Ominous Love (17 page)

“Hi. Mum.”

“Eloise, I've been worried. Where were you on
Sunday when I phoned? Did you go out partying with Tom again? I hope you weren't
out all night with him?”

“I went to a party with Brooke and Ruby. I'm
not dating Tom anymore, Mum, so don't worry. I can't remember what time I got
in, but it wasn't late, anyhow, how's Pop?”

“It looks like we'll be here for a while yet,
honey, probably another week or more. Anyway, now I know you're okay, I'd
better go. Oh, and make sure you're in bed early tonight. You don't want to be
late for work. By the way, how was your job?”

“It's great. I love it.”

“That's good. Okay, I'll phone in a few days.
Be good, Bye.”

“Bye, Mum.”

With a big smile, I hang up.

After checking myself in the mirror, I put my
money and lipstick in a tiny leather shoulder bag and pull it over my head. Perfect.
At least I can't lose this purse and I don't even have to hold it. I lock up, then
drop the keys in the purse and head up the road towards the church hall.

Inhaling the fresh salty air, I gaze up at
the big yellow moon as it smiles at me from above the ocean. It looks so
beautiful amongst the twinkling stars in the clear night sky. I'm so glad it's
not foggy or raining tonight, but I guess if I want to own my own car, I'll
have to stop buying clothes and shoes and save up.

As I walk through the car park to the church
hall,
Timomatic’s
song,
‘If Looks Could Kill’
, blasts out of
the open doors. Brooke and Ruby dash over to meet me.

“I’m glad you came, Ell,” says Ruby. “I
thought you might not after what Francesca did.”

I shrug. “I don’t care about that. I’m over
Tom.” I stroll over to the table and place Francesca’s gift with the other
presents and grab a beaker of orange juice.

“Look who’s coming over,” whispers Brooke.

I look up to see Tom.

“Hi, Elle, wanna dance?”

I shake my head. “Why don’t you ask
Francesca?”

Brooke nearly chokes on her drink.

As
Pink’s
song,
I’m Still a Rock Star,
booms
from of the hall speakers
,
someone
grabs my hand and twirls me onto the dance floor, and as he wraps his arms
around my back, I look up at the handsome face of Devlin Sulphurous.

He smiles down at me, his dark eyes twinkling
with the reflection from the disco lights. As I breathe in his exotic perfume,
I start to feel dizzy. It smells like incense. I suddenly wonder why I disliked
him so much when I met him at Richie’s party. He seems charming enough and he
sure is hot. He’s wearing tight black jeans and an open-neck silk shirt,
revealing his well-toned chest. Jeez. It’s like he’s put a spell on me because
I can’t stop staring at him. Maybe I misjudged him. After all, it wasn’t him
who went off with Francesca.

As we dance to
One Direction’s song, ‘Little Things
’, Devlin pulls me close and starts
singing along with the words. I’m touched. No one has ever sung to me before
and when he pulls me closer, I put my hand on his back and gaze up at him. As I
run my fingers along the soft black silk, the warmth of his skin burns through.
His arms are so strong and powerful, and as he wraps them around me, I lay
against his chest as he sways me around the floor. I can’t believe I’m doing
this with a guy I’ve just met. I feel intoxicated.

Then my eyes meet Tom’s and he’s glaring at
me.

Storming towards us, he tries to cut in and pull
me away. “Get your sleazy hands off my girl,” he yells, his fists clenched.

Oh, great. Will Tom never give up?

Devlin’s much bigger than Tom and a lot more
intimidating. He reaches out,
then
digs his thumb into
the flesh above Tom’s right rib.

Tom’s knees buckle as he cries out, “Awww.”

Holly shit. What’s Devlin doing? I pull at his
arm. “Don’t.”

Devlin takes his hand away and grabs mine,
then he ushers me outside into the fresh night air and away from the loud music
where we can talk. “I’m sorry, Eloise. I had to do something to stop him from
making a fool of
himself
.”

