Devour (15 page)

“It was nice to see you.
I hope to see you around a lot this week.”

Then she’s gone, just as fast as she came.
I feel a sense of dread. Something went wrong, I just know it. I don’t want to ever have to tell Cody. I just want this thing to quietly go away.

Cody can feel my sudden change in emotion, but he doesn’t comment on it.
He must be getting used to my wacky mood swings. I hope I’m with him long enough to prove I’m not usually this moody.

“You ready to go
, princess?”

“Yup, I guess I need to get home.
Mom hates to be kept waiting.”

He clasps my hand and I follow him out the maze he calls home and into the breezy evening.
He, once again helps me into the truck and, before I know it, we have driven the short distance to my house.

I don’t want my time with Cody to be over.
I want to be wrapped in his arms, and have him never let go. It’s painfully hard to leave him. I didn’t expect that. Like the gentleman he is, he helps me out and walks me to the door.

I’
m trying to formulate what I need to say when he wraps me in a gentle embrace and kisses me. I stand on my tip toes to give him better access. We would have stayed that way for some time if the porch light hadn’t turned on and flooded us with light.

“That’s my cue.
I have to go, unfortunately. I love you. Do you want to go to a real movie tomorrow night? I can get a security detail so we can go out.”

“I love you
, too, and yes, I’d love to go out with you,” he says as he pulls away.

He turn
s to leave and I watch him go. I feel the yearning for him to stay, but I know I have to face whatever is coming inside. He blows me a kiss and I smile. Then he’s in his truck and heading out of my driveway.

I stand on the porch until I see the taillights fade.
Then I open the front door to enter my own personal hell.

Slamming the front door shut and slipping off my flip flops at the door, I look around to see my
Mom sitting at the bottom of the stairs. I meet her eyes and see the sadness there. No, this can’t be happening. I shake my head no, but she nods her head yes.

“It didn’t work
, did it?”

“No
, dear, it didn’t. We both tried and had no success. I can sense something different about him.”

I
go over and sit next to my Mom.

“I felt it too.
What do you think it is? How can he be immune to us?”

“I don’t know, but we have been grilling him all night.
All we know is that his Mom died of cancer six months ago and he doesn’t know his father. That is the only lead we have. I’m afraid it just isn’t enough. If we go digging, we have to involve people to do that. Then this gets out.”

“So what are we going to do now
, Mom?”

“The only thing we can do.
We have to involve the council. I’m sorry, honey.”

Tears form in my eyes and I feel them leak out.
“No, this can’t happen. I love Cody and he’s my true mate. I can’t do this to him. What if he stops loving me because I betrayed him?”

“I can’t speak for Cody, but if he is your true mate, nothing will stop him from loving you.
The council will take that into consideration. Of course, they will test your blood to be sure your blood has really bonded together, but they won’t break up true mates. That is the one thing you have in your favor. The downside is it looks pretty grim for Chase.”

“They can’t kill him.
He’s innocent. He didn’t ask for this. I did this to him.”

“True, but the council won’t care.
They will only be concerned with keeping our secret. If he’s lucky, they’ll turn him. If he’s not, they’ll kill him. We can only tell them the facts and hope for the best possible outcome.”

I lean on her shoulder and cry.
She wraps her arms around me and lets me. After my tears slow, Mom gently pulls me up.

“It’s going to be a
long couple of days. I suggest you go to bed early and get some rest. Your Dad and I will give you tomorrow with Cody before we tell the council. Use your time with him. It can only strengthen your blood bond as well as your mating.”

“Can I ask you a favor?”

“Sure, honey. What is it?”

“Can we tell Cody first?
I don’t want him to hear it from someone else or worse, the council. I want to have the chance to say goodbye, you know, just in case.”

“I will talk to your father, but I think that w
ill be okay since the council will take a little while to assemble and get here. The only caveat is that you can’t tell him until after we’ve told the council. If it gets out before they know, your life will be in jeopardy.”

I stand up and turn towards
Mom one last time.

“Goodnight
, Mom. I love you.”

“I love you too.”

I watch my Mom walk away and then I climb the stairs. I throw myself face first into my bed and continue sobbing. I’m miserable. How will Cody ever forgive me? I have not only brought shame to my family, but his as well.

I feel my phone buzz in my pocket.
I take a deep calming breath and pull it out. It’s a text message from Cody.

Hey princess, are you okay?
Whatever it is, we’ll get through it. I can feel how sad you are. I’m sorry for whatever you’re going through. I love you –Cody

Trying to be calm, I respond
.

Meet me at my house at eight.
I was just having a little fight with my Mom about our mating details. It’s nothing I want to worry you with. I love you too <3 –Callie

I drop
my phone to the floor and continue to cry. It seems like forever before I can breathe enough to change. I leave my clothes in a pile on the floor, not even bothering to put them where they belong. Then I throw on my soft, emerald green tee.

I pull the covers down and
slide in between them. Then I wrap myself in misery.

When I wake up, I feel numb.
At least the sadness has subsided and I’m no longer inflicting it on Cody. He must think he’s mated to an emotional mess.

