The Awakening: A Witch-Vampire Romance: Feel the Heat. (12 page)

“You can’t continue to live in the world with norms. That also means that you can’t continue to live with your uncle.” Seb explains patiently to me.

I look around the room from person to person with tears in my eyes. I know what he is saying is true. My powers are sporadic at best and I need to be trained. But I just got my uncle back. I don’t want to have to leave him so soon.

“You will be able to stay in contact with him, of course
,” Sebastian tells me as if he is offering an olive branch.

“But he will have to be glamoured into thinking you are somewhere else. Somewhere that you are safe
,” he continues to tell me this in a calm voice as tears leak down my cheeks.

“Glamoured
,” I ask in confusion.

“It’s a way to trick a norm
’s mind into thinking what we want them to think. But it has to be believable,” Sebastian further explains to me.

“What about boarding school
,” I ask.

“With everything that has happened with my adopted parents it isn’t too farfetched that I would want to get out of town
for a while. But we would have to glamour Jessa and Devon as well,” I remind them.

“Then we will get them all into once place tonight and spin our web of half-truths. This is for their protection as well as yours
, Ella. The fewer people that know about our world, the safer it is for all around.” I just nod. I understand that. Besides…I wouldn’t want to put my family in danger. Not for the world would I want to hurt them for any reason at all.

So I pick up my phone and call Devon and Jessa and ask them to meet me at my
uncle’s house. I tell them that I have something dire to tell them, and that it’s important. So of course they readily agree.

We all pile into Sebastian’s sleek black Porsche and it seems like no time has passed when we are pulling into my
uncle’s front drive. I see Jessa’s car parked out front. She must have picked up Devon on the way over.

Everyone walks quickly to the front door. Everyone but me. I am dragging my feet for all they are worth. But I know this has to be done
, so I ‘give up the goat’ as they say and catch up to all the others.

Sebastian tells Gavin and Jaxx to wait outside, that it will be easier if it is just he and I when he spins his web.

When we all get inside the house I ask for everyone to sit together on the large leather sofa sitting in the middle of my uncle’s front room because I have something very important to tell them. The looks on everyone’s faces are varying shades of confusion and worry. In the end it doesn’t take much at all to convince them of the lies that they have to believe to remain in relative safety. Sebastian starts speaking in a very calm, mesmerizing voice that holds those I consider my family in a sort of trance. It takes mere seconds for him to pull his glamour over on them.

Jessa and Devon cr
y when they hear that I will be going to a boarding school up North to get away from my adopted parents. Not to mention the rumors flying around this piss ant town about me. My uncle stands stoic, holding me in his tight embrace for the longest time. Uncle Dan doesn’t ask me any questions. He doesn’t demand that I stay put and suck it up. No, he just asks if he needs to add more money to the account he had set up for me. He understands the reasoning for my choice but I can tell that he doesn’t want to lose me.

Jessa pulls me aside and asks if she is still covering for me tonight. Meaning, is she still telling my uncle that I am staying at her place? Which fits my lie also because I would want to spend as much time with her as possible if I was actually leaving. I just
nod and she nods back at me, thinking that I want to spend as much time with Jaxx as I can before I ‘leave’.

We are all there for about an hour before Jessa and Devon
get to their feet and start to leave. I hug my uncle and keep up the pretense that I am leaving with Jessa to head to her house for the night. We all walk out together and then separate with crushing, lingering hugs. Jessa and Devon both make me promise to call them first thing in the morning. Jessa ends up having to drag a sobbing Devon toward her car. I wish I could tell them the truth. But then that would be marking them for death. I might not know much about my new world, but I do know that my family doesn’t belong in it.

Chapter
9.

When we g
et to Jaxx’s home I feel instantly at ease in the familiar surroundings. Everything has been happening so fast. My brother finding me, meeting a Vampire that happens to be Jaxx’s uncle.
Meeting a Vampire
. That Vampire laying down some kind of mind meld on my family. Crazy shit ass day! That’s what I’ve been having.

Jaxx pull
s me to him and starts rubbing his hands up and down my back. “Are you tired, baby girl?”

“Sur
prisingly not. Earlier I felt run down, but I already told you. When I’m in your arms, you are my favorite new addiction. My very own double shot of caffeine times a hundred.” He scowls at me and I chuckle, pulling him closer to me.

Jaxx leads me up to his room and again I am in awe at how well it fits him. He starts to tickle me and we spend what seems like hours play fighting on his bed. Finally I start to yawn and I know that my millionth wind ha
s run its course.

“Are you tired now, pretty eyes?” Jaxx laughs when my answer is nothing but a huge yawn that I cover with my hand.

