"She's my roommate. We share a living space. I'm not fucking her." What was with these two? If this was the best the Outsiders had to offer, he didn't want any part of it.
Gabriel cleared his throat right when whatever Colin would have said happened. Zane never heard the response, which must have been the point of the noise in the first place. "Where's the apartment?"
"You want the address?"
"If you give it to me, we'll all get out of this rain immediately."
"Do you have a car or something?"
Gabriel laughed, throwing back his head. "Oh, you have so much to learn. We don't need simple things like cars anymore."
Zane had to admit Gabriel's words intrigued him. "Yeah?"
He spit out the address before he could talk himself out of it. The spirt, angel, whatever who had sent him to Maine put him on this path. He was always supposed to join up with the group. Looked like time had finally caught up with him.
One second he stood on the street, the next he melted into nothingness only to be reformed standing in his living room. He staggered backwards, losing his footing and falling on his ass. His heart beat too fast and he tried to calm it down, which proved really difficult considering he'd teleported through the air for the very first time in his life.
"A little warning."
Gabriel extended his hand. "Sorry."
Ignoring the offering, Zane pulled himself to his feet. "You get off on that man? Scaring the uninformed with however you did what you did?"
"Little bit."
Zane shook his head. "You know you guys might want to reconsider sending the two of you out as the welcoming committee. You're not exactly filling me with the strongest need to go help you win a war."
"I can teleport so I'm a must. Colin here is looking for someone. So you got stuck with us."
With absolutely nothing to say in response, Zane ignored him and headed to the back of the apartment. He'd give Gia a minute to get herself together before she had to take on the two Outsiders in her living room.
He knocked on her door and when she didn't answer, he banged again. Colin appeared behind him. He was going to get the man a bell. How was it that Zane who missed nothing kept getting surprised by the Outsiders?
"She in there?
"This time of night she should be but she's not answering." And Zane didn't like the pinpricks of anxiety popping up all over his skin.
Colin opened the door and strolled in like he had the right to do so.
"Hey." Zane grabbed his arm and Colin shrugged him off. "The lady might prefer not to have strangers tearing into her room unannounced."
"There's no one here. Looks like there hasn't been anyone here for a very long time."
"What?" Zane pushed around him and stopped short.
Colin didn't lie. The room was empty, there wasn't even a bed in it. Gia's over the top decoration where most everything in the room was pink except for her black lingerie, which she slung all over as if she didn't care who saw what she wore was all gone. Dust coated the walls and the floor, showing no sign there was ever anything to block it.
"I don't understand." He whirled around, his heart pounding in his ears. She was his responsibility. He'd been taking care of her. "As was the role of all Outsider men who were warriors." He blinked. So weird when thoughts like that hit his head. But whatever, there were more pressing matters like where Gia was and what had happened to her.
"Gia." He shouted around the apartment while Gabe and Colin spoke to each other across the room. He didn't care. Zane flung open the bathroom door. No sign of her there either. His room, by contrast, remained the same, untouched, exactly as he'd left it the day before.
"I don't understand."
Gabe slapped him on the shoulder. "We'll start the supposition you're not insane and there really was a Gia here with you the last time you came home. We know Gia exists. Our seer has seen her, too."
"I might prefer to be nuts."
Colin snorted. "We've all been there, buddy."
His head pounded. "I'm not though."
"We know," Gabriel said. "Very screwed up things happen around us. The good news is we think the demon is pretty busy. I don't think he played a role in her…disappearance."
"Then what happened? Could your seer find out?"
Colin shrugged. "We never do know what Eden will and won't envision. But she can try. And I never really thought it would be this easy. Gia is apparently mine. I've never been lucky. Walking into an apartment and meeting my soul mate would never be how it went for me."
"She's not tough. She pretends to be but she could be harmed." Zane grabbed Colin's arm. "If she's yours you have to find her."
"I will." Colin nodded. "Don't mistake my staying calm for my not giving a shit. I do. In a big way. But we've all had to spend most of the last year coming to the conclusion that we're not as much in control of our lives as we'd all like to be."
Gabe snorted and for the first time since Zane had entered the empty apartment expecting to rob a safe, which turned out to be empty, he took a deep breath. The words that Colin spoke, they resonated with him. Maybe there was a point to being around these people.
"I thought I had things down. And then this old woman spoke to me. She'd been told by an angel to reach out."
Gabe's eyebrows rose. "Hold on there, Zane. We all have the 'we discovered we were Outsider' moments. Wait and share yours with the group."
The group. He'd never had one in his life. A loner by nature he hadn't really wanted to hang out with anyone until Gia.
"Everyone kind of okay to be with?" Any assholes in the group…?
Colin shook his head. "No. But you'll get used to their crap."
* * * *
Gia pulled her jacket around her. She never felt the cold, couldn't care less about the rain. But running away in the middle of the night in her nightgown made her more exposed than she cared to be. She'd had no time to get away from her home.
