Mesmerized (12 page)

She remembered her more recent accident—with the man at Burger King. She should never have taken the necklace off with a stranger. That had been stupid of her. She couldn’t do that again. It was possible for her to compel with the necklace on.

Lily decided she needed to learn how to control herself before she really did kill someone.

***

Lily found Jake sitting outside on the back porch. She opened the door and joined him. It was a perfect southern winter day. As much as she had enjoyed the snow, she didn’t like the cold. Here in Texas, it was sunny and in the sixties. 

Jake seemed lost in thought. 

She wondered what he was thinking about. Putting her hand on his, she asked, “Everything okay?”

Jake nodded, but didn’t say anything right away. 

Lily probed, “Are you upset about that man at Burger King?”

Jake looked over at her. “No. I felt a little jealous, but I know you can’t control it. I’m not sure what would happen if you lost your necklace. That scares me a little.”

Lily thought about that. He was right, of course. She couldn’t control herself when she was like that. It was like she was under a spell. Maybe she should look into getting a replacement necklace in case anything ever happened to the one she had.

“So, what’s wrong then?”

Jake sighed. “I’ve been alive for hundreds of years and now there’s a chance I could change that. A couple months ago, I would have jumped at the opportunity. But, now...now I have you.”

“I don’t understand.”

“You don’t age normally, Lily. You told me that you slow down when you hit eighteen. If the curse is taken off me, I’ll age normally or maybe I’ll just age to an old man in minutes and die. I don’t know. But, that would mean I’d die before you.”

“Oh!” The gravity of the situation hit Lily like a ton of bricks, and tears sprang to her eyes. “But, Jake...I don’t want to lose you. I don’t want you to die.”

“I know. It’s just...” He took a deep breath. “I’ve been alive for so long, maybe it’s time that I move on. Humans aren't meant to be immortal.”

Lily angrily stood up. “I don’t get it. You’ve got me and now you want to die. Obviously, you don’t care as much for me as I thought you did!” With that, she stormed off to her room, leaving Jake outside.

She threw herself on her bed and cried. She had let herself love Jake, knowing that she could be with him forever and now he just wanted to die. She wondered if he wanted to be with Laura instead. Maybe that’s what this was all about. It didn’t matter. It felt like her heart was breaking into thousands of pieces.

Why had she let herself fall in love? Maybe she should become more like her mom. With the necklace off, she could feel the passion and not have to worry about the love. That would save her heart from being broken. She played with the stone around her neck. She knew that wasn't true. Her mother loved her father anyone could see that. But, she had been alive for many years and had mastered her power.

There was a knock at the door. It was her dad. “Lily?”

“Yeah?”

The door opened and he peeked his head in. “Can I come in?”

“Sure.”

Lily’s dad walked in, closed the door behind him, and strolled over to her bed. “What’s the matter, Sweetheart?”

Her eyes brimmed with tears again. “Everything sucks.”

“Oh, now, Lily. Everything?”

“Yes, everything!”

Her dad stroked her hair. “Being something that’s not quite normal is hard, isn’t it?”

She rolled her eyes. This wasn’t something her dad could understand. “Sometimes I wish I hadn’t been born.”

Her dad exhaled loudly. “That’s quite a statement.”

“I don’t like feeling this way.”

“Why don’t you tell me what’s going on?”

“How do you feel, Dad? Knowing that you’re aging and you’ll die before mom looks like she’s aged a year.”

“Ah.” Her dad closed his eyes for a minute. “It was very hard in the beginning. But, I loved your mom and she loved me. So, it was something I accepted. Do I like the idea? No. But, I wouldn’t change it. I love her so much and I love you. I'm grateful for the time I have with you both.”

“Isn’t it weird that I’ll look eighteen when you’re old enough to die?”

“Yes. It is weird. And I’m sure people will look at us strangely, but again, I wouldn’t change it.”

Lily thought about that for a minute. “The love is worth it?”

“Very much!”

“Even the way Mom is? I took off the necklace and it was like I was a completely different person. I felt passion towards a man that I never would have felt it for with the necklace on.”

