41. Relic

Chapter forty-one

Relic

W ithout my requesting his help, Demarius waited for me in the breakroom, and instead of asking, he told me he was giving me a ride to Macie's. Adding, "When you're ready to leave Macie's, call me. I'll give you a ride."

"I don't need one."

"You have a ride?" he inquired as he pressed the button to unlock his car.

"Don't need one," I repeated as I had nowhere to go. Couldn't return to the apartment without triggering Eric, and now that Marsh and I were pissed at each other because of the shooting, I had no other sanctuary. This wouldn't be the first time I slept on the streets, wouldn't be the last.

Demarius opened the door to his car, but he didn't take a seat. He studied me over the roof of his Mercedes. "Where are you sleeping tonight?"

More than likely the cemetery. No one went there at night as it creeped people out, but ghosts were never as deadly as the living. When I didn't respond, he said, "You're crashing with me tonight. When you're done hanging with Macie, text me and I'll give you a ride."

"There's a gang war looming and I'm a target," I said, laying out the truth. "I'll be joining to protect me and my sisters. After tomorrow, I won't be around anymore."

"That's bullshit, Relic," Demarius snapped.

I shrugged. Bullshit or no bullshit, this was my fated life. "You don't need to be giving me a ride or allowing me to crash at your place. I'm a liability."

Demarius didn't blink an eye. "You're not a liability. You're my friend. You have a price on your head, then you aren't walking. You need a place to crash, my room is yours. This is what friends do for one another. You helped me through my shit. It's my turn to help you through yours. I'm not taking no for an answer, and I'm not letting you walk from our friendship. End of discussion, now get in my car."

My entire life, I'd only had Marsh as a friend. Had no one else I could trust. It felt odd to have become friends so fast with anyone new, never mind an entire group. For now, I would take his help. For now, I'd allow myself the comfort of having friends. I eased into the passenger seat, he claimed the driver's seat, and I gave him the only thing I owned—my gratitude. "Thank you."

"Shut the door and let's roll. I have stories to tell you about the fools at games tonight."

I closed the door and settled into the comfort of listening to Demarius' stories. Damn, I'd miss this and him. I'd missed this feeling that Lyra had been after me day after day to embrace: seventeen. I couldn't decide if allowing myself to make friends, to taste the sweetness of normal, was a gift or a curse. Maybe it was both. I rested my head on the seat and wished my life could be different.

***

Demarius dropped me at Macie's, and she skipped down the long drive to meet me, a smile on her face that rivaled fireworks in the sky. She waved to Demarius, he honked.

Years ago, Eric had taken me to the lake, and we'd gone on a hike into the woods. After miles of up and down, the woods gave way to sunshine, blue skies, a beautiful pool of water and a cascading waterfall that stole my breath. Walking into the clearing—it was one of the first times in my life I felt a sense of peace, a sense of purpose, a sense of home. As I gazed at Macie, I saw the spark in her eyes, saw her excitement and happiness at being in my presence, and I found that long lost sense of home all over again.

"Hello, Mazie Hutchinson," I said. "You look beautiful."

She wore a blue cotton summer skirt that ended mid-thigh and a crop top showing off her tempting flat stomach. Her long chestnut hair framed her perfect face. Never had I met anyone so sexy and so damn kissable. The right side of her mouth turned up with mischief. "Hello, Relic Aslanov. You look like you want to kiss me."

I was dying to kiss her. "Since you brought it up." I stepped toward her, but she placed a hand in the air.

"I'd bet my summer earnings at least one of my parents is watching, but I so promise kissing is on the itinerary for the evening."

"Itinerary? Sounds fancy."

"I'm very fancy. Are you hungry?"

Starved for her. "I'm good with whatever as long as it's time with you."

"That's great to hear because I have plans!" She took my hand in hers, and I locked fingers with her, making sure wherever she went, I would follow, even if she took me to the gates of hell. Anywhere, with Macie, would be heaven.

Instead of guiding me to the garage for the car so we could leave, she led me to the field between her and Ariel's houses. The farther we walked into the back of the property, the higher the green grass grew until some of the thin stalks reached thigh-deep.

"This was supposed to be a lot with a house on it," Macie explained. "Beth, she's like another aunt to me, bought it when Isaiah and Dad bought their lots, but then she and Ryan lived between Cincinnati and Arizona for a period of time, and they weren't sure if they would settle here in Louisville, so they sold the lot to Dad and Isaiah. Beth and Ryan eventually built their house down the street in another section of the neighborhood. They have triplets and they are like a house party on steroids."

An eyebrow slowly raised. Arizona? Cincinnati? Ryan? I stopped dead in my tracks and Macie whiplashed back to face me. "Wait. Are you telling me you know Ryan Stone? The retired, All-Star pitcher for the Reds Ryan Stone?"

She bit her lower lip as if embarrassed. "Yeah. He's like an uncle to me. I can introduce you sometime if you'd like."

"That…would…be…phenomenal." The idea of meeting him blew my mind. "You're full of surprises."

Macie encouraged me to keep walking. "Not really. I'm also close to West Young."

"Our guidance counselor?"

"Yep. One and the same. I ooze with coolness, don't I?" She shimmied her hips as she said it, drawing my attention to delicious, tanned legs.

"Cool? You're blazing hot."

Her cheeks turned red, and she shyly glanced away. "I don't know about that."

Did Macie have any idea she had a leading role in all of my fantasies and dreams at night? That her kisses haunted me in ways that made me want nothing more than to be in her arms every second of every day?

We entered a thick tree line. A few steps in, secluded from prying eyes, I snagged her wrist and pulled her body snug to mine. She licked her lips as she gazed up at me. Her chocolate brown eyes smoldered and her sweet scent nearly drove me to my knees. I cupped her face and her breathing hitched as I swept my thumb along her soft skin.

"Can I kiss you now, Mazie Hutchinson?" my voice came out deeper than I intended, huskier, the sound of my desire for her infusing every word.

"Would you like to kiss me now?"

"Nothing in the universe could make me happier."

Lust darkened her gaze as she leaned up on her toes and pressed her lips to mine. Kissing Macie was an experience, a thrill ride, it was flying through the sky as if I had wings. Her mouth opened and I accepted the invitation. Our kiss deepened as our hands wandered and our touches became demanding. Macie's hand slipped underneath the back of my shirt and each of her caresses set me on fire.

Rustle in the leaves near us, we broke off our kiss, both panting with the need building between us, and Macie had a laugh that reminded me of wind chimes as she spotted a squirrel watching us with curiosity.

"What do you want to bet the squirrel's a spy for my dad?"

I chuckled yet understood. I'd do anything to protect Macie from any type of danger at any time. I'd lay down my life for her. Why would her family be any different?

Reality caused any happiness in me to drain away, and Macie frowned as she watched my expression change. She rubbed at the corner of my mouth where a split second ago I had been smiling. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing's changed. Is it right for me to kiss you knowing you and we won't be together after tomorrow?"

"That's where you're wrong," Macie insisted. "We're going to figure this out."

I wanted to believe her, wanted to fall into her wide-eyed innocence, but while Macie understood some of the harshness of the world, her naivety to my issues made it impossible to comprehend the tsunami I was standing before. "Tonight is all I have to give."

"It may be all you think you have to give, but I'm taking forever," she said with the tenacity of a warrior. "Now, come on. You're delaying your surprise." Macie gave me a conspiratorial wink and tugged on my hand. Whatever part of me hadn't surrendered completely to her fell. I loved her. Mind, body, and soul. For tonight, I'd allow myself to belong solely to her.