Tears sprung to her eyes. Zane would be so hurt. She'd not even been able to leave him a note. Only, she had no choice. Whenever Padrik caught up with her, she had no choice but to run for her life. Hide her existence—thank you powers—and take off like a bat out of hell.
If she'd stayed and tried to face Padrik, Zane would have been killed. She knew it like she somehow was able to paint the past—she just did. Like breathing or her heart beating, there were things in her life Gia had long since stopped questioning.
Zane didn't belong to her. He wasn't her soul mate. Somewhere out there in the world was the woman he would give everything for and he shouldn't waste his energy on saving her from her own mistakes.
Fortunately, she had the ability to shield herself until she could figure out a better option.
If their destinies were really as entwined as they both believed, someday she'd explain to her dearest friend why she left and couldn't look back. Maybe he would forgive her.
A shudder ran through her body. Padrik was close. If she wasn't careful it would be he and not any demon to end her life.
An early mistake she'd never be able to undo, when she hadn't realized the sexual power she held over men could be turned around on her. Gia didn't have it in her to kill anyone. She wished she did.
Padrik would never let her go, he would never forget her, and his vow to chase her through eternity meant she'd never be free of him.
The best thing to ever happen to her soul mate was he hadn't met her. She'd be nothing but trouble.
Chapter Seven
Marina watched Drew sleep. He didn't rest easily, not even in the unconscious state Jason had left him in. He twitched, flung around, turned over, and muttered. For hours she watched. Finally, when she couldn't stand it anymore, she took his hand in hers. Squeezing his fingers, she knew they'd come to a crossroads.
There could be no staying still anymore, they had to move forward or everyone's futures would fall apart. Drew didn't want to deal with their past lives? Fine, he didn't have to. She'd alway
s be available with the information if and when he wanted it. Only, she couldn't pretend she didn't know things about their relationship when she did.
With her head clearer, she could see things. Time wasn't, at least for them, linear. Some lives seemed to have been hundreds of years apart while others seemed to be almost happening at the same time.
There were some facts that remained the same time and again. He was never born with a small personality. He always wanted to do the right thing, at least as far as he saw the world. He loved her fiercely. And he was stubborn as a mule.
Whatever personal details shifted in lifetimes, and sometimes those changes were huge, certain things remained the same. And enough was enough.
His eyes opened slightly. "Marina. The demon. Get away."
"Jason cooled him. He's not here to hurt you at present." She let go of his hand and moved until she could scoot next to him on the bed.
Drew shook his head. "I'm never safe for you."
"Just sleep, darling."
The problem was he never rested and she didn't either. Not really. They both went from states of exhaustion to demon encounters, which knocked them out for days. She'd lost track of how many times she'd been hit on the head with a magical burst.
Noise in the hall caught her attention and seconds later the door cracked open. Charma poked her head in. "Gabe and Colin are back. They've brought Zane. This is all thanks to you."
"I'd say Eden's gifts played a large role. I'll meet him later." She wasn't leaving Drew, not for all the new Outsiders in the world. Charma nodded and closed the door gently
"Drew. I have an idea." She whispered in his ear before she ran her hand softly down the side of her face. "Years ago, before we met, when we were oceans apart—the farthest distance I've ever been from you—we somehow were more connected than we are together. Enough is enough."
She snuggled closer to him. "If you leave me waiting for you in the garden all alone I'm going to be really mad."
Sleep didn't come immediately but listening to the soft sound of Drew breathing did eventually lull her into tiredness. He didn't move as much with her pressed against him and she hoped it was because he found her presence comforting. Time passed and when she opened her eyes it was to find herself sitting where she hadn't been in almost thirty years.
The garden she had once she shared with Drew in their dreams.
He stood with his back to her, staring off at the sun setting in the sky. If she remembered correctly, it never would actually go down, forever drenching their special place in the magnificent colors of the end of a day.
"Boy." She called out, using the name she had addressed him by the entire time they had known one another.
He turned to look at her. "I have you to thank for being here?"
"Boy." She said it again. "I don't need you to rescue me from anything."
Marina stood up. Flowing flower print skirts swayed as she walked. She looked like a peasant from some kind of fairy tale. In real life, she'd never dressed thus but whatever. One of them had picked this outfit for her to wear. She didn't know which, but she'd go for it nonetheless.
"That's good. Because I never have been able to do it correctly."
She wrapped her arms around his waist and when he flinched she didn't let him go. "You don't want to hear about things from the past so we'll leave them where they are—gone. I'll only add, you thinking you never save me has to be the stupidest thing you've ever said." Marina pressed her head against his chest. "You can't hurt me here. No demons in our dreams. This is safe. You might as well let me hold you."
He didn't speak for a second but eventually hugged her back. "I'm afraid I'm going to get a little too used to it."
She hoped he would.
Marina closed her eyes. "This is nice."
He didn't speak but he kissed the top of her head. For a second she forgot to breathe. Drew was never openly affectionate. Afraid she might spoil things yet unable to stop herself, she raised her eyes to look at him.
"You're a silly man, you know that?"
Drew lifted a dark eyebrow. "I don't think anyone has ever used the word silly to describe me before."