“That’s something I accepted about your mother. She didn’t like wearing the stones. I guess it made her feel drugged. But, I know she loves me and that’s all that matters.” He smiled. “I spoke to Jake earlier. He seems like a good guy. I can tell he loves you. I’m sure you two will work this out.”

“Thanks, Dad.”

“You’ll always be my little girl and I’ll always protect you.” He paused. “Your mother and I have contacted some people. They are looking into the family that’s been after Jake. We should know something by tomorrow.”

After her dad left, she contemplated going to talk to Jake, but she needed some more time to think. She decided to call Hannah. Picking up the phone, she dialed Hannah’s number.

“Hello?”

“Hey, it’s Lily.”

“Lily? Where are you? How are you?”

“I’m fine. I’m home right now. I’m so sorry, Hannah. I didn’t want to leave the way I did. But, I had to.”

“Your parents explained when they were here.”

“They did? What did they say?” Lily asked curiously.

“Just that you have issues being away from home and had Jake bring you back. They said you were too embarrassed to admit it to me. You know you could have told me. It's not like I would have made fun of you or anything."

Lily rolled her eyes. Leave it to her parents to come up with a lame excuse. Now, she’d have to continue the lie…at least for now. “I'm sorry. This was the first time I'd been separated from my family. All the stuff with Ben was just too much.” She laughed at herself, thinking that her parents might have actually told Hannah the truth.

“So, you’re better now?”

“Yeah, I guess so. How’s Ben?”

“Back at school.” She hesitated. “There are still some rumors flying around that you had something to do with it, but he doesn’t remember anything, and there’s no proof of anything like that. It’s just Samantha, she’s still furious that Jake picked you over her.”

Lily sighed. “Maybe I should send her a postcard?”

Hannah laughed. “I’m sure she’d just love that. Probably come up with another rumor to start about you.”

Lily was laughing now too. It felt good to laugh. 

“When are you coming back to school?”

Lily hesitated. “I don’t know yet.” 

Part of her wanted to go back. She missed Hannah. But, the other part wasn’t so sure. Maybe staying home and being home-schooled was for the best. What if something else happened? It wasn't fair to put others at risk. And she still didn’t know what was going to happen with Jake. She knew she couldn't control herself without the necklace. 

 "I hope you come back soon. It's not the same without you. It was nice to finally have a friend around here."

"I know what you mean. Maybe I'll come back after Christmas break. I have to go, but I promise I'll call again soon."

"Thanks for calling. I'm glad to hear you’re okay."

Lily threw herself on her bed and wrapped her arms around the pillow. What was she going to do? 

Chapter Fifteen

The next morning, Lily found Jake in the kitchen. He looked like he hadn't slept at all. His hair was standing up all over the place and his clothes were disheveled.  Lily was still upset with him—she couldn't believe he would consider having the curse lifted. She tried to put herself in his shoes, but it didn't work. She would never give up her chance of being with him. 

"Are you hungry?" Lily asked as she peered into the fridge.

"Not really. Lily, we need to talk."

She felt her stomach drop. This was it. He was going to tell her it was over, that she had been a mistake. Slowly, she shut the refrigerator door and turned to stare at him. 

"Can we go outside?"

"Sure." She led him out the back door. As soon as she opened the door, cool air met her, and she shivered. She looked up and noticed the moon was still visible in the morning sky. She waited for him to speak; she wasn't going to make this easy for him.

"I did a lot of thinking last night."

"And?" She pulled her sweater tighter, refusing to make eye contact with him.

"Lily, you need to understand how difficult immortality has been for me. I've tried to make the best of it, but most of my years have been spent in misery." 

She felt her stomach tighten. She inhaled sharply waiting for him to speak the next words. She finally found a boy she could be involved with, and he was going to dump her. That was just her luck. 

"Spit it out, Jake."

"I've made up my mind. I've decided that an eternity with you is not long enough. I don’t want to miss a day that could be spent with you."

"What? You're not breaking up with me?" She was clearly startled.

Jake laughed. "Breaking up with you? I would be a complete fool to leave you, Lily. I'm sorry I upset you last night. It was just all so sudden. If you had hung around, you would have known I never seriously considered leaving you."

