Two Tribes, page 12
part #1 of Young Atlanteans Series
She continued to stare into his eyes as if something would reveal itself there. ‘They are a mutation that produces low levels of melanin. There is no real green pigment, they just give the appearance of green—’ She stopped mid-sentence and frowned. ‘I think I would have to argue in your case.’
That was it. His lips crashed into hers and he was kissing her wildly, hands in her hair and crushing her to him. All in a second and it was over. As if he’d dived into a whirlpool and hauled himself back out again. They both stared at each other, out of breath, until he swallowed. ‘Can you write the answers down, so I don’t forget them?’
For a moment she gazed at him, in shock, until she blinked, nodded and scribbled the answers down quickly on a pad. It was stuff he’d covered years ago with one of his tutors, necessary for understanding the human population, but it was all he could think of on the spot to spend more time with her. He wanted to see the way she put her hair behind her ear when she was thinking, how close she came to the paper when she wrote. All the while, reliving the kiss of his life, over and over. She, on the other hand, became absorbed in her subject. The facts and the figures. She had a delightfully quick and enquiring mind. She gestured with her hands and laughed with her rosebud lips when he asked ridiculous questions just to see what she’d say, and when she answered something eloquently, he reminded her to write it down.
Then, as suddenly as the revelation came, he felt utterly deflated. He was so weary with it all. The unsettling feeling he’d had earlier came back to haunt him. It wasn’t the inane school assignments, the area or even the people. It was her situation – the utter hopelessness of it. There didn’t appear to be another parent – as seemed to be the norm for many at the school. It was just that the more her aura burned brightly, the more he was reminded that in her world, a lack of money and resources was the difference between being trapped in a soul-destroying job or being able to break her shackles and reach the potential of her dreams. It was unlikely that a girl from her strata of society, with her handicaps, would ever attain the level of doctor. Her well-meaning mother was holding her back already. Add on the cotton for brains friends and possibly some idiot boy getting her pregnant and her lifetime cage would be sealed. He found he wanted to shake her and warn her, but it was futile. It was simply the lottery of birth.
He sat back in the sofa and watched her talking on the subject she loved, gesturing to make a point with her hands and it hit him he was as trapped as her. He was at the opposite end of the social scale and as trapped as she was. He could attain six doctorates with his resources and have the backing of his father to do it, but at the end of the day no one would listen to what he wanted. He would take his place as king of a world that had no idea his race even existed. What was the point of that? It only became a self-built, more sophisticated cage, but a cage nonetheless. For now, all he could do was feel privileged to observe the wonderful sense of joy this insignificant human girl still had in her. But something shifted inside him.
* * *
A couple of hours passed in a flash. Paige was easy company and Xavier forgot the differences of who they were. He was enjoying himself. She was witty, with strong opinions he enjoyed challenging. It made their conversations the most lively and interesting he’d ever had. Unfortunately, when he caught sight of the time, it was almost twelve o’clock and he didn’t have a door key. ‘I’d better get going before I get locked out. Don’t want to outstay my welcome with your mum,’ he said, getting slowly to his feet, feeling stiff from sitting in the same position.
Paige got up with him and stretched out her back from being hunched over the books. They really had lost track of the time. ‘Don’t worry. I think she’s ready to adopt you,’ she said with a grin.
The easy way she now spoke made him pull her towards him and kiss her again. She felt perfect in the circle of his arms, completely encased and just the right height. She tasted of peaches. He had to stop himself before he needed more.
Xavier cupped the side of her face and ran a thumb across her lower lip. ‘Sorry,’ he whispered. ‘I simply can’t help myself.’
She looked up at him with dilated, enquiring eyes; so fragile and unsure. It was madness between the two of them, he knew. He would have to tread very carefully so as not to break her. It struck him that, for the first time in his life, he had to act responsibly and he wasn’t sure how he felt about that, exactly. ‘I’d better go,’ he whispered again. ‘I’ll see you tomorrow.’ He reluctantly released her, keeping hold of one hand as he headed towards the hallway. His mind was already preoccupied with whether it could ever work between them.
