Wanderlust (33 page)

“You’re not going to die. You’ll find another way,” I tried to reassure him.

Though part of me had to wonder if his feelings for me were entirely real or if a part of him only wanted to believe he was in love with me so that he could save himself, I tried to push those thoughts aside to comfort him. This was hard on both of us.

“It’s all so much to wrap my mind around. I just need some time to think things through,” he said, wiping the blood-tinged tears from his eyes and squeezing me tight. “I’m sorry to put all of this on you. It’s not your fault--you have to make the choice that’s right for you and you alone.”

“You’re right, I do, but I can’t pretend like this doesn’t change things. Knowing that we can’t be together and that you could die because of me…I don’t know what to think, Chaseyn. How should I feel?”

Chaseyn paced in a circle around the room. I could visibly see the torment caused by his deep thoughts. When he stopped suddenly and grabbed me by the shoulders, I was taken completely by surprise. He kissed me hard. Deep. I parted my lips to let his tongue tangle with mine. Heat instantly flared between us, and we held each other with a passion, a desperation so intense I had never experienced anything quite like it before. If I had any doubts about his love for me before that kiss, I didn’t any more.

“Do I have to say the words? Do I have to beg you to believe that I love you more than I had ever imagined possible? I don’t know how I can make you believe it, but my love for you is not in vain. It’s not because you’re my lifeline. It’s because I don’t want to live another day if I can’t live it with you. You are my everything, Cordelia Jameson. So, you’re right. If you decide not to turn, it is okay. I will live as long as my heart holds out because I don’t want to live a moment longer than that if I can’t live with you.”

I held him tight to me then and offered the only condolence I could.

“I’ll think about it, Chaseyn. Give me some more time, and I will consider all of the possibilities. Come to school with me in the fall. Experience my world. Let me live a while, and live with me. I know you’re body is getting older, but there is still some time. Spend it with me. And if that’s all there is, then at least we had that. I love you, Chaseyn Lear, but I love this life too. Let me live it…at least for a while.”

Chaseyn nodded slowly, and I felt a sense of security. I had won him over, at least for the time being. And, I knew that we had come through too much to give up so easily. We would find a way to make this work--to be together for as long as we could.

Whatever that might mean.

Chapter 43 - Home

Nobody wants to sit in the center aisle on an airplane--you know, the four seats with no windows. Well, we had to because neither Addie or Chaseyn would relinquish sitting beside me on the flight home. I had suggested a trade off over Iceland, but neither one was satisfied with that option, so we asked to be seated four across. Eli and Chaseyn sat in the aisles seats, with Addie and I flanking their opposite sides.

Addie held my left hand, while Chaseyn held my right one…for the entire flight. I had never been so uncomfortable in my entire life. Not to mention I had a nasty sunburn from being on a rooftop turret unprotected from the sun’s hot rays. The more people stared, the more I wanted to cover my face with my hands, but I couldn’t. I didn’t have control of my hands. Someplace over the mid-west I couldn‘t take it any more.

“Okay, guys, I appreciate your concern, but nothing is going to happen to me on the airplane. I’m not going to disappear,” I said, pulling my hands free. Addie and Chaseyn shot me concerned looks, and Eli just laughed. I pulled my blanket up to my chin, tucked my arms underneath, turned up the volume on my headphones, and nestled in for a nap. With Chaseyn at my side--and Alexei out of the picture--I no longer worried about nightmares seeping into my consciousness. I had finally figured out that the dreams were, in fact, a warning of darkness lurking nearby. Now, that darkness was gone.

After a while, I felt tapping. Rough tapping. We had touched down and were taxing toward our gate. Chaseyn had been tapping my shoulder for who knows how long before I finally awoke.

“Welcome to Denver,” the flight attendant said over the loudspeaker. A wave of relief washed over me. Home--or close to it anyway.