I glance back at the hall, hoping Tom is all
right. He’s standing in the doorway, rubbing his shoulder and glowering at
Devlin.

I frown at Devlin. “I think you hurt him.”

He glances at Tom, then steers me down the
garden towards a sandy track that leads to the beach. “It’s only his pride
that’s hurt. I had to stop him before he started a fight because he wouldn’t
stand a chance with me and I didn’t want to harm him. He’s just a fool.”

I guess Devlin’s right but I feel a little
nervous going off with him when I don’t really know him. Taking my shoes off, I
glance over my shoulder to make sure Tom sees where I’m going, but he’s not
there. Knowing him, he’s probably gone in search of Francesca.

Wondering what I’m getting myself into, I
carry my shoes and follow Devlin onto the beach. He has some sort of magnetism
and I can’t seem to resist him. He sits down with his back to the cliff top and
pats the ground next to him.

“You’re shivering, Eloise. Sit here and let
me warm you.”

As I plonk beside him, he wraps his arm
around my shoulders and rubs my arm.

“I’m so glad you’re giving me a chance to get
to know you, instead of running off like you did at Richie’s party.”

Feeling stupidly self-conscious, I look away.
Why does he want to get to know me? Francesca's stunning and she practically
threw herself at him.

As if reading my mind, he smiles, his white
teeth gleaming in the moonlight. “I don’t think you realise how gorgeous you
are, Eloise. And that’s only one of the things I love about you.”

Love?
That’s a bit strong. Blushing, I look away. I don’t know what to say to him. He
seems so mysterious. Brooke's right, he's definitely hot, but there’s something
dark about him, too.

He takes my hand and kissed my fingers. “There's
no need to be shy. I won't bite you.”

I gulp and my heart thumps against my ribs.
He's so close, I can smell his exotic perfume again, and though it's
intoxicating, there's a desperate intensity to his behaviour that's worrying me.
I glance up at him. “I'm not shy. I'm just cautious, and I don’t really know
anything about you.”

He cups my chin in his hand. “You don't have
to be nervous with me. You’re so sweet and there’s something so innocent and
vulnerable about you. You bring out the protector in me.”

I gulp. Jeez, he doesn’t know me very well.
He tries anything and I’ll poke his eyes out. Crap. I should have learned my
lesson after what Tom did. Being alone with a boy is not very sensible.

Snaking his arm around my waist, he pulls me
closer. “The view of the ocean is fantastic under the stars, isn’t it?”

My breathing quickens and I peek at him out
the corner of my eye. He's moving way too fast for me, and I don't know him
well enough. Feeling a little apprehensive and uncomfortable, my mouth goes dry.
I look around to see if there’s anyone on the beach, but it’s deserted.

“So, how is your job at the pet shop going?”
he asks.

I look abruptly at him. “How do you know
where I work?”

“Brooke told me.”

Frowning, I stare at him, trying to work him
out.

He strokes my hair from my face. “I heard you
and Tom broke up, so how are you getting home tonight?”

Before he has the chance to offer me a lift,
I say, “Brooke’s driving me.”

He gazes into my eyes. “Have you ever been in
love, Eloise?”

I stare up at him, his pupils glittering in
the moonlight. I’m not sure how to answer him. I'm certainly not telling him I’m
in love with a boy I dream about every night. He'll think I'm a desperate
weirdo.

He pulls me closer, squashing my head to his
chest and forcing me to listen to the pounding of his heart. “It’s beating for
you, Eloise,” he whispers, as he buries his face in my hair.

The scent of his cologne and the sound of his
voice give me a strange
déjà vu feeling, but I can’t think why. As
I move my hand across his back,
something prickles my hand. Shoot, what was that. I run my fingers under his
shirt to see what caused it.
Friggin hell.
He needs a
good wax.

Arching his back, he gasps, then lays me
gently down on the sand and leans over me. “Are you trying to turn me on?”

I gulp.
Holy shit.
He thinks I was caressing him.

