Waking Eden (The Eden Series Book 3) Read online

  True. Whether it was her healer skills or her warm personality, Galena could put pretty much anyone at ease.

  “Seriously,” Reese said. “What’s going to happen while you’re gone?”

  Well, for one, she might wake up and demand someone take her back to Evad without letting him grovel and beg to let him make it right. Or worse, she could get the wrong impression right off the bat. Nothing said I don’t give a shit like waking up and learning the guy who pushed you into Myren culture couldn’t be bothered to stick around and see if you lived through it all.

  “I can’t leave her like this. I owe it to her to stay.” Ramsay needed to make it right almost as bad as he needed to breathe. To earn back what he was scared shitless he’d lost.

  Not that he’d share that last bit with Reese. Chipping away at emotional walls was one thing. Full-blown demolition wasn’t on the agenda. Not with Reese, anyway.

  Trinity though…

  “Have you looked in a mirror?” Reese said. “The only thing you’re gonna do if she sees your haggard mug is scream or feel guilty. Now, go. I’ve got this.”

  His back cracked in none-too-subtle agreement. Twenty-four hours of nothing but sitting in this chair had left his muscles in wicked knots. If he looked half as bad as his body felt, Reese might be right. He stood and the joints in his knees snapped. His heart overcompensated and thumped out enough blood to fuel a race. “You’ll call me if—”

  “Get out, Shantos. Galena’s headed up the back staircase now, and I can smell your bedside cologne from here.”

  Fine. He’d catch a quick shower. Or maybe he’d scout out Lexi first and see if she’d be willing to sit with her. Trinity would want to see her could-be relation when she woke up. If he was lucky and threw on a decent load of groveling, he might even talk his shalla into a little girl-to-girl PR on his behalf.

  Chapter 24

  A tickle lodged in Trinity’s throat, ripping her out of the weirdest dream. She hacked in a not-at-all glamorous fashion and squeezed her eyes harder to block out the light behind her eyelids.

  “Well, good morning, sunshine!”

  Ugh. The feminine greeting rattled the gruesome hum in her head up a notch. Whoever it was clearly hadn’t gone on the same bender as Trinity. What time was it, anyway?

  The steady swish of fabric and soft footsteps moved around her. “Oh, come on, Trinity. It can’t be that bad. Compared to my awakening you looked snug as a bug in a rug.”

  That voice. She’d heard it before. If she didn’t think the harsh light would obliterate her eyeballs, she’d check the face that went with it.

  “Awakening?” Trinity’s eyes snapped open and the sunshine speared to the base of her skull. She rolled away from the window and covered her head. The conversation with her dad powered through her memories. Ramsay’s healing, her awakening, and all the mysterious comments her dad had tossed in for good measure.

  The mattress dipped beside her and a gentle hand brushed her hair off her forehead. “Hey.” The same voice only quieter. Concerned. “Galena, what’s wrong with her?”

  Another hand cupped her shoulder and warmth radiated up her neck and down her spine. “Nothing’s wrong. Just a bit of an awakening hangover. Nothing I can’t take care of.” A different woman, this one with a soothing voice. Like warm honey and tea on a cold winter day.

  The warmth on her nape intensified and seeped into her muscles and bones. The sharp pain in the back of her head lessened, a slow fade mixed with uncoiled tension.

  Trinity opened her eyes.

  Lexi. She knew she’d recognized that voice.

  “Hey.” Whoa. Hangover was a bit of an understatement. Her voice sounded like she’d sanded a brick wall with the inside of her throat.

  “Well, hello to you, too.” Lexi beamed beside her, her dark hair sparking glints of blue in the sunlight. Unlike the casual jeans and tank she’d worn the last few times Trinity had seen her, she had on a cool-looking blood-red outfit. Kind of a modernized toga-type top that hung to mid-thigh with a high-end set of matching leggings. “Galena’s mojo make the nasty stuff go away?”

  Galena?

  Lexi motioned to the other side of the bed. “Trinity, meet our family doc, Galena. Galena, meet my possible new relation and the one woman who’s single-handedly brought my new briyo low.”

