Chapter 31

“Piper, are you aw—what the hell?” Sophie’s shrill voice cut through my peaceful slumber.

I groaned, tightened my arm around Piper, and pulled her closer. She stretched her lithe, warm body against mine, inadvertently rubbing me in all the right places and eliciting another rumbling groan.

“Go away, Sophie,” Piper grumbled.

“I will not. What have you done? Please tell me you didn’t—”

I cut a look at Sophie, and she snapped her mouth shut. She stood near the door, arms crossed, fear etched across her face.

“Don’t worry. I didn’t do anything stupid.” Piper yawned, then sat up, blankets clutched to her chest.

“Last I checked, Sophie, your sister was a grown woman who is more than capable of making the decision all on her own to have sex or not.”

Piper glared at me. “Not helping.”

Grinning, I peppered her bare shoulder with tiny kisses before stopping near her ear. “You were a lot more fun last night.”

She sighed with exasperation, but her cheeks turned a delicious shade of pink.

“It would be prudent for you to leave, Jax, so that I can have a moment alone with my sister.” Sophie’s voice was ice cold, her hard, unflinching gaze even more chilling.

Well, so much for my master plan to get on Sophie’s good side. I glanced at Piper, who gave me a very subtle nod.

“Fine, but unless you want an eyeful of what your sister spent the night playing with, it would be prudent for you to turn around, Sophie.”

“Jax!” Piper gaped at me and elbowed me hard in the ribs.

Sophie spun around, her back now to us, but I didn’t miss the way she huffed.

Laughing, I rubbed my side, dropped a kiss to Piper’s cheek, then hopped out of bed and quickly dressed. I leaned over her. “You’re all mine today, okay? I don’t care what Snobby Sophie has to say about it.”

Her heart skipped a beat. “Save the cutesy nicknames for me, m’kay?” She tapped the tip of my nose.

I couldn’t contain my grin. “You got it, pumpkin.” I winked and pushed away from her. Then I strode out of the room, giving Sophie a broad smile as I passed her. She glowered at me in return.

As soon as I stepped out of the room, the shouting started. And then their voices vanished. One of them must have used the soundproofing spell. I sauntered into the kitchen to find Chloe at the table with the twins. Trent was in the kitchen.

“What’s that all about?” Chloe asked.

“Sophie’s got her panties in a wad because she caught me in bed with Piper.”

“Nice.” Trent laughed and held his fist out.

I bumped my fist to his, then moved past him to get to the coffeepot.

“You two are ridiculous.” Chloe rolled her eyes, then cooed at Emma and Sarah. “I take it your date went well?”

“You could say that.” I leaned against the counter and crossed my arms.

Trent mimicked my stance. “And the soulmate thing?”

“She finally admitted I was her soulmate, too.”

“Oh my, God. Jax!” Chloe was out of her chair and across the kitchen before I could blink. She flung her arms around me. “That’s fantastic news.”

I briefly hugged her back. “Yeah, I’m not so sure about that.”

Chloe eased away from me, head tilted. “Why not?”

“For starters, she hasn’t given me permission to claim her, and I don’t think she’s going to.” A heavy weight of despair sat on my chest, and I inhaled deeply. “She won’t give me details about what’s going on, other than she has responsibilities to the magical community, but I know she’s leaving in a week, and I won’t be going with her.”

“Are you kidding me?” Chloe smacked my shoulder. “You are not just going to let her leave.” In the dining room, Sarah squealed and hurled her sippy cup. Chloe flashed across the room and caught the cup before it could spill on the floor. “No, Sarah. We don’t throw our cups.” Sarah giggled. Chloe tossed a glance over her shoulder at Trent. “Talk some sense into your brother, will you?”

“Sorry, man, I’m with Chloe on this.” Trent gave me an apologetic shrug.

“When are you ever not with Chloe on something?” I shook my head. “Believe me, I don’t want to let her go, but it’s… complicated.” I scrunched up my face. I really hated that phrase.

“What’s that mean?” Trent asked.

“I have no fucking clue.”

