Storm (Blood Haze: Book Two) A Paranormal Romance (2 page)

you. But the look in your eyes tells me you don’t

really want to.”

“What?” I gasped. “You’re crazy!”

“Am I?” he asked. “Think about it. If I didn’t

exist, would you resist him?”

“You
do
exist,” I argued.

“But if I
didn’t
,” he emphasized. “Would you

resist him?”

“I don’t know,” I answered. I paused to think,

and then said quietly, “Maybe not.”

“I know you wouldn’t,” Kai stated. “And

that’s why I’m terrified.”

“But you
are
here, and I love you,” I said.

“And I
do
resist him. I will
keep
resisting him.”

“Is that enough?” Kai asked me. “Would it be

enough for you to know I had feelings for

someone else, but I was just resisting those

feelings?”

I shuddered at the thought of Kai having

feelings for someone else.

“Do you see what I mean?” he asked, noting

my unspoken horror.

“I do,” I admitted. “And I’m sorry you’re in

this position.”

“So am I,” he said. “But I love you, and I will

never leave you again unless you ask me to.”

“Promise me,” I pleaded.

“I swear,” he responded seriously, and I

snuggled close to him.

*****

Chapter Two – Goodbye

Within a few days, things were mostly back to

normal. School started back, and Kai anxiously

drove me to school each day knowing I would

see Max there. It was hard for him.

Jamie was a lot more open than she used to

be. Something about our situation, and perhaps

about my brother, had opened her up a little.

With Max watching over us like a bodyguard, no

one dared to cause any problems. Amanda and

Ashley had once tormented Jamie every time she

tried to eat, but Max had made it clear that was

not acceptable. Grudgingly, they all left her

alone.

Max, Jamie, and I all sat together during

lunch. We chatted openly, and Jamie even smiled

sometimes. It had been rare to see her happy

before, but now she managed a shy smile at least

twice a day. It was a nice change.

It was a little awkward to sit with Max. After

all that had happened – him kissing me, he and

Kai fighting and nearly killing each other, him

discovering Kai and I were vampires, and us

discovering he was a hunter – it wasn’t easy.

Now and then, he would catch my eye and shoot

me a look that let me know he still cared for me,

but he understood the boundaries.

I have to admit it was tough sitting there with

Max. I had always been attracted to him. From

the first moment I saw him in homeroom on the

second day of school, I’d had a physical

attraction. It was undeniable.

But now that he’d sacrificed so much for me

– he’d saved Kai from death even though he

desperately wanted him out of the picture so he

could be with me – it was somehow even harder.

I felt closer to him, yet I pushed him away harder

than ever. I had to.

The day before his birthday in February, Max

walked up to me as I was entering homeroom

and asked if he could talk to me privately. He

looked very worried, so I followed him out to

the parking lot where we could speak without the

prying ears of the other students.

“Tomorrow’s my birthday,” he stated.

“I know,” I told him. “I already got you a

present.”

“You… you got me a present?” he asked,

obviously surprised.

“Of course I did.”

“I… wasn’t expecting that.”

“Max, what’s wrong?”

“My father wants me to leave town with him

tomorrow to begin training.”

It hit me like a ton of bricks. I felt an

enormous weight bearing down on my body, and

it felt like it was crushing the wind out of my

lungs. My stomach lurched. He was leaving. Not

only was he leaving, but he was leaving to

become a hunter. He was going to kill my kind.

“Do you have to go?” I asked, my voice

quivering.

“You know I do,” he answered softly. “It’s in

my blood. I have to go.”

I knew the day was coming, but I hadn’t

realized it would be so soon. I thought maybe his

father would at least wait until the end of the

school year.

“Can’t you wait until you graduate?” I

begged.

“It doesn’t work that way,” he explained. “We

all have to go on our eighteenth birthday.”

“Why didn’t you tell me this sooner?” I

demanded.

“I didn’t want to ruin what little time we had

left,” he admitted.

“Tomorrow…” I whimpered, hanging my

head.

“We still have today,” he told me, his finger

lifting my chin so I would look at him.

As I stared into his dark eyes, I was breathless.

I didn’t want him to go. I couldn’t stand it. He

was my friend, my protector. He couldn’t leave.

“Let’s get out of here,” he suggested. “Let’s

just spend this last day together.”

“One last day,” I agreed.

We got into his car and he pulled out of the

school parking lot. I thought of calling Kai to let

him know where I would be, but I didn’t think

there was any need to worry him. After all, if

Max was leaving the next day to start training to

be a hunter, I might not see him again for a very

long time – perhaps not ever.

“Where are we going?” I asked.

“Where do you want to go?” he questioned.

“I don’t know,” I replied. “Why don’t you

choose?”

“I know just the place,” he said quickly.

A few minutes later, we pulled into a large

parking lot that was completely deserted. The

pavement was cracked large chunks were

missing. Tufts of grass grew up through the

cracks. It was obvious the lot hadn’t been used in

years.

We got out of his car, and I noticed a

dilapidated movie screen looming above us. I

recognized where we were.

“This is the old drive-in movie theater, isn’t

it?” I asked.

“Yep,” he said.

“But it’s closed,” I argued.

“Yep,” he said again.

“Where are we going?”

“You’ll see,” he said with a wink and a grin.

I followed him across the parking lot, and he

stepped over a chain into a grassy area. He helped

me step over the chain, and we walked under the

hulking screen. I could see boards hanging

haphazardly from it. It was literally crumbling to

pieces.

He took my hand and helped me down a

grassy embankment behind the movie screen, and

we walked into the woods. At the bottom of the

hill, there was a small creek. It bubbled and

sputtered invitingly.

