Chapter Twelve
Mia
Mia was a little surprised. On Monday, when she went to school, she'd half expected everyone to know she'd gotten wasted and slept with Seth. She'd mentally prepared herself for the looks, the whispers, the ugly comments. But she got none of that. It was...odd. Until she saw the smug look on her brother's face. “What did you do?” she hissed.
“I recognized his scent on you. I know it was Seth Connors. I made it clear to him dat if he ran his mouth he'd regret it. All I had to do was remind him what happened to Cole. He was dere, he saw Cole get his ass kicked by Gage.”
“You told him you'd sick Gage on him?”
“Nah. I just let him tink dat.” He shrugged. “I know. It's not the upstandin' ting to do, but I wasn't gonna let him drag you through da mud just cuz you got drunk at a party.”
“Thanks, Jules.” She felt tears stinging her eyes and had to blink to clear her vision.
“No need to thank me, sis. You know dat. See you at lunch.” This was the first year they didn't have any classes together. It was odd but refreshing at the same time.
“See you at lunch.” She spotted Seth as she headed to her first class and swallowed. Just act normal. She nodded at him as she passed him.
“Hey, Mia. Hold up. I need to talk to you for a sec.”
She silently groaned but she stopped. “What's up?”
“About the other night. Your brother didn't need to threaten to sick Gage on me. I don't go around bragging about things the way Cole did.”
“I didn't know he did dat. I don't even know how he figured out it was you unless I said someting in my sleep. I'm sorry he got in your face.”
Seth shrugged. “I'd do the same thing if someone banged my sister. I'd make sure they didn't drag her through the mud so it's all good.”
“Oh. Okay. I gotta get to class. See ya around.” She heaved a sigh of relief when she walked away from him. At least he wasn't pissed about Julius getting on his case.
By lunch time the tension she'd felt when she arrived at school had faded. By the end of the day, the only stress she was under was of her own doing. She knew it was going to be a while before she stopped feeling dirty.
“Stop it, Mia. Just stop.”
Mia frowned at Jules. They were in the boat on their way back to the compound. “Stop what?”
“Stop beatin' yourself up over it. You got drunk and you had sex. It happened. You can't change it and dere's no'ting wrong wit' you. Boys are expected to want to fuck all da time but girls are supposed to be pure? I say it's bullshit. Who are boys gonna be fuckin' if all da girls are virgins? Sex isn't shameful. You can feel bad dat it happened while you were drunk, you can feel bad dat it was wit' someone you're not really interested in, but stop feelin' like you're a horrible, dirty person just because you had a drunken one-night stand.”
Mia blinked at her twin. “When did you get so philosophical?”
“When I finally accepted dat I don't like girls. You tink it's easy to come out to others? Most of my friends still don't know, but DA ones who matter, dey do and dey're cool wit' it.”
Mia scooted closer to him and hugged him. “I'll try. Dat's all I can promise.”
“Dat's good enough for me.” He kissed her cheek. “Are you excited about your first gallery showin' on Saturday?”
“Excited and nervous. I just don't know if anyone is really gonna like it.”
“You're brilliant wit' paint, Mia. People are gonna love your work. You'll see.”
“I hope you're right.”
There was still a lot to do between then and Saturday. It made the week fly by quickly. When Saturday finally arrived she was at the gallery early so she could oversee the layout of her pieces. It was a progression that started with very dark themes that showed her inner turmoil after the attempted rape, to lighter, almost happy pieces that emphasized the healing she'd done to over come what had happened to her.
Gage
Gage spent every spare moment that week working on something special for Mia. He'd ended things with Carrie and decided this was it. He was done being stupid, done fucking around. Knowing that he'd hurt Mia, it tore at his heart. He just hoped he could earn her forgiveness. When Saturday rolled around he dressed carefully. He was going to an art gallery. Wearing a pair of old jeans and a t-shirt wasn't going to cut it. Instead, he wore a pair of black slacks with a dark blue button-down shirt and a black tie. He even traded his old leather boots for a pair of new ones. Tucking his gift under his arm he headed out.
“Where you going all dressed up?”
Gage glanced at where one of his frat brother's was lounging on the sofa. “Art gallery openin'.”
“You're joking, right?”
“Nope. Da artist is someone very important to me.”
“Sounds boring, but whatever floats your boat, dude.”
Gage just shook his head and left. There was no sense in arguing with his fellow Delt about it. Along the way to the gallery showing, he stopped and picked up one more gift for Mia. This one he couldn't make himself.
