The Assassin's Blood: The Confradia Assassins 3

Chapter 24: Choices

Santana

I woke up this morning feeling foolish over what I did last night. Kissing and touching Declan was great, but his attitude towards me after what we did was horrible. I didn't sleep a wink last night. My bedsheets are twisted, and I'm sure I look like a mess. I was so aroused that I had to pull all of my clothes off to be comfortable. I shuddered when the sheets caressed my nipples. Pleasure rushes through my body at the reminder of last night. I can't stop thinking about how his body felt against mine. As soon as the thought surfaces, I let it go. Feeling depressed, I rise from the bed, pull the shirt over my head, slip on some shorts, and step out of the room. I'm walking down the hallway in search of Connor when I run into Hunter.

"Hey, Santana. How you feeling this morning?" I shrug my shoulders, not wanting to share my mixed thoughts. "Hey, Hunter, I'm okay. I was actually on my way to check on Connor." Hunter's smile widens. "Actually, Connor is helping me with the information he got from that dude's computer. He woke up earlier and had some breakfast before he headed to the office. That kid is a whiz with computers. How about some breakfast instead?" I smile at Hunter's assessment of Connor. Connor loves using his computer for hacking. It's definitely up his alley. "Yeah, Connor is a bit overenthusiastic about using his hacking skills." Hunter snickers. "Yeah, I saw that." Shrugging my shoulders, I gesture to the stairs. "I guess; I can do breakfast." Connor smiles and extends his forearm in a gentlemanly fashion. "Shall we?"

Taking his arm, I let him lead me to the kitchen. He talks about random things on the way, trying to make me feel comfortable and talks about his girlfriend, Maleah. Hunter is a sweet guy in a hipster, grungy kind of way. He's definitely the kind of guy I should be dating, but for some stupid reason, my mind is set on Declan. The smell of bacon and eggs greets us the moment we step into the kitchen. Priest is standing behind the counter, looking gorgeous with a black chef's apron around his trim waist. He's wearing low-rise blue jeans that mold to his firm thighs and a white shirt that fits perfectly around the muscles of his chest and back. He's incredibly beautiful with his chestnut-colored hair, razor-sharp jaw, high cheekbones, long lashes, and penetrating silver eyes. The man looks like he stepped out of a fitness magazine.

Hunter smirks and elbows me on the side with a sly whisper. "It's alright, Santana, all women get flustered when they first see him. The man is a babe magnet." An embarrassing heat crawls through my body at his words, but I don't back down. "Shut up," I mutter, poking him back with a good-natured scowl.

Hunter laughs and leads me towards Priest. "I brought you an eating companion. Treat her right." He says with a wink and a snicker. Hunter definitely has a hard time understanding when he's a pain, but he's sweet, so I let it go. "Hey," I say, giving Priest a small wave as I take a seat in front of the island. Priest quirks a brow and smiles. "Good morning. Would you like some coffee?" I nod my head enthusiastically. "Yes, please." Hunter leans his elbows on the counter and points at his chest. "How about me, dude?" Priest narrows his eyes and mimics his posture on the other side of the island. "I don't know if you deserve any coffee after making our guest uncomfortable with your comments. But perhaps we should ask her. Do you think he deserves coffee, Santana?" He asks, giving me a devilish smile as he hands me a steaming coffee mug.

I accept the mug and give Hunter a speculative look before I take a sip. "Mm?" Hunter pouts his lips and gives me a sad hangdog face. "Pretty please!" He whispers in a little boy's voice. After a moment of making him sweat, I roll my eyes with a snicker. "I guess we can give him some but only one cup, he's too hyper as it is." Priest sneers and hands him a small steaming cup. "You better make it last, kid." Hunter takes the cup and looks inside, then looks up at us with chagrin. "What? I can drink this in two gulps." Priest shrugs. "So drink slowly. Now get out of here and go help Connor sort through all the information I gave you before I take away something else." Hunter's eyes round like saucers as he rises hastily from his seat. "Okay, man, I know when I'm not needed. Peace out!"