Lily flung herself into his arms. "I thought I had lost you." 

"I'm not going anywhere."

Lily’s heart exploded. She felt safe in his arms. She began slowly kissing different parts of his face and neck. She wanted to feel him next to her, holding her forever. 

Jake ran his hands down her back and pulled her closer. “I’m sorry if I worried you.”

She silenced him by meeting his lips with hers and kissing him. “Maybe we should go inside,” she suggested, her body warming up and tingling.

“You do remember we’re at your parents’ house, right?”

She leaned back and sighed. “Well, that killed the mood.” She took his hand. “Let’s go inside anyway. It’s cold, unless your body is warming me up.”

Jake laughed and followed her inside.

“Mom? Dad?” Lily called out. “Hmmm. Where are they?” She opened the garage door and realized the car was gone. Turning back to Jake, she grinned.

“What?”

“They’re not here.”

He felt excitement race through his body. “Oh.”

She moved slowly and seductively towards him. When she reached him, she ran her hand up his bare arm. Her heart beat faster and her body filled with desire. She backed him up towards the couch and pushed him down on it. She was over him within seconds, kissing him, caressing him, and being close to him. 

She started to unbutton his shirt when he grabbed her hand. “Lily! Remember where we are!”

“But, they’re not here!” She grinned mischievously.

He couldn’t argue with her. Looking into the most beautiful green eyes he had ever seen and those perfect pouty lips that melted his heart. He lost all will to fight with her and let her start kissing him again.

She moaned and ran her hands up his bare chest. “I want to make love to you again.”

Just then the garage door opened and Lily’s dad yelled, “Lily!”

Lily jumped off of Jake. She looked back and forth between her dad and Jake and blushed. “Sorry. I got carried away.”

Her dad narrowed his eyes at her. “You need to be more careful.”

Lily’s mom walked in. “What’s going on?”

“Our daughter was practically having sex on the couch.”

“Oh, is that all?” Her mom smiled.

Lily’s dad looked at her. “That kind of behavior might be okay for you, but she’s only seventeen! What if she got pregnant?”

The heat rose to Lily’s cheeks even more. She was as red as a lobster. “Dad!”

“You know what could happen! Neither of you are immune to pregnancy.”

“Okay, Dad!” She certainly wasn’t going to tell him that they had already made love and had protection. “I’m sorry. I’ll try to control myself better.”

“It’s in her blood, Gregory. She’s supposed to be this way.”

“Not at this age! You shouldn't be encouraging her either." Her father stomped off. 

Her mother shrugged. "He'll get over it. Your father is right. The last thing you want to do is get pregnant at your age."

"I'm sorry. Jake tried to stop me."

"I'm sure he did." She smiled sweetly at Jake. "You don't stand a chance against her, you might as well face it now." 

Jake nodded his head soberly. "I know. I would do anything for her."

"You two make a cute pair. I'm going to talk to your father and smooth things over."

"Thanks, Mom." Lily leaned back on the couch and peered over at Jake. "Want to watch a movie?"

"Sure, but not a chick flick."

"You can pick." She handed the control to him and let her fingertips linger on his hand. "I would do anything for you too, you know."

"I know, Lily. I'm not going into this relationship blind. I know you hold the power."

"That's not true. We are equals."

"Yeah right, all you have to do is use your little eye trick on me or lick your lips and I'm a goner. I don't mind though."

"I promise I will never use compulsion on you. That's just wrong."

***

A couple of hours later the doorbell rang, and Lily jumped up to answer it. A dark-skinned woman with caramel-colored eyes stood on the steps. Lily took in her attire: she wore a black flowing dress, and had a gold-and-black scarf wrapped around her neck. She looked like she belonged in a different era. 

Light bounced off the huge colorful rings on the woman’s hands. Lily wanted to ask her what the names of the stones were, but realized she was staring. 

"Can I help you?"

"You must be Lily. You look just like your mother did at your age. So mesmerizing one has to force themself to look away."

Heat rose to her cheeks. "Come inside and I'll get my mom."

“Mom!” Lily yelled up the stairs.

 Her mom hurried down and threw her arms around the woman. "Camille, it's been too long."