Set In Flames (Morningstars Book 1) (3 page)

Jaden knew the moment Cupcake made a decision and it surely wasn’t telling the truth. Her eyes went dark, the violet changing to storm clouds rolling in. It was trouble calling his name, and still, in that single moment he lived for it. She moved in, pulling herself closer to him while moving onto his lap. Jaden couldn’t push her away.

For the love of the creator, he just couldn’t resist her.

Her lips were on his and there was not the slightest trace of fear in her even though she must have felt his fangs brushing against her tongue.

It had been over three decades ago that he last hadn’t been able to contain them, but with the raw need pouring into him now he had to fight to keep himself from taking a sip of her blood.

He forgot everything around him when her little body wriggled closer, her chest pressed against his while her hands framed his face and then went around his neck to vanish in his hair. Wherever skin connected with skin the glow appeared, being brighter than before as if the heat of the moment intensified it.

By the way she touched him, he could tell that every movement of her hands was pre-calculated. Wherever he was ready to drown in passion, she was fully in control of the moment. Her right hand went between them, grazing the erection straining against his pants. Like a teen he suddenly worried he’d just come right then and there. He stopped her touch, angry at himself for letting her distract him this easily.

They needed to stop, because too many things about her just weren’t as they first appeared to be. Plus, he still tried to tell himself that he wasn’t attracted to her at all.

“Look, I…” He didn’t come much further than that since the door flew open and Kaden entered, freezing as he saw the couple on the sofa.

“Hello there, Cupcake,” he grinned and Jaden moved her off his lap, getting up to stand between the girl and his brother.

“Why is everyone calling me that?” she snapped, coming to stand next to him. She gaped at his twin, not even bothering to hide it.

“I always have been the more handsome one. And we call you that because you smell like one,” he explained. “What’s your name?”

“She won’t tell,” Jaden growled.

“Maya,” she said at the same time.

Jaden hated the way Kaden looked at her and he hated even more that Maya had trusted Kaden with that information while he had been asking her about it ever since they met. She didn’t even know Kaden.

“Get the fuck out, Kaden,” he snarled, trying to hide the fact that he was shaking in anger. The things he felt for Maya were irrational and freakily intense. He didn’t even know where they came from, but she was his and Kaden did better in staying far away from her.

“Colbin wants to see you,” Kaden explained, his eyes finally leaving their female guest.

“Can’t, got something else to do,” Jaden replied.

“More likely someone else,” Kaden said, his eyes going back to Maya, who blushed a deep shade of scarlet. “Don’t mess with Colbin anymore, Jaden, he’s mad enough already. Besides, you need to bring her.”

“Bring me where?”

“Stay out of it, Cupcake,” Jaden said, catching himself using a gentle tone with her. Without warning he felt her hand on his back, doing things to him he hadn’t anticipated. He wanted to purr like a fucking house cat; to shelter her and to never let her go. Crazy, irrational notions.

“I can take care of myself, vampire,” she hissed, her cold voice a stark contrast to her sweet touch. “Fine, big boy, bring me to this Colbin,” she then said towards Kaden, her voice strong and her shoulders straight.

“You… told her? Colbin feared something like that, but you told her?” Kaden’s voice rose in disbelief. Colbin was their leader and seldom wrong.

“He didn’t tell me. I can tell who’s vamp and who’s not from a mile away,” she fussed and something in the way Kaden looked at Maya made Jaden’s stomach drop. He didn’t want to leave those two alone, but he needed to get dressed if he was taking Maya back to the compound.

Kaden looked at her as if he had already planned to make room for her in his heart.

“I’m gonna get dressed,” Jaden announced, wanting to warn his twin to stay away from her, but he really had no right to. Maya was nothing to him. He made it no further than to the stairs before he could hear Maya chuckle. He pressed his lips together in annoyance.

