chapter Nine
FOR A MOMENT, I couldn’t think—couldn’t breathe. Reese’s lips caressed mine, stealing my breath. Then I folded into the kiss, wrapping my arms around his neck. His hands gently cupped my face as his lips parted over mine, demanding more. He buried his hand into my hair, and I shivered as sparks rippled across my skin. He pulled back, his eyes scanning my face, and then pressed another light, tender kiss to my lips.
“From the moment I looked into your eyes, I’ve wanted to do that,” he said, and smiled.
“Could’ve fooled me.” I laughed breathlessly. “I thought you either wanted to kill me or feel me up.”
“Well…” He chuckled. “Both at first. All right, then from the moment you punched me, I wanted to do that.” He cocked his head. “Like I said, when you’re angry, you’re hot.”
I batted his arm and fell back onto my palms. “This is all so surreal. I’ve feared the change my whole life. Now you come along and tell me I can control my shifts. Not only that, but I have both powers and can hide Flame.” I shook my head. “You have to teach me now.”
Reese’s eyes traced my face. “It takes a bit longer than an afternoon. At least a few weeks.” His mouth tugged into a frown. “What about your friends? Have you told them?”
My eyebrows shot up. “Are you serious? Jace for one, no offense, hates the Narcos. I could never tell him my father was one. And Lana and Nick, I love them. I couldn’t endanger them with this kind of information.”
“Hmm…” He leaned back onto his hands, mirroring my position. “They could be a problem.”
“How? Hiding it from them?”
“Yeah. What about your fight club?” he said, arching a brow.
“How do you know—” I bit my lip. “You saw us. It was you in the woods that day.”
He nodded. “Sorry. But I had to make sure you were who I thought you were.”
“And you followed me to my house, that’s how you knew where I lived.” I closed my eyes for a moment. “I don’t know if I should feel flattered, elated that you exist, or creeped out.”
“All of the above?” Reese smiled, and then his expression turned solemn. “Seriously, Dez. You have to find a way to get out of those matches. At least until you learn to use Charge. Jace seems like a real hothead. I don’t want him blowing your—our cover because he’s pro Shythe.”
He was right. If Jace found out…No. I couldn’t believe that. Jace would never do anything to hurt me. But his father was on the Council. Jace may not intend to endanger me, but because of his confusion, he might expose me out of fear. Or worse, hate. I didn’t want to think about what might happen. I couldn’t.
Then an idea came to me. “They’re about to go through the change in a few days.”
“That’s perfect.” He sat forward. “They might even be out of it for a week or so. By then, we’ll be at the Academy. I hope Jace isn’t going to try and get away with sparring there. Because that would be stupid.”
“Yeah. You don’t know Jace. He has a lot of conviction in his beliefs.”
“And what are those?”
I shrugged. “He thinks the Narcos are here to—” I stopped. Reese was still technically one of them.
“Dez,” he said, taking my hand. “You have to trust me. I may’ve been raised by them, but I’m like you. A mixed breed.” He pressed his lips to my palm and peeked up at me. “And besides, how could I betray a girl that looks so damn hot in a mini-bustle and thigh-high boots?”
My face flushed. “Diversion tactic,” I said under my breath.
“What?”
I huffed. “That’s not my normal attire.” I straightened up, lacing my fingers through his. “Jace thinks the Narcos are here to find a way to harness Shythe Charge for themselves. He believes we have to train to protect ourselves from an attack.”
Reese quirked an eyebrow. “Wow, and here I thought that paranoid tough-guy persona was just an act to get girls.”
“Reese…”
He smiled. “Say that again.”
“What?”
“My name.” He leaned forward and traced his finger across my jawline. “You’ve never said it before. Sounds sexy when you do.”
My insides flipped. Now I understood how he got underneath my skin. “So,” I said, switching the topic back. “You’re saying that the Narcos really are here to try to live in harmony?”
“As far as I know. I was only told that the Shythe were struggling in their haven, and that part of the Treaty Act stated the races had to help one another.”
“I’ve lived in Haven my whole life, and no one has ever talked about the Narcos in any other way than with fear and revulsion. How is it I know nothing of the details of the Treaty Act?”
“Maybe your Council wants to protect you. Or maybe they thought you’d find them weak for agreeing to it. If they hadn’t, I don’t think Haven Falls would have survived.”
“You have a point.” I checked the time on my communicator. “Oh, my God. My mom will kill me if I’m not home when she gets back.”
Reese stood and pulled me up with him. “Then let’s get you back. Don’t want to piss off Mom.” He winked.
“How is it I came here feeling so lost and alone, and now…” I shook my head. “Reese, you’ve changed everything. I swear, I think my mom was about to pack us up and run again. She didn’t want me going to the Academy.” I looked down at the ground. “Now, I feel safe—better than safe. I don’t feel alone.”