They stopped at the front door and he slipped on his shoes, while she opened the latch for him. ‘Are you sure you know where you’re going?’
He frowned a little because he didn’t. He’d found himself outside her place by accident. He laughed a little. ‘Actually, I have no idea where I am.’
She gave him instructions back to the main road that would take him to the Johnsons’ place, while he pulled his jacket back on. ‘I can draw you a map?’ she said.
He put his misgivings aside, took in the pink of her cheeks and her slightly ruffled hair and kissed her again. She responded easily as if they’d been close forever. He pulled out of the kiss before he crushed her against the wall, right there in the home she shared with her mother. His body temperature rose to feverishly hot – a physiological change that often happened with Atlanteans – and rose ferociously with her.
Xavier put her away from him suddenly before she noticed, and more roughly than he would have liked.
She looked bewildered and disappointed. ‘Are you OK? You look angry. Have I done something wrong?’
She’d taken him pulling away and the redness of his face as anger and rejection. The ridiculousness of it exasperated and frustrated the hell out of him. He had to get away from her to get his head straight. He had to think clearly about what he was really getting into with this girl. It wasn’t going to be simple. He was going to have to be responsible and he wasn’t sure he was ready for any of that. He ran a hand up through his hair, pushing it back.
‘Are you OK? she was saying. ‘Can I get you a glass of water?’
He wanted to shout at her to get away from him, but he managed to take a few gulps of air and say, ‘I’ll see you tomorrow,’ in a gruff whisper.
Now she looked frightened and he wanted to shout at the kind doe eyes to stay away from him if she knew what was good for her. Instead, he half turned away, hating himself.
Then he felt her soft hand clasp his and he was kissing her again. One last incendiary kiss that seared through his body in white heat. The kind that could drown her if they were anywhere near water. The need to protect her reared up and shocked him; even then when he was lost to the world, absorbed only in the sensation of her. She was too close and addictive. In the end he had to push her away, rush out of the door and make sure he pulled it shut behind him.
He ripped off his jacket and breathed easier for the first time in hours. He relished the cool, drizzly air on his burning-hot cheeks. He’d been with a lot of girls – particularly at their old school. Girls that gave themselves to him simply because he willed it. His father had explained the heat and what it meant for them as ancestors of an underwater race and he’d experienced it many times. Often using a swimming pool or a cold shower to cool off. But this – what he’d felt with Paige tonight – was on a whole other level. It scared him half to death. Everything was so far out of his control.
His thoughts whirled and tumbled over it all the way back to the Johnsons’. It seemed the walk took no time at all. Maybe he’d been walking in circles before. His heart raced between abject terror at what he could do to her if he didn’t get a hold, and the excitement of having his own girl who was clever and beautiful and responded to him so beautifully. She liked him for him, not who he was. She had no clue about his money and title. She’d simply invited him into her home and helped him with his homework. She was motivated and driven and had no idea that one wrong move and he could kill her.
Then there was the real truth. That even more infuriating than his father making them live there in the first place, was that it would inevitably be temporary. Just as he was making a life, he would have to leave. His and Paige’s paths would separate, both to be ruined by the circumstances of their birth.
It struck him then that she would, without doubt, meet someone else. Of course she would. She was gorgeous. Anger flashed through him in a tempest so hot, it dwarfed the heat of earlier. If he’d come upon someone at that point he would have killed them on the spot.
Thankfully, he rounded the corner to the Johnsons’ apartment block. He vowed to himself right then, that, however selfish it was, he would not allow that. Paige would never belong to anyone else. He took a moment to calm down, then, with his decision made, he messaged JJ to let him in. The door opened in seconds. ‘We need to talk,’ Xavier said immediately.
‘Agreed,’ JJ said, as serious as him. ‘The three of us need a meeting.’
Xavier stared into the weird aquamarine eyes that always seemed to know everything.
‘I’m guessing we all have the same problem,’ JJ said.
