The Evanescence (Fallen Soul Series) - By Jessica Sorensen Page 0,28
up and down, afraid to blink, afraid to breath. “Are you?”
His lips quirk and then he’s reaching for my arms, lifting me to my feet like I’m air. Steadying me by the shoulders, he smoothes down my hair, and traces a line down my cheek as he pulls away. I watch him, unable to take my eyes off him because he’s here, alive, when I thought he was dead. Suddenly I feel alive again. The numbness is gone. My heart has stopped bleeding.
He smiles softly, shifting his weight, and looking a little uncomfortable. “Gemma, if you don’t stop staring at me like that, I’m going to lose it and have to take you back to the castle.” He sucks in a deep breath, his chest expanding as he lets it out and his eyes scroll down my body. “And as much as I want to, we have a bunch of other stuff to fix at the moment.”
“I don’t care,” I say with honesty, still staring at him. “I don’t care about any of that. I want you to take me back to the castle. I want you.”
I’m not even sure what compels me to say it. I’ve always been afraid of intimacy and how it makes me feel, but right now, standing here with him when I thought he was dead—it’s scarier if I don’t say it. I almost missed my chance.
Alex’s neck muscles work as he swallows hard, then he wraps his lean arms around me and warm air flows freely though my lungs again as I bury my face into his strong chest. “I’ve missed you,” he whispers in my hair, his heart beating against my cheek and the sound is the most amazing, beautiful noise that’s ever touched my ears. “I hated seeing you like that… seeing her inside you.”
“I missed you, too.” Encircling my arms around his waist, I breathe him in, his earthy scent. I feel safe. Then I hear a grunt and a loud bang and I quickly pull away, looking over my shoulder.
“I think we should go back to the castle,” Laylen says rather awkwardly, removing his fingers from Nalina’s neck. She’s passed out on the floor with her eyes shut, her body is motionless, and her arms are sprawled out. “Don’t worry,” Laylen quickly says, climbing off her. “She’s not dead.”
Nodding, I take him in, his pale skin, bright blue eyes that match the tips of his blond bangs, the silver lip ring that loops his bottom lip, and his tall body. “You’re alive,” I declare stupidly, but I don’t care. It’s a moment where acting stupid is fitting.
I release Alex and run over to Laylen, wrapping my arms around him. “I thought you were dead.” I hug him tightly, trying to stifle the feelings rising up in me, the ones that belong to Helena; the ones she felt for Alexander when he was in Laylen’s body.
He pats my back and kisses the top of my head. “So did I.”
We hug forever and eventually I start to cry, but I don’t hold back, and no one says anything. Finally, Evan breaks the moment up.
He clears his throat as he picks up a broken lamp and puts it back on a stand next to the sofa. “I hate to break up this lovely, heart-warming moment and everything, but we’ve still got a few things to take care of—like the Fey roaming the streets and the Lost Souls—and I can’t use my Foreseer power in here.”
Nodding, I wipe the tears from my eyes. “He’s right…” I glance at Nalina, and then place my hand on the pocket where the pendant rests. “We should go.”
I turn towards Alex, who’s leaning against the doorframe with his arms crossed and his muscles flexing. He looks unhappy, which makes me sad because he’s alive and he should be smiling. I walk over to him and pull on his arm, lacing my fingers through his.
“Are you okay?” I ask. “You look sad.”
He fakes a smile, which hurts my heart. “Yeah, I’m fine.” He squeezes my hand, and then glances at Evan and Laylen before returning his gaze to me. “But Evan’s right. We should get going. We also need to get Aislin out of the Fey Realm.”
My eyes widen. “Oh my God. I forgot… oh…” I forgot I’d talked her into it. Culpability pierces through me like shards of jagged porcelain. “I can’t believe I did that.”
“It wasn’t you,” Alex insists, giving me a comforting smile. “It was Helena.”