Kissed (The Thorn Chronicles) (30 page)

On Saturday Puck came to visit me. This time Ginny let him in.

“You are not going to lay in here and pout for the rest of your life,” she said when she opened my door. Puck shut it behind him and sat on the edge of the bed. I had such a powerful episode of déjà vu that the tears started again.

“Look, you don’t know Kai very well, but I did live with him for thirteen years. He’ll be back.”

I looked up at him from between pillows.

“How do you know?” I asked, a little too bitterly.

“Because Kai is passionate and impulsive, but he never lets go of something he loves. Look at how doggedly he pursued your mother for killing our father. He’s more powerful than me. He knows what he’s doing. The only reason he was trying to force a decision on you is because he
wanted
you there with him. He doesn’t need you.”

“Why are you telling me this?”

“Because I don’t want you to be sad.”

I sat up.

“But what if he doesn’t come back?” I asked.

“He will. Trust me. He won’t let me win this one without a fight. But now that I’ve brought that up, you do know that I care very much for you, right? That I don’t really want him to come back. I only have a year to convince you to love me instead of him. I can’t do that if you never leave your bed. Well, I suppose that could be fun too.” He turned and crawled across my bed toward me, a wicked glint in his eyes.

I threw my pillow at him.

“Oh, you don’t want to start that.” He threw the pillow back with such force that it knocked me backward. He pounced and tickled me. I laughed for the first time in two weeks.

“Come on,” he said. “Let’s get out of here. Ginny is in the living room surrounded by twenty wedding dresses. You need to help her.”

Making a choice among roses is always tough because they are so many good ones. Rose growers constantly argue over the best breed. Tonight I had a choice to make, a Kaiser Wilhelm or a Tuscany Superb. The choice was hard.

The wedding was held on a gorgeous fall evening on a beach near San Diego. Ginny looked radiant and Alejandro beamed. Ginny staggered when he kissed her and I blushed, causing Puck to chuckle. The waves crashed behind them, and I was reminded of the day Puck took me surfing.

I danced the night away. Mostly with Puck, but I made my way around Alejandro’s minor Guardians. Most of them were afraid of me now. Alejandro told them the real story. They still didn’t know that Puck was the Master Guardian, and it made me giggle every time they insulted him. Jason never returned, the snitch. He worked for Kai now.

Life was peaceful. I took out my phone and debated calling my father, but why ruin a nearly perfect evening? After that night, he and my mother had been shipped off to different mental hospitals. Whatever she’d done to him had messed him up pretty bad. He still didn’t know who I was half the time when I called.

A finger tapped me on the shoulder. “Would you care to dance?”

I spun around. “Kai!” I gasped and covered my mouth.

He smiled. “Nice to see you too. Will you dance with me?”

I nodded and he took me in his arms. I rested my face against his chest, smiling. We danced for a couple of songs without speaking. Then I looked up at him.

“Should I be dancing with you? Isn’t this like fraternizing with the enemy?”

He shrugged.

Over the last several weeks I had learned a lot about the Guardians and the Destroyers. Puck was a wonderful teacher. He avoided the subject of Kai at all costs. Puck seemed a little scared of the things I could do.

“Have you come back?” I asked.

He shook his head.

“I actually came to apologize. I put you in a horrible place that night and it wasn’t fair of me. Plus, I missed you. Being the Master Destroyer is lonely. The Destroyers are all angry with me for imposing the old rules. I feel like every time I go out someone is going to kill me. It may happen, but I wanted to see you one more time and tell you that I love you.”

My heart fluttered and I looked up at him. His eyes glittered and he smiled. He still looked as handsome as I remembered. His face was so close to mine. I remembered all those nights in my room when all I wanted was to see his face when I kissed him. I closed the distance and felt his lips meet mine.

A soft melody floated in my ears and I knew that it wasn’t from the band. His kiss tasted of sugar and cinnamon and I knew at that moment that even though he was the Master Destroyer he was still good. Still mine.

“Is the offer to go with you still open?” I asked.

He tensed in my arms. “Yes.”

“If I go, can I still have roses? They will help keep us both balanced.”

He breathed out. “Of course, anything, Naomi, you can have anything if you’ll come with me.”

I broke away from him and looked back at the dance floor. Puck was dancing with Ricki and she was flirting shamelessly. He looked up and I caught his eye. His eyes widened when he realized who I was with. And then it really dawned on me. They were brothers. One the Master Guardian. One the Master Destroyer. They should be working together and yet, here they were enemies. My heart saddened by this revelation. But Kai’s kiss told me that things would work out. He was still good.

My eyes bore into Puck. I wanted to ask him a question. A question he would understand by just looking at me. He nodded once.

“Let’s go.”

THE END

Thanks go first to the love of my life and husband, Will. Your unwavering support is the only reason I’m still doing this today. Xandi and A.J., thank you for loving my books with me and understanding as I spent hours writing

To my parents (all of you-Mom, Dad, Matt, and Gina), thank you for teaching me to be the person I am today. My sisters, Tiffany and Amy, I love you and I’m so grateful for your support and encouragement.

This book has been the product of so many people’s advice and encouragement. Thanks go to those who read early (and late) versions of this and other books or otherwise supported me on the writing journey—Heidi, Leah, Jeanne, Monica, Chad, Kate, Shelby, Jenni, Sara, Krystina, and Steph.

I am, of course, grateful for my rock star agent, Sharon Belcastro and her partner, Ella Marie Shupe. Thank you for taking a chance one me. Robin Ludwig, thanks for the amazing cover. It completely sells the book.

Mandy, Kristin, and Karen—I have no words to express the magnitude of what you’ve done for me. The journey has been long and you’ve been with me through the entire thing, from the tears to the celebratory dinners to the retreats at the cabin where we spent hours writing and eating junk food. Thank you for everything.

I have most certainly saved the best for last. Virginia. Without you there would be no Kissed.  Thank you for being my cheerleader.

Kimberly Loth can’t decide where she wants to settle down. She’s lived in Michigan, Illinois, Missouri, Utah, California, Oregon, and South Carolina. She finally decided to make the leap and leave the U.S. behind for a few years. Currently, she lives in Cairo, Egypt with her husband and two kids. She is a high school math teacher by day (please don’t hold that against her) and YA author by night. She loves romantic movies, chocolate, roses, and crazy adventures. Kissed is her first novel.