Tide Read Online Free

that her upset must be written all over her face, and turned towards the car window, letting her hair fall between her and Juliet and cover her like a curtain.
    She didn’t want to have anything to do with Sean ever again.
    She wanted to hear his voice.
    She wanted him to come back.
    She wanted him to go away, and disappear forever.
    She didn’t know what she wanted.
    And in the middle of this swirling galaxy of Sean thoughts stood Nicholas.
    It was Nicholas who’d explained all that Sarah’s parents and Sean hadn’t told her, in their vain attempt to protect her. He had told her about the existence of other Secret Families, about the Sabha, the Secret Council that bound them together, and how the Scottish Valaya, the coven they had destroyed, was just one of many throughout the world.
    She was still in danger; Nicholas had made that clear. But she had him on her side. Of all the humans and Surari she had encountered over the past months, nothing and nobody could compare to him. The way he mastered the Elementals, the spirits of the elements, bending them to his will; the way he could call those blue flames to burn from his fingertips; the way he seemed to make her forget everything just by looking into her eyes … He had saved her life by killing Cathy, and now he was saving her from being completely alone. He had proved himself to her, over and over again.
    And still there were times, even now, when Sarah felt utterly bereft, as if there was an abyss opening right in front of her feet.
    Is this what love is?
    Sarah had no answer. Nicholas was, after all, her first boyfriend. Was this love, this heady feeling, this sense of burning up and not caring about anything, anyone but him ? Not caring for herself, either. Still, in spite of her doubts, she couldn’t stay away from Nicholas. He had been there for her when nobody else was. And she was happy, wasn’t she? As happy as she could be in the mess her life now was.

     
    “Hey, sweetheart.”
    And there he was, Nicholas, waiting on the stone steps of her house. Sarah could feel Juliet’s gaze burning into her back as he put his arms around her and kissed her.
    “Well done.” Nicholas waved to Juliet over Sarah’s shoulder. Sarah turned to see Aunt Juliet waving back, a smile on her face. Her stomach knotted all of a sudden, and a feeling of sorrow, of loss, overcame her for a moment. She watched Juliet drive away as if you’d watch a drowning person sink underwater. She closed her eyes for a second, astonished at the intensity of the grief, wondering where it’d come from.
    “Sarah?”
    “Yes?”
    “You’re a million miles away. I said ‘well done’.”
    “Thanks. Thanks.” Sarah stretched her mouth into a smile, but the dreadful feeling of loss was still gripping her. “But I don’t know how it went yet. I won’t know until March.”
    Nicholas took her cello from her as she unlocked the door. “ I know,” he told her. “I’ve got a feeling your performance today knocked them all out.”
    “I hope so. Come on in.” She opened the door and removed her shoes before walking in to the hallway. Nicholas knew by now of her rituals. He stood back as she hung up their coats, trying in vain to make them sit straight. Sarah’s obsessions amused him, like a charming eccentricity
    “Would you like something to eat?” she asked.
    “I’m not hungry, thanks.” He slipped his arms around her waist. Sarah tensed for a moment – she had never enjoyed being touched. But shouldn’t it be different, with your boyfriend? Nicholas kissed the top of her head and she breathed in his signature scent of soil and woodsmoke.
    “Actually, I need to talk to you,” she began.
    “Talking is not what I had in mind!” he laughed. “But sure, let’s go.”
    Sarah ignored the pang of hunger in her stomach. She was ravenous after her long day, and she would have loved to cook something. But it was somehow easier to take Nicholas’s lead. That was the way things