To Mai Surprise

Disclaimer: I do not own The Nine Lives of Chloe King, nor do I profit from any of my stories.

Chapter 6

The figure reappeared, this time a foot away from me.

I looked up, only to meet the eyes that had haunted me for the past 24 hours. "Chloe?" I asked, though I knew it was her.

She looked up, meeting my eyes. "Alek, we need to talk."

Alek looked at me, his eyes quickly adjusting to the darkness.

"Talk? About the Mai? Can it wait until morning?" He looked exhausted; I felt guilty, but I needed to work things out between us.

"No, not really. I want to talk about us…" His expression changed. "I mean, I just want you to know that I've always liked me. And earlier tonight…" I trailed off.

Alek blushed. "You heard me talking to my mum earlier?" When I nodded he only sighed. "So, where does that leave us?" he asked, his eyes pleading.

"Here, right now, on your roof. I'm here if you want me." He laughed and threw an arm around my shoulders.

"So, why are you here? You weren't at school today…" He held me closer, saying, "I wanted to show you off to all of my friends!"

After laughing, I struggled to regain my composure. "I was asleep. Jasmine and I drove to Las Angeles, and Aunt Valentina wanted to us to meet people once we arrived." With a grumble, I continued. "The other pride leaders are worried. The guards have picked up some chatter recently; they say that someone probably saw us on Telegraph Hill yesterday."

Alek looked worried. "Wouldn't it be in the news?" he asked.

"Not really, depends on who saw us," I explained. "If it is some crazy college student with a camera, that's no big deal. If it's the cops, only a slightly large sized deal. If it's The Order…."

Alek turned my shoulders so I was facing him. "Chloe, what if it's The Order?"

"Whenever Mai are sighted in the states, they send a few assassins to eliminate any threats. If they know we're here, it wouldn't be in the news." Alek looked up, confused. "The Order controls the media. They wouldn't let a story get out to the public. They would want the element of surprise," I explained.

"To be honest, I would prefer that it was the cops caught us. I would rather be arrested for suspicion of robbery than stuck sitting around wondering when The Order will show up…" I shivered.

"Do you think they know that I'm Mai?" Alek wondered aloud.

I shook my head, saying, "I have no idea. Even if they know, there's nothing we can do."

"Really?" Alek yawned.

"The Order is notorious for their scheming…" I looked at my watch. "We should be fine for tonight. You should get some sleep.

Alek opens his mouth to argue, but I cut him off. "Just go get ready for bed. You look half asleep already." He nodded, and then climbed back through his window. I heard him turn on the shower.

Aunt Valentina had insisted that one of us watched the area around Alek's house tonight, in case anything happened. I had volunteered; it seemed like the perfect time to talk to him. I heard a noise behind me, and turned around.

"Alek, I thought I told you to—" I stopped talking when Alek threw a blanket across my legs. His leather jacket fell onto my shoulders. Turning around, I smiled at him. He was only wearing his boxers. Damn! Attempting to seem indifferent, I failed miserably. Alek turned to go, but stopped.

"One more thing," he said, leaning in close. Placing a gentle kiss on my cheek, he backed away with a smirk. "Good night love."

Dammit, Alek! He was teasing me! He had better not make a habit of it…

Wide awake from sleeping all day, I sat on Alek's roof listening to his steady breathing. He had fallen asleep the moment his head hit his pillow. Not bored at all, my thoughts were filled with of a mix of lust and worry. Lust for the sexy Brit in bed ten feet from me, worry due to Aunt Val's words.

She hadn't changed her trip itinerary, she was still due to return to San Francisco in two weeks. Without her, it was hard to feel particularly safe. Valentina had always been with me, ever since my parents were killed. She had trained me for almost nine years. It wasn't unusual for her to leave for months at a time, but it was rare that she sent someone to take her place while she was away.

At the meeting in LA, Aunt Val had told us that she was sending someone to manage her antique store until November. I had never met him, but he was supposed to be some big shot from Nevada. His father was the Las Vegas pride leader, so we were supposed to trust him. I have faith in Valentina's judgment but that's not stopping the countdown until her return.

It seemed like it took forever for my phone to buzz its morning alarm. I had been studying the rooftops, not for attackers, but for a good place to watch the sunrise. When my phone went off at 5am, I called Jasmine. She told me to head home and get ready for school.

I was about to take off when I had an idea. As quietly as I could, I snuck into Alek's bedroom. I put the blanket Alek had given me back across his chest. With a slight giggle at his sleeping expression, I kissed his forehead.

With a spring in my step, I raced across the rooftops. When I got back to the apartment, I took a nice long shower. The hot water was nice, but the memory of how sweet Alek had been was what really warmed my soul. After toweling off, I put on a pair of jeans and an old band t-shirt.

Hearing voices in the kitchen, I grabbed Alek's jacket and walked out the door. Putting it on, I almost ran into a young man making his way across the room.

He laughed and smiled, saying, "sorry about that. I wasn't watching where I was going."

I reached to shake his hand. "Aunt Valentina sent you?" I asked. When he nodded, I said, "It shouldn't be too much work; the antique shop gets practically no business as it is." I laughed. "I'm Chloe King, by the way," I informed him.

The guy nodded, saying, "It's nice to meet you. I'm Brian. Brian Rezza."

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