There’s no time to feel like this tonight.
I want to make the best of my time with Cody. This could be the last night of true happiness. That idea darkens my thoughts and my mood turns grim.

I take a deep breath and shake it off.
Looking at the clock, I realize I have only forty-five minutes until Cody gets here. Without another thought, I rush to get ready.

Thirty minutes later, I’m dressed in a long, black
, flowing skirt and a sparkling, magenta tank top. I wear my sequined flip flops again and my hair is tied up in a loose, messy bun. I look the best I can under my time constraints.

I rush to the kitchen for my blood cocktail.
I don’t think I will be exchanging blood with Cody tonight since we will be in public for our date. Anticipation seeps into me as I realize this will be our first real date. Who’d have thought Cody and I would be on a date together?

The roses sit on the counter in a clear vase and my heart beats a little bit faster.
They are beautiful and I make my way over to smell them. I have my eyes closed and am indulging my sense of smell when I hear someone clear their throat.

Dad
is standing in the doorway. He smiles at me and I grin back. I can’t help but be excited about tonight. I let all the other worries melt into the background and put myself in the here and now.

Dad
must sense my unwillingness to talk and just nods to me before making his way to the fridge. He pulls out the carafe of blood and pours us each a glass. We say nothing and enjoy the silence as we drink our blood.

A
s soon as I finish, I’m pulled out of my reverie by the doorbell. I head out of the kitchen as I hear Finn and Cody exchanging pleasantries.

Bounding into the foyer, I rush Cody.
He looks up and smiles just before I crush my lips to his. His arms go around me and I faintly hear Finn’s footsteps recede. Our kiss becomes light and playful before we both pull back altogether.

“Hey
, princess. How’re you feeling tonight? I missed you so much last night; I wished I was here to comfort you. I felt so helpless. Soon, you won’t be able to stop me from cheering you up,” he says with a mischievous grin on his face.

He’
s feeling lighthearted and flirty tonight and I’m excited to spend some time with him. I interlace my fingers in his and tug him towards the door. I’m ready to get out of here before my parents change their mind and call the council tonight.

I shake off a shiver at that thought and
look back to smile at Cody. His golden blonde hair is curling around his ears tonight and I crave the feel of it between my fingers. Gah! My brain is turning into lusty mush.

Opening the door, I finally respond to Cody’s declaration.

“I can’t wait for that time to come. I’m having a hard time keeping my thoughts off you and we aren’t even fully mated yet. What are you doing to me, Cody Gregoria?”

He shows me a lopsided grin and guides me out of my house.
“Trust me; it’s no more than what you do to me. I’m obsessed with you and I crave being with you all night. I go to bed thinking of you and I wake up thinking of you. You have me wrapped around your little finger, Callie.”

“I have you wrapped around my finger
, huh? Let’s test that theory. I want to go see a chick flick tonight,” I say, testing the waters.

He lets out a sigh and I know I’ve won.
I wink at him and wait next to the truck for him to open the door and let me in. I feel his hands casually lift up the fabric of my tank top around my waist as he prepares to lift me up and into the seat.

I shoot him a knowing look but he just shrugs a
nd sets me into the truck. When his hands are gone, I feel the loss against my skin.

Cody holds my hand as we leave.
It’s a comforting gesture that I’m definitely happy to get used to. He turns on the radio and I’m instantly fascinated by his choice in music. I love punk music. I had Cody pegged for more of a country kind of guy.

We get past the gate and out of the community easily enough.
I know there is a car behind us. My Dad put a security detail on us, just to be safe. I didn’t argue with that, especially with everything going on.

I don’t feel the need to fill our silence with constant chatter.
The quiet between us is a comfort with all that’s floating around in this head of mine. I take advantage and turn up the upbeat song. The music takes over and I can feel the beat of the drums vibrating through the truck.

Sin
ce we’re vampires, we don’t eat. Well not food anyways. That kind of cancels dinner out unless we want to hunt together. Unfortunately, we can’t. The thought of him doing something so intimate with a girl, even if she’s human, is unbearable.

He winks at me and a brilliant smile spreads across his face.
I can tell he knows what I am thinking. This bond thing is intense. I can’t imagine how strange it will be once we’ve fully bonded.

Knowing the effect my moods have on him, I try to push my worries of Chase out of my mind.
Things are totally out of control and I know tomorrow will be a scary day. I don’t have any idea how Cody’s going to take everything. I can’t lose him. I won’t lose him.

“What’re you thinking about over there
, princess? You seem a million miles away.”

“Hmm, oh, I’m just thinking about how hard it’s going to be to wait until Saturday for our bonding.
It feels so far away.”

I know I’m
lying my butt off, but it’s still a truth. I wish our bonding would just get here already. Being with Cody is so magical. He makes me think about things I’ve never even considered before. With him, I want to experience everything.

Just the thought of another blood exchange has goose bumps cropping up across my exposed flesh.
I tighten my grip on his hand and he pulls our hands up to kiss mine.