Page 5 of Scrooged for the Holidays
Most human auras tend to be red, orange, yellow, green, blue, or purple, but Greer’s…Greer’s is gray. The more I rummage and seek, following the threads of what should be emotion and different feelings, all I find is gray. It isn’t until I get to the edge of her aura that I discover a small hint of red. And while that can be passion or love in most cases, hers is not. It’s that anger I felt.
My aura made of bright gold—the color the angels in my lineage have, signifying spiritual wisdom and divine protection—mutes the longer I stay in her field and dig around. The feeling of ice water being dumped over my head has me pulling back, and for the first time in all the years I’ve lived, I feel cold. Nephilim do not feel the cold.
I withdraw from her aura, and my pulse thuds back to its normal rhythm, my body returning to its base temperature. Greer stands straighter and shifts her focus toward me, as if she felt me retreat.
My skin prickles once more as our eyes meet. Her gaze is narrowed, but my breath catches in my lungs. Her irises are unique. Her left eye is a clear blue, while the right is half-blue and half-brown.Beautiful.
That pretty gaze eyes me up and down, stopping briefly on the V of my navy sweater. I feel her energy shift without the need to tap into her aura. The detached look on her face dissipates as the corner of her lip twitches. A hint of passion pushes out of her along with that bit of anger, and my lip twitches as well. She’s attracted to me.
Our eyes stay connected for a moment longer, and I know instinctively that Greer Mallory is the reason I was drawn out of Elysian Pines and to Holly’s Restaurant. Normally, I would question why the magic of our town didn’t simply bring her to us to begin with, but there is always a reason for everything.
“Ms. Mallory—”
“You can address me as Greer,” she interjects, turning her focus back to the older woman.
“Ms. Mallory,” she repeats, a shadow of a defiant grin forming on her face.
I smile at Holly’s jab. I knew she could handle herself without my help.
“Please come back another time,” she continues. “Like I said, it’s Christmas.”
“It’s not Christmas yet, and likeIsaid, I won’t be long. Now, please, I’d like to take a tour of the building. I can do self-guided, or—”
“Fine,” Holly snaps. “I’ll show you around.”
“Thank you.”
Watching the final part of this interaction only solidifies why I was pulled here. Elysian Pines wanted me to see Greer in action. To see her heartlessness, her cool and detached nature.
It’s not the first time I’ve experienced someone like this. My fellow Nephilim and I help many people who are drawn to Elysian Pines every year, not just around Christmastime. But I remember a man I experienced much like Greer from many Christmases ago. He was brought to our hidden magical town cold and angry. He was consistently choosing work over his family and was about to lose the love of his life and his children.
Kai showed him his past, me his present, and Sam his future, using our individual abilities to present him with what his life was, is, and could be depending on the path he chose. Needless to say, he found his way home for Christmas a changed man.
I read that Greer is a bit different, however. That man’s aura was a dark brown, full of regret and pain. Hers is bleak—gray and dreary, like a cold and rainy London day. Then there’s that touch of anger and the hint of passion she revealed when our eyes met. It makes me want to get to know her, to study the threads until I figure out why she’s different. Why I feel more drawn to her than most people we help.
I study her carefully as she shrugs off her coat and scarf, hanging it on an old coat rack near the entrance. Her body is revealed to me, the black power suit she’s wearing with aroyal-blue blouse underneath tailored perfectly to every curved line of her. I may be a Nephilim and drawn here on a mission, but I’m not immune to a good-looking woman. I know without a doubt that my fellow guardians and I would have a great time worshiping her if she’d let us.
My cock twitches against the placket of my jeans. It’s been some years since we shared a female together, much less a human woman. Not to mention, we’ve never been intimate with an intended job before. It’s always been someone in Garland or a female Nephilim.
Knowing Sam, he’d balk at even the idea of it. It’s an unspoken rule that we don’t get involved with the people we help. It could get too messy, especially if anyone gets attached to a human who will leave Elysian Pines after their specific needs have been met and they forget not only us but the town as well.
Moreover, Sam is a stickler for the order of things, for the repetition of our daily lives. It’s interesting, though, because when I think of having her, sharing her, it feels right.
The hunger in my lower stomach surges at the idea, the motion like a wave pushing me toward her. I don’t understand it, but I don’t have time to dwell on it because Holly leads Greer by my table.
My gaze connects first with the older woman, and I give her a small smile of reassurance. I can’t be certain what the future holds for her and this restaurant, but that will come in its own time. I have a strong feeling its future depends on Greer and the time she’ll spend in Elysian Pines with Kai, Sam, and me. She doesn’t know that bit of information yet, but the town will find a way to get her to us safely. It always does with our jobs.
“I’ll leave cash for you,” I tell Holly. “Thank you for the warm meal.” She touches my arm, and I allow her to take a bit of my hopeful energy. Her shoulders lift slightly, and she dips her chin at me.
Greer walks past next, the cinnamon and vanilla scent of her perfume filling my nose. She steps slower than she needs to, and those unique eyes flick down my body as if she’s trying to see the rest of me under the booth. The energy of her attraction explodes among the nothingness of her aura, and I lick my upper lip subtly, a bit of salt from my meal still there. Her attention zeros in on the movement, and her pupils expand.
The click of her leather boots pauses, and I think she’s going to stop, but instead, she keeps walking. The sleeve of her suit jacket brushes against my arm, and the hunger I was feeling expands yet again, as if my body wants me to get out of my chair and devour her, take her mouth to see if she tastes like cinnamon and vanilla, too.
I clear my throat, and Greer’s footsteps fade toward the back with Holly’s. I place enough money to cover my meal plus a very large tip on the table and stand then slide my jacket on and pull out my phone. I know Kai is keeping Sam occupied, but I text them to let them know I’m on my way and have something important to tell them.
I exit the restaurant, the snow coming down heavier than it was before. If I didn’t trust the magic of the town to lead Greer to us, I’d be concerned for her safety. But she’ll be alright, and I’ll see her again very soon. Of that, I am certain.
Chapter three
