Dark Spirits by Rebekkah Ford Read Free Book Online Page A

off of school, but you and I both know their motives behind that decision.” He stopped and waited for a black Toyota to back out.
    A sense of relief washed over me. During that time Brayden was dealing with being marked for immortality, so he had no part in their decision. My earlier desire to see him turned into a keen sense of urgency when the realization came that I had no idea what he knew or how he felt about everything.
    I had to see him.
    Like, soon.
    “Paige?”
    I turned to Nathan, not realizing I’d been zoning out the side window, oblivious to his presence. He parked, then placed his hand over my heart. I could feel its warmth through my clothes, and it brought me back to him. His touch, soft and intimate, caused me to lose my train of thought, and I stared into his deep blue eyes.
    “Your heart is racing,” he murmured, his voice smooth like a river of melted caramel.
    He was right. I could hear my heart pounding and the blood rushing through the valves. He lowered his eyes and peeked at me through his long eyelashes. When I stopped breathing, the corner of his mouth curled into a slow, lopsided smile, making my heart thud even faster.
    “You mustn’t worry,” he whispered, cradling the side of my face with his other hand. “What you did to Tree last night, which by the way was very clever, I think had put the whole thing into perspective for him.” He lifted his hand off my heart and cradled the other side of my face. The electrifying energy between us sparked in the air, charging it with the sweet nectar of love and desire.
     He studied my face, waiting for a response, his thumbs gently rubbing my cheeks in slow circles. Gabbing voices floated through my open window. There were a couple of women discussing the handmade necklaces they’d bought, wondering if they should give it as Christmas presents as they’d intended, or keep it for themselves. I looked down when they approached the car beside ours, my hair curtaining my face, their shadows moving across us. I came to my senses, feeling crappy that Nathan’s assumption was wrong. My anxiety had to do with Brayden, not Tree and Carrie.
    “It’ll be fine,” he assured me when I didn’t respond. He lifted my chin and kissed me softly on the lips. When he pulled back, I tried to smile, but my guilt made it impossible to do. I turned away and coughed in my hand, deflecting what could have been a romantic moment.
    This was so wrong. I should tell Nathan about Brayden’s arrival, and that I wanted to visit with him. Sure, Nathan had a lot to deal with right now, and I’d hate to add to it, but he’d want to know about Brayden being in town, right?
    “Nathan, I have something to--” I started to say when he lifted my hair off my shoulder, but then the theme song to The Exorcist came to life between us. Surprised, my gaze fell on his tan cargo pants.
    “It’s Ameerah,” he said.
    “You programmed a song for her into your phone?” I said, not liking that one bit.
    “Yes, so I know it’s Ameerah calling.” He pulled his phone out of his pocket and flipped it open. “Hello.”
    I snatched my purse off the floor and stepped out of the truck. I had to admit, using that song to identify a dark spirit possessing a human was comical; however, it still irked me. I mean, Nathan seemed numb to how it affected me, like my feelings didn’t matter to him. He made me feel like he was team captain and didn’t choose me to be a part of his team. Yeah, I understood his concern about my well-being, but still . . . Brayden would have never excluded me from his plans. And ya know what? I no longer felt bad about not mentioning Brayden’s arrival to him.
    Nope.
    Not one bit.
    Now if he’d asked me if I knew where Brayden was, I’d tell him. I wouldn’t lie about it, but what he didn’t know wouldn’t hurt him.
    “Aosoth is slowly starting to crawl across the desert,” Nathan told me, intertwining his fingers with mine. We walked across the parking