I didn’t lie when I said I was tired, but it wasn’t physical exhaustion I was talking about. My body felt strung tight, like a cord being pulled taut. Even the smallest touch from Cal would have had me vibrating with desire, just a look from him had me aching and it was scaring the hell out of me. I didn’t want to give in to him. I didn’t want to let myself get sucked into a heart-walloping situation. He said he wouldn’t fall in love with me, wouldn’t allow himself to, and I believed him. And as long as he felt that way, I couldn’t willingly walk into another painful situation. Because no matter what, if I gave in and bonded with Cal, halfway wouldn’t be enough. I would want all of him.
I sighed as I entered my room, pulling my hair into a ponytail before I plopped down on the bed. I’d read all afternoon, which was nice, but now I had no desire to pick up another book. That left me with nothing to do but dwell on Cal and his sexy body, or on the Order and my sudden headfirst plunge into the role of a Huntress. And then there was the prospect of a bonding process that could supposedly give me everything I needed to defeat one of the scariest creatures I’d ever laid eyes on—a creature who claimed that I was his bride. For my exhausted mind, it was all too much to contemplate.
I glanced at the TV, tempted to flick through the channels and see if there was anything worth watching. But then, I’d done a lot of movie watching over the past few weeks while trying to bury my misery over Jimmy’s betrayal. What I really needed was one big emotional release and I knew exactly what, or who, would give me the most bang for my buck. Cal.
At least he’s being honest with me right up front. No strings attached.
I swiped my cell phone off the night table and noticed that I’d missed several calls from Rachel, and a zillion text messages. I scrolled through the string of them, feeling guiltier and guiltier as Rachel’s texts grew anxious to the point of desperation. She was worried about me, and here I was mooning over Cal.
I hit the callback button then frowned as my phone beeped with a weak signal. “Shit.”
I looked down at the phone, the signal bars were fading in and out. Of course, no reliable service in the middle of nowhere. With a glance at the landline that lay on the table, I shook my head. For all I knew the Order could be listening in on my phone conversations. I moved to the window, opened it and stuck my phone out. The bars instantly returned. Full service outside. Wonderful.
It was still light out, the sun just setting below the tree line, giving off a warm glow that bathed the surrounding forest in beautiful yellow and orange. No harm in going outside to make a call. I exited my room and quickly found my way through the maze of the mansion to a back screen door where I stepped out into the cool twilight air.
Ah, freedom.
I took in a deep breath and reveled in the clean scent of the freshly cut grass that stretched out before me, buffeted on all sides by the thick foliage of the surrounding forest.
I hit redial and winced when Rachel answered after the first ring.
“Morgan? Where the fuck are you?” Her voice was near hysterical. “Do you have any idea how worried I’ve been?”
“Rach, I’m okay.”
“You fall off the face of the planet for almost two days and all you can say is you’re okay? All I’ve been going on is that vague message that you left about being okay. And then you don’t answer any of my texts or calls since. Where the hell are you?”
I sighed as I looked over my shoulder at the house. “Well…” I shifted my gaze to the forest around me. “I’m in the country.” Admitting that I wasn’t exactly sure where I was at the moment didn’t seem wise. It had never occurred to me to ask Cal, or anyone else for that matter, where the mansion was located. I’d been in such a daze when we travelled here that I hadn’t paid attention to where we were going. For all I knew, we could be in an entirely different state. “But I am safe,” I reassured Rachel.
“Is this some kind of joke? Are you telling me what you think I want to hear because you’ve got a gun to your head?”
“Seriously, Rach, I’m fine.” I started walking in a wide circle, happy to have a chance to stretch my legs while I was outside. “I met this guy.”
“You met a guy?” Rachel sounded like she had just choked on something. “And what, ran away with him? Now I know something is up. You’d never do something so reckless.”
My mind raced through a series of possible lies. Rachel was right to be suspicious—I would never do something as foolish as take off with a complete stranger to the middle of nowhere. But here I was, so somewhere along the way I had forgotten that.
“Rach, I’m seriously okay. This guy, someone I knew from back home, came by and I decided to take a little trip with him. You know, to get away from all the craziness there.” I bit my lip, wondering if she would buy the story.
A moment of silence stretched out and I started questioning if Rachel was processing it or calling the cops on her landline.
“So, you’ve reconnected with an old fling and taken off for a mini-vacation?”
I smiled. “Yep.”
“And what about your job? Did you think to call work and let them know you’re going to be away for a few days?”