Unforgiven fallen book 5, p.21
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Unforgiven (Fallen Book 5), page 21

 

Unforgiven (Fallen Book 5)
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  “Hello, Cam,” she said.

  Cam shrank back. “Why are you here?”

  Lilith scowled at the question. She took a breath and tried to form the words she had come so far to say. When she spoke, she looked at the sky so she wouldn’t have to see the way his eyes clouded over at the sight of her.

  “The night you left, I dreamt I taught a flock of nightingales a love song, so they could find you and sing you home to me. Now I am the nightingale who has traveled all this way. I still love you, Cam. Come back to me.”

  “No.”

  She gazed into his eyes. “Did you ever love me, or were you only passing through?”

  “You rejected me.”

  “What?”

  “You refused to marry me!”

  “I refused to marry at the river,” Lilith insisted. “I never refused to marry you!”

  Since he’d last seen Lilith, Cam had joined Lucifer’s ranks. If he had been afraid to show Lilith his true self before, it was impossible to do it now. No. There was no past. There was no Lilith.

  There was only his future alone.

  “You destroyed our love,” Cam told her. “Now I’m left to live in its ruins.”

  There was a sense of urgency in Lilith’s eyes that Cam didn’t understand. She was nervous, trembling. “Cam, please—”

  The backs of Cam’s shoulders were burning, itching to release his wings. For weeks he’d hidden them from Lilith. To protect her, he had told himself.

  He could not bring himself to look at her, to see how much she was hurting. He was a demon. He was dangerous to Lilith. Any kindness he showed her would draw her deeper into darkness.

  “This is the last you’ll see of me,” he said. “You will never know who I truly am.”

  “I know who you are,” she cried. “You are the one I love.”

  “You’re wrong.”

  “Do you still love me?”

  “Goodbye, Lilith.”

  “Don’t!” she begged, sobs choking her voice. “I still love you. If you go—”

  “I’m already gone,” Cam said, and turned and ran down the mountain, out of her sight. He threw his head back and released his blinding, golden wings. He watched the shimmering light they cast around him. He would fly until his heart no longer ached. He would fly forever if he had to.

  He flew fast and never looked back, so he never saw Lucifer step from the shadows and take Lilith’s hand.

  Lilith stared at the pale, freckled hand in hers. Her breath came shallowly. “He’s gone,” she gasped. “I left everything. For nothing.”

  “Come along,” the devil said. “I kept my end of the bargain. It is time for you to keep yours.”

  Twenty-Three Hours

  Lilith’s headphones were blaring.

  She lay on her stomach on her bedspread, scribbling lyrics in her journal for a new song called “Famous for a Broken Heart.” It was one in the morning. She was tired, but she knew she’d never sleep. She kept replaying the conversation she’d had with Cam at the café.

  He’d made a bet that he could make her fall in love with him. Like she had no free will, like she was just a coin to be tossed.

  Had Cam almost won that bet? She had felt something deep and strong for him. Was it love? Maybe, but she could never love a guy who treated her like a game to be won.

  Suddenly, Lilith heard a sound that wasn’t part of the Four Horsemen song in her headphones. It was coming from outside. Someone was knocking at her window. She turned her music off and raised the blinds.

  Cam’s leather jacket was zipped up, and he was wearing that knit hat she liked. Beneath its brim, his green eyes pleaded as he motioned for her to open the window.

  She slid the pane up and stuck her head out. “My mom will kill you if she finds out you trampled her weeds.”

  “I’ll take my chances,” he said. “I’ve got to talk to you.”

  “Otherwise you’ll lose the bet, right?” she said. “Remind me how many hours I have to fall madly in love with you?”

  She looked past her lawn to the street, where a vintage black Honda motorcycle was parked, two helmets dangling from its handlebars. The bike looked expensive. Lilith studied Cam, remembering him strolling among the tents on Dobbs Street. How could he afford a motorcycle? He was a walking contradiction, but Lilith wasn’t going to let it drive her crazy anymore.

  “It’s late,” she said. “I’m tired. And you’re the last person I want to see right now.”

