Page 51 of Illusory (The Marked Saga #8)

“I will never forget this birthday for as long as I live,” I declared, after Trace ported us back to my bedroom in the Blackburn Estate later that night.

I’d already hugged him six times since we’d gotten back home, and I had no plans of stopping anytime soon.

“I don’t know how you managed to pull that off,” I said, pulling back to look into his eyes. “But I swear I’ll never forget this day. Like, for the rest of my life.”

His dimples dug in as he smiled down at me, his ocean-blue eyes sweeping over my face as though he wanted to commit the moment to memory.

I pushed up on my toes to press a small kiss against his cheek, but he quickly turned his face to meet my lips. His arms tightened around my waist, and he deepened the kiss into something much more than a thank you . My body warmed in his arms like melting butter as I parted my lips for him, leaning in closer.

He broke off the kiss and drew back slightly. “As much as I wish I could take all the credit for it, I didn’t do it alone,” he said begrudgingly, eyeing the stunning pink dress that was laid out on my bed for me, courtesy of Domnic.

My brows knit together, though I wasn’t sure if I was frowning at his statement or because he’d stopped kissing me.

He chuckled lowly. “Goldilocks got me the Veilbreaker Stone.”

I jerked to attention. “ Dominic got the stone?”

He nodded, his eyes scanning my face. “When I told him what I wanted to do for your birthday, I mentioned that I’d been going through my family’s grimoires, looking for a way for you to communicate with your dad from the Spirit Realm so you wouldn’t have to hide in the past to see him,” he explained, his expression somber. “That’s when Gabriel brought up this artifact that he’d heard rumors about that could supposedly open a tunnel between the Spirit Realm and the Veil. But being so close to your birthday and my bloodlust not letting me do much outside the house, I had no idea how to track it down, so we kind of just left it at that.”

I nodded, remembering how difficult those initial days had been for him and how far he’d come since.

“I told myself I’d eventually start searching for it when things calmed down a little, and then out of nowhere, Dominic shows up with the stone and just hands it over to me. He told me not to tell you that he was the one who got the stone,” he went on more quietly, “but I thought you should know.”

I blinked at him, completely taken aback. To be honest, I wasn’t surprised that Dominic had done something like that and refused to take credit for it—because that was who Dominic was. But I hadn’t expected to hear Trace acknowledge his role in making this happen for me. Or be willing to share the credit for it. Especially given their tumultuous history.

Then again, they hadn’t really been at each other’s throats for a while now, though I wasn’t sure how much of that was because they were trying to convince me that going back to ‘the way things were before’ was better for all of us. Still, I couldn’t help but feel like there was a little more to it. Like maybe they didn’t really hate each other as much as they liked to pretend they did.

He arched his brow at me. “You look surprised.”

“I am,” I admitted, not even bothering to lie about it. “I guess I’m still not used to seeing the two of you getting along together.”

“But it makes you happy, right?” he asked, his worry showing through the cracks.

“Well…yeah,” I answered carefully, a heavy weight settling in my stomach. “But not if it’s making you unhappy,” I pointed out. “I don’t want you to get along with him just because you think it’s what I want.”

“What other reason would there be to get along with him?” he asked, smirking.

I cringed at myself because obviously he was doing this for me. “You know what I mean. I just don’t want you putting up with this—whatever this is—at the expense of your own happiness, only to resent me for it later.”

“I wouldn’t do that,” he said, but I wasn’t sure if I could believe him.

Frankly, I still wasn’t convinced that he was fully grasping the situation, or whether his bloodlust and new vampire senses were simply muddling everything in his head.

“I already know I can’t do this life without you,” he admitted, his voice low and earnest, like he was trying to convey everything he felt without saying too much. “And even though you won’t admit it because you’re scared it’ll lead me on, I know you can’t do it without me either. Or without him,” he added quietly, holding my gaze as the weight of his words hung in the air.

“Trace, I don’t—”

“As much as I hate to admit it, I was wrong about him,” he continued softly before I could stop him.

My breath caught in my throat as I blinked back at him, trying to decipher whether my ears were playing tricks on me. Something dense and weighty unfurled in my chest as I tried to reconcile the words coming out of his mouth.

“I didn’t want to see it before. It was easier to convince myself that he was bad for you. That he was just some con artist trying to take you away from me,” he said, his eyes still locked on mine. “But I see how much he loves you now. How far he’s willing to go to make you happy. And as much as I may not like it sometimes, I have to respect that. Fuck, I can’t even fault him for it. Not when I know that I would have done the same thing and fallen just as hard for you, if you were his soulmate instead of mine.”

Tears brimmed in my eyes as I tried to grab hold of the emotions rocketing through me. I swallowed hard past the lump forming in my throat. “I…I don't know what to say,” I said, rendered speechless.

A wry smile tugged at his lips. “That’s a first.”