Kaden always had been more charming with the women, but Jaden somehow had hoped that Maya would be an exception to the rule. He wanted her to be … not important to him at all, but he had a feeling as if she was there to stay one way or the other.

“And she totally didn’t know how to handle that, so Jaden dropped his pants and…”

“Are we done with the tea party?" He hadn't even taken a minute before being back with the two. "Colbin’s waiting and I’d rather have her out there … be out there before the morning comes.” He didn’t mind sleeping at the base; he just minded seeing the all-consuming love between their leader and his mate whenever he went there.

“You have the beginning of a tattoo, brother. A pair of flames,” Kaden said, his voice accusing.

“Tat?” Jaden couldn’t help but ask.

“It’s purple and chocolate brown and…” she started, but his twin didn’t let her finish

“Been with a woman last night?” Kaden pressed, his eyes going to Maya, filled with a mix of emotions.

“Oh, don’t look at me like that. He wanted to, but I don’t sleep with every handsome man who begs me to,” she bit out, crossing her arms in front of her pretty body.

Jaden didn’t feel like answering that question, especially not in front of Maya, but Kaden wouldn’t move anywhere until he had his answer.

“Maybe,” Jaden conceded and Kaden huffed in anger.

“I take Cupcake back and you better find her,” Kaden ordered.

“Them,” Jaden corrected ever so quietly.

“Excuse me?”

“I need to find them,” Jaden admitted and then tried to ignore the way Maya flinched at his words or how she moved closer to his twin.

“Cheap booze and even cheaper women,” she whispered, the disgust clear in her voice. It made Jaden want to shower again and again until all memories were washed off, and hopefully in the process taking away everything he started to feel for Maya.

“Cupcake…”

“Don’t,” she snapped, crushing him by taking his twin’s hand. “Get me out of here,” she demanded and just like Jaden had simply gone with her last night, Kaden moved toward the door now. Seemed she had some kind of power no one could resist.

“They were the same as always… There was no one special. None of them was vamp…”

“Ouch! Shit!”

Jaden was by the door the second the curse left Maya’s lips. The smell of her blood hit him and he froze for a second. He was ready to kill every person that had hurt her. Instead she was on the floor, her hands and knees scraped. He knelt next to her, his body shaking with the need to take all pain from her.

“I fell down the stairs… I missed the step and…” She sobbed, but he was sure it was more surprise than any pain.

“How?” Jaden had seen her maneuver his almost dark bedroom with precision, just like the rest of the house, and now she hadn’t seen a single step?

“Are you okay?” Kaden knelt next to her, too, reaching out to touch her, but Jaden swept her up in his arms before his twin knew what happened. Her shirt had moved in the process and his fingertips grazed bare skin on her hip.

A burning he had felt once before inched over his back. No, none of those bar women had been special at all.

“I’m fine,” she whispered, holding onto him nonetheless as he tried to place her on the sofa.

“Car, Jay. You can take care of her in the car. Colbin hates waiting,” Kaden remarked, his voice tinged with anger.

“Listen, Cupcake…” She instantly released him, obviously remembering why she had tried to get away from him in the first place. She stayed where she was though and from the position he was in now it would have been too easy for Jaden to kiss her.

“Give me a sec,” he whispered, brushing his thumb over her lower lip, feeling the burn he now recognized.

He went back outside, knowing Kaden would follow.

“Scared she’ll run away with me? Or is there another reason why I’m suddenly not allowed to touch a girl in our house anymore? Besides, who is she that you intend to ignore Colbin’s orders? To make an already bad night worse, there must have been a female vampire under last nights’ fucks and you sure as hell can’t remember them, can you?”

“Maya is mine. No matter what you think or want to do with her, she is more off-limits than Lara.” Lara was their leader's female and the only one the warriors had regular contact with. Kaden’s eyes got wide as he got what Jaden hinted at.

