Fighting Hope: A Reverse Harem Paranormal Romance, page 9
“The cure,” Hayden said. “There are only three left. Jade doesn’t want to find her dad, so we have no way of making more. We have to decide who gets it.”
“I don’t want it,” Kane said. “I’d be a fool to give up looking this amazing forever.”
Hayden smiled. “Yeah, alright, that’s true.”
“Christian.” I looked at him seriously. “I know you want to take it, and I think you should.”
He shook his head. “I’m not going to take it if it means I take the chance from someone else I care about.”
“We have to find out who does and doesn’t want it, but I know you do. You deserve to be human, Christian. I know it’s what you want. You never wanted this life. You hate being a vampire. Take the cure.”
“He’s right,” Hayden said. “You should take it.”
Christian stayed quiet, the wheels turning in his pretty head. But he nodded. “Thank you.”
“Now, Christian I want you to remember how supportive I was just now when I tell you what I intend to do.”
Christian groaned. “What are you going to do, Wyatt?”
“I want to become a vampire again.”
“What?” Hayden said. “Are you stupid? You are. You’re stupid.”
“Unlike Christian, I liked being a vampire. There were downsides, but it’s who I became. It’s who I want to be again.”
“Are you sure?” Christian asked.
I looked down at Hope. “Yeah. I’m sure.”
“Well, I’ll be happy to be the one to kill you if you’d like,” Kane said with a devilish grin.
“What if Hope decides to take the cure?” Hayden asked. “What then?”
The thought crossed my mind. I didn’t want to live an eternity without Hope Sinclair by my side.
I shrugged. “Then I guess I’ll be dating an older woman at some point in our lives.”
We’d cross that bridge when we came to it. What mattered most was that Hope was alive and she was safe for the first time since I’d known her.
She could finally be happy.
We could finally be happy.
Chapter 29: Hope
5 Years Later…
I opened the door to find Kane leaning against the doorframe. He flashed a grin and ran his hand through his hair. “Go ahead. Tell me how much you’ve missed me.”
“Hmm, wrong sister.”
He wrapped his arms around me in a hug. “Speaking of Hayden, is she going to be here today?”
I rolled my eyes. Those two were all about the angst and drama. It was obvious how much they loved each other. If they could just stop being so stubborn they’d be together right now.
“She’s already inside.”
“Alone?”
I shook my head and squeezed his cheeks. “Why don’t you find out for yourself?”
“Well to be honest, I’m not man enough to watch her canoodling with some dog. I may lose my temper. Who knows what could happen.”
“She’s alone for God’s sake. If you care so much you should have kept in touch with her while you were on the road.”
He and Francesca left town a few years back in search of her mother’s remains. They still hadn’t found her, but from what they’d told me, Francesca wasn’t focusing on the search as much. She had a new focus in her life. A tall, blonde, bombshell, as Kane put it.
Kane handed me a small wrapped up box.
“I told you no gifts.”
“Come on now. You only graduate college once in your life.” He made a face. “Though I guess you can decide to go again at some point if you’d like.”
I shrugged. “You never know. I’ve got a lot of time on my hands.”
He smiled. “That you do.”
“Come in.”
Kane followed me into the Hale mansion, which had become my home too as of recently.
Rayleigh came running towards us and right into Kane’s arm. “Kane!”
Kane scooped Gemma’s daughter into his arms. “Now, you sound like someone I know, but you’re much too big to be little Rayleigh. Would you happen to know where I can find her?”
“I am Rayleigh!”
“That’s impossible.”
She was four years old now and the splitting image of Gemma. She was just as smart too.
Kane was great with her. It wasn’t a surprise considering how protective he was of me when I was younger. What was surprising was that he was Rayleigh’s favorite out of all the guys.
“Do you want to see my new toy that Hope brought me from college?”
“Absolutely. Hey, do you think she got me a toy too?”
The four year old let out a giggle and shook her head. “No, silly. Adults don’t get toys.”
Kane smiled and put my cousin down on the floor. He followed after her towards the living room.
I went to the kitchen where Hayden, Lexie, and Jade were sitting.
Hayden looked over my shoulder and made a face. “Where is he?”
They were relentless. “Rayleigh beat you to him.”
