Wilde's Fire (Darkness Falls #1) (33 page)

Mom stands, then rubs her thumb along my cheekbone. “I’m going to check on him, dear. Tonight is not the night to work on his illness. The healing will require a lot of time and energy. Go ahead and take care of the animals.”

“Okay.” Hanging my head, I walk away, thinking of my friend and his smile, his laughter—how upset he’s going to be when he finds out I’m with Arland. I glance over my shoulder. “And I promise we’ll talk when I finish.”

Flanna grabs the back of my shirt as I pass through the kitchen. “We have enough goat milk.”

“Got it,” I say, continuing toward the corridor.

I have my sister, my mother, and my Arland. I have friends, a purpose. Forcing a smile, I climb the stairs. This may not be what I had planned for my life, but I’m certainly surrounded by a lot more love than I ever have been. The only thing lacking is helping Brad and getting him home, but the way my mom spoke, that may not be as difficult as we thought.

Once in the stables, I feed the chickens, give them water, and collect their eggs. I hum Flanna’s tune and dance around while I move on to the cows.

Milk squirts into the wooden pail, filling it halfway. Smells of hard work—of home—set me at ease. Having Mom and Brit here takes away some of the emptiness, some of the concern.

Straw rustles behind me.

Looking over my shoulder, I see Arland approach, smiling. He wraps his arms around my waist, then puts his face next to mine. Warmth radiates from him, comforting me even more.

Tingles rush down my arms and legs. “H-hi.”

“Are you going to stop milking the cow, or are you going to make me wait?” he asks, enticing me to get up with his seductive voice.

I keep milking the cow, but my concentration wanes; milk sprays the ground a few times. “I’m going to make you wait.”

“I will check the horses.” Arland holds onto me for a moment longer, then unclasps his hands and leaves me with the cows.

He mutters something to Bowen about helping me get through stable duties, and I laugh.

Milk sloshes in the pail as I carry it to the shelf outside the cow’s stall. I set the pail down, then walk toward the goats. Flanna said we still have milk remaining from yesterday, so I don’t have to do anything other than check their food and water.

Wearing a grin that says his mind is in places it’s never gone before, Arland blocks my entrance to their stall. “I have already taken care of them.”

My heart races as he takes slow, exciting steps toward me and closes the space between us. He removes the feedbag from my hands, places it on the ground, then pulls me against him.

I rest my head on his chest and listen to him breathe. “Thank you, again.”

“You are an incredible woman.”

I lift my head and stare into his eyes. “You’re just saying that because I saved your life.”

“I say that because you have no idea how strong you are.” Arland pulls away from me, takes my hand, and leads me to the corner between the goats and horses, where the straw is stored. “I have a feeling we will not be allowed much alone time, now that your mother and sister are here.”

“We all have to share a room, but you and I can still find alone time.”

Swarms of butterflies take over the free space in my stomach. Being with Arland has been important to both of us; I cannot imagine losing that. I suddenly want more of him, but what if I never get more? What if all there is for us is a cruel war and then death, or a forced marriage to someone who scares me? Thoughts I’ve never had while awake creep into my mind

“We are alone now,” I say, almost too quietly for even me to hear.

His lips graze my neck. “We are.”

I let my hands roam up his chest, down his back, and to his waist. Tugging at his hips, I pull him closer. Breathing is almost impossible. I gasp for air. “There is no reason for anyone else to come up here tonight.”

“No, there is not.” He whispers in my ear, then kisses it.

Chills course over my skin.

“I do have to talk to my mom, soon, though,” I say, from the logical part of my brain. It’s running through reasons why we shouldn’t be up here, doing this, right now.

“So, we do not have much time.” He crushes his lips onto mine.

In a hungry need for more, I wrap my arms around his neck and lean into him.

“Not nearly enough.” I barely get out the words between kisses. All logic escapes me, replaced by desire, excitement,
love
.

“We will have to hurry then.”

We fall back into the fresh straw.

Arland presses his body against mine.