“Language, Jax.” Chloe inclined her head toward the girls.

“Sorry.” I poured a cup of coffee and took a sip. “I’m spending the day with her, so maybe I can get her to tell me more.”

“Have you talked to Dad?” Trent raised a brow.

I nodded. “He didn’t really know anything. He told me to ask Isach, but he wasn’t much help, either, and I can’t exactly call him while he’s on his honeymoon.”

“Yeah, I’m pretty sure Abby will kill you if you interrupt her honeymoon for supernatural reasons,” Chloe said.

“She doesn’t have to worry.” I took another drink, then set the mug on the counter. “I’ll figure this out.”

Piper walked into the living room looking absolutely stunning in dark jeans, a maroon sweater, and knee-high brown boots. Her hair was pulled back at the base of her neck, a few loose tendrils hanging perfectly around her face. I straightened and moved to go toward her when Sophie entered the room, giving me the evil stink eye.

I didn’t give a shit what she thought of me or my relationship with Piper. Nothing and no one was going to stand in the way of convincing Piper to trust me enough to take the leap of faith that would allow us to be together. Because Chloe was absolutely right—I wasn’t just going to let Piper go. I couldn’t.

Piper greeted me with a breathtaking smile as I approached her. My heart tripped over itself. “You look great,” I said, placing a quick kiss to her cheek. “Give me a few minutes to shower and change, then we can go.”

“Go where?”

“Wherever you want.”

“What’re your plans today, Sophie?” Chloe asked, shooting me a knowing look.

Clearly, she’d picked up on the fact that Sophie was not happy about me and Piper. Maybe I could enlist Chloe’s help with Sophie. Chloe had a natural way of getting people to trust her. I didn’t know why I hadn’t considered this before.

“I’m meeting with Heaven Leigh and what remains of the Rose Coven.” Sophie stood near the sofa, hands clasped in front of her. “I’m going to guide them through the process of choosing a new leader.”

Piper furrowed her brows and exchanged a less than pleasant glance with her sister. “Is that really your place to get involved like that?”

Sophie jutted her chin. “Yes, actually, it is. And you should be going with me.”

“Sorry.” Piper shrugged. “I’ve already made plans.” She gave me a flirty smile, and my heart melted.

Without another word, I went to get ready, not wanting to waste any more time, or risk Piper changing her mind about spending the day with me.

***

Thirty minutes later, Piper and I were headed to Lake Placid. One hand on the steering wheel, the other entwined with hers, I was as relaxed as I’d ever been. I drove through the back roads of Keene Valley, showing Piper the mountain scenery and the waterfalls. Watching her take it all in was like seeing this town for the first time all over again.

We arrived in Lake Placid right around noon, so our first stop was a local café for lunch. Piper’s face was animated, her eyes bright, as she gushed over how pretty it was around here. I couldn’t disagree.

“Maybe when we’re finished here we can take a walk near the lake?” she asked.

“I didn’t peg you as a “long walks on the beach” type of girl.” I grinned.

She playfully tossed a potato chip at me and laughed. “What can I say?” She shrugged, her expression pure mischief. “You bring out my cheesy side.”

I laughed. “Lucky for you, I happen to really like cheese.”

With a much too sexy eye roll, she pushed her plate away and folded her arms on the table. “Thank you for getting me out of that house today. I’m not sure I could’ve dealt with Sophie all day. She’s really not happy with me right now.”

“Yeah, I kinda figured.” I motioned to our waitress for the check. “Sophie is not a fan of mine, and she dislikes me even more now that I’m corrupting her baby sister.” I wiggled my eyebrows suggestively.

Piper tried—and failed—to hide her smile from me. “Actually, we’re the same age. All of us are.”

“You are?”

“Two sets of fraternal twins. Me and Peyton, and Sophie and Sabella. Conceived and born together. Rare, I know, but then again, nothing about me and my sisters is normal.”

That explained why all of them looked so similar. “Then why does she act like she’s the overprotective older sister?”

Piper sighed. “She’s always been that way, and none of us have really cared. Then again, it’s never been much of an issue.” She held my gaze. “Until now, anyway.” Her smile was sad.

