Confined (A Tethered Novel, Book 3) (11 page)

Kace walked across the attic and sat down on the
puke-colored love seat in the corner. I followed him and tucked my leg beneath
me as I sat down beside him. Taking in a deep breath, I gathered the last few
things I wanted to say and held my breath before releasing them.

“It’s made the tether so strong between the two of us that
there’s some type of physical attraction that came from nowhere…and we ended up
kissing.” I threw my hands up to stop him in case he was about to fly off the
handle on me like I’d been expecting and pressed forward. “But it was only
once, and I’ve felt absolutely horrible ever since it happened. It’s been
eating me alive actually.”

My stomach twisted, and I swore I was about to lose
everything I’d eaten today any second from that revelation alone. I remained
still, staring directly at him, waiting for some sort of horrible reaction to
rip across his face and words I deserved to hear spew from his mouth any
second, but none of that came.

Nothing did.

Instead, a subdued look softened his hard features. No words
passed between his lips for the longest time. I blinked, unsure if I should say
something more or simply remain quiet. Was he a time bomb waiting to go off?
Should I quietly leave the room and give him a moment to let it all soak in?

“Okay,” he finally said, just when I didn’t think I could
handle the deafening silence between us any longer.

My chest tightened, and a tingling sensation spread
throughout. Was he serious? I blinked rapidly at him and cocked my head to the
side. I didn’t want to press my luck and have things spiral out of control the
way I’d imagined a million times, but that was not a normal response to
something of this magnitude.

At least it wouldn’t be for me, had the shoe been on the
other foot.

“Okay?” I repeated. “Is that all you have to say about it?”

Kace placed his elbows against his knees and propped his
head up with his hands. “Yeah…okay.” He shrugged, still not meeting my eyes.
“It’s not going to happen again, is it?”

“Well, no. It hasn’t and it won’t. That’s actually why I
agreed to go through with the initiation in the first place, to break the
tether between us. That and because I wanted to be with you without Theo
clogging up my mind,” I added the last part quickly.

I should have left the last part out, but I wanted to get
everything in the open. Especially if this was how he was going to handle it.

“Then okay…let’s move on,” he said with a little nod and a
sharp inhale. “I’m glad you told me, but it’s not something I feel I should
dwell on. I’m sure you’ve beat yourself up enough about it and I don’t need to
add to it.”

To say I was shocked by his words was an understatement. He
was too mellow; it was as if he was in some sort of trance. Either that or he
was the type who bottled up his feelings, and then released them on a coffee
table once he was alone, smashing it to pieces.

“I’m not sure what being tethered really means, or how that
works between the two of you, but if becoming initiated will break it and set
things back to normal again, then that’s what we need to focus on,” he said.

Thank God he wasn’t asking me for answers. I didn’t feel
like it was my place to tell Theo’s mixed-breed secret regarding how he had
saved me and caused the tether to shift into place.

“Let’s head downstairs,” Kace said. He stood and walked
toward the door without glancing back at me once. Maybe he wasn’t so mellow
about the situation after all.

I remained where I sat on the love seat for a few more
breaths, wondering what the hell had just happened. I should be feeling relief
from finally revealing my secrets to Kace, but instead, all I felt was utter
confusion.

When I finally gathered myself up and made it downstairs,
Callie and Kace were standing in my kitchen with Adam.

“Liquor anyone?” Adam called, holding up a bottle of some
clear-looking liquor he’d just pulled from inside a brown paper bag. “Let’s
make up some drinks before everyone else gets here.”

“Everyone else?” I asked. I riffled through the stash of
wine and shot glasses my grandmother had hidden away in the cabinet above the
fridge, searching for four tumblers we could use.

Who else was supposed to be coming to my house tonight? I
swear, if Adam was throwing some sort of Fourth of July party at my house, I
was going to be pissed. I set the glasses on the counter and reached into the
freezer for some ice.

“I forgot to tell you,” Callie said, as she stepped beside
me to help fill each glass with ice. “Everyone’s parents are coming over
tonight for a Fourth of July barbecue. It’s something we do every year, but
this year is even more special because of the initiation.”

I cast a quick glance at her, noticing her sad demeanor
still intact. Her posture was slouched, and she didn’t look anywhere besides at
her hands as they carefully filled the tumblers with ice. I caught sight of
them trembling and felt sympathy sweep through me. What she had done was eating
her up.

“It’s also to celebrate you agreeing to go through with the
initiation,” Kace added.

“Oh, okay,” I said. I stacked the ice cube trays up and slid
them back into the freezer. “When will everyone be here?”

My mind ran through mental images of my house. I wondered if
there was anything that needed to be tidied up before they arrived. Even if
there had been something that jumped out at me right away, it wouldn’t have
mattered, because the doorbell rang.

“And they’re here,” Adam said. He finished pouring the mixed
drinks. “Rum and Coke, everyone. Don’t let the ’rents know what you’re
drinking; we’re supposed to refrain from alcohol and shit until
after
the initiation for purification reasons,” he said pointedly to me.

“So, then why are we drinking?” I asked.

If that was the case, then I didn’t want alcohol in my
system. I needed the initiation to work; I needed the tether gone.

“Because one drink won’t hurt us…or two…they’re going to
‘cleanse’ us before we begin the rite anyway,” Adam said with an eye roll and
an expression on his face that led me to believe he thought the rule was
stupid. “Bottoms up.”

The doorbell rang again, and Callie set her drink down to
answer it for me.

“I’ve got it,” she said.

Kace took a big swig of his drink, and then made his way to
my side. A small smile turned up the corners of his lips. “It’s okay. You can
drink it. Adam’s right.”

