First & Forever (The Crescent Chronicles Book 4) (8 page)

“A special society?” Allie’s thoughts were clear on her face. She thought we were high or psychotic.

“Maybe it would be better if we just showed her.” Owen smiled at her, and I appreciated him trying to help even though I knew he didn’t support my decision. “You were sure you wanted this Levi, so there is no turning back.”

He walked over to the edge of the building and raised a hand in a small wave before taking a backwards step and disappearing from sight.

“Oh my god! What the hell? Did he just kill himself?” Allie started shaking and crying. I wanted to reach out for her, but I wanted to let everyone go first.

“Owen’s fine,” Hailey said before jumping off with Jared right behind her.

Allie closed her eyes. I moved behind her again and wrapped her up in my arms. Her warm body fit perfectly against my bare chest.

“You said you wanted an adventure.” I tightened my hold.

I let myself transform, reveling in the familiar feel of my large black wings extending from my back. I felt a wave of strength roll over me as I prepared to jump. I’d never flown with someone in my arms before, and Allie wasn’t just anyone. She was everyone.

I stepped off.

I could tell she still had her eyes closed. Her body was so tense. She needed to see that everything was going to be okay. “Open your eyes,” I whispered.

She let out the tiniest start of a scream before going silent. I continued our decent and then leveled us out just above the water. Part one was over. If she accepted me, wings and all, I may have found my mate. If she didn’t, I wasn’t sure what I was going to do. In the deepest part of my heart and soul, I knew there was no one else for me.

Flying with Allie in my arms was a whole new experience. Her closeness set off something inside me that made the usual rush from flying so much better. I let myself enjoy the flight, pushing aside any lingering doubt over how she’d react. If this was going to be my only flight with her, I was going to enjoy it. But it couldn’t be the only one. There was no way I could let her go.

Eventually I landed. Putting off the inevitable wouldn’t help. She seemed to be handling herself well, but there was no reason to push my luck any more than necessary.

I set her down, and she stumbled away from me. Her quick movement surprised me, and she fell down onto the grass. She clutched the green strands for dear life. I thought back on my first flight. It was different for me. Flying was like breathing. I tried to put myself in her shoes. She must have been terrified.

She stared up at me through her long, damp eyelashes. “What the hell are you? Oh-my-god you’re angels, aren’t you? I’m dead. I’m actually dead?”

I laughed. “Do you really think I’m an angel?” I was used to the comparison. With long black wings, people had gotten us confused on many occasions.

“A fallen angel?” She asked, looking around at all four of us.

I laughed lightly, hoping to put her at ease, but I was determined that she see me for who I really was. “We’re not angels of any sort.” I stepped toward her.

“Then what are you?” She scooted away from me, and my chest clenched. Was she afraid of me? She squeezed her eyes shut.

“Open your eyes, sweetheart.” I kneeled down and placed my hands on her trembling shoulders. “Open your eyes.”

“No, this has to be some messed up dream.”

“It’s not a dream.” I kept my voice low, soft. I needed to put her at ease.

“Yes, it is.”

“No, it’s not. Accept it already,” Jared snapped at her. I glared at him. If he screwed this up for me he was a goner.

She looked ready to snap back, but then she pressed her lips together and paused for a moment before turning her eyes to me. “If this isn’t a dream, then what are you? What’s going on?”

“We’re Pterons,” Hailey said gently.

“Pterons?” Allie asked, repeating the word carefully as though she were trying it out.

“We’re shifters, Allie,” I tried to stay gentle and calm. I needed to put her at ease. One slip up and she might run.

“Shifters? Like what, a werewolf?”

Jared laughed. “We’re not like werewolves. That’s like saying humans are like chimps.”

“Humans? Wait, because you guys aren’t human…” Her gorgeous green eyes widened with a mix of shock and fear.

“Like I said, we’re shifters. At one time our people shifted into crows, but over time we became more of a hybrid. It’s more efficient.” I simplified the explanation as much as possible.

“Like natural selection or something?” she asked absently. She was staring off in the distance. I hoped she wasn’t in shock.

“Something like that.” I picked up her hands. “You okay?”

