Awakened (Unbound, Book 3)

Chapter Eighteen

I waited upstairs the next morning until Calin arrived. Taking my time to remove the makeshift 'lock' on my door, I stepped into the hall and replaced it so no one could get in while I was gone. When I made my way downstairs, I found Calin at the dining room table instead of the kitchen with a feast set up in the middle of the table, just as Mrs. Renaldi had promised.

Calin looked up and smiled, eagerness lighting his eyes. "This is great, huh? Mrs. R even snuck in coffee."

"Actually," she said, coming into the room from the kitchen with a plate of toast. She set it down beside a platter filled with bacon and sausage, and then stepped back, wiping her hands on her apron as she looked at me with a smile. "Devland told me to get it for you."

"Oh, uh..." I looked between them and forced a smile. Did he do that on purpose? Be nice then act like an ass, just to throw me for a loop yet again when he made a gesture of thoughtfulness. It made my head spin and my emotions didn't know whether to hate him or try to build a relationship. "Thanks."

Mrs. Renaldo pinched her lips, holding my gaze, and my smile faltered. After a minute, she looked at Calin and nodded, and then left to head back into the kitchen. Calin followed her with his eyes until she was gone and then focused on me. Standing, he came over and guided me to the chair sitting across the table from him.

"Relax," he said, bending to whisper in my ear as he pushed my chair closer to the table from behind. Pointing at a white carafe, he added, "Have some coffee and wake yourself up."

He stepped back and I let go of the breath I'd been holding to avoid breathing in his smell. It didn't matter, though. That close, with my body aware of every inch of him, I couldn't think. Once he was back in his seat and at a safe distance, I shook my head clear and eyed the coffee.

Could I trust a drink provided by Devland?

"Luna dropped it off after Devland left," Calin said, spearing a sausage to add to his plate of bacon, eggs, toast and hash browns. Then he reached over and added cantaloupe to the pile, never losing his smile. "He was leaving as I showed up, so I saw it with my own eyes."

"So, then no tea-like side effects?"

His smile dropped and he glanced down to his plate before looking back up to me. "No."

Nodding, I exhaled and reached across to take the carafe.

Coffee sounded so good, I was tempted to skip a cup and put a straw in the carafe so that I gulp it all. Despite having protected my rooms, I hadn't slept any better than the night before. Contacts were impossible to bear, and my face was caked with concealer to hide the circles under my eyes. None of that could contend with the confusion of being swallowed by purple waves in my dreams.

"You okay?"

I looked up to find Calin watching me, and automatically nodded. "Fine." Watching the coffee stream from the carafe into the cup, I sighed and set it down to slide the cup to me. Fingering the rim, I looked up again, first at the door to the kitchen and then to Calin, who was eating while watching me. "Actually..."

He raised his eyebrow and swallowed while I took a sip of my coffee. Smacking my lips, I took another sip and then stood, reaching into my front jeans pocket before sitting back down. I held his ring up and smiled.

"With all the talking yesterday, I forgot to give this back." Holding it in front of me, I turned it around, wishing deep down that he'd tell me to keep it. I'd never been the kind of girl who wanted to be pinned, though, and the protection wouldn't work if he wasn't wearing it.

"Can you tell me now why you needed it?"

I looked from the ring to him and then around the room. Dropping my hand, I placed it on the table and slid the ring across like a puck on an air hockey table. Calin slapped his hand down, trapping the ring between his palm and the table, and then picked it up to hold it in front of him at eye level.