Sergey: Love Me Harder (16 page)

They‘d been driving for several hours when he pulled the jeep over to a small store. The air was warm and muggy with that clean feeling to it. She breathed in deeply and caught the smell of vanilla and maple in the air. There was a down home feeling to the place, as if time had slowed down.

They walked into the store to see towns people milling about in conversation and tourists out shopping. The way she and Sergey were dressed signaled them as outsiders, even among other outsiders.

“Can I help you?” The voice came out of an elderly gentlemen‘s mouth. He was wearing worn jeans that looked comfortable. He had on a plaid shirt, even though it was still hot out. His face showed years of laugh lines. He looked friendly, but able to take care of himself if needed.

“Hi,” Lorali responded with a smile. “We‘re passing through, going up to our cabin for a while. My guy thought we should stop and pick up some supplies. If I remember correctly, we didn’t leave much there last time.”

He nodded his head looking at Sergey. “What do you need, Miss?”

Lorali batted her eyes, then looked down and rubbed the toe of her combat boot around. Finally she dropped her voice, not wanting the other customers to hear her.

“I hate to admit this, but you have to ask him. He does the cooking. I do the eating.”

The man gave her a big smile. The other customers had tuned in for her quiet confession and passed soft chuckles around. Everyone relaxed and went back to their conversations or shopping.

The man approached Sergey who began to tell him what they needed. They walked off together, leaving Lorali to shop on her own.

She walked to the side where there were several quilts for sale.

“Hi.” There was a young girl sitting by the quilts. She couldn’t have been more than four or five. “My name is Lorali.”

“Hi. My name is Amber.”

“That‘s a pretty name. What brings you here, Amber?”

“I like to look at the pretty quilts.” She was stroking one of them.

“Well, you have good taste. I enjoy looking at them too.”

“Where are your parents?”

“That‘s my dad. He’s buying some stuff for our house.”

Lorali followed the finger until she saw a tall tired looking man. He had sad eyes, looking like the world was against him.

“Your dad looks tired.”

“My mom is sick. Daddy has to take care of all of us.”

“I hope she gets well soon.”

The girl‘s head nodded while she blinked real fast. “I don‘t think so. They said if she doesn’t get warm, she’ll never get well.”

“They?”

“The Doctors. I told daddy if we could buy her a quilt, then maybe she’d get warm. We can’t get it yet, but one day when I grow up I‘ll buy it for mom and then she’ll be all better.”

“There’s no magic power in a quilt. You know that right?”

“I know, but this quilt would make my mom better. I know it would.”

“Amber, it doesn’t work that way.”

“How do you know? Did you buy a quilt for your mommy and it didn’t work?”

“No I didn’t.” Amber‘s brown eyes looked up at her. They were bright with unshed tears.

“Can I tell you something, Amber?”

“I‘d have moved heaven and earth for my mom, just like you. Why does it have to be the purple one?”

“It‘s the only purple one here. Feel it.”

Lorali reached out to touch the quilt. For a moment, she would‘ve sworn she felt a warm surge go through it. She took a closer look at the quilt. It didn’t look like any of the others. She saw the price. It was twice as much. That‘s why no one was buying it.

She stared at the quilt until she heard Dee‘s voice. “Dante is everywhere. The only place he won’t show up is in your bedroom.”

Ignoring the voice that told her she was being stupid, she picked the quilt up. “Let‘s buy your mom a quilt.”

The girl squealed with joy before jumping up and hugging Lorali fiercely around the waist.

Chapter Twenty-six

“You‘re a softy. I suspected it when I first met you, but now it has been confirmed.”

“I don‘t know what you‘re talking about.”

“I’m talking about a certain purple quilt, combined with the fact that I’m now following a truck, because a brown eyed little girl insisted you meet her mom.”

“Oh that. Technically you bought the quilt. Also, you were the one who had to say yes, since you were driving.”

“I did because otherwise I would‘ve had a mutiny on my hands.”

“Sorry I don‘t know what you‘re talking about.” She looked at him with a pair of innocent looking blue green eyes that had laughter in them.

