Brothers 3

Chapter 26

The trembling in the air subsided and a heavy silence followed. The invading wolves were rooted to the spot, like statues. James could hear that at least two of them were holding their breath and every one of their hearts created a deafening roar of fear.

Isabel blinked and turned to James. It took a minute before he realised he was lying on the ground curled around Skylar and that would look bad to the woman who is meant to be his girlfriend. He needed to move.

Still, he spared a second to look at Skylar. She was on her side, leaning against him. She peeked over her shoulder and their eyes met. The ends of her hair were singed from the lightning and she was covered in dirt, but James was still sure that if they had been alone then he would have gladly had her there and then. Pushing the thought away he got to his feet. Skylar started to rise, and James offered out his hand to help her.

She stood and nodded at him. "Thanks."

There was a strange fluttering in James's stomach, and he cleared his throat before spinning to walk to Isabel. What the hell had that been? He never got nervous around women and had certainly never felt the need to run from one before he embarrassed himself. Despite this he was sure that if he had stayed with Skylar when she was looking at him like that and thanking him for saving her he would say something dumb.

James had almost forgotten about the wolves before he noticed that one of them had gone into the trees in search of their friend. He came back and shook his head at the others. James could smell the nervous sweat that stained the wolf's clothes.

They threw another glare at the group but started to move away. They were not willing to face Isabel again.

Once the invaders were gone James allowed himself to focus on Isabel. She was pale and drenched from the rain. Her hands were shaking, and she swayed from one side to the other for no apparent reason. The magic must have taken its toll on her.

She started to tip backwards so James jogged over and caught her. She was like molten lava in his arms. He hoisted her up and carried her back towards the house. She leaned into him and whimpered. James couldn't help that the action made him think of Skylar pressed close to him. He shook it off.

"What happened? Did I help?"

James smiled down on her. "You saved us. You used powerful magic though, so you are tired. You have to rest."

Even as he spoke her eyelids were fluttering shut and her breathing was becoming deeper and more even.

"Good. I am glad you are okay. I don't think I could take it if something happened to you," she mumbled in a drowsy tone.

James kicked open the door to Robert's room and laid her on the bed. Her clothes were dripping, and he considered stripping her out of them but thought better of it. He wasn't that creepy. Instead, he pulled the covers over her and up to her chin. She sighed in contentment. James turned to leave but she grabbed the edge of his sleeve. Her grip was loose so he could have left anyway but he lingered.

"Thank you for letting me stay," she mumbled.

James smiled. "Its no problem. I want to look out for you." At least he could be honest about that much.

A gentle smile tugged at her lips and she dropped her hand, pushing it under the heat of the covers. "You're amazing. I love you."

The colour drained from James's face and his undead heart stopped beating. His throat was tight. He started worry that he had just died on the spot because he didn't feel able to move or speak or think. Thankfully she fell asleep then, snoring gently. James could thank god that magic like that was so draining. There was a tingling in his hands and feet as he made his way back to the living room. She loved him. This was not part of the plan. Sure, he wanted her to like him enough to help, but love was not part of the bargain. Besides, no one had ever loved him before. He made sure of it. His father had always said that love will cause you more pain than pleasure and it was a waste of time. While James didn't agree with his father on many things he was willing to give him the benefit of the doubt on this front. Mrs Greene always said that when she first met his dad he was a loving man. That was before James's mother died. Her death turned Richard into the sadistic prick he was when James was growing up. James was suddenly angry though he wasn't sure why. He knew love was like this and it wasn't news that his father wasn't dad of the year. He must be going mad.