Volume 1.10: Nothing But The Truth

Type: Series

Genre: Urban Fantasy

Rating: M

Characters: Cadence, Luca
Word Count: 2368

Glossary: 

Warning: none

Kiss me

Beneath the milky twilight

Lead me

Out on the moonlit floor

Lift your open hand

Strike up the band

And make the fireflies dance

Silver moon's sparkling...

Kiss Me-Jason Walker

They were leaving when Cadence got there. The backpacks on their backs said it all.

“Cadence, is something wrong?” Luca was the first to speak.

Cadence just stood there with a stunned look in her eyes and her mouth slightly agape as she listened to the sound of her heart breaking. It was silly how two days ago Luca didn't even exist yet he was all that occupied her now and the thought of him leaving tore her to pieces.

Andrew and April nodded at her courteously on their way to Luca’s pickup truck parked under the big Willow tree on the side of the house. She returned their greeting with a small wave of her hand and promptly fixed her attention to the ground.

Luca played with the strap of his backpack, all the while staring at her.

Cadence could feel his eyes scorch tread marks on her face, forcing her to look at him, but like a stubborn mule, she stared at everything but him as she blinked back her sudden tears. She wanted to shake herself for getting all emotional over the enemy.

“Okay, so we’ll stand here forever then,” Luca murmured with a tinge of humor in his voice.

When Cadence didn’t respond, he closed the distance between them in a flash. Ever so gently he tilted up her chin and Cadence thought she’d burst into tears, but she didn’t. Instead she tried step back and cut off their sudden contact. Luca didn’t give her a chance though.

“Tell me what’s wrong.” He lowered his dark head to hers. The prickly sensation of his five o’clock shadow grazing her cheek was odd but exciting all at once. Like a gentle breeze on a hot summer’s day, his cool breath on her face was soothing to her raw nerves. She liked the sound of his words too vibrating on her neck, as much as she liked the feel of his palms cupping her face.

“You’re leaving.” She sighed brokenly.

“Is that what’s upsetting you?” He trailed his thumb on her cheek and wiped away the solitary tear that despite all her efforts to push it back had snuck through.

Cadence didn’t realize just how loaded her statement was until Luca’s own question, her eyes flew wide open then and she shook her head quickly, determined to clear up whatever misunderstanding her words had created.

“No. I’m not upset. I don’t care if you leave or stay,” she lied and Luca called her out on it.

“Your tears could have fooled me.”

“What did you do to me?” She asked, drumming her forehead on his chest, it was hard and strong, like the rest of his body. She couldn’t understand how she was still in his arms, or why he was not doing anything to push her away.

“What do you mean?” Luca’s fingers continued their downward sensual path on her face. His touch was devastating and she found herself moving closer to him, wanting more of him, and for this small space between them to be gone. His thumb stopped on the curve of her lips, and it lingered there for some time, forcing Cadence to stop breathing for the moment as she held her breath, waiting for the freefalling sensation to pass.

 “Stop messing with me. You know what I mean,” She whimpered when she realized what it is that she truly wanted. It was him, plain and simple.

“I didn’t do anything to you, Cadence.”

“You did. Yesterday when I passed out. What did you do? You left some sort of mark on me. What is it? And how did you do it?” She asked shrilly.

Andrew got out of the truck then when he heard the commotion. Without turning to face him Luca raised his hand, letting him know they were okay, there was no need for an intervention.

Cadence found her chance then to peel herself from Luca’s strong hold and she turned her back to him. She felt naked and exposed, and so alone, the moment their bodies were separated.

“I kissed you.” Nothing could have prepared her for his announcement, and with the heavy wind blowing around them furiously and tearing leaves off the weeping Willow trees, Cadence thought she’d imagined his voice. She found herself in a state of inertia, unable to comprehend his words.

“You wanted to know what I did to you, I kissed you,” he said again.

This time Cadence forced herself to turn around and face him. She knew he was telling the truth. It was there in his eyes. But she couldn’t remember. She knew she’d remember kissing him. It was something she’d want to remember and relive.

“Why? Why would you do that?” She asked.

“Because you wanted me to.”

Cadence shook her head as she half laughed and half cried, disbelief playing in her eyes; their conversation was sounding more and more ridiculous by the minute.

“I did not!” She denied it.

Luca rose from the steps and moved closer to her. She tried to step back and get away from him, but she was too slow, numbed by his confession. 

“You don’t believe me?” He asked, without waiting for her reply, he pressed his body close to hers. She tried to fight him off and push him away, but he was stronger and determined to get through to her.

“Be still,” he growled in a low tone as he caressed her face.

 A myriad of images flooded her mind the moment his palm made contact with her skin.

For what felt like forever, she was paralyzed by the kaleidoscope swirling inside her brain.

They didn’t make sense at first, the fragments, some were colorful and some faded and blurry and the frequency with which they were coming at her wasn’t helping.

Cadence emitted a shaken sigh as she tried to push Luca’s hands away. She couldn’t handle the confusing feelings of tenderness brought on by whatever it was Luca was trying to push in her mind.

“I told you to be still. Stop fighting me,” Luca drawled softly again.

The moment she let go, the broken pieces in her mind connected and took shape to create the most incredibly sensual image she’d ever seen.

It took her stunned brain a second or two to realize it was Luca’s memory she was seeing…

And it was the two of them caught in what Cadence could only describe as the most love infused moment she’d ever had.

“That’s not real. We didn’t kiss. You made it up. Just stop. Stop messing with me Luca. It’s not right what you’re doing,” she cried again, trying to shake off the feeling of paralyzing love the memory had invoked.

