Aurora changing their destiny

Chapter seven

Chapter Seven

Aurora

I look like s**t! The dark black bags under my eyes show I have not slept. I need a strong coffee before I do anything this morning. Let us see if we can fix this tired, pale face first! I always look like the walking dead when I have a late night, and right now I would fit in with a vampire a lot more than a wolf shifter! Washing my face before doing anything, pulling out all my creams and makeup from my travel bag. I can hide the pale face and dark bags, but I cannot do anything about the red droopy eyes I have right now!

Finishing off my makeup with some setting spray keeping everything in place. Well I look more human now, so that's great, but my eyes still look tired even with my smokey eye shadow! I hoped it would work, but I failed!

Jaxen sits at the breakfast bar in the large kitchen, the rooms in this house are massive! The smell of strong coffee hits and I can already taste it as I walk over to the chair next to Jaxen.

“Good morning, is there any coffee left in that pot?” Jaxen jumps, turning with a small smile.

“You scared me, yes there is and good morning, you look tired.” How did he notice from this distance! I reach the chair sitting down, reaching straight for the pot!

“Thanks, so do you.” I could not sleep after Jaxen left me, I was tossing and turning all night! I think I may have got an hour's sleep if that. Every time I closed my eyes I saw Jaxen kissing me! When I did get to sleep I dreamt of Everest walking in, on Jaxen and I kissing! It was a bad night! Taking a sip of the strong coffee, wow this is amazing!

“You sound like you are enjoying that coffee.”

“I am!”

“Coffee lover noted. Now, what would you like to eat? We have a busy morning. We need to eat now because I do not know when lunch will be.”

“I am used to the busy workload and not eating till late. Do not worry about me.”

“I cannot help it. Now what will it be?”

“Toast will be fine, thank you.”

“Aurora, you do not need to keep thanking me. Is that all you want? I can make us some pancakes in ten minutes. How does golden syrup pancakes sound?”

“Amazing.”

“Great, you drink your coffee, and I will get to cooking.” How can I show him I am a strong woman who does not need waiting on every moment of the day? I should just enjoy it because Everest cannot cook to save his life. I cannot think of him while I am with Jaxen. It feels wrong. Jaxen glances my way every now and again as he dances around the kitchen. I cannot help the smile that has taken over my face. I have no control anymore.

“You look very amazed, Aurora. Have you never seen a man cook before?”

“Yes, but that didn’t end well.”

“Let me guess all the food was burnt?”

“Yes.” We both laugh. Jaxen walks over, plate in hand. The food smells amazing. I just know I am going to love it.

“Here we are, enjoy.”

“Thank you.” Jaxen sits with his plate digging straight into the golden pancakes. Placing a small piece in my mouth flavours bounce around my tongue. I have never had something so sweet and fluffy before.

“These are amazing!”

“Thank you.” We eat in silence. Jaxen ignores my little moans here and there. I just could not help it. These pancakes are amazing! We do not eat pancakes in the pack but I have had some before in a cafe, but they were not as nice as Jaxen’s. Finishing my plate of food feeling full and tired!

“They just made me more tired.”

“We could do half a day today? We were not doing much this morning anyway, just the meet and greet. If we do half a day we can get some sleep and freshen up. We will not be any use at work like this.” From what I have heard of Mr Silver, is a workaholic and never takes time off. Now he wants to do half a day so we can rest. I am overthinking this. He just wants to get some sleep.

“That sounds good.”

“Perfect. I will text Sky to let her know we will not be in till after dinner. Would you like to watch a film in the movie room?” I thought this time was to rest? I want to spend time with Jaxen, but I cannot lead him on. He said it himself last night. Am I overthinking this again? No, this is not normal and I need to make sure there is some distance between us, because this cannot happen!

“I would love to, Jaxen, but I thought we were keeping this professional?” Pointing between us. I need to know what his full intentions are with me. We have a job to do. I cannot mess this case up, by messing around with Jaxen. I have too much at stake at work and home!

“Very well. I am going to watch a movie. We will get dinner at about half, twelve. Be ready to leave, for then please.”

