Aftermath
Aftermath
Hurricane
Book Two
by Jenna-Lynne Duncan
Aftermath
Jenna-Lynne
Duncan
Copyright
© 2013 Jenna-Lynne Duncan
All rights
reserved. No portion of this publication may be reproduced or
transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopy, recording, or any information storage and
retrieval system, without prior permission from the publisher, except
by a reviewer who may quote brief passages in a review.
Edited by Rebecca
Wahl
Cover art by
Elaina Lee
Published by
Stolen Kiss Press
ISBN-13:
ISBN-10:
Library of
Congress Control Number:
To the inspiration behind all my romance writing, who knows that even
though my heart is in New Orleans, it will forever belong to him.
Table of Contents
I awoke in the middle
of the night to the feel of his warm lips pressed against mine. I
pretended to be asleep for another few seconds before I was able to
open my eyes to the night. “What’s going on?” I became worried
as I made out his profile sitting elegantly at the edge of my bed,
fully dressed.
“I have to leave,”
Hayden said.
“Again?” I sat up,
wiping away any mascara that may have been under my eyes.
“Yes. Again.”
“No, stay.” I tried
to pull him down on the bed with me. That, of course, was physically
impossible.
“I would love to.”
He smiled, lips closed, but the smile quickly fell. “You know I
can’t.”
“Let Luke go. He can
go by himself this time.” I gave up my attempts to make him fall
asleep with me, to make him forget that he had to leave.
“Luke isn’t going.”
“What?” I lay my
head back down, feeling entirely too tired to keep my body up. “What
are you talking about?”
“I’m going. Just
me. Luke is staying here.”
“No!” I stubbornly
rolled my head into the pillow. “Remember what happened last time?”
Last time being when he left me to go hunt a vampire and Luke stayed
to ‘watch’ me. Instead, he had kissed me. His brother who I had
thought hated me had instead confessed his love for me.
“I do.” He placed a
hand on my head and brushed a few strands out of the way. “The
question is, why do you still remember?”
“Hayden…” I tried
to sit up but was too tired to move. I took his hand in mine instead.
Why was I so tired?
He leaned over and gave
me one last kiss before I unwillingly let my eyes close for good that
night. I knew he wouldn’t be there when I woke up.
Our conversation rang
through my mind as I woke up the next morning. I wished I hadn’t
said goodbye that way to Hayden. I wished I could take it back. This
was one of the many times I wished I could go back in time and change
things. I was so tired then, in a half-asleep state. I didn’t even
have the energy to sit up; my limbs felt paralyzed.
“Do you
remember what happened last time?”
I mentally kicked myself for
saying that.
How could I have said that? How awful Hayden must be
feeling right now. Who knows what kind of dangers he is facing?
My only relief was in knowing that whatever he did, he was immortal.
Still, what had bugged me the most was why
I
had said that in
the first place. Should Hayden have to never leave my side just so I
will never be tempted by Luke? Shouldn’t he be able to trust me?
Shouldn’t I be able to trust myself? I was bent on making it up to
him. There was enough anxiety in my life; I didn’t need to add
regret to my list. I pulled the covers off me and decided I would
make this a good day.
I basically had the
house to myself for the first time in a while. Hayden had left that
night and Luke was never around long. What
was
he doing all
those nights? Honestly, it didn’t matter. He was free to do
whatever he wanted.
Since I was alone and
had nowhere to be that day, I decided I should indulge in some girly
pampering. I slept in late. I turned up the stereo and danced as I
made the bed. I picked out a new nail polish color but decided to
take a bath first. I ran the water in the tub but didn’t have the
patience to wait for it to fill. As I began to undress, I heard
someone clear their throat, alerting their presence.
“Luke! What are you
doing?” I ran to close the bathroom door on his face, but it wasn’t
his face I closed the door on. It was Hayden’s. I reopened the door
to make sure what I had seen was right.
“Huh?”
“Well good morning to
you, too.”
“You’re back
already?” I wrapped my arms tightly around him, thankful that I
didn’t have to wait to start apologizing for earlier.
“Back? I was just
downstairs. But thanks for the enthusiasm.”
“How did it go?” I
considered not prying since he already acted like he’d never even
left.
“Well, I was mistaken
for Luke and I got a door slammed on my face. I’ve had better
days,” he spoke coolly, letting his dark hair fall into his green
eyes.
