Read Online elemental 01 - whirlwind by Larissa Ladd - Free Book Online
Authors: Larissa Ladd
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returning to him. Aira steeled herself for him to say something insulting or stupid—or both. “I want to apologize for being an asshole today. When I ended up getting the room next to yours, Dylan pointed out what a jerk I had been all day, and I realized he was right.”
Aira shrugged. “Neither of us was at our best.” She suggested charitably. The apology surprised her somewhat, though Aiden’s admission that Dylan had prompted it did not. Aira wondered why they hadn’t just agreed Dylan would share the room closest to Aira, since she got along better with that brother. She supposed they had their reasons for determining it with a coin toss. “I accept the apology. I’m sorry I was acting like an asshole, too.”
Aiden smiled slightly and turned away, leaving her room and closing the door behind him. Aira suddenly felt every bit of the fatigue she had earned over the course of the day, and no amount of frustration kept her from turning off the lights in her room and gratefully climbing into her own bed, curling up and falling asleep in a matter of moments.
Chapter 6
Aiden woke to the aroma of coffee and something delicious smelling cooking. He dragged himself out of bed, feeling as if he had only slept three out of the last eight hours, but telling himself that he was on the clock. It was to be expected he’d sleep lightly. He pulled a tee shirt on and left the guest bedroom he had taken, scrubbing at his face with his palms before he navigated the stairs to the main area of the apartment. The smell of mouthwatering food intensified as he made his way, and when he reached the ground floor of the unit, he saw Aira busily cooking and Dylan sitting at a bar stool watching as she did something at the stove. Music played quietly from a speaker set off to the other side of the open kitchen. For once something he liked: alternative rock.
Aiden sat down next to his brother in silence. The two nodded to each other in greeting, and Aiden glanced at Aira. She was dancing slightly, oblivious to anyone else, focused on the task at hand. In the morning light that poured through the high windows, Aiden had to admit she wasn’t difficult to look at.
“My dear brother has joined us.” Dylan said, projecting his voice just above the music. Aira looked up from her work at the stove sharply, her features briefly wary and disappointed before she replaced the expression with a more neutral, polite one. She turned away from the work of cooking scrambled eggs and Aiden watched her retrieve a mug from a cabinet, filling it with coffee wordlessly and depositing it in front of him, gesturing to the milk and sugar. Aiden doctored his coffee and watched with amusement as Aira ignored him completely, diving back into her cooking and her enjoyment of the music. She was moving her hips, singing softly along, closing her eyes occasionally and nodding her head in time.
After a few minutes she served up eggs alongside bacon and French toast on three plates. She deposited each in front of him and Dylan. Aiden was impressed. He was generally useless to the world until after he’d had a cup or two of coffee and, although he knew Aira had excellent manners, he hadn’t reckoned on such a spread for her unwelcome guests.
He accepted a fork and knife from her and started in on breakfast, wondering what motivated such a change in demeanor. Likely, he thought with a twinge of envy, his brother had been at work softening the stubborn woman. Aiden had spent most of the time he was awake thinking of the variety of things he knew about Aira’s situation and the importance of her attaining her full abilities—things Aira did not know. Her grandmother had told him certain things privately, outlining why it was so important Aira be protected until she allied with another elemental. Aiden was glad he and his family had very little to do with the politics of the elemental world. The stress of “wild” elementals had made things precarious
Aira shrugged. “Neither of us was at our best.” She suggested charitably. The apology surprised her somewhat, though Aiden’s admission that Dylan had prompted it did not. Aira wondered why they hadn’t just agreed Dylan would share the room closest to Aira, since she got along better with that brother. She supposed they had their reasons for determining it with a coin toss. “I accept the apology. I’m sorry I was acting like an asshole, too.”
Aiden smiled slightly and turned away, leaving her room and closing the door behind him. Aira suddenly felt every bit of the fatigue she had earned over the course of the day, and no amount of frustration kept her from turning off the lights in her room and gratefully climbing into her own bed, curling up and falling asleep in a matter of moments.
Chapter 6
Aiden woke to the aroma of coffee and something delicious smelling cooking. He dragged himself out of bed, feeling as if he had only slept three out of the last eight hours, but telling himself that he was on the clock. It was to be expected he’d sleep lightly. He pulled a tee shirt on and left the guest bedroom he had taken, scrubbing at his face with his palms before he navigated the stairs to the main area of the apartment. The smell of mouthwatering food intensified as he made his way, and when he reached the ground floor of the unit, he saw Aira busily cooking and Dylan sitting at a bar stool watching as she did something at the stove. Music played quietly from a speaker set off to the other side of the open kitchen. For once something he liked: alternative rock.
Aiden sat down next to his brother in silence. The two nodded to each other in greeting, and Aiden glanced at Aira. She was dancing slightly, oblivious to anyone else, focused on the task at hand. In the morning light that poured through the high windows, Aiden had to admit she wasn’t difficult to look at.
“My dear brother has joined us.” Dylan said, projecting his voice just above the music. Aira looked up from her work at the stove sharply, her features briefly wary and disappointed before she replaced the expression with a more neutral, polite one. She turned away from the work of cooking scrambled eggs and Aiden watched her retrieve a mug from a cabinet, filling it with coffee wordlessly and depositing it in front of him, gesturing to the milk and sugar. Aiden doctored his coffee and watched with amusement as Aira ignored him completely, diving back into her cooking and her enjoyment of the music. She was moving her hips, singing softly along, closing her eyes occasionally and nodding her head in time.
After a few minutes she served up eggs alongside bacon and French toast on three plates. She deposited each in front of him and Dylan. Aiden was impressed. He was generally useless to the world until after he’d had a cup or two of coffee and, although he knew Aira had excellent manners, he hadn’t reckoned on such a spread for her unwelcome guests.
He accepted a fork and knife from her and started in on breakfast, wondering what motivated such a change in demeanor. Likely, he thought with a twinge of envy, his brother had been at work softening the stubborn woman. Aiden had spent most of the time he was awake thinking of the variety of things he knew about Aira’s situation and the importance of her attaining her full abilities—things Aira did not know. Her grandmother had told him certain things privately, outlining why it was so important Aira be protected until she allied with another elemental. Aiden was glad he and his family had very little to do with the politics of the elemental world. The stress of “wild” elementals had made things precarious
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