We both lay fully clothed, entwined on top of his bed. The last thing I remember is him playing idly with my hair as my head lay on his chest.

I
wake the next morning lying on my stomach with Jaxx running a finger up and down the length of my spine through my tee shirt.

“Good morning, pretty eyes. Did you sleep well?”

“Like the dead,” I laugh, and then groan as the light from the windows catches my eyes.

I smile at him because it is absolute heaven waking up to those gorgeous blues.

“That smile means trouble,” he chuckles as he rolls out of bed.

I throw
a pillow at his back, and he spins faster than my eyes can follow and catches it. He tosses the pillow aside and starts to stalk me, walking slowly toward the bed. I pull myself up, hurrying out from under the covers and stand. I quickly dart to the opposite side of the bed away from him.

“If you want me, you’
re going to have to catch me, big man.” I look at him from across the bed with a teasing smile.

He chuckl
es and darts left, so I go right, but he catches me anyway. He is just so damn fast. He wraps his arms around me from behind.

“Looks like I caught you. What will my reward be?”

I look over my shoulder and smirk at him.

“Why
, me of course,” I laugh delightedly.

“Are you
still tired,” he asks. Concern is written all over his face.

“No.” I wiggle back into his
embrace, enjoying the feel of him.

He g
roans at my antics.

We both
are startled at an abrupt banging on the door. Gavin shoves it open. His anger is written all over his face. He looks around the room and obviously gets the impression that we were doing something that we weren’t.

Jaxx just return
s Gavin’s look with a smirk on his face.

“Something I can help you with brother
,” I ask with a laugh lacing my voice.

“Yeah, can
you stop being so damn loud,” he grumbles while rubbing his forehead.

I blush scarlet at that statement.
But then I notice that he is rubbing the spot even harder as if a migraine is forming. I walk slowly over to him and reach out to touch the spot that he is rubbing so furiously. He flinches from my touch. I frown.

He must be more da
maged than he let on last night,
I think to myself.

“Hold still. I want to try something,” I tell him calmly.

I reach
for his forehead again and feel a tingling start in my palm. Warmth spreads from my chest down my arm and into my hand. When my jade light is burning brightly in my hand I touch it to the spot that is paining my brother. When the scowl on his face begins to fade I remove my hand and find his eyes free and clear of pain once more.

Gavin rushe
s to the mirror above the dresser, practically shoving Jaxx out of the way on the trip there. Jaxx just laughs at Gavin’s astonished expression. He turns surprised eyes to me.

“You are truly something special
, sister. My thanks for the healing.” He turns to stalk back out of the room.

“Gavin how did you end up with the headache
,” I ask in idle curiosity. I should have kept my big mouth shut.

“We share a wall. You both were verrrrry loud last night
,” Gavin leers at me.

Jaxx
and Gavin explode into laughter.

Gavin finally quit
s the room and I stomp my ass straight to the bathroom, slamming the door in Jaxx’s face.

Ugh. Laugh
at me will they? Well pay back is a real cunt.
I smirk, thinking of ways to pay them back.

After my shower I
walk back into Jaxx’s bedroom wrapped in a towel to hunt down something to wear. I am currently without anything clean that is actually mine. So I start to riffle through his drawers and find some boxers and an old thread-bare tee. I quickly slip into them and go to hunt down Jaxx. I find the guys sitting around the breakfast nook sipping on coffee and talking about my healing Gavin.

“Good morning,” I say as I enter the room.

Jaxx
is out of his seat in a heartbeat and has me wrapped up tight in his arms.

“I’m sorry, baby. I didn’t mean to laugh, but it was funny.” I try to pull back and pout at him, but he isn’t having it. “Okay, how about I make you a huge breakfast to apologize for being an insensitive ass?”

“That’s a start,
” I smirk and sashay over to his seat, stealing his coffee.

“My goddess
, Jaxx! Are you that pussy whipped already,” Gavin snarks at him.

“I would be that whipped too if what they were doing
was half as good as it sounded,” Seb chuckles at his own retort.

“Not you too
, Seb,” I pout again.

“Hey
, it’s not his fault you both are a bunch of wall banging freaks.” Everyone laughs at that. Even I do. They can laugh all they want. I just smile at Jaxx. They don’t have to know that we didn’t go any further than before. That is our business, a secret between us.

Still, Gavin looks damn
proud of himself.

Seb turns
to me and asks, “So did anyone even actually give you the sex chat before that one over there ravished you,” Seb asks me with a straight face.

Jaxx chokes
on the coffee he is sipping while flipping the French toast. I just shake my head at them. Boys will always get a hard-on for talking about sex.