"All these years, you kept me at bay because you thought I would get hurt from the demon inside of you."
"That wasn't silly. That was me protecting you."
She shook her head. "Did you ever stop to think about what my powers are?"
Drew let go of her and stepped away. "All the fucking time actually."
"I'm a warder." She kissed his chin and he didn't stop her so she did it again. His whiskers felt hard against her lips. His creation or hers in this dream? It didn't matter anymore. "I can keep the demon off me."
He shook his head before he closed his eyes. "You don't know that."
She stood up on tiptoes to reach his mouth. Before she pressed down, she said, "You don't know I can't."
Drew didn't push her away and after a second kissed her back, long, smooth, hot—longing. She pulled him tighter against him just in time to feel the evidence of how much he wanted her growing in his pants. Drew could pretend indifference when they were awake all he wanted.
He pushed his tongue between her lips and she let him inside. Their tongues danced. He tasted of cinnamon. After a minute, she pulled back. Much as she wanted him, she needed this when they were awake, when she was certain they could both remember what happened, when it wouldn't fade like a wistful dream.
"Wake up and be with me for real."
He placed his hand on her cheek and she stared into his eyes. "I won't risk you."
"Drew, please don't make me pay for the terrible mistake I made years ago. Don't make us both suffer any more. Trust me to know how to handle myself. I believe in us. This is all my fault and I know we can set it right."
He shook his head. "What are you even talking about?"
"I begged you to help me. We were four. I set you on the path where you ended up infected. All of your pain rests on my shoulders. I was young, stupid, terrified." She took a deep breath and said the words she'd needed to speak since she learned his secret. "I was so used to you being there for me I did nothing to help myself. Even as a child I was powerful. I made my pain your problem and you did what you do—you tried to rescue me. And it all blew up."
"Marina." He leaned his forehead against hers. "You can't make my stupid mistakes your responsibility. The whole world doesn't rest on your shoulders."
"I love you." She spoke the words she needed to say. "Out of everyone in this whole mess we're in, I wouldn't pick anyone but you to go through this with. You belong to me. I know you were alone for so long. Veli never found you. No one came to rescue you." She held onto his shirt. "Let me."
One second they stood in the garden, the gentle wind pushing on her hair as she pleaded with him. The next, she was back in Drew's room, awake as she blinked up at him.
He seemed a lot more alert than she did. "You think this was all your fault?"
"Glad to see you can hold onto our shared dreams in your memory."
In a flash, he was on top of her. "I gave the demon entrance to my body. I made the choice. I was stupid. It has nothing to do with you whatsoever. Just typical poor decision making on my part and, yeah, it's fucked up our entire life. I keep waiting for you to tell me to get out."
"Not going to happen." She had to make the stubborn mule understand. "I don't cut and run. I stay put. Do you understand? I waited for you when you came and went and then came again because I know you. Even when I couldn't remember, I knew you'd always return to me, Drew." She pushed at him until he moved. "I've got this."
With a flick of her hand, she strengthened the wards around the cave. The ability left her when she didn't have her memory. Only, it had come right back. The demon wasn't getting through the area she shielded. Not without his having to do some serious spell-casting. She'd feel his attempt and they could thwart him. No more being left out in the open for Sebastian to fuck with.
"You've res
isted his pull for so long. I know you aren't going to let anyone or anything hurt me. I need you."
"Damn it, Marina." He tugged her against him and before she could think he pressed his mouth to hers.
Drew wasn't gentle and coaxing. He'd never initiated this kind of contact between them before and if his claiming of her mouth indicated anything he wasn't going to be a gentle lover. His aggression suited her fine. They'd been denied each other too long.
He pulled back, panting hard like they'd done much more than simply kiss. "If at any time I think you're at risk, this stops."
She shook her head. "No dice. And you're not getting out of this. I want you and I can feel"—she ran her hand up his leg to his hardening cock—"you want me, too."
"By the gods, I do." He pushed her flat on her back on the bed, coming over her again. "You're mine. If I was stronger I'd resist this pull. I can't anymore and what's more, I don't want to. Why can't I have you?"
His eyes were huge, wild as he stared down at her and a heady, powerful sensation ran through her body knowing she made him so out of control. Drew never lost his control, only he'd given in to her. She was so damn relieved.
"No reason I can think of whatsoever." She kissed him and he groaned before he took back dominating her mouth.
Without a word spoken, he ran his hands along her arms until he gripped her wrists. Pressing his weight down, he held her arms over her head, making it clear who was in charge of their coming together.
Marina didn't mind. Whatever he wanted, however he wanted it. Her body purred to be his finally. And he'd barely touched her yet.
He lifted his lips from hers, and she gasped for breath.
Everything inside of her had gone soft, warm, pliant. "You know I've never done this before."
His grin shocked her. Drew hardly ever smiled. "That's because you've always belonged to me."
Drew let go of her shirt only long enough to pull her clothes from her body. She lay beneath him, naked and exposed. Only she didn't feel that way—his gaze travelled over her body, adoring her with every movement of his eyes.