“Did you not even
leave yet?” Anxiousness shook my words as I thought about having to
wait even longer for his return.
“Leave where?” A
hint of worry in his confused eyes.
“Leave to… wait.
Don’t act like you don’t know what I am talking about. You know
you get all uncomfortable when I bring up Hunting.”
“Ana…?”
“Last night you said
you had to leave, and that Luke would be staying. C’mon!” I
waited for him to confirm what I said was true.
He pulled his eyebrows
together. “I’m sorry, Ana, that never happened.”
Crap.
He pulled
me into his arms as the realization came over me that it was all just
a dream.
“It was so real this
time. I could smell you, and feel your kiss.”
“I’m sorry. It’s
killing me that I haven’t been able to figure out why you can see
the future in your dreams. Since Katrina and the Lalaurie incident,
they are cautious. No one is talking. If I wanted some definite
answers I could go to a friend on the West Coast but you know I can’t
leave New Orleans right now.”
“’S okay. Really,
it’s fine. I should be so lucky as to have dreams about you kissing
me.” I looked up at him to make part of my dream into reality.
“They just are beginning to feel too real though. I mean, I didn’t
even know it was just a dream. So does that mean you are leaving?”
“I don’t know, am
I?”
“I hope not. Too bad
I can only see the future and not change it. Why didn’t I get a
useful abnormality?”
“If I recall, it has
proven useful, Ana. And who says you can’t change the future?”
“I have never been
able to before.” I bit my lip remembering the horrible consequence
of trying to tell my school’s guidance counselor, Mr. White, about
his wife’s impending death. I didn’t even want to think about the
helplessness of having a psychic dream about Hurricane Katrina.
“Just because you
haven’t before doesn’t mean you still can’t.”
“So you wouldn’t
mind me trying, then?”
“Trying to change the
future?”
I nodded.
“If anyone can do it,
it would be you.” He wrapped one arm around me to pull me closer.
“But…”
“But?”
“But…I think we
should focus on what the Vasquez said. It could be very dangerous if
word gets out about your…ability. Agreed?”
“Agreed.”
For
now.
“Even though you
didn’t leave, I missed you.”
“I can fix that.”
He grabbed me with both arms now, pulling me into a kiss.
“Do you want to
answer that?” He pulled back at the sound of vibration coming from
my night stand.
“No?” I tried to
pull him towards me but he gave me an exasperated look. “Fine.” I
ran towards the bed and flopped on my stomach to grab my phone in
time. The screen lit up with three letters I hadn’t seen there in a
while.
Dad.
“Hi, Dad,” I
answered. I heard the water turn off in the bathroom and looked back
to make sure Hayden hadn’t yet left. It was my dad so I knew the
conversation would be short.
Hey babe, what’s
going on?
“Nothing, just at
home right now.” I still couldn’t get used to saying ‘home’
and meaning in this mansion, with Hayden. “Why, what’s up?”
I have a break
tomorrow; do you want to go out for an early dinner?
Hayden and I had plans
after school. I looked back at Hayden, knowing he could hear, and
mouthed
sorry
. He nodded.
“Sure, dad. I’m
free.” I winked at Hayden before turning back around.
K. Should we meet at
the restaurant or do you want to me to pick you up?
“I’ll just meet you
there.”
Hey Ana?
“Yeah?”
Where’s the truck?
My heart stopped and
every muscle on my body paralyzed. Hayden didn’t need to hear what
my dad had said to be able to see that all the blood had drained from
my face.
“The truck?” I
managed to get out.
He laughed.
Good
thing you evacuated with it huh? To think, it might have gotten flood
damage.
“Ha, yeah, to think…”
I was in
big
trouble. I had forgotten all about his truck. I
was at the supermarket when I had been kidnapped and pulled into
Hayden’s car as it sped away. If it was still there and not stolen,
it would have been under a couple feet of water from Katrina. Why did
he want the truck anyway? He drove his girlfriend’s car. “Why do
you ask?” I tried to turn the tables.
Well I just thought
about selling it. Since you’re always driving with Hayden it’s
probably just sitting in the garage, ain’t it?
“Sitting in the
garage. Yep.” I tried to laugh but it sounded like a groan.
I just thought you
could drive it to the restaurant when we have dinner tomorrow and I
could drive it back.