Page 121 of Roaring Flames

A little bit of Lissa’s sass returns as she scowls and stomps her foot. Literally stomps it, like a petulant two-year-old.

“It’s for adults only, Liss,” I tell her gently, though that’s not technically true.

It’s for supernaturals…and those who know about the world.

Lissa’s lips purse, but she doesn’t comment. Frost seeps into her dark eyes, turning them obsidian.

Hale and Gerry need to tell Lissa the truth…and soon…before they lose her forever.

I open my mouth—to say what, I don’t know—but Lissa shoulders past me before I can get a word out. The door slams shut behind her, leaving me alone in the room.

What the hell was that about?

Was Lissa’s warning something…preternatural or just the worried ramblings of a depressed and confused girl?

Either way, the boulder in my stomach refuses to erode. I’m not sure it ever will.

Jake’s in the kitchen when I get downstairs, and the sight stops me in my tracks. I can’t remember the last time I saw him out of his bedroom.

He wears a plain white T-shirt and sleep pants, and his blond hair is artfully rumpled. Fortunately, he looks clean, as if he showered recently, which is ahugeimprovement to the last time I saw him.

He’s leaning inside the fridge but straightens when he sees me. A sheepish smile tugs at the corners of his lips.

“Oops. Busted.”

“I… You…” Irritation flares in my chest. “Where have you been? I’ve been worried sick about you! You don’t leave your room, and you don’t answer when I call, text, knock, or scream.”

He tosses a bottle of orange juice from one hand to the other. “Are you going to hit me? Because I need to prepare myself if you are.”

“I’m very, very tempted.”

The smile doesn’t fade from his face, though his eyes dim, the baby-blue color turning subdued. “I know you’ve been worried about me?—”

“Damn right.”

“But I needed time to think things through, you know?” He releases a dry, humorless laugh. “I don’t think you understand what it’s like to know that everything you believe in is a lie. I mean…I guess you do, but it’s not like this, you know?”

The wind falls out of my sails at that.

I physically sag forward and place my elbows on the granite countertop.

“I can’t even imagine,” I confess. “I thought it sucked when I learned that my parents weren’t even truly my parents, but…”

“But at least you’re alive.” Jake focuses on the orange juice in his hands. He continually tosses it back and forth, back and forth.

“Jake—”

“I’m not sure you should even call me that,” he interrupts. “Because I’m not truly Jake, am I? He died.”

Swallowing is impossible. “Don’t let this change you.”

He barks out another laugh. “How can Inot?”

“I don’t care what anyone says. You’re Jake. You’re funny and charming and annoying and protective and everything a girl could want in a brother. You’re the strongest person I know. If anyone can get through this, you can.”

The smile gracing Jake’s handsome features turns a little more genuine. “I haven’t really been a good brother, though. I’ve been too caught up in my own shit to ask you how you’ve been.”

“No, Jake. Don’t say that. I don’t expect?—”

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