“Wow, it’s beautiful,” I gushed.

“Wait until you see the lake,” he smiled.

We followed the creek for about a mile, and

up ahead I could see a clearing opening up in the

trees. We walked out into the clearing and we

stood by a crystal clear lake sparkling in the

sunlight where the creek spilled out of the forest.

The grass was high in the meadow that

surrounded the lake, and it waved in the breeze

like sheets of pure silk rippling. The grass was

peppered with wildflowers in virtually every

color of the rainbow even though it was only the

middle of February.

“It’s so… incredible…” I whispered. “How

are there flowers growing here in February?”

“I don’t know,” he shrugged. “There are

always flowers growing here.”

I shook my head in amazement.

“How did you find this place?”

“When I was a kid, my dad used to bring me

here to go fishing,” Max told me. “It was our

special place.”

“I can’t believe it’s real,” I uttered.

“I can’t believe
you’re
real,” he said softly.

“Max…” I started to admonish him.

“Don’t worry, I’m not going to ruin the

moment by making you slap me again,” he joked.

“Very funny,” I groaned.

“Come on, there’s something I want you to

see,” he said, taking my hand.

I followed him nearly to the opposite end of

the lake, and we came upon a set of low, flat

rocks. They were carpeted in thick moss, and they

looked almost like big, mossy beds.

“This is where my dad and I used to have a

picnic every time we came here,” he explained.

The moss is so thick it makes the rocks really

comfortable.”

He motioned for me to sit down and try it. I

sank down into the billowy softness, and he was

right. It felt like sleeping on a downy-soft bed,

and it was perfectly dry, despite the dew that

soaked the grass in the meadow.

He sat down beside me and I saw him reach

toward me as if he wanted to take my hand, but

he paused, and then pulled his hand back.

“This place is indescribably beautiful,” I said.

“It’s not half as beautiful as you,” he said,

scanning my face as if he were trying to

memorize every detail.

I felt my face grow hot as I blushed. He

chuckled.

I watched a flock of birds cross the clearing

and settle into the trees on the other side of the

lake.

“It must be nice to be a bird,” I said.

“Why do you say that?” Max asked.

“They’re so free,” I answered. “They have no

worries, no pain. They just fly away to the next

beautiful place before anything bad can happen.

“Fly away with me,” Max said suddenly.

Startled, I glared at him. “What are you talking

about?”

“Let’s go,” he pleaded. “Let’s run away

together. My father’s never met you, so he won’t

be able to track you. Let’s just run away

together.”

“You know I can’t do that,” I reminded him.

“Your family can come with us,” he said.

Then, gritting his teeth, he added, “Kai, too.”

“Your father has met Kai,” I mentioned.

“What if he gets suspicious and tries to track

him?”

“He won’t.”

“How do you know?”

Max was silent for a moment, and then he

sighed.

“I don’t,” he admitted.

“Then how can you ask me to do that?”

“I’m sorry,” he apologized. “I didn’t really

mean it, I guess. I just… I can’t stand the thought

of leaving you.”

“I don’t like the thought of you leaving either,

Max.”

“Really?”

“Of course! Max, I
like
being around you.” I

wanted to say more, but I couldn’t find the

words.

“Is that all?” he asked.

“No,” I admitted. “But I can’t say it.”

“I’m leaving tomorrow,” he reminded me.

“We may never see each other again. Please say

it.”

“I…” I tried to say, but I couldn’t.

“Fine, I’ll say it,” he said. “I love you.”

I was overwhelmed with emotion. I don’t

know if it was because I was losing my friend or

because I really felt more for him than I realized,

but I began to cry. All I knew was that I didn’t

want him to go.

“Please don’t go!” I sobbed, and I felt his

strong arms close around me.

“Don’t cry,” he muttered in my ear. “I can’t

stand it.”

“I don’t want you to go!” I blubbered. “I want

you to stay here… with me!”

“Why?” he asked. “You have Kai. You don’t

need me.”

“But I… you’re…” I stammered, unable to

find the words.

“Say it!” he urged.

“I… I care about you,” I managed to spit out.

“Is that all?” he mused, disappointed.

“Isn’t that enough?” I asked, looking up into

his eyes.

He brushed a tear away from my cheek and

nodded.

“Yes, I suppose that’s enough... for now. But,

Alice, can I ask you for one thing before I go?”

“What is it?” I asked.

“Promise me you’ll give me this one thing,”

he pleaded.

“How can I do that if I don’t know what…” I

began.

“Promise me,” he begged.

He was leaving the next day, and I didn’t know

if I would ever see him again. I couldn’t deny

him one request.

“Fine. I promise,” I agreed.

“Kiss me goodbye,” he asked.

“Max, I…” I started to say, but he placed on

finger on my lips.

“I’m leaving tomorrow,” he reminded me.

“We might never see each other again. Kai never

has to know. Please, just give me this one last

gift. Tomorrow is my birthday, after all.”

I shook my head, but it was a weak protest. I

felt I could hardly deny him the one request. I

closed my eyes and surrendered to him. All of my

will to fight him had disappeared, and I felt his

lips press against mine softly. Normally, Max’s

kisses were crushing and powerful. Today, his

kiss was gentle and forlorn. This kiss was

goodbye.

For a moment, just one fleeting moment, I

forgot about everything and everyone but him.

No one else existed. We were just like Adam and

Eve in the Garden of Eden. There, surrounded by

the exquisite beauty of nature, it was only him

and me. Nothing else mattered.

His hand found its way to the back of my

head, and his fingers tangled through my hair,

pressing my face to his. I felt his warm lips soft