Chapter 9

Sydney Sage

I'm Okay With Spokane

It turns out that Spokane isn't the best vacation spot in Montana. I can't help but feel bad as I watch the gang reunite in the café near the slopes a little too quiet than I had hoped for. I heard that Spokane had very good slopes and from Ian and my sister Zoe that if they wanted to go skiing they would go to Spokane first.

Adrian looks across the table and gives me a small smile and I look down at my coffee dejectedly after failing to return his smile. Why did I have to choose Spokane? Why didn't I do more research into which place is best for our little last minute vacation? I only found out a few hours ago in the airport back at California from Eddie's pale face that Spokane was where the incident with the strigoi and where Mason Ashford had died.

"So," Rose drawls out. "You've been in Spokane before Sydney?"

I look up from my coffee. "I heard about it and that the slopes here are good," I say. " I didn't know…"

"It isn't your fault Sydney," Christian, the Queen's boyfriend, says gently. "You didn't know."

"I should have looked into it," I say. "I always do, it's just that it was so last minute I-"

"I don't mind coming here," Eddie says looking at Christian, Mia and Rose from the corner of our booth. Angeline wraps her arm around his and gently rubs his shoulder. "I think we came here to let go off all the nightmares we had take in the good memories we had here with Mason."

Rose nods. "I think so to," she says snuggling into Dimitri's side. "Besides, the slopes here are good, I can't wait to get on them oh wait are they selling doughnuts here?" she asks looking off at a man walking around with a large tray off doughnuts.

The queen shakes her head at her best friend. "Really Rose doughnuts?"

We all laugh as Rose rolls her eyes and hops out of the booth. "Laugh all you want, I'm starving, do you want a doughnut Sydney?"

Jill snickers next to Eddie and Eddie stifles a smile. I frown at them and shake my head at Rose.

"No thank you," I say.

"Are you sure?" Rose asks.

"I'm good; I had my sugar for the week,"

Rose looks at me amused. "What exactly did you eat?"

"She ate half a gingerbread cookie," Adrian says shaking his head at me a wide smile. "It's basically sugar over dose for our little Alchemist little dhampir."

Rose frowns. "Sugar overdose?" she says with a shocked face. "Sydney Katherine Sage, we are having a very deep conversation about what a sugar over dose when we are alone and by the time we leave Spokane, I'm going to make you eat a doughnut, not even one but two."

"Roza," Dimitri says chuckling at her expression as he hands her some money. "Go get your doughnut."

She grabs his money and stomps away angrily. I turn towards Adrian with a frown plastered on my face to find him laughing. I can't believe he did this. Rose is going to make me eat two doughnuts, two! I'm going to gain so many pounds by the time we go back to California. The thought itself is painful.

"Did you really have to say that?"

"What, I was saying the truth, you called it a sugar over dose," he says.

Lissa looks at Adrian and me silently and goes back to sipping her hot chocolate. "So you must be the famous Sydney Sage. Rose and Sonya babble about you nonstop," she says giving me a smile.

I blush. "Oh, I hope its good stuff your majesty," I say self consciously.

Lissa smiles, "It's Lissa, and of course all good,"

"Why are you so worried? Is there some bad gossip that I'm not aware of?" Adrian asks leaning across the table with an eyebrow raised.

I shake my head blushing even more if possible. "No, no, no, I mean, I don't think there is,"

He chuckles at my expression and nudges his knee against mine under the table. "I'm teasing you Sage," he says softly.

"Does he bother you like this always?" Mia asks.

I nod. "Most of the time,"

Mia gives Adrian a face and he holds his hands up in mock surrender. "Leave the poor girl alone Ivashkov."

I smile as Adrian looks down at his hands "ashamed". Christian rolls his eyes at Adrian and turns to face me.

"Did you ever ski before Sydney?" Christian asks.

"Just once on a trip in Russia," I say.

Dimitri smiles. "You went skiing in Russia? Where?"

"Near Baia actually, I was there before I met Rose," I say remembering my trip with Carly while she was still working for the alchemists.

"I liked skiing there to," he says. "The slopes are much better there."

"You used to ski comrade?" Rose says walking up to us with a doughnut half stuffed in her face. "I thought you were a newbie like Jill."

Jill blushes and Eddie gives her a smile causing Jill to blush more and look down at her hands shyly. Lissa notices this and smiles at her little sister. I feel my heart grow warm as I take in the two. I never had the chance to notice the little sisterly interaction the two had. Jill always seems to think that it's a one way thing but the small little things like Lissa smiling at Jill's little crush that Eddie and many others are completely impervious to show the opposite. These small moments show that Lissa does care.

"Of course I ski Roza," he says. "It's my favorite sport."

"Come on Rose," Christian says rolling his eyes. "Even I knew that."

"Shut it pyro," she says.

Eddie shakes his head at the two of them. "I don't about you guys but I'm going to hit the slopes now," he says helping Angeline up.

"Same here," Lissa says yanking Christian along.

Dimitri rises and grabs Roses hand pulling her away from Christian who was yelling something about failing miserably on a high slope. I bite back a smile and look into Adrian's emerald green eyes.

"Do you want to go now to?" he asks.

"Sure," I say dumping my coffee in a nearby trash can.

I turn around to grab my jacket and can't help but watch as Jill looks off at Eddie and Angeline sadly. I look over at Adrian to see him frowning, already noticing this. He replaces his frown with a wide smile filled with heart warming brotherly affection and reaches out to ruffle Jill's hair.

"You coming Jailbait?" he says.

"You guys go ahead; I want go get something from the cabin."

"We can wait Jill," I say.

She shakes her head. "I'll be fine," she says and heads out the café and towards her cabin.

"Maybe I should go and talk to her," I say to Adrian as I head over to the door that led to the cabins.

He grabs my arm and I turn around to look into those sad green eyes. "Give her a moment."