  Talk about elegance, Galena set the standard. Beautiful auburn hair plaited in a wildly complex, but enviable arrangement, curves men lusted over, and a simple, but elegant emerald green gown. She laughed and poured what Trinity hoped was water from a cobalt blue pitcher into a matching glass.

  “What’s a briyo?” Trinity focused on the clear liquid.

  Galena handed it over and eased onto the bedside chair. “Brother-in-law, or in this instance, Ramsay.”

  Trinity coughed mid-swallow, her throat hitching in time with her stumbling thoughts. She wiped her free hand across her mouth and tried to pull in a steady breath. Surely Lexi didn’t think Ramsay and she were an item. Maybe they’d had a chance before the whole Spiritu reveal, but now?

  “Hey, how come she’s not all itchy and skitzy like I was when I woke up?” Lexi didn’t seem the least bit phased with the fact Trinity had damned near swallowed her tongue.

  Galena shrugged. “Not everyone comes out as overloaded as you were. And we’ve already figured out you carry more power than the average Myren woman. Could also have something to do with Trinity’s Spiritu heritage.” She focused on Trinity. “Frankly, I’m surprised yours went as well as it did. I kept trying to slip into your mind to anchor you, but I couldn’t get past whatever natural defense mechanism you’ve got. I’m sorry I couldn’t do more.”

  Trinity pushed herself upright and rested against the backboard. Whoever had taken care of her through the whole ordeal had shucked her jeans and T-shirt and replaced them with the softest white cotton nightgown she’d ever felt. “It’s okay. My dad helped me.”

  Galena and Lexi eyeballed each other.

  “The Spiritu? He was here?” Lexi scanned the room as if she expected him to pop out of thin air.

  It was a huge room. Gray stone walls, thick black carpet with matching drapes lining an eight or ten-foot wide arched window. Heck, the bed could probably sleep six adults comfortably. Not the kind of thing you could pick up at the local Mattress King. “Sort of. More like he was in my head.” She caught Lexi’s gaze. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know I was Myren or I would have said something.”

  “Why would you be sorry?” Lexi said. “I love the fact you’re Myren. A little jealous you skipped the skitzo phase and got to sleep for a solid twenty-four hours after it was all done, but happy as punch I’m not the low man on the totem pole anymore.”

  Well, that was something at least. Good to know she had one person on this side of the…wherever she was. She stroked the soft black blanket covering her lap. “Does Ramsay know?”

  Lexi grinned, a gleeful evil smile that almost made Trinity feel bad for the guy.

  “Oh, he knows,” Galena said. “I couldn’t pry you out of his grip until you settled into a sound sleep. The only reason he’s not here now is Reese told him he’d scare you off if you got a good look at his face.”

  “Why? What’s wrong with him?”

  “Nothing seeing you up and about won’t fix,” Lexi said. “Assuming you want me to tell him you’re awake? I can sneak you out of here, put you in a room near mine, and keep him out if you’d rather.”

  Come to think of it, she’d felt Ramsay while she’d been out of it. And her dad had teased her about it, in a backhanded, hound dog sad kind of way. “So he was here? He’s not mad?”

  Lexi scowled. A momma bear ready to read her cub the riot act. “Trinity, he triggered your awakening without your permission, even if it was an accident. Why on Earth would he be mad at you?”

  “Ashamed is more like it,” Galena said.

  “And worried,” Lexi added.

  “But he was upset about me not telling him I was part Spiritu.
I assumed he’d be mad about this too.”

  Galena reclined in her chair, her emerald gown making the casual movement look elegant. “My brothers can be Class-A jerks, but they’ve got more honor than that. Ramsay’s a little slower getting around to the emotional side of things.”

  “Speaking of,” Lexi said. “Ramsay just pinged me on the family tele-plan. He wants to know if we need anything else from the kitchen. I figure you’ve got about a minute and half to decide if you want me and Galena running interference or skedaddling.”

  Oh, shoot. It was way too soon for her brain to function, let alone deal with any heavy topics. “What should I say to him?”

  “What do you want to say?” Lexi said.

  Show up. Listen. Speak your truth. Let go of the results. “I’d like to kick him in the shins for being an ass, and then curl up with him for about thirty minutes. Though that’s probably not the clearest message.”

