Family Is Forever

  We spent most evenings together when I wasn’t out at the ranch, and the more time we spent together, the closer we got. I’d thought I’d loved Arianna before, but now that we were getting really close, I realized that I’d just barely scratched the surface of my feelings for her. There was a layer of intimacy and comfort between us now that only deepened with every day we spent together. She was my future, my life, my happily ever after. I had no doubt. And now, more than ever before, I was thinking about an eternity with her. And wondering whether she would want that or not.

  “So…” My words trailed off, as my vague idea on how to bring it up to her completely failed me.

  “So…what?” she playfully asked. We were stretched out on the living room floor at my parents’ place.

  Scratching my head, I pondered how to ask Arianna if she wanted to be a vampire one day. “So…how is Simon doing?”

  I wanted to slap my forehead after asking her that. I knew how Simon was doing, same as she did. He was fine. He’d taken the transfusion a while ago, swapping out Jacen’s blood for mine. The sire-bond had blazed to life not long afterwards. Being psychically connected to him was…odd. But thankfully, it was nothing like Hunter and Nika’s bond. Really, all that had changed was the fact that I was aware of where Simon was. And I had this annoying desire to help him out. I found myself texting him or going over to his house, just to see if he needed any help with his homework. It was embarrassing and frustrating.

  As far as I could tell though, Simon wasn’t suffering from any negative side effects from the procedure. He was still taking Gabriel’s shot, of course, but everyone anticipated that he’d be fine whenever he chose to convert. Grandpa Jack was. He’d taken a transfusion of Dad’s blood and had joined the ranks of the undead last week. He was happier than he’d ever been.

  Arianna bit her lip, and I was so distracted by the movement that I completely forgot the stupid question I’d just asked her. “He’s…good, I guess. I don’t know, you see him more than I do. But he seems to be adjusting just fine. He’s very happy that you agreed to make him as human as possible, but…he also admitted that blood wasn’t so bad. I think being a vampire is growing on him.” She giggled and I sighed. God, she was so beautiful.

  “That’s good,” I said dreamily. When Arianna’s brows drew together in concern, I shook my head. Right. Not an appropriate response for a conversation about Simon. Clearing my throat, I gently eased the conversation to where I wanted it to go. “So…how do you feel about the whole vampire thing? I mean…would you ever want to be…?” I cringed and felt like smacking myself again. This was not going well.

  Arianna pursed her lips as she thought about my question. “Would I want to be like Simon? Would I want to be like you?” Her face softened with adoration.

  Not wanting to appear too eager, I limited my reaction to a brief nod. “Yeah…would you?”

  She ran a soft hand down my cheek, igniting me with every centimeter she touched. Then she swallowed, and suddenly looked very nervous. “Julian…I… I’m…”

  “You’re what?” I whispered, feeling mesmerized by the sparkle in her eyes.

  She swallowed another nervous lump. “I’m in love with you.” She said it so quietly, I wouldn’t have heard her without my super hearing.

  My heart started thudding, and my palms felt slick. Hearing her say those words was like Christmas and my birthday all wrapped up in one. It was everything I’d ever wanted. Wrapping my fingers around her shoulders, I pulled her closer. “Oh, Arianna, I love you too. I’ve been waiting so long to hear you say—”

  Arianna gently placed her fingertips against my lips, silencing me. “I love you, and I want to be a part of your world. In every way,” she pointedly stated. “And that means…yes, I want to be like you. Just like you. But not right now. Not until I’m older. Much, much older,” she quickly added.

  I felt like I was going to start hyperventilating. She wanted to be like me. She wanted to live forever. I never thought I’d get that future. Aside from happening upon one of my kind, falling in love with a full vampire, or having a horrible fate fall upon my significant other like Hunter and Nika, immortal life with the person I loved just wasn’t a possibility. Until now. “You want…you want vampirism? You want to spend eternity with me?”

  I was so stunned that she wanted what I wanted, that I could hardly think straight. Arianna cupped my cheeks. “Yes, of course I do. Someday.”