“So it wasn’t you who said, ‘Don‘t worry Sergey I‘ll just ride with them. I’m sure I can find my way home afterwards. What direction is our cabin in? ‘“

“Why that almost sounds like blackmail.”

“You don‘t say.”

She gave up protesting any wrong doing and laughed instead. “You know you want to see this mystical quilt in action.”

His smile turned to a frown. “When her mother doesn’t get well…”

“Call me crazy, but I think she will. When I touched the quilt, I felt a surge of heat go through it. I even saw Dante holding it for just a moment. I know that sounds crazy, but I believe we’ll see a miracle.”

“I think we‘re here.” That was Sergey‘s only comment.

The truck they were following had pulled up beside a little run down house. Amber got out, jumping with excitement, carrying a bag that looked bigger than her.

“We‘re home Mom!” She made her way inside, while her father started reaching for grocery bags.

“Let us help.” Lorali took several bags and handed them to Sergey, before taking the rest of them in her hands.

“Thank you.” The father gave them a grateful smile, before leading them into the house. “You can put the bags on the table. I never got a chance to introduce myself. My name is Jim.”

“Nice to meet you, Jim. I’m Sergey and this is Lorali.”

“Thank you for the gift of the quilt. Amber insists it will make her mom well. Julia is bed ridden, which makes it hard for me to leave and work. I do odds and ends, but buying that quilt was out of my reach. I do have a little money saved up and will gladly give it to you and make payments.”

“Please stop. I wanted Amber to have that quilt. I wanted her mom to have it. Believe me, we can afford it. Use your money to take care of your family.” Lorali said.

“They‘re in the kitchen Mom. The ones who bought the quilt. Take your time mom, you’re doing it.”

“Amber you know your mom can’t move.”

“Yes she can, Daddy. I told you the quilt was magic. I told you so.” Her high sing song voice floated into the kitchen before her light brown legs brought her in.

She never turned to look at them. She was focused on the hallway. Jim was frozen in his spot, staring at his daughter as if she‘d grown a second head.

There was the sound of shuffling in the hallway. The silence in the house grew louder as the shuffle sound approached closer. In the doorway, the purple quilt appeared to walk on its own.

“Julia?” Jim‘s voice came out in disbelief.

“I told you so daddy.” Amber chimed again, her joy filling the room.

Jim moved across the room to peer inside the blanket. “Julia?”

“It’s so warm, Jim. I feel it moving through my body. The warmth makes me feel stronger than I have in years. I feel my legs knitting back together.” Her voice was weak and halting, but she made herself talk. Her throat was dry, but she didn’t care. Tears flowed from her eyes as she looked at Jim and Amber.

“Don‘t cry, Mommy.”

“Alright, sweetie.”

Jim bent over and picked her up. He seated her at the table while tucking the quilt back around her. Getting up, he poured her some water and helped her to drink.

“This is my wife, Julia. Honey this is Lorali and Sergey. They made it so Amber could give you the quilt.”

Julia looked up at them. “Thank you.”

“Your welcome.” Lorali said.

“Amber, I think your mom is going to be fine. It’s time for us to get home now.”

“Won‘t you stay for dinner?” Jim asked.

“Thank you Jim, but a certain male owes me a home cooked meal tonight.”

“Come back any time.”

“We will.”

“Sir.” Amber‘s voiced stopped them. She motioned Sergey to get closer. He knelt on one knee in front of her. She threw her arms around him and gave him a big hug. “I’m happy you and your brothers came from the stars. Thank you. Please thank the scary looking one with the scar. He really is nice.”

Sergey turned around to look at Lorali before replying. “You‘re welcome Amber. If we can ever help you, we will.”

Sergey turned to walk away. He stopped and pulled out a card, handing it to Jim. “Call that number in a month. There will be a job for you.”

Lorali walked over and hugged Julia. “Get well. You have a precious daughter to raise.

They left the house both caught up in their own thoughts. Lorali waited until they had driven away before she said anything.

“What do you think now? ‘

“Do you really expect me to believe a quilt was healing that female?”

“Do you really expect me to believe that you recovered from six bullet holes in your back in twenty-four hours?”

