Chapter Thirty
Not for Silas. He itched to whisk Min away to a darkened corner of the parking lot and drop to one knee. Seeing Nicole rubbing that precious baby in her belly sent wary shivers down his spine. That could be his child. His and Min’s. An urgency saturated his pores to mention Nicole’s offer to Min. What would she say to that? Would she agree to adoption? Would she agree to marry him without the baby?
It was a discussion that was best done without interruptions.
But then like all the other times he needed to be alone with her, someone always butted in where they didn’t belong. This time it had been Sylvia and Nick. Next time it would be one of the girls, or his work, or a nuclear bomb dropped right into Tennessee central. It didn’t matter who or what obstructed their privacy, it always happened.
At this rate, they would be married when he was seventy-five, and actually get to consummate the union when he’s twenty years cold and buried.
Frankly, Silas was getting a little sick of the intrusions. So far, he’d done pretty damn good handling Min’s immortal existence, Min’s “friends,” Min’s involvement with Ashley, Min’s teasing, Min’s grasp of his entire heart, soul, and world… But he was working his way through the hay bale and down to only a few straws left. The burdened beast of patience was on the verge of back surgery, and probably a couple of hip replacements as well. You know, the whole “straw that broke the camel’s back” thing?
Every bit of his troubles was worth the weight of her body leaning against his chest that night, with the black river flowing below and the twinkling celestial lights above. However…it would be very nice and polite of the world’s citizens if they would all go the hell away for just a few hours.
All these obstructions into his and Min’s privacy couldn’t be normal. There were too damn many of them…and all the damn time. He knew couples who were married, worked full time jobs and had six or seven children. Those people had time alone. Those people seemed to juggle the balance of privacy with family and friends. Those people had normal, hectic lives, and still secured more intimate time with their loved ones than Silas could do with Min.
Something about all this was not natural. And with all the unnatural visits he’d been having lately, he recognized a conspiracy when he saw one.
“Min?” he asked softly.
“Hmm?”
“Can I ask you something?”
She smiled, her cheeks rounding up from the curve her lips made. “You already did.”
“Ha, ha, smarty-pants. I want to ask you something else.”
She peeked at him. “From your tone, I’m suspecting this is not a…um, human topic?”
“Not really,” he admitted. “Tell me how Fate works.”
Her eyebrows lowered over her eyes. “I’m not sure I’m following.”
“You said Fate was one of those Essences, but you also said that Essences were embodiments of the emotions that make up our souls. Fate isn’t an emotion.”
Min squirmed against his chest as he spoke. She clasped her hands in front of her and twisted the emerald ring on her finger. She watched the crowd settling down on the hillside below them. Soon the fireworks would start, and Mae and Amber were on their way back from the concession stand.
“You’re not comfortable talking about this, are you?” he asked.
“Not really, Silas.”
“Why?”
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The Summer of Bells: The Essences Saga - Book #2
General FictionIn this sequel to The House of Bells, Min Meyer is faced with another set of issues. A secret group, called The Watchers, are focusing on Min and her brood of girls. And Silas is determined to have as normal of a relationship with Min as is possib...