“Do you think she’ll be able to help the Rose Coven?” I shifted in my seat.

My distrust of witches was no secret, neither was my dislike of the Rose Coven in particular, but now that they were leaderless, I was even more wary of them. If they chose a new leader who was similar to Ivy—or worse than she’d been—then all of us were in trouble.

Piper nodded. “Yes. If anyone can help them, Sophie can. She’s very well versed in witch politics and policies. And trust me, she wants them to elect a fair and reasonable leader. None of us want to deal with another Ivy.”

“You can say that again.” I drummed my fingers on the edge of the table. “Okay, enough talk about your sisters. Today is about us, and if you want to take a romantic stroll near the lake, then that’s exactly what we’re going to do.”

“So sweet,” she said sarcastically.

I paid the bill, then draped my arm around her shoulders. “Anything for my little witch.” I led her outside.

She nudged me, and I took her hand in mine, lacing our fingers. With her free hand, she clutched my bicep and rested her head on my upper arm as we strolled toward the lake. She chattered almost non-stop about anything and everything, but each time the conversation would stray to her sisters or her inevitable departure from my life, I’d cut her off. I needed her focus to be on me, on what it felt like to simply be with me without any outside forces trying to come between us.

We came upon a mobile vendor selling various hot drinks. “Want something?” I asked, nodding at the truck.

“I’d love some hot chocolate.”

I bought her a large cup of hot chocolate with extra whip cream, then guided her to a nearby bench. Snow covered the seat, but with a wave of her hand and a few whispered words, the snow vanished. Piper sat with a satisfied smile. When I sat next to her, the bench was warm.

“You’re just full of useful tricks, aren’t you?” I stretched my legs out in front of me.

“Mm-hmm.” She took a sip of her drink. “It’d be really nice if you started holding your own. What are you bringing to this relationship anyway?”

I gave her that look she’d made me promise was solely for her and raised a brow. “Orgasms. Four, to be exact, if we’re keeping count. I’m aiming for five tonight.”

Her face reddened, and she curled her fingers around the cup, trying to hide her smile behind the lid. Then she lowered the cup and laughed. “You’re an ass.”

“You started it.” I wrapped my arm around her shoulder, pulled her close, and kissed her forehead. “And just so we’re clear, I have no issues being your personal sex toy. You can take me out and play with me whenever you want.”

“Oh, my God.” She laughed again.

I loved that sound. We sat in silence for a while. The very last thing I wanted to do was push her into doing something she didn’t want, but at the same time, I needed to find a way to convince her that being with me was the right thing—for both of us. If she was telling me the truth last night, and I was her soulmate, too, then walking away would be as painful for her as it would be for me.

“What do you want to do for the rest of the day?” I asked.

“I don’t care.” She snuggled a little closer, and I let out a contented sigh.

“Can I ask you a question?” I rubbed my hand down her arm, then back up.

“Depends on the question.”

“What did you do these past six months when we were apart?”

She pushed against me and sat up. “I spent a lot of time growing an herb and flower garden.” She laughed, but the sound was strained. “I was desperate for a distraction from my thoughts of you, and being with nature like that calmed me.”

My heart gave a hard, violent beat before returning to normal. The thought of her outside, surrounded by nature, sun shining down on her, hair glinting, tugged at something deep inside of me. I didn’t even have to try to imagine what it would be like to build a life with her—a home, a family. I let out a slow, shaky breath.

“What about you? What did you do?” She glanced sideways at me. “How many people did you kill?”

I laughed. “I didn’t kill anyone, though there were a few times I wanted to strangle my brothers. I spent every waking moment wondering what you were doing, if you were okay, if you’d given me a second thought.”

“I gave you a lot of thought, Jax.” She rested her hand on my leg. “I confided in Peyton about you and everything I was feeling.”

Peyton? I’d expected her to talk to Sophie, as those two seemed to be much closer. And Peyton barely spoke. At least, she rarely did when I was around.

“What wise advice did Peyton offer?” I asked.