“What do you think Lorali?”

“What I think is crazy. When I talked to Rena and Dee, they both seemed to think that Dante had some extra special powers. They talk about him at times like he’s magic. I have no doubt that Amber met Dante. Why she needed to meet us, I’m not sure. That blanket was designed especially for her mother, just like that injection was designed for me. Dante knew I was your mate, but Julia is married. What if Amber is a mate?”

“Amber is a child. No created would take a child as a mate.”

“I know that. What if she was the mate to an unborn created?”

“There are no unborn created.”

“Are you sure about that? How long do you think it will take for Rena, Dee or myself to conceive? We would have to have at least one boy.”

“You can’t conceive and you‘ll all have nothing but boys.”

“What do you mean I won‘t conceive?”

“In order to conceive, I‘d have to bite you. The exchange of DNA allows you to be able to carry my child, as well as opening the doorway to your mind permanently so we can communicate.”

“Why only boys?”

He shrugged. “That’s a Nicolas question. He states they we can only father males. I’ve no reason to doubt him.”

“Ok, then that lends even more credence to my theory. Rena‘s and Dee‘s sons will need mates. I believe Amber is a potential mate.”

The rest of the ride passed in silence. The light mood of earlier had vanished, leaving them both in their own thoughts.

He pulled up to a huge house.

“I thought we were going straight to the cabin?”

“This is the cabin.”

“Are you serious? This place is huge.”

“The created don‘t do well in small spaces. We bought a house big enough for all of us to be in.”

They got out of the jeep and started taking in the supplies to the house. They walked in through a huge front room. The kitchen was in the back of the house. The first floor was done in more of an open space style. You could see into the kitchen from the living room.

The jeep was emptied and the groceries put away in silence. Sergey took the jeep around and put it in the garage.

“I feel exposed here,” Lorali said.

“We have a state of the art alarm system, one that doesn’t require energy to run. If someone comes within a hundred yards of this house, we‘ll know.

She nodded and walked off, leaving him standing there, wondering how his grand plan to get her alone had backfired on him.

Chapter Twenty-seven

She‘d put the clothes away like they were staying here for more than a few days. The place was so beautiful with its long clean lines. The thought of honeymooning here had crept into her thoughts. It was isolated, much like all of the brothers’ houses, but this one had the feel of waiting to be imprinted. It felt like a brand new start.

She walked down the stairs that bottomed out in the back of the living room. The kitchen was on the side of the house right behind the living room. There was a backdoor that led into the garage, off of the kitchen and two other doors on the first floor that she hadn’t explored.

Making her way to the kitchen, she watched as Sergey put the food up. She didn’t really know why she was upset with him. Lie. Her subconscious never liked to let her get away with deceiving herself.

He‘d never made mention of children, their children. It was more than that. He didn’t seem over eager to bite her. The others had talked like it was all their males had thought of. Had she done something wrong? Did leaving his family show the differences in the problems she brought to the table?

If that was the case, she couldn’t blame him. Hadn’t she spent years thinking that it was unfair for her to burden another‘s life with her drama?

Sighing, she leaned against the door-frame of the kitchen. He knew she was there. He was probably aware of every move within the house. He ignored her. It was the kind of thing that ripped through her gut and made her lash out.

She retreated deeper into her thoughts. She could see Amber‘s pretty brown eyes and that smile. She was sure it would break hearts. She watched Amber‘s head tilt up to look at her mother catching the flash of something that was quickly gone.

“What if Nicolas was right?”

“Right about what? ‘

“Genetic mutations. Something, no big deal that made us slightly different than others. A potential group of females who could mate with the created. Do you think the created can only mate out of that group?”

“No. Yes. Nicolas would be able to answer that question better than I. You‘re my mate. If you were gone, there is no other for me. Would my body respond to another? Maybe, but my heart wouldn’t respond. My future, my young, reside within you. If you were no more, there would be no need for me to be here any longer.”

“You want to have babies with me?” He nodded, watching her closely. “You‘d have to bite me for that.”

Again he nodded at her, allowing the confusion he felt show in his eyes. “We have already discussed this, mate.”