  I opened my mouth to ask when, but she pressed her lips to mine before I could. After that, I didn’t care. She could be sixty before she went through the process and that would be just fine with me. So long as she was mine. Forever mine.

  Our lips moved together in an increasingly steady pace. As fire ripped through my veins, I pushed Arianne back until her shoulders were pressed into the floor. I moved my body over hers, and baser parts of me began waking up. I wanted her. I wanted to move past all the levels we’d been stuck at for so long now and finally show her just how much I adored her, how much I worshipped her.

  Her mouth was soft, her breath hot and her body inviting. My own was responding in a nearly painful way, and the world outside of the two of us slipped away. Nothing mattered but her and me. Nothing at all.

  “Um, Julian, I think it’s about time Arianna went home.”

  I snapped my gaze up to see my father leaning against the arch that led to the kitchen. Right. Not only was I not alone here, but I was in the living room, in full view and full hearing of my parents. As soon as Arianna realized that, she pushed me off of her and scrambled to her feet. “Sorry, Julian’s Dad,” she murmured, her cheeks bright red.

  Dad gave her a warm smile. “Call me Teren, Arianna. You’ll be less likely to mess up in public if you get used to it now. And from the sound of it, you’re going to be around a while.” He winked at her after he said it, and Arianna’s blush deepened. Her skin tone was glorious—like a tropical sunset.

  I wanted to be embarrassed with her, but I was too delirious with happiness. “She loves me, Dad.”

  Arianna playfully smacked me on the shoulder while Dad laughed. “I heard, buddy. I’m happy for you. Both of you.” He pointed a stern finger at me. “That doesn’t mean you’re allowed to have sex under my roof though. Say your goodbyes, kids.”

  He walked away and Arianna buried her face in her hands. “Oh my God…” she squeaked.

  Even though I shared her sentiment, I had to laugh at her reaction. “Yeah, tell me about it.”

  THERE WAS AN unmistakable buzz in the air—an almost palpable energy that permeated the student body, making every student walking past me in the hall seem to shimmer, like they were radiating from the inside out. It was the last day of school, the last day of my senior year, the last day of captivity. I couldn’t wait for it to be over with, and yet at the same time, I didn’t want it to end. I wondered if everyone felt this conflicted about change, or if it was just me. Nika and I had fought hard to leave the ranch and be a part of normal society. It hadn’t always been easy, and Nika had unfortunately been unable to complete the journey with me, but I wouldn’t trade any of it. These stale halls and cracked walls had taught me so much about life—about real life. About who I wanted to be and who I didn’t want to be. I was sad to see it go especially since, when I left, all trace of me would also be taken. No photos, no mementos, no memories left intact. Well, at least no memories that we could still influence would be left intact. Thanks to Henry’s compulsion-proof vaccine, some students would always remember me until age took their minds, of course. But it was a small percentage, one my family could live with. They didn’t have a choice but to be fine with it.

  “Dude, why are you all sullen? It’s the last day. We’re almost free!” I looked over to see Trey beaming at me. His eyes were bright and clear; they had been all year. Ever since he’d found out about my family, his herbal pastime had taken a backseat. I supposed his new girlfriend helped with that too.

  “Yeah, Julian, we’re on to bigger a
nd better things. All four of us.” Raquel squeezed Trey’s arm, and looked up at him like he made all her dreams come true. And I supposed he did. Even though it had been weird at first to see them together like that, Trey was a much better partner for Raquel than Russell, and she was good for Trey too. Life had a strange way of working out sometimes, but I had to admit, life knew what it was doing.

  “I’m fine,” I said. “It’s just strange leaving all this behind. I’m excited for tonight though. My house, right?” My eyes shifted from Trey and Raquel to Arianna. She was smiling up at me so brightly, I felt the heat of it against my skin.

  Leaning up, she gave me a kiss on the cheek. “Yep, we wouldn’t miss it. Will Nika be there?” Nika and Arianna had completely rekindled their relationship. They were just as close as they used to be. And they talked about boys just as much as they used to, although, the boys in question now were always Hunter and me.

