Air of Seduction (Elemental Enforcers #3)

Chapter 20

Payton

I stare at his retreating back, hoping he’ll turn his head and give me a last smile, but he never does. The elevator doors open as soon as he presses the button, and then he’s gone.

After walking back inside, I close the door behind me and pull out my phone. The video is only seven seconds, but it will have to be enough. I send it to Ronan with a short text. Please keep Noah away from her. I want to add I miss you , but I don’t. I don’t really know what we are to each other, but I hope I’ll find out soon.

After putting my phone on silent and stuffing it back into my pocket, I return to Olivia. She’s lying in bed, eyes wide open, staring into space.

I put a smile on my face, hoping she can hear it in my voice. “Would you like something to drink?”

She shakes her head slowly. “No, thank you.”

“Anything else?” Anything that might take her mind off the last week would be good.

But she just shakes her head again.

“Would you like me to leave so you can get back to sleep?”

She looks at me then. “No, please stay.”

“Okay.” I walk over and sit down on the bed next to her.

Silence stretches between us, and I don’t know what to say or do. Is this what she wants? Just silence. Or does she want me to talk about something, anything, to fill the silence with words? I don’t know, so I stay quiet.

“Who was that man?” Her green eyes come to mine.

I silently berate myself for inviting Ronan into her apartment. But I can hope he’s not the one she’s asking about. “Which man are you referring to?”

“The man who killed Barry before grabbing me. He wouldn’t let me go.” She shudders.

“Noah. His name is Noah.” I relax my shoulders and give her a smile. “He wanted to help you, but he was a little persistent about it.” More than a little persistent, if you ask me, but I think it’s better for Olivia if I try to emphasize the positive side of his actions. Because even though I don’t have a full grasp of what Ronan meant by true mate, I have no doubt that Noah’s pursuit of my friend has just started.

She visibly swallows. “There are more than just vampires in the world, aren’t there? What is…Noah? He didn’t feel like a vampire.”

My eyes widen. How could she tell the difference? Does that mean she won’t freak out if she sees him again? “You’re right. He isn’t a vampire. He’s an elemental. I don’t know which element he’s tied to though or what he can do. I haven’t talked to him much.”

She pushes herself up into a sitting position. “When did you meet those people?”

I give her a small smile. “About twenty-four hours ago. I was stalking one of Barry’s friends, hoping he would lead me to you, but he discovered me and decided I was his. But then I ran into Ronan, literally, and he helped me. Long story short, Ronan and his friends already knew who Barry was, and after one failed attempt, they managed to find out where you were staying.”

Olivia nods and gives me a weak smile. “Thank you for everything you’ve done for me. I still can’t believe it’s over.”

“I’d do it all again a hundred times over if I had to, Olivia. But it is well and truly over.” Tears fill my eyes as I reach out and take her hand in mine. It’s the first smile I’ve seen on her face since we found her, and although it’s not an all-out happy grin, it’s so much more than I thought possible only an hour ago.

Her fingers tighten around my hand. “I don’t know what I would’ve done without you. You’re amazing, Payton. Don’t let anyone ever tell you otherwise.” Her eyes close for a few seconds before she opens them again. She still looks exhausted.

I give her hand a squeeze before pulling my hand from hers and getting to my feet. “You should get some more sleep. I’ll be in the living room if you need anything.”

She nods and lies down, pulling the covers up to her nose.

After closing the door to her bedroom behind me, I go to sit down on the couch. I should probably get some sleep, as well, but with everything that’s happened in the last twenty-four hours, I’m not sure how I’m going to be able to rest.

Olivia’s smile and calm questions were a positive surprise. Perhaps she’ll recover faster than I first thought. But I know it can just as easily take months as days. It’s impossible to tell. Everyone reacts differently and heals differently. There’s not a set path or set time that suits everyone.

I pull my phone out of my pocket and smile. There’s a new text from Ronan. Thank you. I hope to see you again soon. He’s added a kissy-face emoji.

My eyes go to the bedroom door. I’d like that too, but I don’t know when it will be possible.

∞∞∞

Ronan

I turn over on my other side and close my eyes. No more than two seconds go by before they snap open again. My mind is racing, and my body is restless. Some sleep would be nice, but it doesn’t seem like that’s going to be possible anytime soon.