  Galena laughed and stood, patting Trinity’s shoulder. “Honey, no woman should be expected to send a clear message when their man’s been an ass. Let alone right after they’ve suffered almost thirty-six hours of alterations to one’s molecular structure.”

  The door opened with a muted thunk of metal on metal.

  Ramsay strode in, carrying a tray loaded with oversized black mugs and an old-fashioned porcelain pitcher. The scent of fresh brewed coffee hit her a second before he looked up. His eyes locked on her for all of two seconds, and then shuttled to Lexi. “You said you’d tell me when she woke up.”

  Lexi shrugged one shoulder. “I got distracted.” Gaze on Trinity, she lifted both eyebrows in silent question.

  “I think I’m good.” A total lie. She couldn’t remember the last time her emotions were this tangled up and twisted, but dodging issues wasn’t her style.

  That evil grin of Lexi’s slid back into place as she stood. She leaned in to give Trinity a hug and whispered in her ear. “If he doesn’t grovel, you can always kick something higher up than his shin.”

  * * *

  Ramsay had stared down some serious battles in his one and a half centuries, but three women with an axe to grind against one solo, self-proclaimed playboy had to be the most dangerous. Galena, Trinity, and Lexi weren’t exactly aiming death glares his way, but he pretty much tasted feminine schemes in the air. “Everything okay?”

  Galena tugged the empty blue glass from Trinity’s hand and refilled it. “She’s fine. Had a little hangover when she first woke up, but she’s settled now. As long as she was out, a little movement will do her system good, not to mention keep her energy balanced. Get her up and outside for some fresh air.”

  She refocused on Trinity and handed her the water. “Reese and I are staying here tonight and maybe tomorrow to be sure you’re stabilized. If you feel anything that worries you, let Ramsay know and I’ll be there.”

  Ramsay zeroed in on Lexi standing beside the bed with her arms crossed. “I thought you were going to help me.”

  She wiggled a girly finger wave at Trinity, sashayed his direction, and snagged a coffee mug from the tray. “How do you know I didn’t?”

  “Oh, I don’t know. Maybe because there was enough estrogen swirling in here to castrate a giant.”

  Lexi’s laughter echoed in his head as she turned for the door, Galena in her wake. “You’re safe on that score. For the kind of sucking up you’ve got in front of you, you’ll need balls the size of Texas. Don’t want to send you in unarmed.” She paused at the threshold and waggled her eyebrows at Ramsay. “Y’all have fun.”

  The door clicked shut.

  Yeah, definitely bad odds. A weird sensation rattled down his arms and shook the coffee pot lid. Fear, maybe, but a whole different variety than he was used to. He tightened his grip on the tray. “Hey.”

  “Hey.” Trinity sipped her water, her face tilted down so he couldn’t gauge her eyes. She tugged the black blanket closer to her neck and smoothed the fabric until it laid flat against her chest.

  Damn, but she was pretty. Twenty-four hours out like a corpse and seven more before sweating through a life-changing upgrade, and she still managed a sexy-sweet look. Rumpled hair and sleepy eyes, reclined against his headboard and nestled in his sheets. Kind of made him want to swagger out a victory lap. Though considering he wasn’t in there with her that might be a bit of a premature celebration.

  He tucked the satisfying image away for later and sent the tray floating toward the bedside table.

  Trinity flinched and her water sloshed over the rim. “Shoot!”

  Ramsay plucked the glass from her wet hand and grabbed a towel off the table. “Thought you’d be used to my tricks by now.”

  Trinity took the towel and mopped up the mess, paying more attention to the barely touched blanket than her own skin. “Considering everything that’s happened, I kind of forgot.”

  Ramsay perched on the edge of the chair beside her. “So, Galena explained things?”

  She nodded, half petting, half plucking the bedcover, gaze locked on her lap. “My dad, too.”

  Her real dad. As in Spiritu. “Forgot they could drop in wherever they wanted. He came here?”

  Her lips twisted in a wry smile and she tapped her temple. “More of a mental visit. He anchored me.”

  “Huh.” Guess that explained the force Galena hadn’t been able to breach. “Seems like he did a bang up job. You were a whole lot quieter than Lexi was with hers.” And thank The Great One for that. Trinity’s whimpers had damn near killed him. If she’d have screamed the same as Lexi, he’d have torn down at least one wing of the castle with his bare hands.