“Yes we did kiss and I didn’t do anything you didn’t want me to do. You asked me to kiss you and I did.” Luca insisted.

“I must have had a concussion or something!” Her half-hearted denial proved to be a mistake when Luca swooped down on her again and took her lips in a torrid kiss.

Like their memory, it was perfect. His lips were as cold as she’d imagined they’d be, but his strong arms circling her small waist and the passion flowing from him, made her feel warm inside. She wanted to hold on to him forever, wanted to hold on to the adrenaline rush coursing through her body too. But just as she was about to throw herself completely in to their kiss Luca pulled away.

“What about now? Did you have a concussion too?” He demanded. The cold smirk on his face shocked her and made her feel like a total fool. This was all a game to him. He wasn’t free falling for her like she was for him. He’d wanted to prove a point and he had.  She was weak and putty in his hands. What a fool she was!

“Stop kissing me and touching me and holding me. Stop whatever it is that you’re trying to do. I have a boyfriend!” She told him. She sounded serious and firm, but her insides were all wobbly, she was shaking from anger and disappointment and raw hurt.

“End it with the Kingston boy. I don’t want him touching you.” Luca issued his own orders and ignored everything she’d said.

“Why?”

“Because I said so!”

“You don’t get to tell me what to do. He’s my boyfriend,” Cadence insisted, her lip curled down petulantly.

“No he’s not. You don’t love him. Don’t waste his time and yours!”

And to prove he was right about everything, he reached for her again and kissed her.

This time it was different. He was possessive almost, but still tender and passionate, like in their memory, and Cadence knew he wasn’t toying with her now. That knowledge though left her feeling confused and vulnerable. He was sending her mixed messages and she was exhausted just trying to keep up with him.

“He’ll never make you feel like this,” he whispered when they pulled apart.

 “I don’t know what 'like this' feels like because I don’t feel anything,” Cadence lied.

“If you say so,” Luca shrugged and turned to leave then.

“Why don’t I remember? The first kiss?” Cadence stopped his advances towards his friends. She was prolonging his departure, holding on to him because once he got into that truck she’d be a mess for days till he came back, if he was even coming back.

“Just so we are clear, you didn’t have a concussion. But you banged your head pretty badly when you passed out the first time. When you came around, you asked me to kiss you. You told me it’s all you’ve been thinking about since we met.” He laughed at the memory but his mirth didn’t last long as Cadence rounded on him.

“I was confused and in shock and you kissed me anyway! Why? What kind of creep does that?” She yelled at him as she bunched up her hands angrily.

“The creep that can’t say no to a sexy proposition,” he replied lazily, his fangs glistened in the sunlight and she momentarily forgot about her anger as she stared at them in fascination, she’d thought she’d be afraid when she finally saw them, but she wasn’t.

“Well you shouldn’t have. You can’t go around kissing people. It doesn’t work that way!” She admonished him. She knew she was probably blowing things way out of proportion, and it wasn’t really him she was angry with, it was her, for acting all wanton around him.

 “I’m sorry.” Luca put up his hands; he didn’t want to fight with her “I know it was wrong. I shouldn’t have kissed you. But we were both relieved I didn’t run you over and we got caught up in the moment. Kissing you seemed like the natural thing to do under the circumstances. It was incredible. But I didn’t know if you’d want to hang on to it, and rather than make you uncomfortable every time you see me I made you forget it…” The rest of his words hung between them as she pounced on him again.

“You erased my memory? My God, what is wrong with you?” She glared at him.

“I didn’t erase it; I just made you forget the kiss for the time being. But I gave it back to you now. No harm done, I guess,” he said as he crossed his arms over his expansive chest.

“Ugh!” Cadence threw up her hands in frustration and she fumed inwardly when she saw him try to hide his smile. He was enjoying this, seeing her spin in circles around him.

“How long will you be gone?” Cadence asked as she changed the subject.

“Four days. A week at most.”

She was genuinely surprised he'd given her a straight answer.She’d figured he didn’t owe her any explanations. Just because they’d kissed thrice and she was feeling things she had no business feeling didn’t mean he was at the same place as her. But there was no denying it, she was falling for him. And he was toying with her, trying to seduce her into giving him her blood. She could see right through his act, and it was sad that despite this knowledge, she couldn’t stop herself from falling in love with him.

For the first time in her life her heart and mind were not in agreement and it wasn’t a good feeling.

“End it with that boy Cadence. I won’t have him touching you. I mean it.”

“Or what?” The defiance in her voice stopped him short.

“I’ll kill him.” Luca’s words sent chills down her spine. He was smiling but the deadly glint in his eyes told her he meant every word and it wasn’t an empty threat.

They stood there for some time, locked in their silent war of wills.

Cadence had no clue when things had changed or how they became such a hot, steaming pile of poo.

When she came over, she’d wanted answers; she’d wanted to understand everything Rudi had said to Rachel. But the simple talk she’d imagined had spiraled into something she hadn’t foreseen, something beautiful and scary all at once, something magical and hopeless and she wanted to cry and bury herself under her covers for days and purge herself of all these emotions Luca had awakened in her.

“I’ll see you in a few days,” Luca told her as he was leaving. This time she didn’t stop him, she was still reeling from his threat.

Without even realizing what she was doing, she sat down on the steps and stared after them as they pulled out of the yard.

Cadence watched the old truck hurtle down the bumpy path, leaving a dusty cloud behind and dead leaves flying in the afternoon air.

When she looked up she saw the curtain in her living room move in place and she cussed under her breath. Sonja had obviously seen everything.

She’d never hear the end of it…