The Guardian: Paranormal Fantasy New Adult Young Adult Angel Romance (A Fight for Light Novel Book 1) by Nikki Landis Read Free Book Online Page B

touch, ok?”
    They both looked at me sadly and we hugged. They were my best girlfriends. I could see we were all thinking the same thing. I changed the subject before the waterworks started.
    “Get ready you two. We have to be there at six.”
    Later, as we pulled up in front of the house, I got a case of stage fright. I saw Kellen’s Hummer in the street along with the other cars that belonged to my friends. It made me feel kind of panicky. I tried to pull myself together as I let Emily and Mariah drag me up the stairs and through the front door.
    “Surprise!” A huge crowd of people all yelled at once. I knew it was coming but I still jumped anyway. Gran was hugging me before I had a chance to recover from the shock. People were patting me on the back and wishing me happy birthday. I looked around for Kellen.
    “Happy Birthday Rhiannon,” he told me cheerfully.
    I turned to my right and saw him standing there smiling. I noticed his grin get bigger as he looked me over. He winked as I smiled at him too. I was getting the impression that he liked all of our effort.
    The doorbell rang and I skipped over to it, opening it wide, expecting to usher in a late friend or relative. Nobody was there. I walked onto the front porch, nearly kicking the presents that lay on the floor in front of me. I bent down and scooped them up, admiring the pretty packaging.
    The gifts were wrapped in a pale shimmering pink, stacked in a total of three, with white curling ribbon draping over them. A card read my name, Rhiannon, in bold script. I glanced out into the night again. Who had left these presents? Someone went through a lot of trouble. The wrapping was done well, like from an expensive department store.
    I felt a presence out there in the dark. Nothing evil or frightening. I was not afraid. But I knew someone was there and I could not figure out why they remained hidden in the shadows.
    “Hello?” I called, walking down the front porch steps and out into the yard. “Is anyone there?”
    I heard the rustle of fabric and then nothing. Silence. I frowned. “Thank you for the gift…but won’t you come in for the party?”
    No one answered. I heard my name being called from inside. I had to return. Slowly I climbed the stairs again and turned around at the last minute. I could barely make out a figure in the distance but it could have been my imagination. It was hard to tell with all of the foliage and trees.
    About an hour into the party, I started to feel it again. I had the overwhelming sensation of being watched. It was silly, of course, since this was my birthday party. I was the center of attention, after all. The uneasiness of it made me frown. Kellen noticed.
    “Aren’t you having any fun?” He asked teasing me.
    “Yes, but…I just had the weirdest sensation of being watched, you know, from outside.”
    “I’ll go check it out,” he told me, leaving before I had a chance to reply.
    When he returned I raised an eyebrow at him in question. He shook his head and smiled. It must be nothing then, I told myself. It was time for gifts after that. Emily and Mariah were pulling me over to the table excitedly.
    Kellen handed me his gift first. “Open it,” he said softly.
    It was a small red box tied with a large silver ribbon. I slipped the ribbon off and removed the lid. Inside, resting on a bed of cream colored satin, was a long gold chain. It glistened in the light.
    “Oh, Kellen, this is beautiful,” I told him, “thank you.”
    He smiled. “You’re welcome.”
    Gran handed me the gifts from her and Gramps next. They were two small pink packages tied with white bows. Gran pointed to one of them.
    “This one first dear,” she said.
    I tore the paper off and opened the box. Inside was a small glass ruby vial with intricately designed gold filigree woven around it. It looked very old. It was beautiful, probably some kind of heirloom piece. That thought made me snap my head up and look at Gran.
    “Yes, it was your