“I’m not sure.”

“It really doesn’t change anything.” Hailey took a few steps closer to us.

“You’re standing there with giant wings coming out of your back, yet you tell me that nothing has changed?”

“What she means is that we’re still the same people you wanted to hang out with in the beginning of the night, just
enhanced
,” Owen said with a small smile.

“Enhanced? So other than flying, what can you do?”

“Other than flying?” I couldn’t help but laugh—not at her, but at the idea. “Yes, because flying is so commonplace. But to answer your question we have some other skills, but I think this is enough for tonight.”

“Oh.” She closed her mouth as though she couldn’t possibly say anything else.

“You’re funny, you know that?” I tried to help her to her feet, but she pulled away from me. I tried not to let the physical rejection worry me.

“Umm, can you put those things away?”

“Those
things
? Our wings? Yes, we can put them away.” If it was just the wings freaking her out I could take care of it. I retracted them.

“Turn around.” She stood up and took a step toward me.

I turned and reveled in the feel of her hands on the ridges of my back. She wouldn’t be able to see much in the faint moonlight, but the spot was sensitive, and her touch sent a thrill through me. My mind flashed to an image of having her in my bed while in my true form.

“Are you done manhandling Levi yet, or are we going to stay here all night?”

“Shut up, Jared,” Hailey snapped.

“She can manhandle me all she wants.” I reluctantly turned back. I wanted her hands on me all night. “You ready to go home or do you want to see more?”

She crossed her arms over her chest. “I’m ready to go home.” I didn’t miss the resoluteness in her tone. She wanted me to know she wasn’t playing around.

“We’ll see you tomorrow, right?” Hailey asked. Her voice waivered, and I realized she cared about Allie’s response nearly as much as I did.

“Yeah, sure,” she said without much conviction. Hailey and Owen exchanged a look.

“All right, if you’re sure.” I wrapped my arms around her. At least I’d get another flight with Allie.

“Wait, stop!” She struggled in my arms, and I quickly released her.

She turned to look at me. “I never said I wanted to fly again. How far are we from the hotel?”

“Oh, right. We can get a cab.” I tried to hide the disappointment in my voice. I wanted to hold her body against mine, to take her to a place that no human ever could.

“No. I can get a cab. Where are we?”

“We’re at the levee. You sure you don’t want me to take you home? At least let me walk you to the street.”

She seemed to mull it over for a second. “All right, fair enough.”

That was something. I nodded at Hailey, signaling for her to call a cab before I followed Allie down to the road.

The cab pulled up, and everything about the moment felt wrong. She wasn’t supposed to be leaving alone. She was supposed to be going home with me, but she needed time. I needed to at least give her the night.

“Good night,” I said quietly as I watched her slip into the cab.

My heart soared slightly when she smiled just as the cab pulled away. The smile wasn’t much, but I was taking it. I still had a chance, and I was going to use it to its fullest.

“So that went well.” Jared patted my back after Allie’s cab disappeared around the corner.

“Shut up.”

“I mean at least she didn’t run screaming like Owen’s girl did… or wait, she still could.”

Owen ignored Jared’s rib. “She was overwhelmed, but that isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Maybe she just needs time to let it settle.”

“She’s going to stay.” Hailey said it quietly. I wasn’t used to Hailey ever being quiet, and I wasn’t sure if the change was a good or bad thing.

“You think so?” I turned to Hailey, needing any encouragement I could get.

“Yes. It’s the way she looked at you. She was scared, but curious. She really likes you. I think you’ve at least got a chance.”

“Just don’t fuck it up.” Jared laughed.

“I’m not going to.” I paced around trying to figure out what my next step was going to be. “I need to see her.”

“Oh no. None of that.” Hailey shook her head emphatically.

“I’m just going to look.”

“You do realize you sound like a certified stalker, right? ‘Just going to look’?” Hailey didn’t hide her opinion on the matter.

“I need to make sure she’s okay. This was a lot to take in.”

Hailey rolled her eyes. “That doesn’t excuse you invading her privacy.”

“It’s not like I’m going to try to see her naked.” Although I hoped she’d very knowingly give me that opportunity soon.