  Silence settled thick between them, a kind of awkward barricade he didn’t have a clue how to scale. He motioned toward the tray. “You can do those things now if you want. Telekinesis. Telepathy. The elements.”

  Trinity’s fingers stilled.

  “I’d like to teach you,” he said. “If you’d let me.”

  She looked up, her beautiful dark eyes penetrating in a way that not only staked him in place, but hushed all the garbled emotions he didn’t have a clue how to process. “You would?”

  “Seems only fair, considering what you’ve taught me.”

  She tilted her head and frowned. “I haven’t taught you anything. You were the sexual guru, remember?”

  Sex. Praise The Great One, he’d be able to pleasure her a whole different way now. Share his energy as well as his touch. And damned if his body didn’t get on board with the idea quick.

  Not a topic to contemplate at the moment. Right now was about earning back her trust. Rebuilding the damage from his wrecking ball reactions, not exploring all the different ways to make her body sing. The only way he was going to kick the weird distance he’d created was if he put his shit out there where it was good and vulnerable. Let her know she could take him seriously.

  He sat beside her on the bed.

  Trinity fiddled with the blanket’s edge near her throat, kind of an absentminded check to ensure her armor was in place.

  He tugged her hand free and clasped it between both of his. Amazing how different they were. Small to large. Cream against tan. Soft versus rough. He liked all of it. “I’ve been alive a hundred and fifty-two years. In all that time, I’ve never had a serious relationship with a woman.”

  Trinity’s gaze locked on the rock wall opposite him.

  He gently squeezed her hand. “Look at me, Trinity.”

  Her lips tightened and he’d swear for a second she held her breath before meeting his eyes, the fear and doubt that radiated out of them slicing cold as a blade.

  “I let you in,” he said. “I let you in and it scared the shit out of me. You being Spiritu was the perfect excuse for me to run. A way to keep you out.” His throat seemed to close in on itself, like it knew instinctively the danger behind the words bubbling up. “Laying there during your awakening, holding you and wondering if your Myren lineage was enough to get you through the transition, I realized running was the last thing I needed to
do.”

  “I—I’m not sure I follow.”

  He cupped her face. Funny how touching her, being close to her, soothed and comforted his anxiousness. “I’m saying I’ve never contemplated what love might feel like, much less felt it. What I feel for you, I’m not sure there’s a word for it. Powerful, maybe. Whatever it is, it’s huge, and you’re the one who gave it to me. Dared me to face it just by being you. For a man who’s held himself apart from everyone his whole life, I’d say that’s a pretty impressive lesson.”

  Trinity blinked over and over. Her hand twitched between his, and her shaky exhalation fluttered across his face. “What are you saying?”

  This was it. The biggest battle of his life, fought with nothing more than words. Words he never thought he’d say. He palmed the back of her neck. A calm, almost fated certainty settled over him, bits and pieces of his purposefully disconnected life snapping together. “I love you, Trinity. I’ve got a short fuse sometimes and don’t know the first thing about how good relationships work, but I’m smart. Smart enough to know The Great One made you for me. I’m not about to let you go.”

  “You love me,” she muttered, quiet and broken.

  “I knew it that last night at your apartment. Had it driven home when I held you through your awakening.”

  Her gaze roamed his face. “You barely know me.”

  “I knew you were special in the first five seconds I saw you. In the time it took me to blink, everything about my world changed. I just didn’t realize what it was at the time. And for the record, I come from a long line of quick study men—my father, Eryx, my grandfather. Every one of them fell fast for their mates. I don’t see why my Shantos genes would be any different.”

  Trinity pulled her hand free, her mouth slightly ajar and rounded. Like her body was ready to protest but her mind was too upended to cough up the right words. Not at all the response he’d hoped for. Reasonable, but still a long way from taking that victory lap.

  Ramsay stood and stuffed his hands in his front pockets. “So, I guess you might need a little time to process all that.” He checked the tray, the bedside table, even glanced out the window. Give him a battle over intimate conversation any day. It was a hell of a lot easier. “There’s coffee if you want. Might want to add some creamer. Ours is a little stronger.”