  I nodded at her question. “Yeah, she’ll be there. Hunter too.” As if that needed to be said. Hunter and Nika were attached at the hip.

  Arianna squealed then hugged my arm. “Good, this is going to be so much fun!” Twisting to Raquel, she exclaimed, “Let’s get to class. We can figure out what we’re going to wear tonight!”

  With a flurry of giggles, they were off. I shook my head as I watched Arianna walking away from me. “They sure are excited about this graduation party.”

  Trey smacked my arm. “Well, duh. Your parents are letting down their guard and letting a bunch of teenagers ransack their house. It’s going to be epic.”

  I smiled at the truth in that statement. It certainly wasn’t going to be as big and chaotic as my birthday party last summer, but Mom and Dad were allowing a bunch of kids from school to come over to the house later. It was a far cry from how reluctant they’d been to just let Trey come over a few years ago. Guess they were loosening up, now that my time here was almost over.

  As I went through a mental checklist of all the prep work that needed to be done before anyone arrived—the minor changes that were needed to convince the world Starla was my mom—Trey skewed his face in disbelief. His expression jostled my thoughts, and even though I knew I would regret it, I couldn’t help but ask, “What?”

  “I was just wondering…how is it that Raquel and me beat you and Arianna to the sack? How is it possible that it’s your last day of senior year and you’re still a virgin?”

  I sighed while I looked around to see if anyone had heard him. Luckily, it didn’t appear that anyone had. “We’re waiting for the right moment, okay? And it’s a little difficult with my family watching over everything I do.” And unfortunately, Arianna and I wouldn’t get a break from their prying eyes this summer. Mom and Dad had already quit their jobs, so they could help with the process of moving everyone to the new ranch, and to properly say goodbye to the city. Or so they said. Personally, I think they just wanted to keep me a virgin forever. They’d only loosened up so much, after all. But even if they were still working, it wouldn’t have mattered much. Arianna’s parents had made her get a summer job to help pay for college. I’d asked Nika to compel them to change their minds, but she’d refused. Morals, or some crap like that.

  Trey rubbed his jaw, like he was contemplating all of life’s mysteries. “Yeah, that is a problem. Maybe Simon and I could create a distraction for you? Something to lure your Mom and Dad away for a while.”

  Just as I was about to tell Trey that my parents would never fall for any plan that the two of them came up with, Trey grinned and held his hand up in greeting. I didn’t need to turn around to see who he was waving to, the sire-bond had already alerted me to the fact that Simon was approaching. Luckily, I no longer felt the desire to jump to my feet and ask him if he needed anything. That…had been a truly embarrassing few months.

  “Hey guys,” Simon said as he joined us. He nodded hello to me, then shifted his gaze to Trey. He had an odd, devilish look in his eyes as he smiled at my best friend. “So we need to come up with a plan to get Emma and Teren out of the house, huh?” The fact that he’d heard all of that made me roll my eyes in annoyance; I couldn’t get privacy anywhere. Simon’s next comment though made me reconsider if that was a bad thing or not. “Maybe it could be something as simple as a league thing? A mandatory meeting. Or a hearing? We did just break up an attack, and both sides need a good talking to. I’m sure your parents would be down for that,” he stated, focusing on me.

  That wasn’t a bad idea. Jake and Simon were all gung-ho with the league now, it was pretty much all they ever talked about, and Dad would gladly help them out if they needed advice or just an extra set of ears. Dad would also probably talk Mom into going with him if the situation were serious enough, leaving me a few hours of peace. “Yeah…actually, that might work. Thanks, man,” I said, surprised at his suggestion.

  Simon shrugged. “It’s the least I can do, considering what you did for me. And…I’m happy. I love being a part of the league, it’s given me…purpose. What we’re doing, stopping both sides from overreacting, it’s important. Crucial even.”

  A small laugh escaped me. “Overreacting…that’s funny coming from you.”