Moving closer, he presses his lips to mine
and swirls his tongue into my mouth. Then he pulls away and kisses my throat. “Mmm,
you taste so sweet.”

Though his kiss was soft and gentle, his
perfume is spine-tingling and it’s making me dizzy. As he wraps his arms around
me, his biceps bulge against my neck. Then he caresses my shoulders and moves
his hands down my back and round to my belly. Though he’s hands are on top of
my clothes, my stomach tightens. Crikey, what have I got myself into? He’s
moving way too fast. I should have followed my instincts and stayed away from
him. Deciding to get away, I sit up and smile.

“I have to go to the bathroom, Devlin, but I
won’t be long.” I stand up to leave. “Would you like me to bring you a drink or
something?” I say, trying to trick him.

He grabs my hand. “The only thing I need is
you, Eloise, but I’ll walk back with you.”

“There’s no need. Keep the sand warm and I’ll
be back in a couple of minutes.”

“Okay.” He leans back against the cliff and
grins. “Don’t be too long, or I’ll come looking for you. Now that I’ve found
you, I’m never letting you go.”

Not knowing what to say to him, I pick my
shoes up and take off barefoot back up the sandy track. My heart is beating
like a drum, but if I go back to the party, Devlin will find me and I don’t
feel like talking to him. He scares the crap out of me. Plus I have to get up
for work in the morning, unlike my friends who can sleep in late. I glance at
my watch. If I go via the shortcut, I can be home in ten minutes and Devlin
won't even notice until it's too late. It’s a good job he doesn’t know where I
live.

Reaching the end of the beach track, I turn
left and jog along the path that snakes over the cliff towards the next beach
and near to my street. When I reach the steepest part, I hold onto the wooden
railing and climb the sandstone steps between the bushes and trees. If it wasn’t
for the full moon, I would have had to walk home along the main road, and then Devlin
would’ve seen me. At the top of the steps, there’s a wooden bench looking out
over the ocean. My feet are hurting, so I sit down for a moment and rub my sore
toes. No point putting my high heels on until I get onto the street. The fresh
air and the smell of the ocean energise me and as I jump to my feet again, a
gigantic black bird swoops towards me.

Freaking hell!
Screaming, I hold my head and duck.

Chapter Nineteen

The flapping of huge wings blows my hair about
as a large creature lands next to me. What in the world is that? I squeeze my
eyes shut and tremble with terror. This is it. I'm about to be eaten by a
prehistoric bird and I haven't even lived yet.

A deep voice booms out. “Look at me!”

My eyes pop wide open. Holy hell! I'm so
dead.

There’s a half-dressed man standing over me,
a tall man with the physique of a body builder, and he's got … holy crap, he's
got wings, huge black wings. I back up against a rock and cover my face with my
hands. He can't be real. He’s either an actor from a movie set or I'm having a
nightmare.

“So, Eloise, you thought you could get away
from me?”

He knows my name? I peep through my fingers,
and though his face is in the shadows, his voice sounds familiar. He moves
closer and smiles, his pearly white teeth glinting in the moonlight.

Oh my god! It’s Devlin.

I blink twice. “Are you in a movie or
something?”

He throws his head back and laughs. “Now,
why
would you say that?”

I bite my lip. “Um … ′cause you’re
wearing motorised wings?”

His mouth curling into a smirk, he points
over his shoulder. “I can assure you, these wings are real.” He walks towards
me. “Would you like to feel them?”

I swallow hard, and though I’m afraid, my curiosity
takes over. I step forward and run my fingers along his back. He closes his
eyes and inhales like he’s enjoying it. Oh my god. The feathers feel real and
they’re growing out of his back. Just to be sure, I nip a quill between my
fingers and yank it out. Whoa. It’s got blood on the end, so it has to be real.

“Ouch.” He opens his eyes and rubs his
shoulder. “You’re a right little vixen, aren’t you? That hurt.”

I stare at the thick black feather in my
hand.
Far out.
He really does have wings. I look up at
him. “What the hell are you, an angel?”