I let out a watery chuckle and playfully swatted his chest.

He laughed before turning serious again. “I told you that I wasn’t going to take from you anymore and I meant what I said, Jemma. I know how important he is to you, and I’ll never ask you to break your own heart and choose.”

The tears I’d been poorly holding back finally gave way and trickled down my cheeks. I wasn’t sure what to think about what he’d just said to me or how I was ever going to digest any of it, but I couldn’t escape the sense of calm that washed over me then, like maybe there would be some sunshine in my future after all.

“Thank you for this, and for giving me the best birthday present I could ever wish for,” I said as he pulled me into his arms and held me. “I’m pretty sure nothing will ever be able to top this day.”

“Just make sure you remember to mention it to Goldi when you go on his date,” he said as he pulled back with a smile and then kissed me on the mouth, long and hard. “He’s waiting for you downstairs.”

* * *

I couldn’t quite shake the mix of anticipation and anxiety that settled low in my belly the moment I left Trace in my room and set off in search of Dominic. The knot in my stomach seemed to tighten with each step I took. Luckily, I didn’t have to go far to find him. He was standing at the bottom landing of the staircase, dressed in his pressed black pants and a black button-up shirt, looking as decadent as the first day I saw him.

As soon as my eyes landed on him, the knot in my stomach unraveled, replaced by a warm flutter. I paused a few steps away from him to admire the sight.

“Hello, angel.” His mouth curled into a lopsided grin as he held out his hand for me, his eyes roving over my body as he took in the dress he had bought for me. “You look positively ethereal.”

My stomach warmed as I took his hand and descended the last remaining stairs. “Thank you for this,” I said, glancing down at my couture gown, feeling like Cinderella about to be taken to the ball. “It’s beautiful.”

“Did you enjoy your evening with Romeo?” he asked as he led us into the front foyer where he helped me into my coat.

“It was one of the best presents anyone has ever given me,” I said and then grabbed his arm to stop him as we stepped out into the crisp night air together. Reaching up on my toes, I grabbed the back of his neck and pulled his mouth down to mine.

He hesitated for a beat as though I’d stunned him before his hands quickly snaked around my waist and fastened me to his body, kissing me back with the same heat and fervor that I was giving him. When I finally pulled back, his brows knitted together as he searched my face for an explanation.

“Not that I mind in the slightest, but whatever was that for?” he asked, brushing a strand of my hair behind my ear and making my skin tingle all over.

“For getting the Veilbreaker Stone.”

A small divot appeared between his brows as he shot a glare towards the house. “He told you.”

“He did,” I confirmed with a warm smile, my eyes never leaving his. “I don’t know what was more touching—the fact that I got to see my father on my birthday, or that the two of you worked together to make that happen for me.”

His eyes were back on me, still holding fast to his annoyance. “I appreciate the sentiment, angel, but we both know he would have gotten that stone for you had he not been in the throes of bloodlust.”

“Yes, but he was in the throes of bloodlust. And you got it for him,” I said, not letting him get away with downplaying what he’d done. I knew that he’d done it for me—because he loved me with the kind of love they wrote novels about—but in a way, it felt like he’d done it for Trace too.

“It was nothing, angel. I had a favor that I called in. It’s as simple as that.”

“Another favor, huh?” I quirked my brow at him. “Exactly how many people owe you favors, anyway?”

“More than I care to count.”

“Since when are you so generous?”

“Strategic,” he corrected, his boyish charm returning in full force. “You never know when you’ll need the help of a friend or foe.”

“Oh, please. As if you have friends.” I teased, shoving him playfully. But he quickly caught my hand and pulled me into his arms.

“I have only one who matters.” He placed a soft kiss on my forehead, and I melted further into his embrace.

“I’ll never forget this night, or what you did,” I promised, my face buried in his jacket. “Whatever else happens tonight is just the cherry on top of a perfect sundae.”

“I’m glad you think so,” he said, pulling back just enough to catch my gaze. “Because there’s no possible way I could top Romeo’s gift to you.”

“It’s not a competition,” I reminded him.

“Don’t be ridiculous. Of course it is.”

“ Dominic!”

“I jest,” he said with a mischievous smile, brushing the back of his knuckles against my cheek. My body instantly warmed despite the cool air around us. “In any event, I’d still like to get some of those cherries for you.”

“Well, I do love cherries.” I paused, scrutinizing him as he walked to his car and opened the passenger door for me. “You still haven’t told me where we’re going.”

“I’m taking you to the movies, angel.”

“The movies?” A grin spread across my face at the thought of Dominic sitting in a theater, watching a film with me. “Wait. But I thought it was too dangerous?”

“Fret not, love. I’ve already taken every precaution imaginable.”

Giving him a final look over, I walked over to the open door and then climbed into his car. I had no idea what he had planned, but I couldn’t wait to find out.