CHAPTER 14
JJ stepped back while Xavier moodily pushed past him into the flat. One look at his face told him all he needed to know. ‘In here,’ JJ said, overtaking him and heading for their bedroom.
Richie came out of the kitchen, biting into a slice of toast.
‘Can you give us a minute, mate?’ JJ said. ‘We’ve got a family thing to discuss.’
Richie rolled his eyes and immediately diverted his steps to the living room without comment.
JJ pulled Xavier into the room and put a chair under the door handle. Alexia was already sitting on his bunk. He tipped his head in her direction for Xavier to sit next to her.
Xavier sat down. ‘Can we get on with it? I need some sleep.’
JJ took in the angry face of his brother, looking around the room in impatience. Then, after a couple of paces up and down the small space between the beds, he sat down on Richie’s bunk opposite.
Xavier finally looked at him and waited for him to speak.
‘Honestly, I don’t know where to begin,’ JJ said, letting his hands drop wearily into his lap.
‘Then I’ll say it for you,’ Xavier said, completely deadpan. ‘We’re getting too involved. All of us.’
He was absolutely right. So right, that he still couldn’t think what to say to it.
‘But wasn’t that what Dad wanted when he sent us here? To fit in. To assimilate?’ Alexia said, beginning to raise her voice.
JJ understood how she must be feeling. It was always hardest on her to fit in. With two brothers, there weren’t many boys who would dare give her any real chance. All he could do was bob his head at her for a very good point. However his mind shot to what had happened that night and the very first time he’d gotten close to Latitia. ‘I’m not sure this was what they had in mind.’
Alexia looked confused and Xavier still looked moodily blank. ‘I think we should put a case to him to leave now,’ JJ said.
‘Finally,’ Xavier said, relaxing. ‘Maybe you’ll start listening to me now.’
Alexia jumped to her feet. ‘Wait! No! I like it here. It’s exciting. It’s real. Do you want to go back to a school where all they’re interested in is how rich we are or how royal? Or worse still, being schooled at home where all we get to mix with are cousins who always get on our nerves? Come on, guys. For the first time in my life, I feel like I’m living.’ She flopped back down onto the bunk, deflated. ‘I really like him.’
JJ watched her tirade and felt every moment of it with her. She was right in everything she said. He immediately dropped down on his knees in front of her and held her hands. ‘I know, Lexie. It’s the same for us all. Even Xav,’ he said, flicking his eyes to his brother sitting silently, listening, next to her. ‘But think about it. Nothing can possibly come of it. All that will happen is that we’ll ruin their lives.’
She was already shaking her head while tears fell down her cheeks, knowing full well he spoke the truth and not wanting to hear it. ‘I’m not leaving. I don’t care what you say.’ She bravely held in her sobs and glared at him.
JJ hated being the bad guy with her; he always managed to leave that job to Xavier. He knelt up and went to hug her when Xavier put out a hand to stop him. ‘Stop crying and listen,’ Xavier said, in his hard no-nonsense voice. ‘You won’t mean to, but you’ll kill him. Is that what you want?’
JJ was so shocked that he’d put the thing he’d skirted around so concisely that he made Alexia look him in the eyes to prove he agreed. He had no idea things had moved so far along between Xavier and the girl he knew he liked. He simply nodded and said, ‘He’s right.’
When she stopped crying, he eased back onto his haunches and looked straight at his brother. ‘What happened with you tonight?’
Xavier looked wretched. His eyes seemed wild and desolate, like he’d never seen them. Not even in any of the times they’d been in danger as a child. ‘Don’t you feel it? Doesn’t it happen to you?’ He sprang to his feet, even though there was nowhere to go in the small space.
JJ eased into Xavier’s place on the bed next to Alexia so he could see him more easily. Even Alexia had stopped crying to hear what was wrong. ‘What do you mean, Xav?’ JJ prompted, although he had a good idea. He felt it too. The flash of heat that seared through him whenever he got hot for a girl. Although he guessed it was worse for those with purer genes.
