Free Painfully Ordinary Special Edition by Stephanie Amox

largest,
most comfortable couch I had ever known, so it couldn’t be all bad. I could
also tell I was still wearing the same clothes I’d worn to the party.
    Talon and Jace, the party, the bonfire - it must have been
real.
    Taking a deep breath, I peeked through my lashes. I had to
maneuver slightly to see the owner of the arms wrapped tightly around me. I
couldn’t remember ever feeling so secure.
    Lifting my head, I was able to gaze directly into Talon’s
warm, chocolate-brown eyes. They were so deep, I could completely lose myself
in them, and for a moment, I did exactly that.
    “Hello, Sleeping Beauty. Are you feeling better? We were
worried about you. You fainted and were screaming in your sleep.” His voice was
soft and flowed over me like silk.
    Oh, lord, his breath smelled so sweet and fresh. It wasn’t
fair! Couldn’t he at least have steak breath from dinner, like a normal person?
    Ahh ! Did I have Caesar-wrap
breath?
    I clamped my lips together in hopes any foul odors stayed
inside. He gazed gently at me as if I had amused him, sending off a storm of
butterflies in my stomach.
    This must be a
dream . Please
don’t let me wake up.
    It was too perfect and I was afraid to move or speak in
case it made him disappear. I tentatively ran a single finger down his forearm
and saw his eyes spark blue for a split second.
    I wondered what caused that change. It seemed to happen
when he got keyed up, like when we kissed in the
woods. I blushed, and Talon shook his head.
    Hmm, if this was a dream, then I could do anything I wanted,
right?
    I rolled completely over on my side to face him, running my
hand lightly up his considerable bicep. Talon raised an eyebrow. I decided to
test things a little further by reaching up and locking my hands behind his
neck, pressing my body more fully against his.
    His breathing sped up to match mine, and I brought his head
down, fusing my lips against his. Such daring was so unlike me, but the
familiarity of the moment was overwhelming. I pulled away and peered up at him.
    Oh,
yeah.
    His eyes were blazing blue again. He pulled me roughly
against him, holding me tightly, and kissed me. I gave
in–so tired of feeling nothing but fear and anxiety. His large hands roamed
from my lower back to my shoulders and I sighed in contentment, as he made me
happier than I had been in a long time and did it without putting pressure on
me. I kissed him back until we were both breathless, shivering as he ran his
hand down my back to where my hip curved.
    “Talon?” I whispered if for no other reason than to reassure myself
he was real.
    I ran my hand down his back, and he groaned pulling away from me and sitting back on the couch, eyes burning
like sapphires. I sat up as well, pushing my hair back from my face and taking
a deep breath.
    He stared at the floor for several minutes.
    Something told me I wasn’t going to like what he was about
to say. I tilted my head to the right and played with my necklace. He took a
quick look at my now shaking hands and met my gaze with infinite sadness.
    “I guess you probably have a lot of questions for me. I
promise you I will answer them as best I can.”
    I bit the inside of my bottom lip as I had seen my mom do
so many times.
    Oh, crap! Mom!
    She would be furious with me. I needed to call her as soon
as I could. How would I ever be able to explain the events of the last several
hours? I needed more answers before I could even attempt to explain anything to
anyone else. Right now Talon was the only one who could tell me what I wanted
to know.
    “Okay. You can start by telling me where we are.” I was surprised by how calm and level my voice sounded. Maybe
I had gone into shock.
    Talon gestured around the room. “We are in a place called
Sanctuary. It is a safe haven, and no harm can reach you here.”
    “Sanctuary.” I repeated slowly, fighting to remain calm. “Hmm, okay. Why
have I never heard of this place before? Are Jace and Leah here as well? I