“Hmm. That’s good. I don’t want to see him anyway.”
Lexie and Jade rolled their eyes.
“She sounds like us from a few years ago,” Jade said.
Lexie laughed. “For sure.”
Hayden shook her head. “You can both keep your opinions to yourself with your lovey, dovey googly eyes.”
Lexie and Jade were as much in love as ever. Time hadn’t changed their feelings for each other one bit. If anything, their bond was stronger now.
Lexie checked her phone when she got a text message. She smiled down at her phone. “Uncle Drake texted. Gemma had the twins.”
“Aww.”
Aunt Gemma and Drake were about to have their hands full between Rayleigh and two new ones. It was going to be funny watching Drake run after them.
“Those two will probably be all over Kane too. I don’t see what they see in him, honestly.”
I glared at her. “Hayden, just go talk to him.”
She pursed her lips and folded her arms, letting out a dramatic sigh. “Fine.” She got up and headed out of the kitchen. “But only to tell him we’re never getting back together.”
After she left, we burst into laughter.
“I give it five minutes before they’re all over each other,” Lexie said.
I shook my head. “I'll give it one.”
Knight and Christian came into the kitchen. “One what?” Knight asked.
“Kane and Hayden,” Jade said simply.
They didn’t need any further explanation.
Christian nodded. “Got it.”
Knight pointed towards the living room. “You sure you want to leave your little cousin alone with them?”
“I don’t think they’ll do anything terrible in front of her.” I thought about it for a moment and bit my lip. “I’ll give them two more minutes and go check on them.”
Wyatt came into the kitchen holding a cake and three blood bags. “Who thought it was a good idea to leave my niece with those two?”
I laughed. “She’ll be fine.”
He put the cake down on the counter and turned to Jade. He threw a blood bag her way. She glared at him after almost dropping it. “Thanks.”
“Yup.”
He handed me mine and grinned. “Cheers.”
“Thanks, Wyatt.”
When he told me he wanted to become a vampire again, I thought it was a mistake that he was going to regret. But Wyatt was born to be a vampire.
Just like I was.
We still had two cures left if we ever changed our minds, but I didn’t foresee that happening.
Besides, maybe Jade or Elizabeth would change their minds and decide to take them.
Though, I was pretty sure Lexie was planning to turn for Jade. And Elizabeth found her own vampire to love. They were traveling together across Europe.
“Tell your parents to hurry the hell up so we can cut the cake,” Wyatt said.
“Caleb just texted,” I told him. “They’re stopping at the hospital first to see how Gemma’s doing. She had the twins.”
“I guess that qualifies as a good excuse to wait.”
“Come on. Let’s go check on Hayden and Kane while we wait.”
“You guys go ahead,” Lexie said, intertwining her fingers with Jade’s. “We’ll catch up.”
“You two are nauseating sometimes,” Knight said.
“I wholeheartedly agree, brother,” Wyatt said. They patted each other in the backs as they walked out of the kitchen. They liked each other more than they liked me now.
Christian smiled and put his arm around me. “Who would have thought those two would get along so well?”
“Shut up, Christian,” Wyatt said.
When we got to the living room, Kane and Hayden’s lips were locked together. Rayleigh wasn’t paying any attention to them. She was too occupied with her toys to notice them.
“There’s a child in the room, guys,” Knight said.
Kane glared daggers at him. “Yeah, you.”
“Good to see you too man.”
“They’re in love,” Rayleigh said, smiling at the two.
“No, we are not, girl,” Hayden said. “Where does she get these ideas from?”
She went to sit on the couch.
“Come, sit!” Rayleigh said.
“She’s talking to you, Knight,” Wyatt said, smirking.
“All of you,” Rayleigh said. “Come play.”
The guys did as they were told.
Hayden looked impressed. “I think she stole your guys, Hope.”
“I’m willing to share, but only with her.”
Kane came to stand next to me. “So, now that you’re a college graduate, what’s next? Travel the world?”
I looked around at my family. A family I never thought I would have, but always wanted.
“No. I’m right where I want to be. Home, with my family.”
Where I was always meant to be.
THANKS FOR READING!
Alisandra, Briana, Fighting Hope: A Reverse Harem Paranormal Romance