  “I know,” Cam said. “Lilith, I need you—”

  “You don’t need me.” She didn’t like when he said things like that. If she wasn’t careful, she’d believe him.

  Cam glanced down at his boots and sighed. When he looked up a moment later, his green eyes had taken on an intensity that made Lilith hold her breath. “I will always need you, Lilith. For many reasons. Right now, I need you to come with me.”

  “Why would I go anywhere with you?”

  “So I can tell you the truth.”

  She’d been tricked before. “Tell me right here,” Lilith said, standing her ground.

  “So I can show you the truth,” Cam corrected himself. “Please,” he said softly, “give me one more chance to show you that my feelings for you are real—then, if you don’t believe me, you’ll never have to see me again. Fair?”

  She studied his face and realized how familiar his features had become over the past two weeks. The first time she’d seen him at Rattlesnake Creek, he had been so different from anyone she’d ever met; he’d seemed more like a figment of her imagination than a real guy. But now she knew him. She knew he licked his lips when he was thinking, and the way his eyes twinkled when he was listening really closely. She knew the way his hands felt in hers and how smooth his skin was just above the collar of his T-shirt.

  “One more chance,” she said.

  A dark gloom hung over Rattlesnake Creek.

  Lilith’s heart raced as Cam guided her deep into the forest, toward her favorite spot. She’d never been here so late, and it was eerily exciting.

  Branches cracked as she stepped along the familiar path and turned into the clearing where her carob tree stood. For a moment, she didn’t recognize it. Her tree had been decorated with strands of soft, twinkling red and yellow lights.

  Beneath it, a boy with dreadlocks was arranging a bouquet of irises on the antique desk Cam had given her. Lilith thought she recognized him.

  When a thin girl with a shaved head and orange false eyelashes ran to Lilith and stuck out her hand, Lilith knew where she’d seen them both before. The café, with Cam, earlier that night.

  “I’m Arriane,” the girl said. “That’s Roland. Glad you could make it.”

  “What’s going on?” Lilith asked Cam.

  “First?” Cam said. “A toast.”

  Roland knelt by the bank of the creek and fished out a bottle of champagne. He reached beneath the desk and produced two champagne flutes, then opened the bottle with a pop. He filled the glasses with the fizzy liquid and handed one to Lilith. “Salud.”

  “To second chances,” Cam said, and raised his glass.

  “We’re on at least fifth or sixth chances by now,” Lilith said, but she clinked his glass anyway.

  “Saucy!” Arriane called. “I like it.”

  “I suspected when I saw Lilith that Cam had met his match,” Roland said.

  Lilith chuckled. She felt oddly comfortable with these unexpected companions. They seemed more interesting than anyone she’d ever known, except maybe Cam.

  “Don’t mind my friends,” Cam said. “We’ve known each other a long time.”

  “So, first is a toast,” she said to Cam, glancing around the creek. “What’s second?”

  “A favor,” Cam said.

  “I’m not letting you back in the band yet—”

  “That’s not what I was going to ask,” Cam said, though the word yet made him smile. “The favor is this. Cast aside all that you’ve heard about me from others, and spend an hour with me, here under the stars. Just us. Well, and Arriane and Roland, but you know what I mean.”

  “We’re good at camouflage,” Arriane said.

  “Okay?” Cam said.

  “Okay,” Lilith replied, letting him take her hand and lead her toward the desk, which was set with crystal glasses, mismatched golden cutlery, white napkins folded in the shape of swans, and two gleaming Russian samovars.

  Behind them, Roland began strumming a 1930s Martin guitar in a soft, syncopated blues rhythm. It was a very cool-looking instrument, different from any guitar Lilith had ever seen, and she wondered where it had come from. Arriane whipped the napkins off the desk and unfurled them onto Cam and Lilith’s laps.

  “Please allow me,” she said when Lilith moved to lift the silver lid. Inside, a steaming cast-iron skillet was filled to the brim with a fragrant red casserole, on top of which swam two over-easy eggs garnished with lush green sprigs of parsley.