“Ok, see you soon.” Jaxen leaves me alone in his kitchen. I did the right thing, I just need to keep telling myself that and we will be fine. I hope.

Ugh, I am so tired, but I just can’t sleep. My mind keeps drifting between Everest and Jaxen yet again! I feel guilty for the betrayal I have caused, the heartache I am yet to cause. On top of that there is the weird sense of home around me making my wolf hard to control. She wants to explore this feeling, but she cannot come out here. Sitting up throwing the heavy quilt off me. There is nothing to do here and seeing as i cannot sleep the only other option i have is to join Jaxen in his movie room. Which I didn’t want to do. I feel like the universe is playing with me right now!

Two people watching a film cannot hurt, right? We still have three hours before we agreed to get lunch. I will just end up lying here overthinking otherwise. Biting the bullet I stand from the bed and leave the room, heading for the movie room.

This house is so big! I finally find the movie room after walking for what felt like half an hour!

Peeking into the movie theatre that Jaxen has in this house. He is not short of money that is for sure! He is sitting on a large sofa like bed. An action movie plays on the wide screen in front of him. Watching him relax is strange, my lovely boss did not give such an impression when she was telling me about Mr Silver. Her words were, a hard, stern, cold workaholic who never leaves the office. She thought we would get along great seeing as I am a workaholic as well.

Jaxen is a hard man to work out. Flicking my eyes to the screen. I do not know what he is watching, but a man just shot himself in the head, by slipping over with a handgun in his hand. Moving my eyes back to Jaxen, our eyes connect. Heat spreads across my face, he saw me watching him! This is embarrassing! I should have stayed in my room! How does his gaze alone draw me in? I should turn around, but I don't. I stay stuck on the spot looking into his eyes.

“Come in, I don’t bite.” Oh boy, this was not a good idea, instead of turning around, I walk into the dark room, heat spreading over my cheeks. How can I fall for a human!? Taking a seat a couple of places away from Jaxen, I need to keep some space between us, the butterflies have already taken place in my belly, and my heart is beating a little faster! Relaxing straight into the soft spongy matters. Jaxen shifts in his seat moving to the spot next to me, closing the gap between us. I know there is some sort of connection between us, even though he said that last night. But I must shut it down! I cannot be the woman he wants, if only he knew the truths of who i am. He would run for the hills if he knew I was not a human like him, I have just stolen the identity of one! I need Jaxen to stop flirting with me. He is my business partner, this case is too big to mess up on a stupid thoughts and feelings! Jaxen knows how long I have worked on this case, he knows how important it is to me, why is he risking my entire job!? Jaxen leans his head closer, stopping his mouth just over my ear, his warm breath brushing the side of my face. A gasp escapes my now open mouth, snapping my mouth shut, guilt hitting me at my reaction.

“I thought this was too unprofessional for you?” A smug grin sits on his lips. The ones I want nothing more than to claim again. I don’t know what to say. I cannot tell him I came here because I wanted to see him or because I could not stop thinking about him. This is not fair on either of us!

My mistake is turning to look him in the eyes. I lose all sense of thought, I love these silver eyes.

“I could not sleep and there is not much to do around here, so I thought I would see what you were watching. FYI, this is horrendous.” Pointing to the screen, his smile returns. He knows I am right. There is not much to do. The screams and gunshots are giving me a headache.

“What do you enjoy watching in your free time, Aurora?” Well, that is a question I cannot answer. The surrounding volume lowers, then stops all together. A list of shows come on the wide screen.

“I rarely watch films or any television.” With work and my old home life, I never really got the chance to relax. Even now, my life is so hectic. I find this moment awkward but relaxing. To just sit with someone and have a general convention is very unusual for me. At work it is business at home. It is Everest and everyone else arguing.” I sigh. I thought coming to New York would help take some of this stress off my shoulders. However, I have just added to it with whatever this is with Jaxen! Why am I so damn complicated?

“Aurora?” Snapping out of my thoughts, the glint from his eyes soothes the racing of my heart.

