Page 70 of Evolve

Less than thirty minutes later, I’m pulling the Range Rover intoThe Den’sparking lot. I considered taking her on the back of my bike but figured that it wasn’t the safest idea. All of our caged vehicles are fully armored and considering the current threats against not only Ella, but us, the SUV was the best choice. The drive over was quiet but comfortable. Ella played with the radio and softly hummed the majority of the time.

It was nostalgic for me and I added it to the ever-growing list of shit that I am not allowed to mention to her but feel the need to do so, regardless. I don’t know how much longer I can keep going on like this, with this massive secret between us, and it’s only been a few days.

The Denclosed hours ago, so I disable the alarm from my phone before unlocking the door. I flick on the lights, immediately bathing the massive building in light, and lead the way toward the offices in the back.

“What did you say you needed to do?” she murmurs, her eyes taking in the space. I’m sure it looks different like this, no clients, darkness pouring in through the skylights. It’s silent except for our footsteps which echo due to the stained concrete flooring.

“I added additional security measures on our home surveillance and computer systems and I need to do the same here. I’ve already done the tech part, now I just need to update the software. Usually, I would do something like this remotely, but given that it’s a massive security upgrade, I didn’t want to risk anyone hacking me.”

“That makes sense,” she says, almost absentmindedly as we reach my office. The automatic lights turn on when I unlock the door and step in, Ella right behind me. “Wow, this is nice. I’ve never been back here.”

I take a seat at my desk, turning on my computer and bringing it to life. “Yeah, when we bought the building, it was an old, empty warehouse so we had to do a lot of work but we liked that about it. It was basically a blank canvas. All of our offices are identical, for the most part.” I murmur the last sentence, knowing that the only difference is the addition in my office.

We built it this way, knowing that I needed a place to do what I do that was secure, secret, and safe. We also knew none of us wanted it in our home due to the fact that we don’t bring strangers or sexual partners there. Until now.

I pull up my security program and quickly begin working on the update, entering code in rapid succession. I am vaguely aware of Ella hesitantly coming up to stand behind me. It makes me smile. She always was exceptionally curious. She was also extremely intelligent, even as a child.

Moondust-Jaymes Young

When I met her, she was secretive about a lot of things, claiming she wasn’t allowed to share personal details and that she would be in a lot of trouble if she did. My home life was a blaring example of what happens to children who piss off their shitty parents after a threat like that has been made, so I never questioned her logic again.

To me, it just made sense. If your parent or guardian threatens you, you do what you’re being told to do, no matter what. I was somehow always found to have done something wrong, warranting punishments that terrified and damaged me in more ways than one. And I never wanted that for her.

However, over time, things came up organically. Knowledge and facts about her and her life that I stored away like a squirrel preparing for winter.

Over our two years together, I learned many things aboutMi Cielo. Her intelligence rivals my own in many areas. When she found out that my friends had taught me to speak Spanish, she insisted that I teach her as well. In exchange, she taught me, French. We would often sit for hours hypothesizing about various political and world events. Things that my friends never wanted to discuss with me, but she was always so enthralled and eager to dive into.

I was two years and two grades ahead of her, but I knew she had been homeschooled. I was doing math and other skills much higher than my grade at the time, and she was able to keep up with me. I always attributed her abilities to the fact that she had never attended public school as I did and I assumed her home education was much better than my own.

Now, I’m not so sure.

However, one of her more interesting abilities that I was never able to rationalize away, was her combat skills. As a child, I was picked on often. It’s why Gage used to get into so many fights at school. That, and because Maddox has always had a penchant for trouble. Between the two of us, Gage and Nyx both continually felt the need to come to our rescue.

WhenEllafound out I was being picked on at school, she decided to teach me self-defense. I refused for quite some time, but I quickly learned that I was never going to win that argument and eventually realized that I didn’t want to say no to her. I only ever wanted to make her happy. So when she dragged me down from our treehouse and proceeded to kick my ass in the middle of the night, in a deserted backyard, I was shocked, to say the least.

The girl can fight. I was an inexperienced kid in the fighting department at the time so I didn’t knowwhatexactly she was teaching me, but I do now. The tiny little 10-year-old who held my heart in her hand was well versed in Krav Maga, Muay Thai, and Tae Kwon Do. It was incredible and even though she kicked my ass easily, I found myself becoming further enchanted with her.

This morning, I discovered that despite the fact that she has lost a significant amount of her memories, her body still remembers. Disarming Nyxon the way that she did was not only fucking hot, it was incredible, and she had no idea. When we saw her creating her makeshift holster, it took everything in me not to truly point out how abnormal that knowledge was. Even flipping over the couch is not something a regular 22-year-old female would do. But her body and instinct took over to the point that she was unaware she had even done it.

It makes me want to test her and figure out how many other skills she has retained.

“Did you have a favorite subject in school?” I hedge while continuing to type.

“No, not really,” she starts and I feel a momentary bout of sadness at that. But then after a pause, she continues. “I loved all of them. When I was in High School, I was going through a lot, emotionally, I mean. And well, my life was pretty fucked up and crazy and I didn’t adjust well. I was picked on a lot and I kind of got into the whole emo-scene thing.” Her laugh is throaty and sultry and my cock instantly perks up at the sound. I shift my legs under the desk, hiding my erection. “But since I was the weird kid, no one really noticed that I was also the really smart kid. I don’t even think my adoptive parents noticed it because the amount of time I spent in detention over-shadowed any academic achievement.”

I look up at her, those words ringing true for me as well. “I understand that,” I murmur, drawing her eyes to mine. “I was always the really smart kid in school and I got picked on a lot even from a young age. People don’t appreciate intelligence for what it is. Instead, they just see us as different.”

“But it’s the best kind of different,” she agrees with a bright smile.Fuck, she is so goddamned beautiful.I nod but pull my eyes away from hers and force myself to finish. "How old are you?"

"24," I answer while continuing to type. I have to fight a grin at the fact that she wants to get to know me. "You?" I question because it's normal to reciprocate in such a way, even though I already know the answer.

"21," she says automatically. My eyes dart to hers and I can't help the sharp inhale at her words. She sighs and continues, oblivious to the multitude of emotions that I am unable to contain as they fill me. "I don't know exactly, but the hospital guessed I was 9 when I was abandoned there."

Fuck. Me.

"When is your birthday then?" I force out through gritted teeth, already not wanting to hear her answer.

She swallows and looks away as her fists clench. Closing her eyes, she exhales roughly before speaking again. "May 10th. I," she breaks off and sighs, shaking her head. After a few moments, her fists relax and her shoulders drop. I wish I could say that the posture change is indicative of the fact that she's gotten control of whatever anxiety she's warring with, but the shift looks a hell of a lot like sad resignation. "I hate my birthday. It's-it, it reminds me of everything I've lost I guess."

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