“I was just asking Mack how Fate seemed when she woke up.”
Neither of them attempt to finish that thought.
“Well?” I ask, looking between the two of them.
“She was fine. A little embarrassed that the memory drained her to the point of passing out again.”
“That seems like an awful simple statement considering the amount of time you both spent alone in there,” Levi notes with a raised eyebrow.
Mack blushes. “Um, so we sort of...uh...”
“Well, well, well...Mack’s celibacy has finally ended,” Thad chuckles. “How’s it feel to be back on the wagon, bro?”
Mack grins, though he tries to hide it. “Pretty damn great, actually.”
All of us chuckle, and it feels good to be sitting here with my brothers, our woman upstairs in the shower. It feels...right. Complete.
Reggie pops up in the doorway, and it’s a testament to our growing ease that none of us even so much as flinch.
“Destiny is ready when you all are.”
Cole responds. “Fate’s showering, but should be down in less than an hour.”
“Good. Because let me tell you, playing secretary is exhausting. Those sisters are going to drive me to drink.”
“You can’t drink,” Mack states, totally missing the sarcasm.
She gives him her best glare. “No shit, Sherlock.”
As the guys start chatting about the upcoming meeting, I let my senses drift to my little ghost. It’s no surprise her emotions are all over the place. Happy one second, angry the next. I’ve never met another woman who is as emotionally unstable as ours. That thought makes me smile, because it’s what makes her perfect for our particular brand of crazy. Between Cole’s perpetual grump factor, Mack’s shy sweetness, the twins’ unpredictability and humor, and my own tendency to get a little broody, her ever-changing personalities will blend right in.
All of a sudden, the whirlwind of feeling vanishes, or at least is significantly muted. She’s gone. My soul panics, but I maintain my composure until I can figure out what’s going on. My fingers brush over my mark out of habit, hoping that she’ll appear in front of me with that angry fire in her eyes. Instead, an image appears in my mind. She’s at the Gateway. What the fuck? What was that? And better yet, what the fuck is she doing at the Gateway? Part of me wants to rush after her. The other part of me, the more rational part, remembers what she was feeling before she left. Confusion. Worry. Anger. And a definite dash of resolve. It’s risky, but I decide to let her do whatever it is she’s doing. And if she’s not back soon, I’m going after her. We will be having a chat about this later though.
“So, how do we travel to the Isle of Light?” Macklin asks Reggie, pulling me from my ghostly stalking.
I try not to let on that something is going down. The guys don’t know she’s gone, and for now, I’m going to keep it that way. She’s a grown woman with more power in her pinky than almost any other being in existence. Something tells me we had limited control over her actions in the past, and, admittedly, the control we have now is minimal at best. We need to trust her, and I plan to start right now.
“We don’t have to actually go to the Isle of Light. We’ll simply call Destiny from here.”
“Wow! Really? How does that work?”
“Oh boy, here we go,” Thad mutters.
“You’ve revved his engine now, Reg,” I add, determined to act normal, but the topic of conversation could not come at a more opportune moment.
“Gosh, this is starting to feel just like old times.” She smiles, and a sense of warm nostalgia hits me. “Anyways, to answer your question, Mack, the Gateway marks are interconnected with the Light and Torment marks. Because of your connection to Fate, you have access to inter-realm communication as well.”
“Inter-realm communication?” I ask.
Thad chuckles. “Anyone else feel like they’re in an episode of Star Trek? I want one of those cool as fuck comm badges they wear.”
We all look at him, shaking our heads.
“What?” Thad asks incredulously. “I’m a Trekkie. So sue me.”
Levi rolls his eyes. “Sometimes I wonder if you were dropped on your head as a baby.”
“So we can use these to talk with each other too?” Mack asks.
“Of course, and track each other as well. Fate’s mark is a direct line to her.”
“Track?” I ask.
“Yes. The marks serve several functions. Communication, transportation, and built-in tracking. Just remember, it’s all about intent.”
“If that’s the case, then why couldn’t we find Fate when she ran off that night?” Cole mutters.
“We don’t know. Destiny, Karma, and I couldn’t figure it out back then. Something was blocking our ability to track her.”
“Something or someone?” Cole asks.
“Both,” Mack responds, a serious look on his face. “Someone who knows who and what we are and ways to get around our powers.”
“We need to talk to Destiny. Maybe she’ll have some answers for us.”
They toss ideas back and forth, but I tune them out. Concentrating on my connection with Fate, I wonder what she’s up to and how much longer I can keep it from my brothers. I’m not sure how long I sit there, my mind conjuring one horrible image after another of what she might be encountering there without me, before her presence suddenly floods my senses. Relief, nerves, a lingering sadness that wasn’t there before she left, and still a hefty amount of anger, all flow through our connection.
Cole gripes, “Where the fuck is Fate?”
“Right here, Ass-Cole. Give a girl a break, would ya?”
She rushes into the room wearing a pair of red jeans that hug every damn curve and a tight black shirt that says Ghost Girls Do It Better. My eyes linger on her tits for a bit longer than they should, and when my eyes meet hers, a mischievous grin spreads across those luscious lips of hers. Instead of her boots, she’s in sky-high black heels that do phenomenal things for her long, toned legs. The silver at the center of her aura is stronger somehow, drawing me in with its uniqueness, along with the interchanging yellow and pink that are skimming along the outer rim. Those hints of happiness and love go a long way to soothing my soul, but that doesn’t mean she’s off the hook.
Before she turns away, my eyes narrow and hers widen.
Oh, you’ve been naughty, little ghost. Don’t think you got away with anything.
Her throat bobs when she swallows, momentarily distracting me as I picture those lips of hers wrapping around my cock and her throat swallowing down something else entirely.
“Damn, woman, I can’t wait to have those heels wrapped around my-”
“For fuck’s sake.” Cole rolls his eyes. “Is that all you think about?”
“I mean, I’m not sure how you can think about anything else when she looks like that.”
Silently, I agree with Thad on this one. But I’ll never admit that out loud.
“So, are we busting out of this gin joint or what?” Fate leans forward and does some weird grab and shimmy thing with her boobs.
“What the hell are you doing?” I ask, equally mesmerized and perplexed by the movement.