“She smells human, she has human blood and she…”

“That doesn’t matter. None of it,” Jaden replied, freeing his shoulder enough so his brother could see the newest part of the flame tattoo that now reached up to his shoulder. Kaden inspected this tattoo, and it was clear on his twin’s face that it would spread further until Maya either died or would be Jaden’s by blood.

“Shit, Jay! You can’t be in love with her! She’s just human!”

“It doesn’t matter, Origins can be human, vampire or, hell, even werewolf. I didn’t pick her and I am certainly not in love with her, but by some absurd streak of destiny she became mine anyways. We need to bring her to the base though for sure now. It’s the only place I know she’ll be completely safe … and she won’t have a chance to run away,” Jaden said ever so quietly.

“You think she might try?”

Jaden looked back to the door, worrying that even though Maya knew a lot, everything she would find out soon would blow her mind and most likely scare her away. She had enough secrets on her own, but he was sure they were nothing compared to theirs.

“We can’t tell anyone, Jaden. And we should try to find out if there is an Origin Queen somewhere or your girl here will…”

“If there isn’t a Queen I’m doomed,” Jaden groaned because even though he hadn’t asked for her, living without her now would be close to impossible.

She had been brought to a mansion outside of Helpston. It was enormous and still Maya couldn’t remember ever having heard about it. A house like this would draw attention, right? That moment though she stood in the hallway full of vampires, the house all but forgotten.

The twins stood in front of her like her very own wall of protection and seeing the black leather-clad warriors, Maya was more than glad about it.

A guy with a blond long ponytail and icy blue eyes stepped closer, trying to look around the twins, making her feel like a lab-rat.

“Colbin, that’s Maya. I need you to keep her here for a while. I found her running around Upper Helpston in a tempo usually reserved for people like you and me. And she knew what we were without me ever dropping a single word about it,” Jaden explained, making it clear that he wouldn’t let anyone close to her until they agreed to keep her safe.

“She knew you were a Morningstar?” the blond guy, Colbin, asked and Maya wondered if he used to be a Viking.

“Scandinavian by birth, but never a Viking,” a guy with short, dark hair and aquamarine eyes offered. The moment she insulted him in her head in various degrees he started to grin.

“Freak actually is still one of the nicer things I’ve been called. I’m Lex,” he explained, wanting to shake her hand, but obviously something in Jaden’s expression made him take a step back

Maya had no intention of playing nice and she sure couldn’t decide if she would be able to trust those guys or not and the way the twins still stood in front of her showed her that they so far didn’t have an idea, either. Plus, making friends wouldn’t work well with her plan of fleeing as soon as possible.

“Hi,” she said, “and to answer the question, I don’t know what a Morningstar is, but I know what vampires are once I’m close to them. Just like I know with you all that you like to bite.” She gave each guy a pointed look. Some looked bored, some looked noisy and some looked as if they were ready to kill her.

“Have you been bitten before?” Colbin asked.

“Would that make me change?” she asked in return.

“She’s been bitten before, but nothing serious besides a few bites every now and then. She’s being hunted by vampires and has had enough encounters with them to… Wait, they have been…” Lex trailed off as Maya just gave him a pleading glance. That mind reading sure as hell was annoying. To keep her thoughts from him she mentally made compartments. The one he was seeing was he in baby pink boxers. Everything else now hopefully stayed hidden from him.

He blushed with a grin, winking at her. Maya smiled before telling herself to get a grip. She wasn’t here to make friends.

“Stay out of her thoughts, Lex,” Jaden growled and she felt him step even closer to her. If he closed even more distance she’d only see his beautiful back hidden beneath the damn jacket.

“Someone get Lara.”

A young blond vampire vanished. Turning towards her, Colbin said, “Lara is my… wife.” She noticed the hesitation and wondered what he was keeping from her.

“Wife? You look more as if she was your secret lover,” she snapped and a collective gasp made her wonder if she maybe had overstepped a certain border.