“Those are two words I never thought anyone would ever say
about him,” I said, attempting to loosen up some.

If Kace was going to be honestly okay with what I’d told him
in the attic, then I could be too. I glanced at him, watching as he took
another swig of his drink. He truly seemed as though nothing had happened
between us, like I’d never told him at all. I tipped my glass to my lips, and
let the spiced taste of rum and Coke trickle down my throat.

“Funny, Avery, funny,” Adam said sarcastically in response
to my little jab.

Adam’s mom was the first to walk into the kitchen. She held
a large casserole dish between her hands and had a few grocery bags hanging from
her wrists.

“Adam, you could help me carry this stuff in,” Della
scolded.

Adam took another swig of his drink before he set the glass
on the counter and walked over to help his mother.

“What did you make?” he asked as he took the casserole dish
from her. He lifted the Saran Wrap, which had been clouded over from the
condensation, to get a peek. “I’ve been waiting all day for some of your potato
salad. Please tell me you made it.”

“Every year,” she said. She set the grocery bags she’d been
holding on the counter.

“This isn’t potato salad,” Adam said, scrunching his face in
disappointment as he set the casserole dish down.

“I made some, Adam. Don’t worry,” Della assured him.

“Is there anything else in the car?” Kace asked.

Della glanced at Kace over her shoulder as she began to
empty the bags she’d set down. Her dark hair swept across her forehead and
covered her bright green eyes as she glared at him. “Of course there is; you
know this isn’t all I brought.”

Adam and Kace left to go help bring in more stuff. Taking
another small sip from my drink, I crossed the kitchen to help Della empty the
grocery bags.

“Does this need to be in the fridge or should we warm it up
in the oven a little?” Callie asked as she scooped the casserole dish off the
counter.

“It’s homemade macaroni. I think if you put the oven on the
lowest heat and shove that in there for a minute or two it will be just fine,”
Della answered.

I pulled out some pickles and different types of olives from
one grocery bag and set the stuff on the counter.

“Are you making a tray for all of this? I think I saw one in
the cabinet beside the stove,” I said.

“I was,” Della said. “You think you can handle it while I
finish up with the dessert?”

“No problem.” I took another sip of my drink and prayed his
mother thought it was just plain Coke. Who was I kidding? Everyone would be
able to smell the alcohol on our breaths regardless of how small our sips were,
because Adam had poured them strong.

Callie brought over the tray I’d been talking about, and she
set it on the counter in front of me. She picked up her drink, took a sip, and
then mouthed the word “strong” to me. I nodded and flashed her a grin. I was
opening a can of black olives while Callie laid out a handful of baby dill
pickles on the tray when Kace and Adam walked back in the kitchen with everyone
else behind them.

I spotted Susan and noticed Callie visibly stiffen beside
me. Thoughts of the spell she had done flashed through my mind, and I wondered
if Susan even knew. She came over to where we stood, and set a grocery bag
filled with different types of cubed cheeses on the counter along with a large
container of what I presumed to be, the potato salad Adam had been looking for.

“Need any help?” Susan asked, after clearing her throat.

The awkward tension in the air between us was palpable.

“Nope, we’ve got it,” Callie answered quickly. “Do you want
something to drink?”

“Sure, I’ll take some tea. I think Della made some,” Susan
said.

“I’ll get it.” Callie reached for a glass in the cabinet by
the sink, and then went to the fridge for the tea.

“Thanks, sweetie,” Susan said.

A hopeful smile lingered on her face for a moment. I
wondered if it was because she thought Callie had forgiven her for what she’d
done to me.

“Addison, I really am sorry for everything. I’ve thought an
awful lot about what you said, how I don’t get to choose whether you leave or
stay, and I respect that, but I still wish you would reconsider. There’s still
time,” she said in a low voice, her blue eyes meeting directly with mine.

I placed a few more little pickles on the tray. “I know, but
I’ve made up my mind.”

Picking up my glass, I took another sip. Yep, this drink was
definitely going to help me get through tonight.

Callie slid between us with a glass of sweet tea and handed
it to Susan.

“Thank you, sweetie.” Susan beamed at her. She scooped up
the potato salad and headed toward the fridge. “I should put this away.”

Callie slid something into her front pocket. I caught sight
of the same bottle I’d seen her fill in the attic, and my heart began to pound.
She’d gone through with it—the spell she’d created was in the tea she just
handed her mother.

“She won’t interfere with the initiation now. She’ll be
happy and compliant about the whole thing,” Callie whispered, her voice
cracking slightly.

Part of me wanted to stop Susan from drinking it, but that
part was small. A larger part inside of me was thanking Callie for going
through with it, because now I would be rid of this tether for good and without
any interruptions.

“Damn, that chicken smells good!” Adam said from somewhere.

Shifting around to glance at him, I realized Admer was
standing off to the side with Kace, talking. I wondered what the two of them
could possibly have to talk about. Admer took a sip of whatever was in the
plastic bottle he held in his hand, and his eyes met with mine. They were so
intense—almost to the point of being frightening—that I glanced away quickly.

Hands found my hips a few moments later, causing me to jump
even though I felt the warmth of my magick greeting his, and I knew it was Kace
instantly. This whole evening had me on edge.

“Hey, sexy,” he whispered in my ear. “How’s that drink Adam
made for you? You need a refill yet?”

“It’s good,” I said. “Still half full.”

“Good,” he muttered. “You need any help with anything?”

“Umm, if you could get me a knife from over there, so I can
slice up this salami, that would be great,” I said.