Drawing my leg up over his waist, I throw my head back as he kisses a line down my neck. He runs his hands down my shirt, finds and loosens my belt, and then works his way up under my clothes. He caresses my bare skin with the tips of his fingers. Tingles run down my stomach; my breathing becomes rapid. He grabs my thigh, securing my leg around him. Trailing my fingers down his chest, I find and tear at the button on his pants.

Arland stops kissing me and smiles, so big, so warm, I cannot possibly wait any longer for this. I pull my shirt over my head, then pull his off.

Arland’s eyes widen, then he kisses my chest softly, roaming down to my stomach.

Fire rages in me. I look down at our bodies pressed against each other; we’re both glowing in warm, golden flames, and not the blue fire that engulfed us during the fight.

Arland sits back on his haunches, teases his finger down the middle of my chest, but stops at my waist.

I bite my lower lip and squirm from his tickling touch.

“Is this okay?” he asks, arching his eyebrow as he hooks his finger under my pants.

I nod.

Smiling, he leans down, creating explosions of heat everywhere our bare skin touches. He nibbles my earlobe and fumbles with the button on my pants—

“A-hem!”

“Not now, Flanna.” Arland yells, voice raised and harsh.

“I am
so
sorry to interrupt, but Mrs. Wilde is growing impatient waiting for Kate. I figured you two were
very busy
, so I offered to come collect Kate for her while you finish the remaining duties,” Flanna says, her voice heavily soaked in sarcasm.

The muscles in Arland’s jaw contort; he wipes his hand over his face, erasing the angry expression.

Warmth fills my cheeks. Grabbing my shirt, I drape it in front of me. “Please, tell her we’re finished, and I’ll be there shortly.”

“Make sure you pick the straw out of your hair first, Kate.” Flanna turns on her toes and bounces out of the room.

Arland pulls straw from my tangled locks. “What is it you were saying about alone time?”

“That we are going to have to make a point of sneaking off as much as possible, now that my family is here.” I slip my shirt over my head.

Arland does the same, and I tighten my belt, then kiss him one last time before we head downstairs.

* * * * *

The dining area is empty. Walking into our room, Arland and I find Mom and Brit sitting on the bed, waiting to talk to us.

He closes the door and follows behind me.

The way Mom looks at us, it’s as if she knows we were making out. I hope the chagrin doesn’t show on my face. Arland and I had so many opportunities to love, but now that we’re ready, we have roommates.

This isn’t fair.

“Kate, I have so much to tell you about yourself, and this place. I’m sure Arland has spoken a great deal about our history and your place in this war, as much as he could without knowing your entire prophecy.” She looks at Arland; he stiffens, then she re-directs her attention to me. “You see, Kate,
I
cannot even tell you all of your prophecy. If you know too much, it could hinder you from making the correct choices. There are some things I can share with you, and I will certainly always be here for you along the way, but in no way will I be able to give the full prophecy, until this war has ended.”

“My father has shared my entire prophecy with me. Knowledge is power. He wanted me to have as much power as possible in this fight.” Arland’s tone is incredulous.

“I highly doubt that, Arland Maher. Your father might have convinced you he gave your entire prophecy to you, but the Kimball I know would never have done such a thing. If you knew everything about yourself, it would not have taken you so long to figure out you were the key,” she says.

Arland whispers
Solas
,
then transfers his flame to another candle by the bed.

Brit watches him, eyes wide.

“Go on.” He takes a seat on the bed and leans against the wooden headboard. It’s clear Mom has his interest.

I sit in front of him, then cross my legs.

“I don’t even need to ask; I know the two of you are in love. I was aware of your relationship, prior to Kate’s birth. Your love was part of the reason her father and I made the deal with Kimball for you two to marry.”

Oh, yeah, she definitely knows we were making out. My cheeks are so hot I need a fan.

“Wait, what? You didn’t tell me anything about marriage, Mom,” Brit says, jumping up from her cot along the wall.

“I’ll tell you about it later, Brit.” I don’t want to think about how I’m not allowed to be with Arland, and I don’t really want to tell Brit about it later, either, but I will. She deserves to know as much as I do—and more.

“No, Kate, I will fill in your sister. You have too many other things to focus on.”