“I’m not going to hurt you. None of those guys will hurt you. You do need to understand though that we will not risk anything until we know we can trust you. And no, wife is not what we vampires call them. They are called Origin. So she’s my Origin. And you won’t find out more…” He stopped, looking at the twins instead of her. She finally pushed her body between Jaden and Kaden, wanting to see all the looks that were shared.

It was obvious that they didn’t expect her to be with them longer than necessary.

“Lara will give you a short walk through our history. If you really are a vampire victim you’ll stay here until we know your and therefore their story,” Colbin explained, his tone more gentle now.

Just then the blond vampire and an equally blond woman appeared at the end of the hall they hadn’t left yet. No one had even bothered to invite her into a more comfortable surrounding and for some reason Maya more and more wanted to turn around and run.

The woman was beautiful in a preternatural way: her skin perfect, her eyes a clear blue and an air of grace surrounded her.

“Maya, that is…” Jaden started, but Lara interrupted him.

“Hi! I’m Lara and I know my warriors, so how about I introduce you?” she asked and her smile made her actually look warm and approachable. Maybe not all of those vampires were bad.

“So, here we have Colbin, leader of the warriors and light of my life,” she explained, pointing at the guy Maya already had gotten to know. Lara kissed him, not at all shy about almost drowning in that kiss, and then turned to a redhead next to her.

“This is Devon. He’s a highland warrior, usually silent and closed off unless he thinks whatever he’s got to say is important,” Lara grinned, ignoring the scolding glare the one she referred to gave her.

“I can tell you know the twins.” She eyed the way both Jaden and Kaden stood close enough so their bodies touched hers. “Which leaves us with Lex and Matthew.”

“I have manners, I introduced myself,” Lex interrupted, obviously trying to get praise. Maya could easily tell that all warriors loved Lara. She knew by the way they looked at her or gave her little smiles.

“I have manners, too, I just considered other things more important,” Colbin mumbled, sounding nothing like the warrior he looked and everything a little boy Maya couldn’t see in him.

“Of course, babe,” Lara said, secretly rolling her eyes at Maya though when Colbin looked away.

“Okay, last but not least is Matthew. He’s the youngest among us. He just turned thirty-six and came to us ten years ago. He was born down in the South and is your safest bet if you are bored. He has a million and one PlayStation games.”

“Xbox,” the blond boy threw in. He had a wicked smile and the cutest dimples ever. He looked like a high school quarterback rather than a dark vampire warrior. He was nothing compared to Jaden who, in her book, was the hottest piece around. Not that it mattered.

“Xbox then. Two warriors are out still, but we’ll introduce you once they are back,” Lara explained, grabbing her arm, leading her away.

Panic instantly overcame Maya. She didn’t know the woman; didn’t know the vampires. Twisting her head she tried to get another look at Jaden.

You are safe, Cupcake. Nothing will happen to you
. She all but heard the words as she watched him. She had no idea how, but it was as if he willed his thoughts into her mind.

When they were alone in a kitchen, Lara turned to her, watching her for a long moment.

“I can’t believe you are here,” she whispered, her disbelief almost tangible and Maya was taken aback.

“What do you mean?” she wanted to know. Besides her mother, who had special powers, and Lex, who very obviously was a mind reader, she had hoped special gifts were uncommon. It would make her worry even more while being on the run. Lara shook her head though.

“Don't you know? I can feel you… Could the moment I entered the hallway,” she explained, her eyes turning questioning as she realized that Maya stared blankly at her.

“You are an Origin.”

“Like … you are saying I’m a vampire’s wife? Or do you mean original? That could be it.”

“No, Maya, you are a Morningstar mate, an Origin. We recognize each other. Obviously a new generation is coming off age. I haven’t met one of us in…” She trailed off before smiling sadly at her. There was no doubt that the rest of the sentence would remain a mystery to Maya. Shouldn’t Origins be everywhere?

Maya stepped back, hitting the fridge behind her.

