Hunted

Chapter Twenty Three

Life had never been so sweet to me. For the first time I was happy about my long life. I got to meet Caleb. I got to fall in love. Everything I've ever done has lead to this moment. The one where I just made out with the guy I loved. I knew Nicolae was watching but I would deal with him later. We could deal with everything later. All I wanted right now was Caleb.

And that's what I'm going to get.

For the rest of the dance we spent it together. He always had a hand on me and I didn't mind. During the slow dances he pulled me as close as he could. The intensity between us was exactly right. We kissed and talked. It felt right. I felt like I belonged there in his arms. "You look beautiful. Angels are envious of you Ali." The way he said my name (okay fake name) was heaven! It just rolled off his tung with a sweetness that made me melt.

"Thank you. But it is you they are envious of. That tux looks great on you." He smiled that crooked half smile I loved so much. "Well it's what I could get on short notice." I actually laughed so much that he laughed. His fingers brushed the side of my cheek and I shivered in a good way. The soft touch almost sent literal shocks through my system. His touch felt like it was waking me up from a thousand year sleep.

His hands cupped my cheeks and pulled me to a kiss. The softness of his lips made me longing for more. "Come on." I grabbed his hand and lead him from the ball room. What I wanted to do was talk to him but my heart wanted something else. "Where are you taking me Ariralana? To your dungeon to torture me and give my bloody corpse as a gift to your fiancé?" His voice whispered softly in my ear. A giggle came across my lips as he grabbed me and spun me by the waist.

We went outside to his car as Nicolae came out of the ball room rage in his eyes. As we drove away I turned around and showed Nicolae just one finger. Both Caleb and I laughed so hard at the rage brewing on Nicolae's face. No doubt I would pay for it later but right now, just for this moment, it was worth it.

Caleb drove to the meadow where this whole adventure started. The meadow seamed like a wonderful place now. It was where Caleb found out who I was and accepted it and me. Both of us were still laughing when we got out of the car. "Did you see the look on Nicolae's face?" He was laughing right in the face of danger from Nicolae.

"It was priceless! No doubt I'll be paying for that later." His hand pushed a stray strand of hair behind my ear as he smiled at me. "He won't ever lay a hand on you again Ali. I'll make sure of that. He won't hurt you anymore." I looked right into his eyes and smiled. "And what about you Caleb? Will you hurt me?" His gracefully soft hands removed my mask and he planted a kiss on my forehead then my lips. "Never." He whispered against my lips.

I removed his mask and saw his eyes. All evidence that he had been crying earlier didn't exist anymore. His hatred for Nicolae was replaced with love for me. He held me close in his arms as he pulled me in for a kiss. Shocks of electricity went through me the minuet our lips touched. With each touch of our lips the electricity was easier to deal with.

Every nerve was on fire. There are two things that can put out a fire, lack of oxygen and water. No one ever told me that there were some fires that never were able to be put out. No one told me that the minuet you didn't care about something anymore liberated you so much. Caleb was my fire. Fire's need oxygen to carry on and he was also my oxygen.

Out in the meadow there was an abandon cabin. Well, abandoned since I left it. It was the same one that I stayed in those first few days. Caleb had me pined against the door on the outside. He kissed my lips with tenderness. soon his lips trailed down my neck and along my exposed collar bone. "That dress has been the death of me tonight Ali." A smirk came across my lips. "Don't worry Caleb. That wasn't my intention." The accent I never used here came out in a soft tone that used to draw men in during the olden days. "Then what was you intention?"

"This." I pulled him close to me by his neck. The kisses we gave each other were nothing like the ones we shared before. They were intense and sweet. A moan escaped my lips as he kissed my neck tenderly. I used my free hand to open the door. With ease that shouldn't belong to a hunter Caleb spun me into the door so fast and had me against the wall that I didn't realize it had happened.

I started undoing his tie as he effortlessly picked me up and wrapped my legs around him. My dress was trailing along the floor as Caleb lead us to the small room off the kitchen. "That corset is a bitch isn't it?" A sly grin came across my face. "Nothing you can't fix." Both of us laughed as I started undoing the top button of his shirt.

His over coat from earlier was somewhere on the floor in the front room as were our shoes. As Caleb kisses trailed down the back of my neck I felt his fingers start undoing the corset to my dress. Everything was falling into place as his tender lips brushed my skin all over. My lips started brushing his lips as we fell onto the bed.

Time seamed to stop. We seamed to have spent hours in each others warm embrace as we kissed under the cover of the light blanket I had left. The moon hadn't reached its apex yet by the time we pulled apart. His bare chest was warm and inviting. Like a fire needed oxygen we needed each other.

Our kisses started up again but these ones were full of sweetness and tender love. It was love in its purest form. You know how they say there is one moment where you can see what will happen, or what you want to happen? For me this was that moment.

I saw Caleb and me siting on a front porch somewhere. I couldn't tell where but it was beautiful. Sunrise was just approaching and it made the flowers almost in bloom absolutely perfect. His face was more mature but it still held the softness that drove me nuts.

The vision shifted and Caleb was behind me with his hands around my swollen belly. "Don't worry. you will be a great mom." This was just a short glance for me until the vison shifted again. A little girl, she had to be five or six, ran in a meadow. her blondish brown curls bounced up and down as she laughed.

When I came out of my visons Caleb's emerald eyes were looking into mine as he placed a kiss on my lips. With a smile we just laid in each other's arms for a few minuets. "We need to run away Caleb. Nicolae wont ever stop hunting you." I felt his head nod as he nuzzled his face in my hair. "Okay. Lets get dressed then leave."

Both of us parted ways to go home and change. Nerves flooded me as I ran home. I put on a pair of jeans, my combat boots, and a plaid top with a tank underneath it. My father wasn't home so I scribbled a note saying I left with Caleb.

In a duffle bag I packed what I could carry. Magic left a trace so I couldn't use it. A few sets of clothes, a hair brush, and some pony tails were all I packed. In another duffle bag I packed food to last us a while and a lot of water. Cash was also stuffed in there. Since the minuet I got here I've had an escape plan. I packed a map then opened the door to see Caleb there with a red pick up truck. We shared a kiss then threw my stuff in the back.

"Is there anything you forgot? We have room for a little more."

"No. I have everything I need." He opened the door for me and I got in. Soon he got in next to me and we drove off. My eyes watched as the house I called home for a few weeks disappeared into the night. Caleb put one of his hands on my knee and gave me a reassuring smile. "Hey. We will be okay. Nicolae won't find us."

"Won't you miss it though?" Caleb had more connections here then I did but he shook his head. "No. I won't miss it." I got a text on my phone from Luma and Kenna but I just rolled down the window and chucked my phone out it. "They can't track us now." Caleb nodded and threw his phone out his window.

For a couple hours we just drove. Eventually we stopped so we could switch driving. As we met at the back of the truck a sword went right between us. My head snapped so fast that I barley saw the head of blonde rage.