“Yes?”

“I can see you are struggling with something, Aurora. I do not want you to overthink every moment we spend together. I’m sorry I have put you in this situation, feeling as if every move you make is wrong.I want you to enjoy your time here in New york with me. I may lose my focus around you from time to time, but we can ignore that. I just want to see you happy” Jaxen thinks he can ignore these feelings and thoughts which is impossible! I have been trying to ignore them and it has failed!

“Jaxen, I have a lot of responsibilities at home. With that comes a lot of stress. For the first time in a long time, I feel this calmness, happiness, and that is down to you. I only feel like that when I am with you. I know it sounds crazy because we have just met, and it should not be this comfortable. I am struggling with a lot of emotions and situations right now, but one thing I am certain of is I do not want to force myself not to feel happy.” His hand finds mine, creasing his thumbs over my knuckles. That look of sadness in his eyes hurts my heart. I do not want him to feel sorry for me, or pity me!

“I do not want you to force anything Aurora.”

“Thank you, Jaxen.” His eyes always light up when I say his name. Does he like it?

“You have no reason to thank me. I just want to see your beautiful smile a little more. Now there must be something you like to watch.” He turns to the wide screen, hitting bottoms on a remote I had not seen before, his other hand still on mine. A list of films fills the screen for me to choose from. Scanning the list, I have not got a clue what half of these films are. How do I choose something half good when I do not know what they are?

“That one with the wolf and the vampire.” His eyes scan mine. Why does he look shocked?

“Are you sure?”

“Yes, I have read a lot of books about the fantasies around wolf shifters and vampires. Why not watch one?”

“Very well.” Jaxen clicks the button, and the film plays, snuggling back into the cosy chair, readying myself for this film. I wonder if humankind portrays our kinds as they really are. Jaxen settles back, lifting his arm in the air. He wants me to cuddle up to him? Budging over a little, his arm quickly wraps around my back, resting his hand on my thigh. Shivers run under his arm. Pushing the thoughts creeping in my mind away, taking a deep breath, I rest my head on his warm chest. This is not professional at all! But I cannot lie, I love every second! The beating of his heart reaches my ears soothes my doubt. Placing my hand on his chest, smiling, I hope this does not affect our work. I really need this case to win.

Waking from a dreamless sleep, warmth covering me, making it harder to open my eyes. The sound of a heart beating hits my ear. Who’s chest am I lying on?! The smell of his aftershave hits and the panic dies down as realisation sets in. We were watching a film; we must have fallen to sleep. Oh s**t, work! Sitting up throwing my eyes open, wow it is dark in here.

“Jaxen, Jaxen wake up.”

“Hum, shh, come lay back down.”

“Jaxen, wake up. We missed work!” His body moves, but I cannot see him. The room is too dark.

“Cover your eyes. I am turning the lights on.” Covering my face in my hands, the light beams through the cracks in my fingers, making me squint. Adjusting to the light, I turn to Jaxen. He looks so perfect, even with the messy bed hair and tired bags under his eyes.

“What time is it?” Jaxen lifts his watch, raising his eyebrows in shock.

“Midnight. We slept all day.” Oh no! We cannot afford to have days off. I knew coming into this room was a bad idea. Wait, where did these blankets come from?

“We missed an entire day sleeping! Where did these blankets come from?” Jaxen looks down, noticing the black throw over his legs. A smile forms over his lips.

“Sky, she always does this when I fall asleep.”

“Awe, that is nice. She seems like a caring woman.” Jaxen perks up. He really loves her, which is normal for families, just not mine!!

“She is. Now let's get some food. I am starving.”

“Jaxen, you can’t cook at this time of night.”

“I can’t or I shouldn’t?” His odd reply makes me laugh, and I can tell from the look in his eyes he meant to do it.

“Shouldn’t! But I guess I am in the city that never sleeps so who knows what you think is normal?” I throw a wink to Jaxen, I have read a lot about New York, to be honest I have read a lot about the world. Being stuck in one place that you are not allowed to leave is not fun! Saying that, Jack and I have been to places back home that none of our pack know about because they are too scared to leave our village.