“Can’t you feel it? It’s the only thing that helps us recognize our sisters! It feels like a low vibration… As if there’s static there.”

Someone’s mate? She? Maya?

“No vibration here, sorry,” Maya snapped, closing her eyes. It was true: All that she felt was the crazy need to find Jaden and have him return her to the street corner he had picked her up on.

“Maybe it’s because you are just human or… But I’m not wrong,” Lara decided, forcing a cheery smile on her face.

She started to walk out of the room and Maya followed her.

“Let me show you to your room,” Lara whispered, biting her lip nervously.

“Are they dangerous?” Maya asked, not being able to help herself. She didn’t feel the slightest bit safe with all those guys around, especially since Jaden wasn’t by her side to help her out if push came to shove.

They walked down another hallway and up some stairs. Maya tried to remember the ways they were going.

“They aren’t. They are fiercely loyal and protect what is theirs, but they would never hurt innocents like you. Plus, they are all really sweet once they get used to you,” Lara explained.

“I’m not staying that long,” Maya protested, but Lara picked up a brow.

“To be honest, it’s hard to find vampires if they are sane and organized, which they’d have to be to hunt someone. So I am guessing for now you are a permanent resident here.”

“How do you know I’m being hunted?” She hadn’t said something like that and neither had the guys.

“Matt told me when he got me. Obviously Jaden needed a reason to bring you here and I wondered how any woman would be allowed inside. He really just said you needed to get away from the streets, nothing else. I’m not stupid. I know what that means,” Lara explained.

They reached a bedroom and she moved inside while Maya walked slowly towards the door. Her feet suddenly seemed as if they weren’t ready to cooperate with her any longer.

“I’m sorry about rushing you into all of that. I thought you knew,” Lara just said while Maya wondered if Lara would be quick enough to catch her. With her body going wild she never knew if at any given time she was super fast or just super stupid.

“Maya? You look like you are about to throw up!”

Maya grabbed the doorframe. She had no intention of showing weakness while being in the presence of the others, but her body sure wasn’t following her orders any longer.

Jaden wanted to knock all the guys out as they watched Maya walk away with Lara.

“She has the most incredible purple eyes,” Matthew said, his tone thoughtful. Before Jaden even got a chance to say anything to that, threatening or otherwise, Kaden started talking.

“Maya doesn’t offer her own story up. We can’t get her to trust us enough to tell us,” he explained.

“I think we need that story fast. Lex, can you probe her mind? Or Devon, you could just persuade her to tell us, right?” Colbin wanted to know.

“No one fucks with her head against her will. If she wants us to know, she’ll tell us,” Jaden snarled.

“What he means is that maybe trust is the better option here,” Kaden interrupted, trying to ease the situation. Jaden knew that he shouldn’t be reacting as explosive as he was; yet he barely could help himself.

“She has a very strong mind. The moment she realized I can read her, she projected one pic and that was all. Even while she was listening to someone else,” Lex said, obviously trying to ease the mood.

“A picture you like, or why are you grinning again?” Jaden fussed, not feeling like himself at all. He usually was the levelheaded one, so the difference in his demeanor was pretty obvious.

“And here I thought you were into blondes,” Devon teased, finding himself up against the wall in no time. Aggression obviously was the most prominent feature of this Origin-connection. Jaden figured it would give him an edge in a fight, but in here? Not so good.

“You have no fucking idea what I’m into,” he growled, then stepped back as he realized what he was doing. All of the guys looked at him as if he finally had gone off the deep end. And maybe he had.

“Col, help!” Lara’s voice was panic-stricken and Jaden found himself running before he had consciously made up his mind about it. He froze the moment the smell of Maya’s blood reached his nose. She must have hit her head somewhere.

Matthew pushed passed him, wanting to reach out for her, but Kaden instantly was there, stopping him.

“Cupcake? Can you hear me?” Jaden knelt next to her then, trembling hands reaching out for a girl that was more trouble than anything else.