"I'd love to meet your brother," Miles reassured her brightly. But even though he was smiling, he still looked troubled.
"You would?" Brea challenged dubiously.
"Of course," Miles leaned close and let his lips brush against hers. "If he's important to you, then he's important to me."
"So are we like," Brea pulled away from him and sat across from him on the bed. She suddenly wished she was dressed. Being naked made her feel even more exposed than she already did.
"Are we serious?" she hated how pitiful she sounded when she asked the question. She half expected Miles to shudder at the suggestion before making his excuses and leaving with haste. Perhaps Sylar was going to get his wish granted after all.
"Yes," but Miles didn't miss a beat in responding. He swiftly crossed the space between them and cupped her head in his hands. He was so warm to the touch.
"We are definitely serious," he kissed her. This time, there wasn't hunger in the kiss but tenderness. Brea could feel herself melting against his heat, her fears and anxieties fading away.
"I love you," she whispered the words unwillingly as they parted. She wasn't even sure where they had come from. It was as if her heart suddenly had control of her lips and was making her say things without any involvement from her brain which would have screened the words and screened that it was too soon. Brea held her breath and feared that she'd taken things too far.
Miles smiled, his eyes crinkling in an adorable way.
"I love you too." He confirmed. Brea threw herself against him, holding tight, threatening to never let go. He loved her. She loved him. That was all that mattered.
Miles embraced her back, holding her against his bare chest.
"I've never said that to anyone before," he admitted shakily. Brea leaned back to look into his eyes. She saw something in them that she'd never seen before – vulnerability.
"I never thought I'd find love," he continued, reaching for her cheek and gently stroking it. "My life has been brutal and lonely and … "
"And now you have me," Brea smiled sweetly at him.
"And now I have you," he agreed with a smile. "And you know what? I'm never going to let you go."
"That's fine with me." They kissed and the kiss quickly heated into something more. As the day outside darkened to night they made love several more times, each time whispering their love to one another. If Sylar had hoped that they would part, then quite the opposite had happened. They were now stronger than ever.
Chapter 55
Sylar pulled up at the gas station just after dark; above him the sky sparkled with the glittering of stars. But he didn't pause to look up. He drove directly to a pump and stopped his bike. He ran his hands through his hair and glanced around. It was empty at the station, apart from the clerk inside who gave him a stiff wave.
The clerk knew who Sylar was, or rather who he rode with. Any gas he pumped there would be on the house. Stretching his legs, Sylar stepped away from his bike and wandered around to the front. He felt tense and uneasy. He wished he could just let the thing with Brea and her boyfriend go, but he knew it would be dangerous to do so.
From where he was standing he could read the sign out on the highway informing him that Colridge was now just twenty miles away. With a reluctant groan, he reached into the pocket of his leathers and retrieved his cell phone. He made a call as he strode back towards his bike. There were signs around prohibiting the use of cell phones at the station. He ignored them all.
"Hello?" Gina picked up and didn't sound happy to have heard from him.
"Gina, hey, it's Sylar."
"I know."
Clearing his throat he wedged the phone against his shoulder and neck as he began filling up the tank on his bike. The petrol chugged out slowly, filling the air with an acidic scent.
"Are you free tonight?" he asked directly.
"Tonight?" he could hear how outraged Gina was by question. "Whatever I'm doing tonight is none of your damn business," she told him curtly.
"I think it is," Sylar countered. "I think that you're going to meet me so we can talk."
"We've nothing to talk about."
"We need to talk about Brea."
If Gina had been intending on hanging up but she hesitated.
"She's in danger," Sylar admitted stiffly.
"If she is then you've only got yourself to blame!" Gina raged. "I know who you really are, Sylar. What it is you do."
"Trust me, if she's in danger then it's nothing to do with me," his grip on the petrol pump tightened in anger. His comment was only half true. But still, being with Miles was putting her in danger. Their relationship had to end and soon.
"Look, I don't want any trouble," Gina stated quietly, fear creeping into her usually confident voice.
"Me neither," Sylar insisted, "That's why I'm currently on my way over to Colridge. And Brea can't know. Got it?"
"So what? You're going to sneak into town under the cover of night and then disappear before dawn?"
"That's the plan." With his tank full, Sylar placed the petrol pump back in its rack.
"You're certainly good at creeping off," Gina noted bitterly. Sylar grimaced and rubbed a hand down the back of his neck. He wished he hadn't slept with her, maybe then her reaction to him wouldn't be so emotional and unnecessarily difficult.
"Can you meet me or not?" he barked sternly, growing weary of their conversation.
"Sure," Gina sighed in reluctant acceptance. "But not for you, for Brea. If she's in danger, then I want to help."
"Good," Sylar hauled himself back on to his bike and nodded towards the clerk in the station who was nervously peering out at him from behind bullet proof glass. "Meet me at your tattoo parlor in an hour."
"Sylar, w - " Sylar hung up. He wasn't willing to hear any excuses.
Chapter 56
Brea curled up contentedly beside Miles. She could hear the steady beat of his heart as his chest slowly rose and fell. She felt safe beside him, held in his sleepy embrace. The weight of tension which had been pressing down on Brea's chest had lifted. She felt better for having talked to Miles about Sylar. He'd always been so understanding and patient about the special relationship she had with her brother.
Rubbing her eyes, Brea willed herself to fall asleep but her mind was still too preoccupied with thoughts and questions. Every line of thought kept drawing back to Sylar, to his strange desire to have Brea push Miles away. Was her brother jealous? Threatened? She supposed that she should have anticipated such a reaction. Not only had she now left the family home but she'd found someone who was set to replace Sylar as the guy who looked out for her, who protected her. Her brother had every right to feel uncomfortable about the situation.
But still … Brea moved away from Miles, rolling onto her back on the other side of the bed. She stared up at the ceiling as if searching the cracks that etched across it, for hidden meaning. Sylar wanted her to break up with Miles, it was obvious. And she loved Miles, the last thing she'd do was break up with him. Would Sylar just accept that? Or would he do something to force her hand? Would he not stop until he'd caused a wedge between the two lovers?
With a disgruntled sigh, Brea sat up and cradled her head in her hands. Why couldn't her brother just be happy for her? Why couldn't he be supportive?
"Baby?" Miles sleepily called out for her and he stretched and yawned and came to sit beside her on the end of the bed. "Is everything alright?"
"Yeah," Brea replied quietly before shaking her head. "No, I keep thinking about my brother. I'm worried he's going to do something to try and come between us."
She felt the warmth of Miles' strong arm wrap around her shoulders.
"Why would you think that?"
Brea inhaled sharply. She didn't know how to respond. There was so much about Sylar that she didn't know. Like where he rode off to every night. She accepted that he was lying to her. What kind of factory job resulted in employees regularly coming home with black and swollen eyes? His reluctance to tell her the truth made her think that whatever he was doing must be outside of the law. But how far was he willing to go to make money? Had he hurt people before? Had he killed people?