“I can’t be part of this.” She gritted her teeth. “But I like Allie, so I can’t walk away either.”

“You can look first, make sure she’s appropriately attired.”

She groaned. “I’m doing this for Allie and not you. Remember that.”

“Do it for whatever reason you want.”

“Let’s get this over with. I’m not letting you watch her while she’s sleeping.”

I smiled. “I wasn’t planning to wait.”

We flew over to the hotel and landed in the shadows covering much of the courtyard.

I waited impatiently. “Ok, go first. I’m ready when you are.”

Hailey flew up to Allie’s balcony, and I waited impatiently. Jared and Owen wisely stayed quiet. I didn’t care what their opinion was.

Hailey landed next to me. “She’s dressed.”

I flew up and landed, being extra careful to stay hidden as I looked in the balcony window. She was just turning off the lights and sipping a glass of what appeared to be water.

Allie was okay, and for the night that was all I needed to know. I reluctantly left my perch.

“Feeling better, stalker?” Hailey glared. I felt a tinge of guilt at invading Allie’s privacy and making Hailey help.

“Yes. We can go.”

“You have it bad.” Hailey nudged me with her arm.

I didn’t respond. I’d never hear the end of it from my friends.

I wasn’t sure what time Allie usually got up, but to play it safe I showed up at the hotel around nine. After the night she’d had, I doubted she’d be getting up earlier. I heard her moving around in her room, so I pulled out my phone and found some games to mess around with. If last night had been stalking, what was this? I left the floor a few times when I heard other guests getting ready to leave their rooms, but I was back outside her room leaning against the wall when finally, two hours later, her door opened. She walked out gripping her phone in her hand.

“Hoping for a call from someone?”

She noticed me and her face broke into a bright smile. My heart soared.

“How long have you been out here?”

“Awhile.” I straightened and took a step toward her. The smile had been the only invitation I needed.

“Oh. You could have knocked…” she trailed off. Her eyes were locked on my face.

“I figured there was no need to push you anymore than I did last night. But I had to see you—to see if you were still reacting well.” I spoke carefully. She seemed happy to see me, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t afraid.

“Why wouldn’t I be reacting well?” She smiled. I had to love that sense of humor.

“It’s not every day that you see something like that. Maybe in my life, but not yours.”

“I guess it would be normal in yours.”

I returned her smile. “Any chance I can take you to a late breakfast?”

“That depends. How are we getting there?” She touched her neck, and I got the feeling she wasn’t asking out of fear.

I laughed, still trying to put her at ease. “We’re walking, but would you want to fly with me again?”

“I could be persuaded.”

I ran a hand down her cheek. Her skin was so soft. “I’m glad. There’s more I want to show you.”

“So are we going to go now or—”

As much as I wanted to take her flying again, I knew I couldn’t. “Uh, it’s broad daylight, Al. Don’t you think someone would notice?”

“Oh, you only fly at night? And now you’re calling me Al?”

“We usually only fly at night, but there are exceptions I’m not getting into right now. And I am still trying to settle on what name I like best.”

“Doesn’t my opinion count?”

I moved closer to her, edging her back against the wall. “Your opinion always counts, but I already told you I’m not calling you what everyone else does. I’m going to have my own name for you.”

“What, like you name a pet? That sounds kind of possessive.”

“It is kind of possessive, Al.” I winked and took her hand. “Have you been to Café du Monde yet?”

She shook her head.

“Good, let’s go.” I held onto her hand and led her to the elevator. The thought of introducing Allie to something quintessentially New Orleans had me excited. I loved my city, and if I had any hope of keeping Allie around past the summer, I needed to make her love it too.

I watched her the whole way down on the elevator. I was vaguely aware of other people entering, but no one else mattered. The only thing worth focusing on was her.

One of the bellboys was at the front entrance when we walked down. He smiled at Allie, and I choked down my annoyance. She was holding my hand not his. “Hey Allie, I haven’t seen you or Jess today, where have you been hiding?”

“Jess went back to New York,” she sounded sad. I knew she missed her friend, and I was going to have to help her get over it.