  “Shakshuka,” Lilith said, inhaling deeply.

  “Don’t let her fool you,” Cam said. “Shakshuka is the only dish Arriane knows how to make.”

  Lilith frowned at her plate. “I’ve never even heard of it. The word just rose up in me.”

  “It’s an old Israeli dish,” Cam said. “Very light.”

  “I’m starving,” Lilith said, and raised her fork. “How do you guys know each other?”

  “It’s a long story,” Cam said. “Oh, maître d’, you forgot to open my samovar.”

  “Open it yourself, jerko,” Arriane called from the creek bank, where she was skipping rocks and mimicking Cam. “ ‘The only dish Arriane knows how to make.’ ”

  Lilith laughed, scooping up a bright orange egg yolk. She savored her first delicious bite, then washed it down with a sip of champagne. “Wow, this is good, too.”

  “It should be,” Arriane called from the bank. “It’s older than your grandma.”

  Lilith put her fork down and turned to Roland, who was still sitting in the shadows, strumming his guitar. “Is that my song?”

  He was concentrating on the neck of his guitar, playing an intricate melody.

  “Roland’s a fan,” Cam said.

  “What’s this about, Cam?” Lilith asked, glancing from Roland to Arriane to the transformed tree. No one had ever gone to so much trouble to impress her before. “It’s nice and all, but—”

  “But it seems like an elaborate lead-up to a promposal?” he asked.

  Lilith’s head swiveled to gape at Cam.

  “Don’t worry,” he said quickly. “I’m not going to ask you to prom.”

  “Good,” she said, surprised to feel a little disappointed.

  He leaned in close enough to kiss her and took her hands. “You told me you didn’t need a date to play your music at the battle, and I respect that. It doesn’t mean I wouldn’t love to go with you, to buy you a corsage and have your mom take our picture and stand in line with you for punch and donuts, all the stuff that I would never want to do if I didn’t get to do it with you.” He smiled a smile that lit up his entire face. “But I can still respect your wishes. So instead, I brought the prom to you.” He glanced around the forest. “See, prom’s just like this, only with a few hundred more people. And a photo booth. And balloon arches.”

  “Hmm…it’s not as bad as I imagined,” Lilith said playfully. “It’s actually kinda nice.”

  “Thank you,” Cam said. “It took a lot of not-prom-court meetings to pull it off.” He laughed, but then his face grew serious. He lowered his voice. “Whatever Chloe thinks she overheard, all Luc and I were talking about was how much I like you. He was convinced I didn’t have a chance, and it brought out my competitive side. Because there’s nothing I want more than to have a chance with you.”

  Lilith studied Cam’s full lips, and found herself leaning closer to him. Suddenly, she didn’t care about any of the rumors. She wanted to kiss him, badly. That was real. Everything else could fall away. Why hadn’t she seen things so clearly before?

  “Care to dance?” he asked.

  “I care,” Lilith said.

  “I think she said yes,” Arriane whispered loudly to Roland, who celebrated with a joyful riff on his guitar.

  Cam gently pulled Lilith to her feet. Their shoes sank in the mulchy leaves, and Lilith was a little dizzy from the champagne. She looked up through the carob branches, amazed by how bright the stars were over Rattlesnake Creek. In her backyard you could maybe see one star through the smoky sky, but here there must have been a trillion shining down on them.

  “Beautiful,” she murmured.

  Cam looked up. “Trust me, those stars have nothing on you.”

  “Pardon me!” Arriane said, coming between them. “If I could make one sartorial suggestion.” A moment later she pressed something soft into Lilith’s hands. Lilith held it up to the light. It was the gown she’d bought at the thrift store.

  “How did you…”

  “You should really start locking your bedroom window,” Arriane said, and chuckled. “There are some real ding-dongs out there who might have stolen your dress before I did.”

  Lilith blinked. “You were in my room?”

  “No big deal,” Arriane said. “While you were busy breaking up or making up or whatever it is you’re doing with Cam, I made a few updates to represent your evolving style.”

