Page 26 of Realm Walker's Awakening

Poking out the tip of my tongue to wet my lips, I pulled up my mom’s number and hit call. My hand trembled as I put it to my ear and listened to the dial, praying she’d answer. With it being three in the morning, she was fast asleep. But she was a light sleeper, so I held onto the hope she’d pick up.

I startled as thunder rumbled in the distance, bringing my eyes to the window as rain pelted against it. Something in me shifted in response to it, like there was someone in the storm calling out to me.

Or maybe... it was the—

“Isa?” Mom answered, her voice thick with sleep.

I squeezed my eyes shut and released a shaky breath.

She was okay.She was alive, and no one went to her and Dad to use them against me.

“Mom,” I whispered as my knees gave out, so I sat on the bed again.

I opened my eyes and stared at my lap. From the corner of my eye, I watched Rune as he sat next to me. The bed dipped under his weight, bringing me closer to him. He rested his hand behind me as he leaned back with one of his long legs stretched out in a display to relax. But I knew even without our link open that he wasn’t. He was tense, just like I was.

Normally, I felt his warmth when he was close. Or even zaps of charged sexual tension between us. But I didn’t. I wasn’t feelinganything.

What was happening?

What was wrong with me?

From the other end of the line, I heard shuffling and Mom’s lamp switching on. She called Dad’s name as she muffled the speaker with her hand.

“Isa,” Mom said, this time with worry, as she uncovered the phone. “Where have you been? Why haven’t you answered my calls? Are you okay?”

I glanced to the side, shifting my legs, then bounced a knee as I tried to pull a fast answer without telling the truth or an awful lie.

My mouth worked faster than my head as I blurted, “I’m okay. I got married and was overseas for the honeymoon.”

Sweet god, what kind of cliché Hallmark movie excuse was that?

Rune chuckled next to me, which helped relax me a little. I turned my head toward him, heart thundering and my cheeks on fire. A smirk pulled on his lips, and he winked at me as he met my gaze. He leaned down to brush his lips to my free ear. He rested his large palm on my lower back, and this time, my body responded. Heat flushed through me with the all too familiar tingles and trembling that only he caused.

As much as I wanted to keep feeling, I didn’t want to feelthiswhile on the phone with my mom. I shouldered him away, but he stayed put, nibbling my earlobe with his hot breath fanning against it. Goosebumps raised along my arms, my nipples hardening. I squeezed my thighs together as I began tingling in places I really didn’t want to be.

I could tell him to stop, and he would. But I let him because, for some sick reason, I didn’t want him to stop now.

“You got married?” Mom whispered, hurt. “You never told me or your father you were seeing someone. I’m happy you found a man to settle down with but... you didn’t invite us to your wedding?”

She believed I would get hitched and not tell her? What kind of daughter was I?

Mom was the sweetest woman I knew. She never raised her voice at me and showered me with love and affection. I’d heard since I was a young child how I was as sweet as she was and how my mom was blessed with a docile daughter. It bugged me every time someone said that to her with me in the same room.

Rune drew back, keeping his hand on my lower back like he knew where this conversation was going. No amount of teasing and kissing would relax me now. The tingling was gone, and my heart was racing.

“No one knew. It was a Vegas wedding.”

Great answer, Isa.

Now Mom would think I wasn’t responsible because I married someone I couldn’t tell her about. She’d see red flags in Rune that weren’t there.

She stayed quiet, and as the seconds passed, my heart hammered faster. Rune’s free hand grabbed mine and entwined our fingers. More of his heat burrowed into me, calming me just a little and helping me breathe easier.

I heard Dad’s muffled voice after Mom covered the speaker to say something to him. She uncovered it with a sigh of defeat that broke my heart.

“Will you have another wedding? A big one for family and friends?”

With the thought of marrying Rune, I sat straighter, my eyes turning to him. I caught him already watching me, a ghost of a smile on his lips, his ocean eyes full of amusement and love. Through the look, I knew he wanted that for us.