“That I should go to Abby’s wedding, stay a few extra days, and see if my feelings changed.” She pulled her hand back and fidgeted with her cup, gaze averted.

Gently, I took the cup from her and set it on the ground near the bench. Then I placed my fingers beneath her chin and tilted her head up. Her eyes were a clear, stunning green. Her lips were red and plump, and I’d bet warm, too; and her cheeks were rosy.

“Did your feelings change?” I refused to look away. I needed to see her expression when she answered me.

“Yes.”

One second, then two passed without any further explanation. I raised a brow. “For the better? Or worse?”

“They changed exactly the way I knew they would.”

“Piper…” My tone held an edge.

“They became stronger, Jax. So strong, in fact, that if I let myself feel the full extent of them, if I fully gave into them, they’d completely overwhelm me.”

I knew all too well what she meant, and if I were being honest, I hadn’t exactly given my emotions toward her full reign, either. Mostly because I was trying to protect myself for when she left and shattered my heart, but also because I didn’t want to be so consumed with her that I ended up doing something stupid and reckless, something I might not be able to take back.

She turned her head, pulling away from my grasp. “We should head back to town and walk through all those cute shops.”

“Sure, if that’s what you want.” I stood, grabbed her empty cup, tossed it in the nearby trash can, then reached for her hand.

Piper willingly slipped her hand into mine, her body naturally leaning closer to me as we walked. While I was nowhere near close to feeling secure in my relationship with her, I had managed to learn quite a bit over the past twenty-four hours.

I was Piper’s soulmate. She liked me—a lot. And she’d been as miserable during our six-month separation as I had been. Had she tipped over into love yet, though? Maybe I could coax that answer from her tonight.

“You never did answer me.” She playfully nudged me with her hip. “What did you do for the last six months?”

“Not much. I played a lot of video games with Colt and Wyatt. I helped Whitney with a few events she’d been hired to plan. And I spent a lot of time with Emma and Sarah.”

“Those girls are adorable.” The way Piper’s voice rose with excitement had me smiling.

“They are,” I agreed.

“Chloe and Trent are so great. I’m really glad I’ve had the chance to get to know Chloe better. I can see why everyone likes her. And don’t get me started on her and Trent together.” She let out a sigh that bordered on a swoon.

I glanced down at her, and she stared back at me with a wicked little grin.

“They can be downright sickening at times.” I laughed. “But they are perfect for each other. I hope nothing changes between them.”

Piper’s steps faltered. “Why would they?”

“Eternity is a very long time, which in and of itself isn’t a problem, not when you’re spending it with your soulmate, but vampires are used to indulging their needs and wants as they see fit. But with the twins… I don’t think Trent and Chloe have as much time together as they need. Something like that can put a strain on a normal marriage, but a supernatural one?” I shook my head. “Maybe that’s why I spend so much time there, so I can help and give them a break when they need it,” I mused aloud.

Piper stopped walking. “Knowing Sophie, she’ll be spending every spare moment until we leave with the Rose Coven. I doubt we’ll see much of her the next few days. We should babysit so Trent and Chloe can have the night off.” Her eyes sparkled with anticipation.

Once the girls went to bed, Piper and I would be alone. Hell yes! “Okay.” I nodded.

She squealed with delight and clapped. “This is going to be so much fun.” She began to walk again, then stopped. “Wait. Do you think Chloe and Trent will say yes? They hardly know me. Why would they trust me to watch their kids?”

“Because you’ve proven yourself to them.” I rested my hand on the small of her back and ushered her forward. “And because you’ll be there with me, and they do trust me.”

Her face lit up with a broad smile. “Do they know I’m your soulmate?”

I laughed again. “Everyone knows.”

Her jaw dropped, and her body tensed. “Does everyone know you’re mine?”

“Only Trent and Chloe. I haven’t told anyone else.”

She relaxed a little, and we walked the rest of the way into town in silence. As soon as we hit the sidewalk, Piper slid her arm around my waist, and I didn’t hesitate to wrap my arm around her shoulders and draw her closer.