I took several more deep breaths. I was okay. Logical explanations made the world go around. The only fault in that line of thought was the fact I lived next door to aliens, and that was sonot logical.
Pushing off the couch, I checked the window to see if Dee’s car was out front. Pulling on my hoodie, I headed next door.
Dee immediately pulled me into the kitchen. There was a sweet, burned smell.
“I’m glad you came over. I was just about to come get you,” she said, dropping my arm and rushing over to the counter. There were several pots scattered across the countertop.
“What are you doing?” I peered over her shoulder. One of the pots looked like it was filled with tar. “Ew.”
Dee sighed. “I was trying to melt chocolate.”
“With your microwave hands?”
“It’s an epic fail.” She poked at the gunk with a spatula. “I can’t get the temp right.”
“Then why don’t you just use the stove?”
“Pfft, I loathe the stove.” Dee pulled the spatula up. Half of it had melted. “Whoops.”
“Nice.” I shuffled over to the table.
With a wave of her hand, the pots flew to the sink. The tap turned on. “I’m getting better at this.” She grabbed some dish soap. “What were you and Daemon doing at lunch?”
I hesitated. “I wanted to talk about the whole lake thing. I’d thought I…dreamed that.”
Dee cringed. “No, that was real. He got me when he brought you back. I was the one to place you in dry clothes, by the way.”
I laughed. “I was hoping that was you.”
“Although he did volunteer for the job,” she said, her eyes rolling. “Daemon is so helpful.”
“That he is. Where…where is he?”
She shrugged. “No clue.” Her eyes narrowed. “Why do you keep itching your arm?”
“Huh?” I stopped, not even realizing I was doing that. “Oh, they took my blood in the hospital to make sure I didn’t have rabies or something.”
Laughing, she tugged up my sleeve. “I have some stuff that you can put—holy crap, Katy.”
“What?” I glanced down at my arm and sucked in a breath. “Yuck.”
My entire inner elbow looked like a fleshy strawberry. All that was missing was a leafy green cap. The raised splotches of red skin were speckled with darker dots.
Dee ran a finger over it. “Does it hurt?” I shook my head. It just itched like crazy. She dropped my hand. “All you did was get your blood taken?”
“Yeah,” I said, staring at my arm.
“That’s really weird, Katy. It’s like you had some kind of reaction to something. Let me get some aloe. That might help.”
“Sure.” I frowned at my arm. What could’ve done this?
Dee returned with a jar of the cool gunk. It helped with the itching, and after I tugged my sleeve back down, she seemed to forget about it. I hung out with her for the next couple of hours, watching her destroy one pot after another. I laughed so hard my stomach hurt when Dee leaned too close to a bowl she was heating and accidentally set her shirt on fire. She’d raised one brow at my larger chest as if to say she’d like to have seen me avoid the same mistake, sending me into another fit of giggles.
When she ran out of chocolate and plastic spatulas, Dee finally admitted defeat. It was after ten, and I said good-bye as I headed home to get some rest. It had been a long first day back at school, but I was glad I’d headed over and ended it hanging with Dee.
Daemon was crossing the road just as I shut the front door behind me.
In less than a second, he was on the top step. “Kitten.”
“Hey.” I avoided his extraordinary eyes and face, because, well, I was having a real hard time not recalling what his mouth had felt like on mine earlier. “Where, um, so what have you been doing?”
“Patrolling.” He stepped onto the porch, and even though I was busy staring at the crack in the wood floor, I could feel his gaze on my face and the heat from his body. He stood close, too close. “Everything is all quiet on the western front.”
I cracked a smile. “Nice reference.”
When he spoke, his breath teased the loose hair around my temple. “It’s my favorite book, actually.”
My head jerked toward his, narrowly missing a collision. I hid my surprise. “I didn’t know you knew how to read the classics.”
A lazy smirk appeared, and I’d swear he managed to get closer. Our legs touched. His shoulder brushed my arm. “Well, I usually prefer books with pictures and small sentences, but sometimes I step out of the box.”
Unable to help it, I laughed. “Let me guess, your favorite kind of picture book is the one you can color in?”
“I never stay in the lines.” Daemon winked. Only he could pull that off.
“Of course not.” I looked away, swallowing. Sometimes it was too easy to fall into the easy banter with him, too damn easy to imagine doing this with him every night. Teasing. Laughing. Getting in way over my head. “I’ve got…to go.”
He swung around. “I’ll walk you home.”
“Um, I live right there.” Not like he didn’t know that. Duh.
That lazy smirk spread. “Hey, I’m being a gentleman.” He offered his arm. “May I?”
Laughing under my breath, I shook my head. But I gave him my arm. The next thing I knew, he scooped me up into his arms. My heart leaped into my throat. “Daemon—”
“Did I tell you I carried you all the way back to the house the night you were sick? Thought that was a dream, eh? Nope. Real.” He went down one step as I stared wide-eyed at him. “Twice in one week. We’re making this a habit.”
And then he shot off the porch, the roar of the wind drowning out my surprised squeal. The next second, he was standing in front of my door, grinning down at me. “I was faster the last time.”
“Really,” I said slowly, dumbfounded. My cheeks felt numb. “You…going to put me down?”
“Mmm.” Our eyes met. There was a tender look in his that warmed and frightened me. “Been thinking about our bet? Wanna give in now?”
And he totally ruined that tender moment. “Put me down, Daemon.”
He placed me on my feet, but his arms were still around me, and I had no idea what to say. “I’ve been thinking.”
“Oh, God…” I murmured.
His lips twitched. “This bet really isn’t fair to you. New Year’s Day? Hell, I’ll have you admitting your undying devotion to me by Thanksgiving.”
I rolled my eyes. “I’m sure I’ll hold out until Halloween.”
“That’s already passed.”
“Exactly,” I muttered.
Laughing under his breath, he reached forward, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear. The back of his knuckles brushed my cheek and I pressed my lips together to stop a sigh. Warmth blossomed in my chest, having nothing to do with the simple touch.
It had everything to do with the ache in his gaze. Then he pivoted around, tipping his head back. Moments passed in silence. “The stars… They’re beautiful tonight.”
I followed his gaze, a little thrown off by his sudden change in topic. The sky was dark, but there were a hundred or so bright dots glimmering against the inky night. “Yeah, they are.” I bit my lip. “Do they remind you of your home?”
There was a pause. “I wish they did. Memories, even bittersweet ones, are better than nothing, you know?”
A knot formed in my throat. Why had I asked him that? I knew he didn’t remember anything about his planet. I tucked my hair back again and stood beside him, squinting at the sky. “The Elders—do they remember anything about Lux?” He nodded. “Have you ever asked them to tell you about it?”
He started to respond, then laughed. “It is that simple, right? But I try to avoid the colony as much as possible.”
Understandable, but I wasn’t entirely sure why. Daemon and Dee rarely talked about the Luxen that remained in the colony hidden deep within the forest surrounding Seneca Rocks. “What about Mr. Garrison?”