in her voice.
“I just don’t know if I’m cut out for this. Talking about it, thinking about
what happened, brings up too many bad memories that, even years later, I’m just
not ready to face. And what would happen if someone does turn out to be like my
grandfather? Will I witness someone else going through the same tragedy?”
Shaking her head, she tapped her finger on the table nervously and let the
tough questions hang heavily in the air.

“Well, you always have a home here at Lavendine,” Jonah offered.

“Thanks,” Jesse said in a near whisper.

“So, what do the Sideri want with us?” I asked as I sipped on my
soda.

Jesse shrugged before answering. “Other than to maybe verify my
answers to their questions, I have no idea. Only two of the councilmen said
they were coming down today—the one I normally converse with and another
I’ve never seen or spoken to.”

“Today?” Jonah questioned.

“Yep,” Jesse responded, slipping a piece of paper out of her
pocket. “They want to meet you this evening, around six, at the lake you like
to stop at when you go horseback riding.”

“I don’t know where that is. That was just a dream,” Jonah said
with a surprised look on his face.

“I do. My mom keeps her horses stabled there,” I told Jonah.

“Yeah, weren’t we supposed to go riding one of these days?” Jesse
questioned.

“We still can if you decide to stick around.”

“I hope to,” she said with a smile.

“I can’t ride a horse,” Jonah interrupted. “I’ve never ridden a
day in my life.”

“Don’t worry, Jonah. You’re an excellent rider in my dreams,” I
joked. “Plus, it’s a short enough distance to walk to if we cut through the
park.”

The rest of the afternoon seemed tense while we hung out at
Jonah’s apartment. Neither one of us knew what to expect from our encounter
with the Sideri members.

Sitting on his bed, looking through some of his old sketchbooks, I
tried to keep my mind off our pending meet.

“Does someone need another distraction?” Jonah asked as he climbed
onto the bed next to me.

“I wish that would work right now. I’m just so nervous and unsure
of what’s going to happen,” I explained while setting his sketchbook aside.

Brushing my hair to the side and placing a soft kiss against my
neck, Jonah mumbled, “It’ll be okay. No one could resist your pretty face.”

“I’m sure this goes well beyond a pretty face,” I said with an
exaggerated eye-roll.

After parking the car, we made our way toward the smaller foot
trail leading to the shore of the lake. The sun was behind us, casting large
shadows along our path.

Jonah and I decided not to tell our parents we were meeting some
of the Sideri members. If, by chance, things did go south, we didn’t want their
involvement to make matters worse. After all, they were the ones that made the
initial decision, even though we both knew they did what they had to do.

The rhythm of my heart sped up with each step we took toward the little
beach. I was getting more nervous with each breath I dragged through my lungs.
Jonah could tell my nerves were getting the best of me because he grabbed my
hand and caressed my knuckles—a gesture that let me know he was always
going to be by my side no matter what.

Approaching the water, we saw two male figures lurking near the
bank. My heart leapt in my throat at the idea of encountering these men.

Casually dressed in jeans and t-shirts, they turned as if they
knew we were coming up behind them. I knew these were the men because they had
a strong block protecting their minds—more solid than any shield I’d
encountered yet.

“Ah, Ella and Jonah. How nice to finally meet you,” the man with
the goatee cheered as he held his hand out for me to shake. “My name is Drake
and this is Leon,” he introduced as he hooked a thumb in the other man’s
direction. Before letting go of my hand, Drake turned it so my palm was facing
upward and stared for a few moments longer than I was comfortable with.

“Ella. Such a strong soul,” he whispered, causing me to gently
retract my hand before things became even more creepy.

Both Jonah and I mumbled our hellos and requested we all go sit on
the benches near the shore.

Before we all could even plant our butts on the benches, Drake began
to speak. “Well, I’m just going to get right to the point. I hope you two don’t
mind me being so blunt, but our time is somewhat limited.”

“That’s perfectly fine,” I agreed.

“We all know the reason we’re here is because of this minor blood
issue between the two of you. Over the past six years, Jesse has been keeping
tabs on you and, frankly, I trust her instincts more than I would my own. She
speaks very highly of you, Ella, and claims you have a pure heart,” Drake
explained with a slight pause. “Usually the madness sets in fairly quickly
after transfusion. But, since you were comatose, we decided to wait things out
and see how they went before we acted too abruptly.”

“Thank you for that,” I said, so he would know how grateful I
truly was for that courtesy.

“You’re very welcome. I’m glad we didn’t act too hastily. You’re
definitely one of a kind, Ella.”

“That she is,” Jonah chimed in while looking my way to show his
sincerity.

“As of now, we see no danger with regard to your situation.
However, we do have one more important matter to discuss,” Leon said, speaking
through the silence.

“Oh, really? What is the issue?” I asked.

“Children,” the two men said in unison.