  Lilith looked more closely at the dress and noticed the hemline had been significantly shortened in front—to miniskirt length—while it stayed long in the back. A black lace panel had been sewn into either side of the bodice, making the waistline look even smaller than it was. The neckline had been lowered to a sweetheart cut, trimmed with black lace.

  “Wow,” Lilith said.

  “Turn it over,” Arriane said. “There’s more.”

  She did, and saw new cutouts in the center of the gown’s back, in the shape of wings. It was the same dress, yet it was totally different. Lilith didn’t understand how this girl had made such swift and savvy alterations, but she knew she would wear this dress proudly at the Battle of the Bands.

  In fact, she wanted to wear it right now.

  “Thank you,” she said to Arriane. “May I…?”

  Arriane read Lilith’s mind. “No peeking,” she told the boys, then nodded at Lilith.

  Lilith turned her back to the creek, then slipped her T-shirt over her head and tossed it on the ground. She pulled on the dress and shimmied out of her jeans. Arriane’s hands found Lilith’s side and did up what must have been fifty tiny buttons.

  “In a word,” Arriane said, “stunning.”

  Lilith stared down at herself, at the dress illuminated by the stars in the sky and all of the twinkling lights Cam and his friends had strung. She felt beautiful…and strange, the way she had in the thrift-store dressing room. She couldn’t explain it. She realized Cam was looking at her, and she could tell he felt it, too.

  “I’m ready,” Lilith said.

  She stepped into his arms and they began to move in time, their eyes locked on one another. Cam knew how to lead. He was careful not to go too fast and never came close to stepping on her toes. Every dip and turn felt instinctive, and his body felt so right against hers, as if they were two puzzle pieces snapping into place.

  “I still don’t understand how we got here,” Lilith whispered, arching back so her red hair reached the ground.

  “We took the bike,” Cam joked. “Remember? The wind in your hair?”

  “You know what I mean,” Lilith said. “You. Me. Us.”

  “Us.” Cam repeated the word slowly. “You know, that has a nice ring to it. We make a really good ‘us.’ ”

  Lilith thought for a moment. He was right. They did. And suddenly Lilith didn’t want prom to end at Rattlesnake Creek. For the first time, she wanted to do more than just play her song at the battle and duck out. She wanted to experience the whole thing, with her friends and, especially, with Cam.

  “Cam,” she said, her heart picking up pace as they swayed to the music, “will you be my date to the Battle of the Bands?”

  Lilith thought she had seen Cam happy, but now his face lit up with something new. He twirled her around in a grand circle. “Yes!”

  “I think he said ‘yes’!” Arriane hissed at Roland.

  “We knew he was going to say yes!” Roland replied.

  “Oh yeah. Sorry. Don’t mind us,” Arriane said.

  Lilith giggled as the girl returned to washing their dishes in the creek.

  “There’s one condition,” she said, turning back to Cam. “You have to rejoin the band and play our song. Think you can handle that?”

  “Lilith,” Cam said, “I would play music with you forever. Or at least until you kick me out again.”

  “Then it’s settled,” she said. “Tomorrow night, me and you. And all of Trumbull.”

  “Technically,” Cam said, checking his watch, “prom is tonight.”

  Roland’s guitar playing modulated to something foreign and familiar. It sounded Middle Eastern, but Lilith could have sworn she’d heard it a million times before.

  “Now close your eyes,” Cam said. “Let me show you how it really feels to dance.”

  Lilith closed her eyes and let Cam lead her, their footwork becoming more and more intricate as the song progressed. She’d had no idea dancing could feel so effortless. His hands grasped her waist and lifted her until she could have sworn that his feet had come off the ground, too; that they were floating up above the creek, above the trees, above the burning hillside, into the dense tangle of stars, about to kiss the moon.

  “Can I open my eyes?” she asked.

  “Not yet,” Cam said.

  Then he kissed her deeply, his mouth firm and warm on hers—and Lilith kissed him back. A warm tingle spread through her as Cam pulled her closer, kissed her harder. She’d never done this before. Not even close.

 
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