Carrier of the Mark (11 page)

“Okay,” I whispered.

“This is going to sound crazy, but … from the moment I first set eyes on you I haven’t been able to stop thinking about you.”

I was stunned. I remained silent and let him continue.

“Since you arrived here I’ve been going crazy. I can’t get you out of my mind. The more I try to distance myself, the more I find myself drawn to you. You might find that hard to believe, considering what an idiot I’ve been.”

The honey-smooth tones of his voice caressed my face, as if it were his hands that had touched me and not his words. I opened my mouth, still not sure what to say, and he put his finger on my lips.

“I was warned to stay away from you. They told me from the very beginning that it wasn’t safe to ‘consort,’” he said, slightly wincing at the word, “with you. But I’m not strong enough to stay away. I think our destinies are too closely linked to be diverted to a different course.”

He glared back toward the gate we’d come through and I followed his gaze. Rían was standing there, leaning against his motorcycle. Watching us.

“You feel it too. I can tell. It’s more than just attraction.” His finger that was caressing my lips moved slowly to my cheek. He let it slide gently up my jawbone toward my ear, stopping there to twirl a lock of my hair in between his finger and thumb. I lifted my hand to where his rested on the side of my face and I leaned into it. I rubbed my cheek slowly back and forth over his palm as I managed to get my breathing under control. I looked right at him, staring deep into his eyes.

“Yes. I feel it too,” I admitted, barely able to breathe. “Since the first day I saw you I’ve felt it.”

He brought his other hand up to the other side of my face and held it there, as if memorizing it. Slowly he bent toward me and kissed my left cheek, then my right. His breath was so warm it sent tingles down my spine. I sat perfectly still, delighting in every sensation. He moved up to my forehead and kissed it gently. His neck was tantalizingly close to my lips. He smelled warm, spicy even. My whole body tingled with pleasure.

He moved back down toward my nose and paused there for a little kiss before reaching my lips, where he stopped and pulled away slightly. Was he waiting for my permission? I moved into him, pressing my face into his hands, leaving him with no doubt as to what I wanted.

He bent in again and pressed his lips against mine. They were soft and full and everything I had imagined them to be. The kiss became deeper and more meaningful. The flow of electricity, of power, of passion between us was hard to contain. It was as if nobody else existed.

I put one arm around his back and left the other holding his palm against my face. His free hand raked through my hair. He pulled back gently.

“Wow,” he said.

“Wow,” I agreed.

“That was…”

“I know. What now?”

“Now things get very interesting.” He looked back toward Rían, who climbed onto his bike and sped off back down the lane.

I put my hand on Adam’s face and felt along his cheek and down along his jaw, reveling in the softness of his skin in comparison to the light stubble. He closed his eyes.

“You have no idea how good that feels,” he murmured.

“Oh, I think I do,” I replied with a smile. I felt slow, like I was moving through syrup. Everything around me seemed to glow.

“Megan,” Caitlin called from the direction of the bonfire.

I looked away from him reluctantly. “Over here.” A little embarrassed by my intense feelings, I pulled my hand away, but Adam held it to his lips, letting his tongue lightly caress my palm. My eyes closed in pleasure.

“There you are,” Caitlin said, ducking under the boughs of the tree that were half hiding us from view. She stopped short, catching sight of the two of us.

“I, uh, I just wanted to check and make sure you were all right.” She was already backing away. “So … you’re okay?”

“I’m fine,” I reassured her.

“It’s all right, Caitlin,” Adam said. “We were just coming to look for you.” To my surprise he stood up and pulled me up from the log. “Let’s go join the fun.”

Caitlin glanced at me, wide-eyed. I just smiled. I would tell her some edited details later, but not everything. There was something entirely private about our moment.

As we approached the bonfire, a figure caught my attention. Standing by the hedge, just visible through the flickering flames, was the monk. I stopped walking and stared at him. His watery gray eyes smiled back at me, and then he just dissolved.

Adam tugged on my arm. “Are you all right?” He followed my gaze through the bonfire, squinting off into the distance. “What are you looking at?”

“Nothing,” I said, moving toward the fire.

“Are you sure?” He looked back over his shoulder.

“I’m sure. Come on; let’s join the others.” We made our way over to Caitlin and the gang. When we sat down he whispered something to Áine, who jumped up and ran off into the darkness. She returned a few minutes later, shaking her head, and sat back down beside us.

The rest of the night passed in a blur. I sat by the fire with the most exquisite arm in the universe securely around me for all to see. I could tell people were whispering about us, but I didn’t care. The bonfire was just a heap of softly glowing embers when we got up to leave. Killian was going to walk Caitlin home, so we said our good-byes.

“I’m just going to drop Áine off first and then I’ll get you home. You all right with that?” Adam asked.

“That’s fine.” The more time I got to spend with him, the better. I didn’t want this night to end.

Áine sank into the back of the car. “That was brilliant! We should try to do fun stuff like that more often,” she said. I smiled in the darkness. I couldn’t agree more. We stopped at an entrance to a house with large iron gates and Áine jumped out and waved to us.

“You’re not going to drive her to the door?” I asked. I couldn’t see the house up the long, dark driveway.