Is Payton my mate? Or is this just a temporary fascination? I can’t decide. She’s beautiful and strong, and I want nothing more than to explore whatever this is between us. But if she’s my mate, shouldn’t I have known as soon as I met her like Noah did?

I forwarded the video of Olivia to Noah, and he accepted it as a substitute for checking on her himself—for now. His desperation for his mate is like a vibration in the air around him. All he cares about is Olivia and her well-being, and after what she’s been through, I completely understand. But how did he know she was his the moment he met her? Or actually before that. He knew the moment he heard her voice.

“Fuck this.” I fling the covers back and get out of bed. It doesn’t matter how tired I am. I can’t sleep, so I might as well do something useful.

Pulling the curtains back, I’m surprised to see the light of dawn already coloring the sky. I’ve clearly been tossing and turning for longer than I thought.

After putting on some jeans and a T-shirt, I go downstairs. There’s no one in the dining room or the living room, and I’m not surprised. They’re probably all in bed, getting some rest before a new day.

I head toward Aidan’s office. I left the discussions too early last night to know what was decided, but at least I can check the local news to see if anything relevant has happened during the night.

But when I walk into the office, I’m surprised to see Markus standing with his back to me, staring out of the window. There’s no one else there, keeping him company.

He turns around when I close the door behind me. “Ronan. How’s Payton?”

My eyes widen. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised he knows I’ve been in contact with her, but I am. I assumed he was too busy talking to Gawen and dealing with the revelation about his parentage to check up on me. “She’s okay.”

“Good.” He nods. “I spoke to Noah. He’s more than a little desperate to talk to his mate. We’ll have to keep an eye on him until Olivia is ready. Hopefully, it won’t take too long.” His expression is tight with his concern.

I know without asking where his thoughts are. An elemental can’t be without his mate for long. It’s one of the few things that can kill us. One way or another, it’s crucial to persuade Olivia to accept Noah, but it’s just as important that it happens because she wants to be with him.

I can’t worry about that right now, though. I need something to do to take my mind off Payton, and worrying about Noah and Olivia won’t do that. “What happened last night after I left? Did you come up with a plan? I need something to do.”

He studies my face like he’s looking for something, but I just shrug. “Gawen and I will try to locate his kelpie father. They haven’t spoken in years and have never been close, but it’s the only parent we have left between the two of us, and he might be the only one who can give us some answers.”

“About your second brother, you mean? The third your father mentioned.”

“Yes.” He scratches his chin, his eyes losing focus. “If that’s what he even meant. But I can’t think of anything else he would refer to as the third. He must have a third son somewhere, but if our sibling is anything like us, he doesn’t know about his father either.”

I walk over to a chair and take a seat. “How will you even identify this person? Do you think your father will tell you when you meet him, like he did with Gawen?”

Markus shrugs. “I don’t know, but I hope so. At least then we will have confirmation. Otherwise, I’m not sure how it would be anything other than speculation. It’s not like we can use DNA to prove that we’re brothers. I’m not even sure there’s any biological connection between us. It might be more of a spiritual or magical relationship.” He breathes out a sigh. “So many questions, and so few answers.”

I nod. “What about the master? I gave Lucas the dead vamp’s phone. Do you know if someone has had the time to look at it yet? It might contain something useful about the master or some of the other followers. I don’t know how many followers the old leech has left in London, considering we killed six of them at the ceremony in Highgate cemetery and three yesterday. But I suspect there are still a few.”

He shakes his head. “I don’t know. You’ll have to talk to Lucas when he wakes.”

“I will.” I pull my phone out of my pocket. “I think I’ll check the local news while I wait for the others to get up.”

Markus takes a seat in the chair next to mine. “Good idea. I’ll skim some of the French and Italian newspapers. I wouldn’t be surprised if there’s a group of followers in Paris where the master was originally based. Or perhaps further south, in Lyon or Marseille. David, one of his most devoted servants, is currently staying in northwestern Italy, not far from the French border. I’m not sure that’s an indication of anything, since he knows Aidan can easily track him, but we can’t rule it out.”

I nod, suddenly restless. His talk of followers in other cities in Europe makes my shoulders tense. I don’t want to leave London right now. Not when Payton is here without anyone to protect her.

And I’m not the only one. Noah is going to go ballistic if anyone even mentions going to France or Italy. According to him, he’s already too far away from his mate as it is. I doubt it will be long until he takes up position outside the door to her apartment building and stays there until she agrees to talk to him.