Chaseyn handed me my bag from the overhead bin and kissed my cheek before returning to his seat. Considering the rows ahead of us were clearing quickly, I was somewhat confused by his actions.

“It’s fine, Cordelia,” he soothed. “Your mom and Etta are here to get you. You’ll catch them up on your trip, and I’ll be waiting on your front porch when you get home.”

I smiled at the thought of him waiting on the steps, his motorcycle helmet propped beside his thigh. The thought gave me chills. In a good way.

“Mom! Grandma!” I shouted to get their attention as we came through the gates with our bags. And, there were a lot of bags. “It’s so good to be home.”

The three of us huddled together in an embrace. Hank, Eli’s grandfather--and my grandma’s boyfriend--had come with my grandma to Colorado, and now Eli was busy introducing his grandpa to Addie. Hank was clearly impressed, and why wouldn’t he be? Addie was a catch.

The six of us crammed into my mom’s car for the ride home. As uncomfortable as the seating arrangements were, there was something quite comforting about being this close to so many people who loved me. My mom had remarried just weeks before I left for Europe, and I was excited to see my new step dad when we got back to Evergreen. Evergreen. Home.

Prologue

Chaseyn and I clung to the last few weeks of summer like we were waiting for the world to end. In some ways, that’s exactly what we were doing--the end of the world as we knew it, anyway. We lived for the moment, and every one of those moments were spent together.

“I can’t believe school starts in a week,” I whispered, my back pressed to Chaseyn’s chest as we warmed ourselves beside a bonfire under the stars. Most of my former high school friends had met in the nearby woods for one last gathering before we all went our separate ways. It was sad to think I might never see some of them again, but not as sad as the thoughts that had been plaguing the back of my mind since that fateful night when Chaseyn revealed the truth of his life-or-death situation to me.

“Are you nervous?” Chaseyn asked, brushing his lips against me right ear as he spoke. I turned slightly then to face him, and our mouths met instinctively. I moaned quietly as he deepened the kiss. “Are you?”

Chaseyn held me a little closer, tighter as he said the last few words. After all we had been through the past year, moving away and starting college was the least of my fears.

“Un-unh,” I shook my head. “You’ll be there, and that’s all I need.”

“For a while, anyway,” he added reluctantly.

Losing Chaseyn. More than anything, the thought of that terrified me more than anything had ever before. Not even memories of Alexei and Balthazar could impart the kind of fears I felt at the thought of life without Chaseyn.

“About that,” I said, turning to face him full on. I sat kneeling in front of him, eyes holding his gaze with an intensity that burned like the flames of the fire a few feet away. “What if…”

“We’ve been through this, Cordelia. I don’t have much time, and we have to face reality sooner rather than later. We’re all out of what ifs, unless you’ve changed your mind.”

“You know I can’t do that, Chaseyn, but…I have an idea.”

Chaseyn raised an eyebrow, skepticism clouding his emotions. He inclined his head ever so slightly to the left, suggesting I should continue the thought.

“What if becoming a vampire isn’t your only option? I‘ve been doing a lot of thinking about this, and what…what if you could become human instead?”

For once, Chaseyn was the one left breathless.

Will Chaseyn become human? Will Lia change her mind about becoming a vampire? Find out in
Life’s Blood
, the third installment in The Cordelia Chronicles by Heather C. Hudak.

Coming Soon!

About the Author

Heather C. Hudak has worked as a professional writer for more than a decade. She began her career as a journalist with a small northern newspaper, before working as a movie critic for an entertainment magazine. When she arrived at work one day and the doors were locked, she started a new chapter in children's book publishing. For eight years, Heather developed and wrote dozens of books, and she edited hundreds more for the educational market.

When Heather is not writing, she enjoys traveling to new and exotic places, as well as camping in the mountains. With her husband, Heather rescues animals that would not otherwise find a loving home. Hershey, the one-eyed, blind, epileptic, snaggle-toothed cat, and Turtle, a sternumless Siamese, are just a few members of their menagerie.