By the time Gage arrived outside the Contemporary Arts Center he was a bundle of nervous energy. Doubts assailed him as he got out of his car and grabbed the long, thin box that sat on the passenger seat. What if she refused to even speak to him? Or worse, what if she took one look at him and started to cry? It would shred his heart even more. He kept flashing back on the look on her face when he'd opened his eyes to see her standing in the doorway at the frat house. The pain he'd seen there had almost crippled him. He reached the doors and paused to steady his nerves. “Here goes no'ting,” he muttered under his breath before he stepped inside.
Mia
It was 6:30 in the evening and the showing was in full swing. When it started, and only a trickle of people came through the doors, Mia got nervous. As the minutes ticked by, however, more visitors came through, and soon the nervousness gave way to pride. In the first half an hour she'd had three different people ask if any of her paintings were for sale and one asked if she did custom orders. The praise buoyed her confidence as she moved through the small crowd.
“Looks like all your worries were for no'ting.”
Mia turned to her twin and stuck her tongue out at him. “Smart ass.”
Julius snickered. “True, I am. And it's such a nice ass, as well.”
That made Mia laugh and roll her eyes. “You're awful. So, I noticed you were chattin' wit' that young cop dey sent over to keep an eye on tings.”
“I was askin' him about da job, what he liked about it.” His cheeks pinked a little.
“Were you tryin' to hit on him?”
“What? No. Dat would be illegal since I'm jailbait. No, seriously, he's cute but I really was askin' him what he liked about bein' a cop. You know I've been takin' criminology courses. At first I thought maybe I'd become a lawyer but...dat's not what I want to do.”
“What do you want to do?” She had a bad feeling she already knew.
“I'm gonna apply for da police academy as soon as we graduate.”
Her heart squeezed with fear for her twin's safety. “Are you sure about dis? Is dis what you really want to do?”
“Yeah. It is.”
“Okay, den. You have my full support.” What else could she do but support him when he'd always supported her?
“Thanks, sis.” Julius spotted Gage and frowned. “What's he doin' here?”
Mia turned to see who he was talking about and her heart skipped a beat. Just seeing Gage made her pulse race. It also made it hurt a little because she remembered the last time she saw him. “Be nice, Jules,” she hissed under her breath as Gage made his way to them.
“I don't know why you keep givin' him second chances with how much he's already hurt you, Mia. He doesn't deserve you.”
“Maybe so, but I can't help how I feel, Jules. I love him. Dat's not gonna change.” When Gage stopped in front of them she swallowed. “Hi.”
Gage
When he entered the main area where Mia's showing was set up, Gage's gaze scanned the crowd. The moment his gaze fell on her, his heart lurched. God, she was beautiful. She'd donned a simple sheath dress in dark purple that clung to her frame and made it abundantly clear she was no longer a child. She was almost a woman and seeing her made the desire he tried to keep in check roar to the surface. She'd pulled her hair up into a twist with several curls trailing around her face and his fingers itched to touch them. Swallowing past the sudden lump in his throat he approached. He didn't miss the dark look her brother gave him. Yeah, he deserved the look, but he was hoping to change that. Starting now. “You look beautiful, cher.” He found it difficult to keep his gaze from traveling down her body. He didn't want her to think that was all he was interested in.
Mia's cheeks warmed with the compliment. “Thank you. You look pretty spiffy yourself. I tink I can count on one hand da number of times I've seen you dressed up outside of christenin's and have fingers left over.”
Gage ran a hand through his hair, mussing it. “Yeah. Well. I don't really like wearin' dress shirts but tonight is a special occasion.” He stepped a little closer to her just as Julius moved away a little bit to give them some privacy. “I wanted to tell you how sorry I am, for what I did, for what you walked in on. I know I don't deserve it, I know I really fucked up wit' you, Mia, but I'm askin', no, I'm beggin', for one more chance. I've been doin' a lot of tinkin' dis week and I realized someting. Da reasons I was givin' myself for what I was doin' were bullshit. Dey weren't fair to you. I kept tellin' myself you still had some growin' up to do, you still have another full year of high school, it wasn't right for me to court you. I kept tellin' myself dat you needed time to get over what Cole did to you six months ago. It was all bullshit excuses to hide da fact I was scared shitless.”
Mia listened to him and as he gave all of the reasons why he'd been messing around with other girls, she found herself frowning. “Scared? What were you scared of?”