‘The heat when you—’ Xav flicked his eyes at Alexia uncomfortably, not wanting to finish in front of her.
She rolled her eyes. ‘For God’s sake, Xav. You don’t think I feel it too?’
JJ had always been able to talk more freely with Alexia. For some reason, Xavier’s protectiveness kept him aloof. ‘It’s worse with Latitia,’ he said, to head off an argument between them. Alexia was growing up and would no longer be pushed around by them. He’d need to stress that to Xavier when he had him alone. ‘What’s it like for you?’ he said, more gently, in the hope of coaxing her out.
‘She won’t have – she better not have,’ Xavier said, turning and glaring at her squarely.
‘Not helping, Xav,’ JJ said, looking up though his eyebrows at him in warning.
He was a geyser about to blow. ‘We need to leave, JJ. I kissed Paige and I …’
JJ could see the turmoil about how to put it. He rarely confided with this kind of stuff. Then he got what he was driving at and couldn’t stop the wide grin spreading across his face. ‘Felt the bonding urge,’ he finished for him, amazed. It was something he was yet to feel and with his watered-down genes, he wasn’t sure he would feel it at all. He was suddenly envious of his brother, which wasn’t logical.
Xavier rolled his eyes. ‘You don’t understand. I didn’t do anything to her. I barely even know her. One minute we were doing homework and then I almost combusted with heat.’
The image made JJ let out a burst of laughter. Alexia giggled next to him.
Xavier scowled. ‘If I go any further, and I will if I stay here much longer,’ he said through tight lips, ‘We’ll need water and I’ll kill her.’
JJ’s eyes widened when he realized Xavier wasn’t playing around. He was genuinely scared. It wasn’t just the drowning part, either. A shower could cool him down; it was the exchange of breath. The part of a person breathed into another to share their spirit. It was the real marriage between Atlanteans and one never taken lightly. If Xavier was getting feelings like that, then this was more serious than he thought.
He turned immediately to Alexia. ‘And you get this too?’
She shrugged and nodded. ‘I think so. It gets stronger every day.’
JJ looked away to digest what he’d heard and let out a slow breath. It sounded like Alexia wasn’t where Xavier was yet. Maybe it was stronger with males. He wasn’t sure. Perhaps Dwayne wasn’t ‘the one’ or maybe they just hadn’t got intimate enough to spark it. It was very hard for him to gauge with his far more human genes. ‘It may not be as bad as you think, Xav?’ he said, in an attempt to calm him down a bit. My father is more human and is alive to tell the tale.’
Xavier shifted his weight in exasperation. ‘That’s as maybe, but are you willing to take that chance? He’s in our world, JJ. He was fully aware of the risks and chose it.’
JJ sighed and nodded. Xavier was right. Even if Latitia survived being with him, she’d need to leave her world. Her dreams of being a dancer, life as she knew it, would be over.
Alexia broke him from his thoughts by getting up. ‘So that’s it. We give up on the people we’ve liked the best in our whole lives just because of tiny genetic differences?’
She was almost shouting, making Xavier look nervously at the door and patting the air in front of him for her to keep it down.
‘That’s just racist,’ Alexia said, moodily flopping down on the bed opposite.
Her comment was so ludicrous it made JJ smile at her, which infuriated her as he knew it would.
‘Don’t be ridiculous, Alexia,’ Xavier said. ‘Tiny differences that could kill them.’ Then he turned to JJ, a plea in his eyes. ‘We need to pitch it to Father as a diplomatic minefield about to go off.’
‘He’ll only ask what the difference is here?’ He couldn’t fault Xavier’s logic. ‘What’s different to the school in New Hampshire? Dad won’t buy it. You know he won’t.’
They were silent for a beat while they all absorbed the truth in that.
‘Well, I’m not going, JJ. Not yet,’ Alexia said, folding her arms like a full-stop.
‘What about if we talk to Keenan?’ Xavier said.
JJ nodded. ‘What, get him to intercede for us? If we can convince him, he might be able to convince Dad.’
Xavier nodded.