“Áine takes care of herself,” Adam replied, turning the car.

We set off back in the direction of town. “You okay?” he said, looking over at me and taking my hand.

“I’m great. Perfect,” I answered, gazing at our entwined fingers.

We pulled up outside my house. Dad was still out. My hand felt so right in his, like it belonged there. I didn’t want to let it go.

He bent his head down to me, breathing in my breath, before he gently kissed my lips again. Slowly and reluctantly he pulled away. “Can I see you tomorrow?”

“I’d like that,” I said.

“Can I pick you up in the morning?”

“Sure,” I murmured.

“I’ll need your number,” he said, handing me his phone.

Feeling light-headed, I typed my cell number into his phone and gave it back to him.

“Thanks.” He lowered his head for one last kiss.

Finally, I got out of the car and waved him off, still reveling in the memory of his touch. As I made it to my room, tiredness overwhelmed me. I flopped down onto the bed and fell right to sleep.

W
hen I woke up, my head felt fuzzy. I didn’t know what time it was, but I knew it was Sunday and I was sure it was early. I opened one eye and moved the quilt just a little to look at the clock on my bedside table.

Ten thirteen. “Ugh,” I groaned. Not nearly as early as I had hoped.

I rolled onto my back and looked up at the ceiling. Then, very slowly, last night started to play out in my head. I felt warmth radiate through my body, and I lay there luxuriating in the sensations that tingled at my fingers and toes.

“Megan, are you getting up at some point today?” My dad’s muffled voice came from the other side of the door.

I had to break the beautiful spell to answer him.

“Yeah, Dad, I’m awake,” I said with a grunt.

“Want some breakfast? I’m making pancakes.”

“Sounds great.” I stifled a groan. “I’m just going to take a shower; I’ll be down in a little while, okay?”

“Sure,” he said, and whistled his way down the stairs.

I crawled out of bed and walked to the window. It was another gray, damp day, with the clouds hanging low in the sky. My phone vibrated on my desk. I walked over to it. Five text messages and two voice mails.

Caitlin
, I thought to myself, shaking my head. I scanned through the texts.

Hi! Tell all, what happened?

Stop holding out! Text me all the gossip.

Hello! I’m still waiting.

Good morning, beautiful, call me when you’re awake. xx Adam

I did a double take and read the last one again.
Oh, my God
. I saved his number to my phone. Then I scanned to the next message.

Friendship on the line here!

The two voice mails were from Caitlin too. I rolled my eyes and hit the redial key. It rang once and she picked up.

“Megan!” she exclaimed. “Where have you been? You know the rules! You should have let me know when you got home safely! Not to mention spill all the details on what all
that
was about last night! What happened?”

I didn’t feel like telling her even an edited version at the moment. I needed to clear my head first. “It’s a long story,” I hedged. “Sorry I didn’t call; I literally fell asleep the second I got home. Look, I’m hanging out with Adam today. Can we get together tonight for coffee? I promise I’ll spill my guts. Deal?”

“Oh, you dirty hussy, you’re holding out on me,” she exclaimed.

“No, no, it’s not that! Anyway, I’m sure you also have a lot to tell me about your night with Killian,” I prompted.

“Oh, I do,” she replied. “Okay, text me when you get back and we’ll meet up in town. I can’t wait. Just tell me one thing: Did you snog him?”

“Yes!”

“Oh my God,” she shouted into the phone. “This is amazing! I can’t wait to talk later.”

“Neither can I. Bye.”

I read the text from Adam one more time. I had spent so long daydreaming about this moment. My finger hovered over the call button. I took a deep breath and pressed it. He picked up immediately.

“Megan.” Just hearing him say my name sent shivers down my spine. “I’d hoped you would call. How are you?”

“I’m fine,” I said, trying to sound relaxed.

“You slept well. Are we still on for today?”

“Yes, definitely.” How did he know I had slept well?

“Great.” I could hear the smile in his voice. I imagined the way he would look, how his eyes would crease up and crinkle at the sides. It scared me a little to realize how well I knew his face and his expressions, when I knew so little about the person behind them. “I’ll pick you up at eleven thirty.”

“Great, I’ll see you then.”

“Oh, and…” He paused. “I meant everything I said last night.”

I flushed. “Me too,” I breathed. “See you soon.”

I sat down heavily on the bed.
Shoot
. Now I had to somehow work out how to tell my dad about Adam. And fast, since Adam was coming in less than an hour. I also had to find something to wear; my favorite jeans from last night were totally dirty.

First things first
, I said to myself, and headed for the shower. I let the hot water flow over my body and put both hands on the tiles in front of me, leaning forward and allowing the water to power down on my neck and back. It felt so good, so relaxing.

My dad would just have to deal with this. He was lucky enough to have avoided me dating for this long. Besides, my dad already knew and liked Adam. So that was one hurdle over with, at least.

When I was finished, I stepped out of the tub and reached over to grab a big fluffy towel. I wrapped it around me, tucking it in firmly under my arm, and brushed my teeth meticulously, followed by a round of flossing and mouthwash. This mouth would hopefully be seeing some action today. Nothing but pristine condition would do. I leaned into the mirror to get a closer look at my front teeth and caught the reflection of the window in the mirror.