He lifted my face and stared into my eyes. “I promise. I’ll find a way to protect you.” For a brief moment, something flashed in his eyes. It looked almost painful, as if something hurt him. But he quickly smiled—a brilliant smile that illuminated his face.
He lowered his head and brushed his lips across mine gently before deepening the kiss. Where his hands touched me, heat built and spread, warming my skin. I could get used to this Narco power.
Reese took me home on his levibike. I felt safe seated behind him, my arms wrapped tightly around his waist. There was no hesitation as I leaned my head against his back. He removed one hand from the steering bar and rested it against mine, threading our fingers together.
“Stop here,” I told him as we approached the head of my street. “I can walk the rest of the way.”
Reese pulled over, the hover-bike idling. I pulled my hand from his to jump off the bike, but he tugged it back, keeping it against his chest. “Will you meet me tomorrow?”
“I think I can probably swing that,” I said, reveling in the feel of his thumb caressing the top of my hand. “I’ll have to use my communicator to at least let Lana, Jace, and Nick know I’m all right. But I think they’ll understand that I don’t feel well enough for sparring or hanging out yet.”
Reese nodded. “I hate that you have to lie to your friends.”
“No.” I swallowed hard. “It’s better this way. They would have too many questions about the change that I don’t know how to answer right now. And Jace is dying to spar with me using my power.”
Reese huffed. “Yeah, that’s just what he’s dying to do.”
I sat back, angling myself to see his face. “What do you mean? You saw our practice—he’s all about sparring. And I can’t fight him yet.”
He grimaced and shook his head. “Right…nothing.” He released my hand. “Contact me when you can get away. I’ll pick you up here.”
I squinted, but brushed off his statement about Jace. “Okay, I’ll see you tomorrow.” My insides fluttered. “I can’t believe this is all real. I’m going to learn how to use Flame and Charge and…I’m bursting.”
He laughed, then took my hand and kissed it tenderly.
I bounced off the levibike and waved, and he hovered off. My mind reeled, but in a good way. I felt completely different from the way I had only a couple hours earlier when I thought my world was ending. Reese was a mixed breed like me. I wasn’t alone. And I was going to learn how to control this crazy power that had scared my mom half to death.
Mom. Crap.
What would I tell her? I wanted to alleviate her worries, but I didn’t know if I should tell her about Reese. She might feel relieved knowing another existed. But for some reason, knowing my mother, she’d find the bad in it. She could find something negative in any situation when it concerned me.
I could at least tell her I discovered how to control my power. Reese had learned on his own. That would stop her from bolting out of Haven.
As I walked through the front door, I was thankful to find I’d beaten her home. I took the stairs two at a time to my room and quickly changed into my pajamas.
Everything was different. I was going to learn to control my power—hide it so that my mom and I would be safe. And I had someone just like me in my life. I wasn’t alone in carrying this secret burden. I smiled, feeling my face warm. My lips still tingled from where Reese had kissed me.
Fishing my communicator from my pocket, my stomach sank. I hated having to lie to my friends, but I’d been hiding the truth from them my whole life anyway. The only difference was that now I actually had to physically hide. I had to avoid them until I learned to use my Shythe power. I needed to think of it as protecting them and not deceiving them.
I sent Lana a message first, letting her know I’d lived through the change but was still very weak. I paused, considering sending Jace a message. Lana would let him know I was all right, but I felt I should send him one, too. I took a deep breath and punched in his number.
I typed: I’m okay. Weak. Won’t be able to train for a while. See you at the Academy. Then I hit send. They would freak out that I wouldn’t see them for a whole week, but I needed the time to practice.
Before I settled onto the sofa, my communicator vibrated. I read the message from Jace: A week? Okay. Feel better…miss you. My heart thudded against my chest. Jace never told me things like that. Maybe he was just concerned, thinking I needed to hear it. And he was probably disappointed I wouldn’t be able to spar with my full power.
I placed my communicator on the table before me, staring at it as if it would grow legs and walk away. I shook the strange feeling away. I’d been falling for Jace. Or, at least I’d thought I had been. But he didn’t think about me in that way. I was Rug Rat. I could finally sort out my confused feelings for him. We’re best friends. That’s all. Granted, he was a really cute best friend, but I didn’t have to feel weird around him anymore.
I thought back to how uncomfortable I’d felt dancing with him…
I didn’t feel that way with Reese. We were the same. He didn’t hold back his feelings for me, and I couldn’t help being attracted to him. The boy was crazy hot. But I also felt safe with him—protected. I didn’t have to hide myself from him. It just felt…right.
My communicator came back into focus as my gaze settled over it, and my chest panged. Furrowing my eyebrows, I gnawed the inside of my lip and wondered why everything with guys was so complicated.