Gage finally gave in to the urge to touch her. He reached out and caressed her cheek with his fingertips. “I was scared dat I wasn't good enough for you. I was scared dat da way I felt about you was one-sided, dat you didn't see me da same way. When I saw da pain in your eyes last weekend, it hit me how much of a fool I've been. Any time I saw you talkin' to some guy at school, I wanted to rip dem to shreds for darin' to get near you. And if dey started checkin you out? I wanted to rip dere damn heads off. I don't expect you to forgive me right away. I know I'll have to earn your trust again, but all dat foolin' around, it's over. I'm done wit' it, Mia. Dere's only one girl for me and dat's you.” He was nervous as he held the box out to her. “Dese are for you.” For a moment there he didn't think she was going to take the box but after a moment she did and he waited to see her reaction.
Mia
When Gage reached her and Julius, Mia found herself feeling jittery with nerves. He looked so good all dressed up. The fact that he'd made the effort just to come see her eased some of the hurt she'd felt for the last week. His words melted her heart a little and she knew she was going to forgive him, yet again, for hurting her. Was she a fool for believing that this time would be different? Maybe, but she could hear the sincerity and honesty in his voice. Somehow, she just knew that this time really would be different.
“Scared? What were you scared of?” Hearing those words had startled her. Gage Delacroix was one of the bravest people she knew. What on earth could he be scared of? His response melted her heart even more. When he offered the box to her she took it from him but hesitated on opening it. “You're a damn fool, Gage Delacroix, and a blind one to boot, if you really tink it's one-sided. When I went to da prom wit' Cole, I only went because I didn't tink you would ever ask me, and once I gave him my word I couldn't back out of it. I wanted to be dere wit' you, you ass.”
When she finally tore her gaze from his so she could open the box a soft gasp escaped her. Inside was a dozen of intricately carved flowers. They weren't roses and it took her a moment to realize what they were. “Moon Flowers,” she whispered. He'd hand carved each and every one and then painted them so they looked like the real thing. “They're beautiful.”
“I wanted to give you someting dat symbolized my feelin's for you. Dese flowers will never fade, dey'll never wilt, dey'll never die, and neither will da love I have for you.”
Tears filled her eyes and she blinked several times to clear her vision. “Do you mean dis, Gage?”
“Wit' all my heart. Dere's one more ting.” He removed a small box from his pocket. “Dis is a promise, from me to you. I promise to never hurt you again. I promise to always be by your side when you need me. I promise to support any decision you make, no matter what. And I promise da love I have inside for you will never go away.” Nestled inside the box was a rose gold ring with three gems; a diamond with an emerald on one side and a ruby on the other. Engraved on the inside of the band were the words 'My Promise is Forever'.
A small sound escaped her when she saw the ring. The tears she'd been keeping at bay spilled over and slipped unchecked down her cheeks. She touched the band reverently before she lifted her eyes to his. “I love you, too. I have for so long. You hurt me, Gage. Ever'time you were wit' some other girl, it broke a little piece of my heart. If you mean dis, really mean it, you're gonna have to prove it.”
“Don't cry, cher. It breaks my heart to see your tears.” He reached out and gently pulled her into his arms. “I know I've got a lot to make up for. I know it's gonna take time for you to fully trust me again. I'll do whatever it takes to prove to you dat I love you and dat I mean what I say.”
She gave him a faint smile. “Okay. I'll give you one last chance. But dis is it. I can't go through another heartbreak and come out wit'out pieces of me missin'. I can't.”
“Dat's all I ask.” His arms tightened around her. He saw the look her brothers gave him and nodded to acknowledge it. He knew if he screwed this up they would make him pay for it.
Mia savored his embrace for several minutes before she pulled back. “How did you know about da showing?”
“Remy. Seems Beau gave him a card about it and he passed it along to me. I'm real glad he did, too.”
“Dat makes two of us. I'll have to thank him when I see him again. Have you had da chance to look at any of it?”
Gage shook his head. “No. I just got here. Findin' you was my top priority.”
“Well den, let me give you a tour and you can tell me what you tink.” There were a number of pieces he'd not seen yet.
Gage slipped the ring on her hand before he slid his arm around her shoulder and let her lead him around the gallery. “I don't remember seein' dis piece.” They stood in front of a piece that was a dark jumble of images. It brought out a feeling of pain, fear, and anguish.
“I did dis not long after Cole tried to rape me. A lot of da pieces are from dat time, workin' through all da emotions dat came wit' what he did to me. It helped to heal, gettin' da feelin's out on canvas.”
“I wish I coulda done more to protect you from him.” He would always blame himself. He should have known something was up when Cole kept deliberately steering her away from him whenever their paths almost crossed during prom.
