"You couldn't have changed, Leon?" Stella's voice hits a higher note as she begins brushing her hands down the front of her flowy, cherry red dress.
His eyes fall to hers and the darkness that flashes through them sets me immediately on edge. He doesn't even bother responding, but as he gets closer, I realize what she's referring to.
His clothes are drenched, as if he jumped into a pool wearing them and immediately climbed out. What the hell?
I don't know what it is about this guy, but there's something surrounding his presence which makes me uneasy. It's uncomfortable and dark, and shivers break out over my shoulders while my hand clings to Ruby's even tighter. I glance towards her, trying to gauge her reaction to him.
But she's ice, a complete wall of power and indifference as he makes his way towards us. His eyes fall to me, but quickly drop lower as he slowly rakes his gaze over my body. I step back, only an inch and align myself closely with Ruby as Leon casually slides his hands into the wet pockets of his dark jeans.
He meets my eyes again, and the side of his lips tilt up in an eerily haunted smirk. As if he's hunting something, like a predator he scopes out Ruby next, but keeps lingering his eyes on mine.
"I'm Leon," he offers, his voice taking on a confident tone. But something else is there as well, it's almost as if he's overcompensating for something painful. I can hear it, because it sat in my throat for so long as well. The ache of needing something more. "You, pretty girl, must be Aura."
Chapter Six
Ruby
Fuck, is that a snarl? It’s growing in the pit of my stomach and building its way through my chest and up my throat. I already don't like this guy, not one fucking bit. Something is off about him, he’s dark and dangerous.
He's volatile.
His eyes shoot to mine, and it's like he's getting off on the idea of pissing me off. He takes one, small step towards Aura and that's all it takes for me to jump in front of her.
"Fuck no," I bite out, stepping up and against his chest while my eyes meet his.
He tilts his chin down, crowding me with his huge frame while Aura steps up behind me. Her hands gently squeeze my waist and tug, trying to force distance between myself and Leon. But he doesn't scare me, no fucking way.
Suddenly, he laughs, and his head falls back while he steps away from me. He lifts a tattooed and ringed hand up to brush his messy, wet hair out of his face before glancing towards the rest of the group and then back to Aura and me.
"These two, really? You're risking everything for these two?" He scoffs and steps back again, his shoulders clearly tense and while his hands shake just slightly. My eyes narrow in on the odd action, wondering what exactly this guy’s problem is.
"Leon, come on," Luna urges gently, but Elijah steps toward him at the exact same time.
"Don't even fucking think about it," Leon grinds through clenched teeth at the small aggressive act towards Elijah. He looks back at us one last time and then walks away, farther into the house where he can put space between all of us.
"Well, that's a great start to this evening," Stella mutters under her breath before stepping in front of Aura and me. "I'm sorry. I wish I could explain what he's going through, but… it's difficult to understand."
"It's totally okay. We all have our demons." Aura's understanding voice speaks behind me, and while I immediately think it's a kind statement for her to make, I don't miss the way several eyes around us glance quickly to each other’s as if her comment was uncomfortable instead of appropriate.
"That's for fucking sure," Nathanial responds, his voice quiet but firm as he suddenly stands straighter and moves towards us. "Elijah and Leon built a fire outside, and Stella's set everything up out there to keep us warm."
“Good idea, I need a shot—or twelve—for all this.” Stella jumps forward and grabs both mine and Aura’s hands as she attempts to pull us through the house, but I halt and pull Aura against me. Aura turns her head in confusion, but just before she can ask what’s wrong, I look towards Stella.
“Give me a minute with Aura.” My strong voice leaves absolutely no room for argument, and Stella nods her head easily just as Nathanial pulls her ponytail and she turns around to face him with a smile spread wide across her face. Luna passes us, gently squeezing my shoulder and offers a kind smile as well.
Just as Aura turns towards me and the others leave the room, I let the full strength of frustration and irritation roll through me. I don’t have to hide myself around this girl, how I’m really feeling. She accepts every facet, every flaw, every nick and pain I have of my past. Instead, our cracks and fissures fill each other’s. Her acceptance and passion fills the pieces of me that have fallen short, and where she seeks strength and power, I tend to lean further into those areas for her. Until we can fill them ourselves, with our own independence, we pull what we need from each other.
I grip Aura’s hands tightly and quickly drag her behind me as I stalk towards the first door I notice on the left. I twist the knob, hoping it’s a fucking bathroom or any place that I can find some privacy for us. I need to touch her, feel her against my skin, after Leon tainted our fucking presence with his darkness. Whatever fucking shadow hangs around his shoulders is so tangible, so intense, it leaks his pain and toxicity into the rest of us.
I need Aura to infect me with her light, her power, her intoxicating wash of pleasure and passion.
“Ruby—” she starts, just as I pull the door open and thank fuck that this is indeed, the bathroom. I yank her inside the small room and immediately turn on my heels so that she’s pressed against the door when I slam it shut.
Click. Locked. Trapped beneath my body. That’s exactly where I want her to be. Her chest begins rising rapidly with each breath, her exhales falling against my lips in a way that fucking fulfills me. I love when she’s like this—afraid. Her nipples are already hard, brushing against mine while she’s struggles to steady her breaths. I can bet that if I pressed my hand against her chest, her heart would be racing. If I slipped my fingers into her panties, she’d be fucking soaked.
My hand lifts and wraps around her throat. She moves to push me away, but at the same time, her head falls back against the door while her body surrenders to my hold.
“What are you doing? We have to go out there, everyone’s going to wonder where we are—” Her voice is hushed. Her tone innocent and frightened, because she’s so good at knowing what’s logically right and wrong.
That’s never been my forte.
“Shhh, Vibe Girl. Let me make you come before we go.” I whisper the words against her ear and roll my hips against her thigh. She moans, and I’m hardly even touching her yet, but god, the sound is addictive. It sparks the familiar aching need inside of my chest, infecting my blood and cells and organs in everything that is associated with Aura.
“We can’t,” she mutters, pushing back against me again as if she’ll be able to stop this. So, I release my hold on her throat and slide my hand up a bit higher, until my fingers are pressed tightly against her mouth so that I can’t hear her protests any longer.