“Yes actually. Jessa told me that it
is like shoving a cold hotdog through a key hole.”

Gavin sho
ots coffee out of his nose at that.

“What the fuck
, Ella. I was drinking something here. You just can’t say something like that,” he yells toward me.

Seb
is shaking his head at me with a smile on his face, while Jaxx is in the throes of an all-out belly laugh.

“She actually probably did say that exact thing to her. You just have to meet Jessa to know. Blunt little thing,” Jaxx tells them.

I just si
t back in my chair smirking at Gavin while he is still trying to mop coffee out of his shirt. He looks up at me and finally gets it.

“You did that on purpose. Didn’t you
,” he accuses.

“Yes,
” I acknowledge with a smile.

“But Jessa really did explain sex in those words. My adopted mother was too much of a frigid prude for that talk.”

I jump out of my seat at all the talk of Jessa. I reach for my bag on the counter and fish out my phone. I dial her number and she picks up after the sixth ring.

“Bitch
, you must be cray, cray! Do you have any fucking idea what time it is,” she shouts into the phone at me.

“Yeah, yeah. Get over it
, wench. I need some clothes. I have nothing clean here to wear. So bring me something,” I smirk because I know this will set her off.

“What in fuck
’s name do you mean you need clothing? Have you done the nasty?”

I groan… Not her too!

“I am still at Jaxx’s. His uncle, Jaxx, and I are about to sit down and have a huge breakfast. Want to join?” I know her weakness for any kind of breakfast food.

“Besides
, I want to see you before I have to ship out.” There is an essence of begging to my voice now.

“I’ll get you something of mine to wear for the day.
I’m not missing some greasy goodness! Besides… Like I would miss a single moment that I have left with my bestie. Jeeze, you must think I am some kind of uber bitch,” she snarks at me good naturedly. But just before she cuts out I spring it on her.

“Oh and
Jessa,” I sing song into the phone, deciding to lighten the mood.

“What
,” she huffs out at me.

“You get to meet my twin when you get here too
,” I tell her in a rush.

She
was yelling something into the phone, but I already clicked off on her ass. Sure way to piss her off, but it is funny pushing her buttons. Munchkin has a temper.

Love it.

I walk back into the kitchen and everyone is staring at me.

“Whaaa?”

“Jessa’s coming over here,” Jaxx asks cautiously from his position at the stove.

“Yes. I need clothing
, don’t I?”

“I like you in mine just fine,” he smirk
s at me. I stroll over, stand on my tip toes, and brush my lips against his.

“Gag me now,” Gavin grumbles
.

I turn to Seb and really look
at him for the first time that A.M. He is looking a bit peaked.

“Hey, Seb, have you eaten?”

“A bit ago, but after having something fresh, after so long, it didn’t agree with me.”

“Bagged blood
,” I ask.

“Yes
,” he nods.

“Well pony up
, Uncle Seb. I don’t mind being your main tap,” I laugh at myself.

Seb looks
genuinely surprised.

“You would do so again? Willingly?” Astonishment is written all over his face.

“Of course. Why n
ot? You are going to train me and we are family now. So like I said, pick a spot.”

He leans over me and gently takes
my wrist into his cool hand. Jaxx and Gavin watch silently as Seb sinks his fangs into my left wrist with a lightening quick burst of movement.

I
can’t stop the gasp of pain that escapes my mouth and Gavin grips my right hand. I smile at him in gratitude. Then as quick as it starts, it is over.

“My thanks
, again, little niece,” Seb says with a smile as he licks the last of my blood off the corner of his mouth.

“It
is nice to have my family expanding once again.” He looks from me to Gavin.

“Well we need to get our stories straight before Jessa gets here because Seb doesn’t pass for a stodgy uncle.”

“I agree.” Jaxx stands once again behind me, gripping my shoulders.

“
I’m your roommate. Simple as that,” Seb says with a shrug of his shoulders.

“Simple and true,
I like it. I don’t like lying to Jessa. I’m not any good at it either. She always catches me out.”

Gavin looks at me and
nods.

“Better not to lie then.”

We wait around th
e table until the breakfast Jaxx cooked starts to get cold.

“Let’s go ahead and start eating
, I’m sure she’ll make an appearance when we are almost done. I’ll make her plate and set it aside,” I tell everyone.

Everyone but Seb start
s filling their plates with French toast, bacon, eggs, and hash browns. Everything looks perfectly scrumptious.

Seb
is reading what looks like an old history tome while we are all moaning and going on about how good everything is. When we are all about done eating, I am starting to get worried that Jessa hasn’t shown her pretty face yet. My phone gives off a shrill ring from beside me.