Priest and I observe as he humorously makes a hand signal with a peace sign and slaps it on his chest before he steps out of the room. He's definitely an entertaining guy to have around. Priest scoffs at Hunter's shenanigans and places a plate of bacon, eggs, and toast in front of me before takes his own and gestures to the dining table. "Come on." Taking my mug and plate in hand, I follow him to the table. It's a beautiful table made of rustic wood, several candles with white linen napkins, cutlery, a pitcher of orange juice, and a few empty glasses around it. We both sit next to each other and begin to eat. The first bite of breakfast is amazing. Living off cereal and mac and cheese has made me appreciate a warm breakfast. I groan with pleasure and give him an impish grin. "This is really good," I utter, taking another bite of eggs. Priest snickers. "It's only eggs and bacon. You'd think I made a feast by the way you and your brother react, but I appreciate the gratitude." I shrug my shoulders and take another bite. "Yeah, I guess we're so used to living off cereal that when we get to eat a real breakfast, we savor it. Bacon and eggs are not exactly cheap, so we've learned to live off the crappy instant food."

Priest's fork clicks loudly as it falls onto the plate. His jaw ticks and his fingers clench into tight fists. I look up at him in inquiry and find him giving me a sad frown. I want to kick myself at that moment for not thinking before I opened my mouth, but it's too late now. So I just smile and play it off like it's not a big deal. "It's easier this way too since we're both always so busy."

He must see my discomfort because he clears his face and gives me a tight smile. To my surprise, he leans his elbows on the table, gives me a direct look and whispers. "You're a strong woman Santana. Connor is very lucky to have you as a sister." I look down at my plate with chagrin and shrug. I certainly don't feel strong. "Thanks, Priest, but to be honest most of the time, I'm just trying to keep myself from falling apart. I won't pretend that life hasn't been rough for us, but we have each other. If it weren't for Connor, I would probably have given up already. But he's the one that keeps me going."

To my surprise, Priest rests a gentle hand on mine and whispers. "I don't know if Declan told you, but I used to be blind." My mouth gapes open with shock. "What? Yeah, Hunter told me. I just didn't want to be rude by bringing it up." He nods his head and taps an index finger against his temple. "I was in an accident a few years ago that caused me to go blind. I had surgery a few months back to repair it, and they managed to fix it." I run my gaze over his steely eyes and face. I can see that his eyes are not quite what a human's average eyesight looks like. For one, his irises are lighter, and his pupils darker. They give off a supernatural vibe, which in no way deters from his beauty.

"How...?" I stop confused, but Priest is able to answer anyway. "The company I work for offered to give me an experimental surgery. I didn't really think it through and was willing to try anything, so I agreed. My eyes are kind of like computers now. Have you ever played a Call of Duty or one of those video games with realistic graphics?" I nod my head. "Yeah, Connor's friend brought an Xbox over once, and they played this really cool game with a guy who's like some kind of treasure hunter. It was pretty realistic." Priest nods his head. "Yeah, one of those games. Well, my point of view is kind of like that. I get pictures that are not quite real-time but feel like it is. I can see people, but I can tell that it's not quite right and most of the time, not in color. It's hard to explain." He takes a deep breath and leans back in his chair with a sigh. "My point, I guess, is that I had to struggle with my blindness for a long time, but I didn't give up. I found another way to live. Now that I can see— people don't realize that it's another struggle and adjustment for me, but I keep going because I'm not a quitter. You're not a quitter Santana, and I admire that about you. Any man would be lucky to have someone like you."