“But—”

“The dreams you’ve had have all been premonitions of your future. It doesn’t mean they’ll all come true, but portions of them might.”

Abandoning my concerns for filling in Brit, I grip Arland’s hand tighter.

My sister looks between us; she knows how much losing him would hurt me.

She’s heard all the details, from me, about my dreams.

“Are you telling me Arland is going to die? He died in almost every one of my dreams.” I know they can come true; I saw the vision of the hound in the forest only minutes before the daemon tried to attack Arland. What am I going to do? How will I protect him? I haven’t had a chance to love him enough, yet.

He rubs my shoulders, and I lean into him for support.

“Everyone dies, Kate, but when it will happen,
your
prophecy didn’t say. What I do know is that your pure, unbridled love is what fuels your power. It’s necessary for you to be together.” She pauses and smiles at the two of us. “Now, we’ve discussed it, and Brit and I are going to move in with Flanna and Lann and leave you two alone.”

“What? Mom, you don’t have to do that!” What is it she and Brit think Arland and I have been doing? Actually, I know exactly what it is, because we were so close to doing it in the stables. Mom wants me to
be
with Arland. Having her push me into a relationship doesn’t seem right, but he and I
are
both adults—and I have no doubts about my love for him.

“I’ve seen how strong the two of you are together. You remind me of your father and me.” She looks well past me; her normal pink hue pales, leaving her as white as a snow-capped mountain.

I’ve never heard her speak of my dad before. Sadness pangs in my gut. I don’t know anything about him … I don’t know anything about
her
.

“Your sister and I are not going to do anything that might come between you.”

I guess Arland and I won’t have to worry about our alone time. My cheeks warm from the memory of us in the straw; at least we have a bed, now.

“Before I tell you any more about your future, we need to discuss what to do about Brad. His condition is not good, Kate, but there is still hope.”

Hope
. Thank God—or the gods—for it. “Arland said he’s never known anyone to live through an attack like that.”

“It’s true. Brad should not be alive, but he is, and that’s a good sign. Kate, for years I prayed you would see you didn’t love him. I knew the day would come when you had to say goodbye, and I knew it was going to be hard, if you hadn’t figured that out yet.”

“But I do love him, Mom.”

Brit glares at me.

”He’s my best friend, and I do love him, for all the memories we’ve shared through the years,” I correct myself.

The nasty looks don’t stop.

“
What
?”

Brit scoots herself to the middle of the bed, then crosses her legs, mimicking me. “I’m glad you’ve found someone else. Brad was too possessive of you. Do you remember that guy you had a crush on in the ninth grade?”

“Mark Evans?” I ask, once again remembering my biology lab partner.

“Yeah. His sister Lucy and I became good friends, over the last year. She asked me if I knew what Brad did to her brother. I had no idea what she was talking about, so I said no. Lucy said Brad approached Mark after school one day and asked if he liked you. Mark said yes, and told Brad he already asked you to the winter social. Well, supposedly, Brad punched him.”

I cannot help but laugh. “So, you mean to tell me Brad fought off every guy who was ever interested in me?”

“Why would she lie to me? If you think about it, it all makes sense. Remember when Mark showed up at school with the black eye? He told you he was going to the dance with someone else. When you asked him what happened, he ignored you. Wasn’t that the last time you ever talked to Mark?”

“Oh, my God. Why would Brad do that to me? Why didn’t you tell me sooner?”

She rolls her eyes. “I’ve barely had an opportunity to talk to you without Brad around. Seriously, I think he’s obsessed.”

Anger, betrayal, frustration, sadness—all of these feelings surge through me. I ball my fists, take deep breaths. Arland rests his hands on my shoulders again, calming me. He’s reminding me that, in the long run, it doesn’t matter how Brad sabotaged my relationships. None of them would have meant anything. But, this news makes me question everything Brad and I ever did together.

“I suspected this was the case, when you first spoke of your relationship with him. He will not be easily convinced to return home, if he has been waiting around for you for years,” Arland says, still holding on to me.

One more rip tears my already shredded heart. “So, what are we going to do?”

“We are going to try to heal him. If it works, I want you to tell him the truth,” Mom says.