  Simon’s eyes started hardening, but then they immediately softened. “Yeah, I suppose it is. I guess I just know firsthand the crazy stuff fear can make you do. I want to help others avoid that…if I can.”

  With a smile, I nodded. I understood all too well what he meant, and even though we’d had our issues in the past, I respected what Simon was doing with the league. It was painful to admit, but I was slowly growing to like him. It might be the bond that was finally changing my feelings, but maybe not. He wasn’t so bad now that he wasn’t an obstacle between my girlfriend and me. Yeah, regardless of how it had happened, I didn’t hate Simon anymore, and I certainly wasn’t jealous of him. My life was good. No, my life was great.

  The rest of school alternated between flying by and dragging so slowly I was positive I was stuck in some sort of time loop. When it was over, I postponed going to my car. I wanted to walk through the buildings and commit to memory everything I’d probably never see again. The bleachers in the gym where I’d lusted over Raquel. The boy’s locker room where I’d bared my teeth at Russell. The hallway where Hunter had fired a gun on my family. The supply closet where Arianna and I used to make out. The classroom where I’d futility tried to get Arianna to notice me after my grandmother had wiped her memory. The spot on campus where we met up every day after school—a huge maple tree that would sprinkle us with helicopter seeds in the fall and shade us with big leafy branches in the spring. It was where Arianna was waiting for me now so I could give her a ride home, just across the high school on the other side of a cemetery.

  “Hey, that took you a while. Everything okay?” she asked. Her caramel hair was tucked up into a ponytail. I wanted to pull it free, and run my fingers through the long strands, but I knew how long it had taken her to get it that perfect; I didn’t want to mess it up.

  “Yeah,” I answered her. “Just…soaking it all in.”

  I sighed and Arianna gave me a light kiss on the cheek. “It will be okay. Whatever happens, from here on out, we’re in this together.”

  The look on her face, the warmth in her voice, it made every nerve-ending tingle with life, made every hair stand on end. Yes. Together. “Even if together means going to college in Montana?” I asked with a playful smirk.

  Her eyes brightened in response. “Especially if it means Montana! I’ve always wanted to visit.”

  I had to lift an eyebrow at that. Montana was famous for emptiness and space. No one wanted to visit there, and only a select few chose to live there. I was pretty certain only Alaska was less populated, but since Montana was a heck of a lot warmer, I’d heartily chosen to apply for colleges there. Truly, the isolation made it the perfect place for a bunch of vampires who wanted to lay low, relax, and keep to themselves. That was the major reason why I’d picked the state when I’d started searching out higher education
. My grandmothers had given me a half-dozen locations to choose from, but right from the start that one had struck a chord with me. After everything my family had done for me over the years, I wanted to do them a favor, wanted to move near an isolated ranch that would give them peace of mind…for a decade or so.

  Arianna giggled at my expression, then grabbed my hand and started leading me to my car. The drive to her house was short and sweet. She gave me a kiss that ignited my blood and left me with an aching want that only made the separation more meaningful. When I saw her again, the missing part of me would be filled. And luckily for me, that was happening soon. The parental-approved party was starting in just three short hours. So much to do, so little time.

  Once Arianna and I parted ways, I sped home to do what I hated most: clean. Mom and Dad tried to help, but I was determined to do it on my own. I even did all of the set dressing, swapping out our real family pictures for photos of Nika and me with Starla. The student body who still remembered Nika thought she had been homeschooled for the last year and a half. Nika was excited to say goodbye to all her old schoolmates. I think that was finally what made my parents give their okay to this party. Nika had never really been given a chance for closure.

  When the house was as sparkling as I could get it, Mom gave me a smile of approval. Forty minutes later, the guest started arriving. An hour after that, my home was packed with kids who were either excited to be done for the year, or excited to be done with school completely. Everywhere I looked, people were having a good time. The music was loud, the food was plenty. It was certainly a night to remember, and I made sure to commit every person who walked through my door to memory.