Arguably the tingles I was feeling right now in the breeze could be from any number of sources, not the least of which was my incredibly hot boyfriend playing with my hair. "Nope. "
"What about everything else?"
It was an open question, but I knew what he was talking about. Reth and Vivian, the only ones who understood what I was-an Empty One-had warned me that I'd burn through my own soul fast. I sighed, pushing up onto my elbows. I pulled open the neck of my shirt and looked at my heart.
Liquid gold flames swirled lazily, bright enough to see only when I was looking right at them. "No change, really. " I didn't know whether that was a good thing or not. I looked at them so often it was hard to tell whether they were getting dimmer or brighter. Then a bright spark flashed right in the middle, making me grimace. That was new.
Lend sat up, craning his neck to see down my shirt, which I hurriedly pushed back into place. "Last time I checked, you couldn't se
e souls. "
He shrugged, an exaggerated look of innocence on his face. "Still, it wouldn't hurt for me to try, would it?"
"You have got to be the most selfless boyfriend alive. "
"Like I said, anything worthwhile is worth making sacrifices for. "
"Speaking of which, weren't you going to give me a tongue demonstration?"
All too soon Lend had to take me back to school in time for English. Before we turned onto the main road, he put his usual glamour back in place. I bit back a wry smile, remembering how weird it had been to see him as his dad. And then it hit me, the solution to the whole immortal problem.
Lend never needed to know.
Chapter Fourteen
Extracurricular Activities
I hummed in the shower; not my usual attitude on a Monday morning, but things were fantastic. Ever since last week, I felt better about everything.
I didn't have to tell Lend!
How had I not seen it before? His glamour showed whatever he thought it should-which meant that he would age (or at least, appear to age) right along with me. And he couldn't ever really see what he looked like, so he wouldn't know he wasn't getting older. We could go our whole lives together and he'd never need to deal with the fact that his wasn't going to end.
After all, Lend was planning for a future. A very human future. Telling him now would confuse him, make him question his decisions. He didn't need that. I'd tell him someday, sure. When we were like eighty and I was on my deathbed. Assuming my soul lasted that long.
But the tingle in my fingers reminded me that there were ways of making it last. Innocent ways. After all, the sylph wasn't dead, or even really hurt. In fact, I was sure the sylph would be happy to know it contributed to my ability to live a long, happy life with Lend.
"Hey. " Arianna stuck her head into my room as I finished drying my hair. "You wanna do something after school?" She said it in her usual annoyed tone, but there was a hint of hesitancy. She'd barely acknowledged my existence since she thought I'd stood her up for the movie; it was like a dark cloud hung over our entire apartment.
"Sure! I've got work at seven but I'm free after school until then. What do you want to do?"
Her shoulders relaxed. "Mall? I haven't been around true evil for a while. "
"And the mall is the best place for that?"
"Have you seen what the average populace is wearing? I may have to kill the next person I see wearing pants that unzip into shorts. Also, Uggs over tights are a crime against humanity. No one with a pulse should be willing to wear this stuff. I haven't had a heartbeat in twenty years and even I can tell you that. "
"But what if they're pink Uggs? Surely-" My communicator beeped from my nightstand drawer and my stomach dropped. Bleep. I'd forgotten that Jack was coming this afternoon for a quick vamp-tracking job. "Oh-I-just remembered, I have a . . . study thing. After school. With Carlee. For a class. "
Arianna's eyes narrowed and her shoulders tightened back into that strange protective stance. "Fine. No big. "
"But after work we could-"
She turned with a wave of her hand. "Whatever. Don't worry about it. "
Great. Now I was ditching my vampire friend to go tase a vampire. Wouldn't Arianna and Lend be thrilled if they knew? Still, I wasn't doing anything that his dad's group could get mad about. No werewolf persecution, and only neutering violent vamps. Whatever David and his group thought, Arianna was not typical.
I sighed heavily going down the stairs to the bus. I would figure this out-balance it all-school, Lend, being there for Arianna, side jobs for IPCA. After all, weren't extracurriculars a must for college applications? Next week's trip to Sweden to track down a troll colony and rescue the humans they'd kidnapped would look pretty darn impressive on my Georgetown application.