“Don't. It's not your fault. You saved me from bein' raped by him.” She swallowed and looked down. “I need to tell you someting.” The shame she'd pushed down all week came roaring back and she couldn't look in his eyes. “After I saw you wit' dat girl, I went to a party wit' Tina. I got really, really drunk. I drank so much I actually had a hangover when I first woke up.”
“Gettin' drunk's no'ting to be ashamed of, cher. I've done it a few times myself.”
“No. It's not dat.” She bit her lip. “Da next mornin' I woke up...naked and in bed wit' Seth Connors. We were both drunk and...I came on to him. He didn't take advantage, so don't even tink about doin' someting stupid. I regretted it as soon as I woke up. I always wanted...well, doesn't matter now.”
Gage touched her chin and gently urged her to look at him. “Tell me.”
“I wanted my first time to be wit' you. But I was so hurt, and so angry, I let da alcohol go to my head and I had sex wit' someone I wasn't even interested in. And I don't even know if he used a condom.”
Gage knew what she was saying. If he didn't use a condom there was a very real chance she could end up pregnant. Shifters couldn't use hormonal birth control the way humans could because their bodies metabolized it too fast for it to be effective. “It doesn't matter. Whatever happens, we'll face it together. I'm not gonna blame you or berate you for it, Mia. For one ting, I don't have a right to. For another, dere's no'ting to blame you for to begin wit'. You were hurtin' and you found a way to forget about it for a little while. Dere's no shame in dat.” Considering the number of girls he'd had sex with, he had no room to point fingers.
“I still feel dirty.”
“Dat's because you're not da kind of girl to go around havin' casual sex. You need to let it go. Beatin' yourself up over it is just gonna make you feel worse. Consider it a learnin' experience and move on.”
“Maybe you're right.” She leaned into him and breathed in his scent. “I'm really glad you came tonight.”
“Me too, Princess.”
Mia blinked. “Princess? I kinda like dat.”
Gage chuckled. “Dat's what you are. My Princess.” He winked at her. “Show me around some more.”
They spent the rest of the evening together with Mia talking about each piece she had on display. She ended up selling three of her paintings and had two special orders for original works not yet seen by others. She was blown away by how well her work was received.
At the after party, she danced the night away in Gage's arms. When the party finally ended she didn't want the night to end so they ended up watching the sun come up together before she reluctantly let him take her home.
“Thank you, Princess, for givin' me one last chance.” Gage kept his voice soft so they wouldn't disturb her parents who were still asleep.
“You're welcome. Just don't blow it, Mister,” she whispered.
“I won't.” He caressed her cheek. “Can I kiss you?”
“I've been waitin' for you to do dat all night.”
With those words Gage lowered his mouth to hers with a groan.
Mia's fingers curled into his shirt when their lips met for the first time. The kiss started out gentle but soon it was filled with pent up desire. Heat coursed through her and a soft moan escaped her as she leaned into him. She'd never felt anything like it in her life. True, she didn't have much experience to compare it to, but she instinctively knew no one else would ever move her the way he did.
Gage's arms tightened around her as their kiss deepened. It wasn't until he felt her quaking in his arms that he made himself slow down. He wanted her so much but he needed to go slow. Slowly the kiss gentled before he finally ended it.
Mia's breathing was ragged when the kiss finally ended. “Wow.” She had no idea a kiss could make her feel so good.
“I've wanted to do dat for so long, Princess.” He pressed his forehead against hers. “You should go on inside and get some sleep.”
“I suppose.” She leaned up and brushed her lips across his. “Goodnight, Gage.”
“Goodnight, Mia.”
She had to force herself to step away before she turned to the door and headed inside. Just before she closed it she shared one last smile with him. Her footsteps were silent as she made her way down the hall to the bedroom she still shared with her younger sisters. The door opposite hers opened and she blushed at the look Julius gave her.
“Just gettin' in?” He kept his voice to a whisper.
“Yeah. We watched da sunrise together. No'ting happened except a really good kiss.” she still felt warm from it.
“Just be careful, Mia. I don't want to see you hurt again.”
“I know, Jules. I don't tink dat'll happen again. I really tink he means it. He's done messin' around. Still, he knows he's gonna have to prove it to me. He knows he's gonna have to work to earn my trust again.”
“As long as he doesn't hurt you again, I'm happy for you. I know you've loved him a long time.”
“Yeah. I have. I'm gonna go to bed. Goodnight.”
He snorted quietly. “It's mornin' already,” he teased.
Mia stuck her tongue out at him. “You know what I meant.” She slipped into the bedroom, changed quickly, and crawled into bed. A faint smile was on her lips as she drifted off to sleep.