Chase rumbled in his throat low enough for just my ears. My lips twitched. The poor guy had barely laid a finger on me and Chase was ready to bust his chops. He hovered, watching where the young paramedic put his hands. Stephen, I learned was his name, was as good as his word. No needles, and he was indeed kind. He declared I would live.
I wasn’t the only one getting checked out. A beautiful blonde was bandaging Travis’s arm, looking terrified to touch him. Travis caught my eye and winked at me. Emma frowned. Across from Emma and Travis was Lexi. She rolled her eyes as an attendee dabbed the cuts on her head with peroxide. If they only know how useless and a waste of resources this all was. None of us really needed medical attention.
Sitting on the back of the ambulance, I had a clear view of the demolition caused by the fire and Hell. I stared at my house, and my thoughts turned to my mom. She worked so hard…
As if the thought of her made her materialize, she was suddenly running toward me, her face glimmering with tears. They streamed down her pink cheeks. “Angel,” she exhaled in relief and pulled me into her shaky embrace.
She was trembling.
I let her cling. Mom rarely cried, and if she did, it was bad.
She lingered for a few moments more and then pushed the hair from my face, looking me over. I think she needed to make sure I was okay. “When Devin called and told me there was a fire, I—”
I knew that if I didn’t stop her, she was going to start bawling all over again. I also realized that Mom had not really been here earlier. It had been another one of Alastair’s twisted and deranged illusions. “I’m fine, Mom. Really.”
“I don’t know what I would have done if anything happened to you.” Tears still wobbled on the edge of her voice. She looked in the distance at the blackened porch that she had painted eggshell white the summer we moved in. It looked like a tornado had touched down, but only at our home. Windows were blown out. Siding was torn off in patches, and the smell of burnt wood was unmistakable. The damage to our house was more than just exterior wreckage. It was a place Mom had put her heart and soul into so we could build a new life—our fresh start.
This might have been a setback, but I had all I needed—Mom and Chase. How simple my priorities had become. I know that all Mom ever wanted was to provide a stable home for me. Seeing the house that she worked so hard for crumbled, broke her heart.
It took more than an hour for the fireman to extinguish the flames and search the house. Only the family room, where Alastair and I had sat, and the porch had been victim to the fire, but most of the house had smoke damage. It still blew my mind. The authorities believed it had originated from the fireplace—a stray ember.
But I knew better.
We couldn’t stay in the house tonight or in the near future, which meant hotels—away from Chase. Our bond made it difficult to be away from each other for long, and we’d been spoiled being so close to each other. In actuality, it forged our link tighter. I dreaded leaving.
We were allowed to grab some things before they sealed the house up with yellow tape. I threw clothes and crap in a bag and gave my room one last glance. I sighed, flipping off the light, and I vowed to find a way to ban Alastair from Earth. There had to be a way. I might not be able to kill the higher-demon, but if I could banish him from walking this plane, it would be enough.
Mom was waiting for me at the top of the stairs, a sad smile on her lips. She tucked a stiff piece of hair behind my ear. “Devin said we could stay with them until the repairs and cleanup are complete,” she said gently.
My eyes bugged out. Me. Chase. Under the same roof. Oh dear God.
She noticed my reaction. “I thought it might be easier on you to stay close, for school, and we could oversee the work on the house. That is if it is okay with you?”
The idea of staying with Chase was getting more and more appealing by the second. I shook my head. “No, that’s fine.” It would be simpler for Mom and tortuous for me, sleeping with him so close. Next door was bad enough, but the next room? My cheeks blushed.
Chase and Devin were standing at the bottom of the stairs, waiting casually for us to gather whatever we needed. Chase’s silver eyes ensnared mine and twinkled as if he was reading my thoughts.
Our little interlude wasn’t lost on my mom. “Of course there will be rules,” she added.
I rolled my eyes. “Do those rules have anything to do with boyfriends? Do these rules include Devin?”
She chewed on that thought for a moment. “I am sure we can negotiate the rules. Like you bunking with Lexi.”
“And where will you be bunking?” I asked, trying not to smirk.
“Angel,” she warned, hiking her overnight bag on one shoulder. Her whiskey eyes were drained. “This is a temporary arrangement.”
I eyed the hunky Devin talking to his nephew below and waggled my brows. “Uh-huh. If you say so.”
She shook her caramel hair. “How did I get such a cynical kid?”
I stepped down to the first step and said over my shoulder, “Just lucky, I guess.”
Chapter 21
“Hey, roomie,” Lexi greeted me, hanging over the side of the couch.