“Yes I think you are wrong about that, but I was planning on ordering a pizza.”

“Pizza sounds perfect.”

“Perfect.” Jaxen smiles as we stand from the settee like a bed chair. Dropping my head as the blush takes it place again, he still smells amazing. He makes being around him hard! This week is going to kill me!

“Please, do not hide from me. I love your rosy blush.” His breath blows down my neck. f**k he saw it! This is embarrassing which only makes me blush worse! A thumb tilts my head up, his eyes roam every inch of my heated face. His face is blank, but his eyes shine with something I cannot quite put my finger on. “You are perfect, Aurora, and you are driving me crazy.” Staring into his eyes, words not forming in my mind or mouth, I drive him crazy?

“I, we.” My words do not come out. Instead, I mumble a few random letters. His smile returns. He enjoys making me lose my mind! Leaning on to my toes waiting to see if he will close the distance. I know he wants this, and no matter how much I try to hold back, I can’t. Our lips crash together, the same electric shock flies through me, wrapping my arms around his neck pulling him into me, I do not want this to end just yet. Flicking my tongue onto his bottom lip, his smile against my mouth gives me room to slide my tongue into his mouth. Our tongues dance together until we cannot breath and have no choice to pull away. Jaxen rests his head on mine keeping my eyes closed, I do not want to see the regret again.

“Aurora.”

“What pizza are you ordering?” He seems to take the hint, kissing my forehead before standing up straight. With my arms back by my sides Jaxen takes a step back out of my reach.

“How do you like your Pizza?” Jaxen takes my hand in his, leading me out of the movie room.

“Well, you may think this is weird, but my favourite pizza is a veggie.” His head turns to me, shock in those Silver eyes.

“Really?”

“Yes, most people think it’s weird.”

“Yes, I know. Sky has teased me for years for ordering the same pizza.” He prefers the veggie pizza? I have met no one who likes it.

“I took you as a meaty sort of guy.” His face grows cold, his eyes distant. Oh s**t I have upset him?

“Not when it comes to pizza.” We walk into the kitchen. Jaxen has already placed the order so now all we have to do is wait, which shouldn't be too hard. Taking the same chair I sat in the morning. Why does this feel awkward? Maybe if I told Jaxen the truth about who I am, he would kick me out of his house and I can finally put some distance between us? Jaxen turns to me, he looks me over from head to toe, what is he doing?

“Tell me something about you, something no one else knows.”

“Oh okay, let's see. I want children.”

“Okay, how many?”

“One, maybe two. How about you? Do you want children?”

“I have never really thought about it to be honest, My business doesn’t leave much time for family life.”

“I suppose you are right. Working in a law firm is hard enough, let alone running one.”

“It isn’t as bad as your boss makes it look, but it does come with its challenges.” A loud knock echoes around the house. “That will be the pizza, two minutes. Jaxen leaves me alone in the kitchen, taking the time to really look around the large room. This place has everything. I wonder if they have many guests here? A kitchen like this has to host!

After eating and getting to know each other a little better, Jaxen looks like he could go straight back to sleep and I do not blame him because that is exactly how I feel!

“Do you host much?”

“No, I am barely at home to be honest.” So what Karen said was right. Following Jaxen out of the kitchen we walk toward the stairs only this time he isn’t holding my hand and I kind of miss it! We reach my bedroom door and my mind travels back to last night when we were standing here. It feels like so much has happened and I have only been here for two days! But it feels like a lot longer, and I feel like I have known Jaxen a lot longer as well!

“I will meet you at eight o'clock by my car outside, hopefully it will stop us getting side tracked like today.”

“Okay, thank you for today and the pizza. It has been really nice to just relax.”

“You are welcome, I'm glad you enjoyed yourself. Good night.”

“Good night Jaxen.” Opening the door smiling as I turn, stopped by his hand on my arm. He spins me back to face him. He drops his head but not enough to reach my mouth instead he kisses me on the forehead before dropping his hand from my arm. With that he walks away without another word.