I snort at his compliment and take a sip from my mug. "Yeah, I'm a real prize. I'm a waitress with zero experience in anything. Oh, and I've only managed to take one or two night classes for the past four years because I dream of being a Counselor. I want to be able to help kids like Connor, who suffers from learning issues or just issues in general, and I'll probably be eighty by the time I finish. Oh, and let's not forget, I'm raising a teenage boy." Another sarcastic snort escapes my lips as I rest my mug on the table and quirk a sardonic brow. "Yeah, I'm quite the catch."

Priest shakes his head in bewilderment. "I think if anyone can finish school, you can. And the fact that you took on the challenge of taking care of your brother at such a young age tells me you will. That just makes me admire you more." He leans close and gives me a sly smile. "Besides, I know someone who definitely more than admires you." He utters, nudging his chin towards the doorway.

I look up surprised to see Declan standing there and look back down with embarrassment. Priest simply chuckles and leans back in the chair with a cocky grin. I remain quiet while they continue talking. I don't know if it's shyness over what happened between Declan and me, or depression that it won't happen again. Eventually, Priest gets up from the table and excuses himself. I look towards Declan and bite my lip when I see he's looking directly at me.

I shake my head shocked. "Wow that's…that's pretty cool. Why were you named Outlaw?" He shrugs his shoulders and gives me a cryptic smile. "Sorry, that's not something I can discuss with you." I shake my head and look down at my plate again before I take a deep breath and respond. "Okay, I guess that's understandable…" I bite my lip and gaze back at him. "Listen, I…I wanted to thank you for helping us out last night." Declan shakes his head and rises from his chair to kneel in front of me. I can help but feel renewed desire course through me as I look into his cobalt eyes and lush lips. Declan gives me a slight smile and leans close. "You don't need to thank me, Santana. I would do anything to protect you and Connor."

Tears gather in my eyes at his words. No one has ever protected Connor or me. Not even our parents. I was always the one to do the protecting. But no matter how much I'd like for Declan to be my hero, I can't accept it. Declan said it himself. Declan is just a temporary person in our lives and Connor, and I need to be able to stand on our own two feet.

Hardening my heart, I rise from the chair and give him a polite smile. "I appreciate your kindness Declan, but Connor and I need to be able to take care of ourselves. I figure if Priest doesn't mind, we'll stay here for a day or two. I have a little money in my savings, and I can pawn some jewelry that I hid in my bag. Hunter also offered to go back to our place and get our things, too, so we'll be fine." Declan frowns. "You know that I'd be happy to help you, Santana. Why won't you accept my help?" I shake my head with a grimace. "You don't understand Declan. We don't want your money! I know that you're Connor's brother, but that's not what we need from you. We don't want to be your burden because of your father's choices. We want to be a family, not someone you feel obligated to help once a month. We've been alone for a long time, and we've learned that all we need is each other. If you can't be a part of Connor's life in every way, then let us be because it hurts us—him." I utter hoarsely as I try to cover up the fact that I want him with me too.

Declan's mouth tightens, and his eyes dim. "I'm sorry, Santana. More than you know. I wish things were different, but my life is too dangerous for you and Connor." Tears threaten to escape my eyes at his honest words. I can see by the look on his face that he really means what he says. However, I have to protect myself from the inevitable heartbreak his indifference will bring. Breath hitching and chin quivering, I shake my head and back away. "I understand Declan, and that's why it's better that we just leave things as they are. Connor and I will figure it out on our own, and you can go back to your life. No hard feelings. We absolve you of any responsibility you think have over Connor, and by association, me. We've been fine without you, and we'll be fine once you're gone. You don't need to feel guilty about not wanting to be our family because we're really just strangers to you."

Declan's face flinches with my every word. I can see that it hurts him, but it's his choice, and he has to live with it, just as we have to live with our choices. "I better go and find Connor," I whisper distractedly and turn to walk away. Declan rises with me and takes me by the forearm to face him. We both simply stand there, gazing into each other's eyes. After a moment, Declan leans his face close and kisses me lightly. His hand rises to caress my jaw and lips before he wordlessly pulls away. I don't say anything after that. There's nothing else to say.