Sweet baby Jesus, the way he smelled was…
Blinking, I force myself not to think of it because then I would so totally have to admit to myself that I sniffed at him like a lunatic and even got so aroused I started thinking about throwing him to the ground and grinding my board all up against him.
Ooooh, that would have felt so good-
Shut your mouth. We are so not thinking about sex with a complete stranger right now, Cassidy. Think about how we got here. I concentrate, frowning when I get pieces of Logan. Yeah his name was Logan. He picked me up and ran with me while I half blacked out from exhaustion.
I remember hurting so badly my mind just fuzzed out a little and completely blanked. There’s not much else after that except this really nice floral scent and cool hand touching my brow.
A woman, I think, thinking back and realizing that Logan said he has a wife. She must have dressed me in the silky nighty I’m currently wearing, though God knows how is beyond me since the thing is indecently tight but long on my short frame.
Sighing, because I just don’t know everything, and no amount of worrying will answer the questions, I grab the matching pink robe off the foot of the bed and pull it on, mumbling about my fast food intake when the belt hardly closes.
What is this chick, anorexic?
The door opens just as I’m turning, and I blink when I see an absolute fox of a woman walk my way, her smile when she sees me making me freeze and smile back, as if I can’t help myself.
“Oh good, you’re awake! I have been absolutely chomping at the bit to meet you. Logan refused to let me stay in here because he says it’s creepy and no one wants to wake up with a stranger staring at you. Anyway, hi! I’m Hannah Kilter. You met my ma—uh, husband, Logan last night,” she says, coming forward to take my hand.
“Hi? I’m—”
“Cass. I know. I met you last night when, uh, when you got here. I just want you to know that you’re safe here. Hu—I mean people usually get freaked out, so I just wanted to put you at ease,” she says smiling, her hand going to her obviously pregnant belly when I look down and spot the bump under her designer dress.
Aaah, she’s pregnant. No wonder I didn’t immediately recognize her as the anorexic this get up belongs to. She is beautiful though, in this totally eerie way that has me taking in her dark hair that almost reaches her waist, her blue, totally hypnotic blue eyes, and a face that Botticelli would have died to behold.
I don’t think I have ever seen anyone this beautiful in my life and I met a supermodel once.
“Um, thank you? I…it’s really nice to meet you, and I am really grateful for the bed and clothes. I…uh…I should probably get going though. I need to get gas for my car and leave,” I say, sighing because I don’t really want to leave.
I’m tired, hungry, and so in need of some time to relax that it’s all I can do not to jump at the bed and hide there for days. Get real, Cass. You can’t just stay here with complete strangers. Besides, hello, werewolf after you, loser.
Hannah blinks, her mouth going slack and then blinks again before looking away.
“You’re hungry! You must be hungry. Come on, I just hired a new cook after I almost ripped the old ones thro—I mean, after I almost ripped her a new asshole for staring at my… husband. She’s awesome. She makes these waffles that you would kill for, and she’s also not too bad to look at when you’re eating.” She giggles, making my mouth quirk.
Not knowing what to do or say, and really, I am starving. I follow her out of the room and down the stairs, gaping when I look around at her home. The place is huge, like this huge cabin that could probably be an apartment block, and it is entirely made of wood.
It must have taken a forest to build this place. The living room is big, filled with huge, comfy-looking couches, and it leads to an open-plan kitchen that is all white and so big I could totally rock the Italian tomato sauce and pasta in it without running out of work room.
Once we get there, I spot a slim, middle-aged woman, standing at the counter sipping coffee while she reads the paper. She looks up when we walk in, and my jaw almost drops when I see her face. Holy hell, are these people all models?
“Good morning fe—Miss. My name is Tina. I hope you’re hungry,” she says kindly, smiling when I smell food and my stomach rumbles loudly.
She and Hannah both chuckle, and I blush when she leads me to a table where a feast is set out. Oh God. Fresh, hot rolls.
“Sit, Cass. Eat. I’m trying to be civilized here, but I swear to God, this kid is part bear because he is always hungry! I’m so starved you’d swear I didn’t wake up at five this morning and put away a loaf of bread.” Hannah laughs.
I smile, giggling when she shoves a whole bran muffin into her mouth and take a seat, reaching for a plate and one of the steaming rolls. By the time I’ve served myself eggs, bacon, fried tomatoes, and another roll, Tina has disappeared and Hannah is rolling her eyes and moaning as she shovels food into her mouth.
Her freedom helps me loosen up, and I start eating, letting off a groan when I taste the food and shovel my own in. By the time I’m full, the empty gnawing ache in my belly is replaced by nirvana. I feel settled enough to look around and appreciate the room we’re in.
These people must be seriously loaded to live like this and have a cook. Lucky bastards. Hannah snorts, her amusement making me look back at her, and I smile when she shakes her head and grins.
“So, Logan told me you’re new in town.”
“Just passing through. I’m on my way to Canada. I think. I mean, I don’t know if I can just go there without a passport or stuff, but I…uh…I was headed there before my car ran out of gas and your husband found me,” I tell her, blinking when another face pops into my head.
Why I feel like crying when golden eyes and the name Banner flits at me is beyond my scope of intelligence right now. But I do. Just thinking about that man, remembering his smell and those strange golden eyes, makes me feel as if something inside me is hurting and empty.
Hannah clears her throat, refocusing my attention, and I look back to see her frowning.
“Why are you going all the way up to that God-forsaken land of the savage syrup eater? You planning to join a boot-making cult, where every second word they say is aboot?” she asks, laughing at her own joke.
I grin, liking her sense of humor and shake my head.
“No, I…uh…I sort of had to leave where I was staying,” I admit, frowning when my head starts itching inside.
Shaking it off, I stop myself from thinking of Gregor and reach for the cup of steaming coffee, moaning when I get my first sip.
“Aaah, a coffee-aholic like Mika.” Hannah laughs.
“Sorry?”
“My…I know a female, a woman named Mika. She’s married to my friend—Bear. She also loves coffee. In fact, the whole time she was pregnant and her ma—husband wouldn’t let her drink coffee she was impossible to live with.”
“Totally get it. I couldn’t live without coffee and being on the…move…all the time I sorta live on it as well,” I say, not mentioning that some days all I have is coffee for breakfast, lunch, and supper to keep down on expenses.
Not that it’s helped slim me down any, not with the amount of sugar I take in it anyways.
“Well, I drink it too. I just don’t see the attraction though. Juice or tea do just as well. Water too.”
“You cannot be human if you’re not addicted to coffee,” I joke, making her splutter and cough on a sip of juice.
She chokes, barking on the juice until she stops with a laugh and starts giggling. I don’t get it, but hey, I’m not about to accuse a supermodel of being nuts after she just fed me and let me sleep in the world’s softest bed.
“You okay?”
“Sorry, just went down weird. Now, about you? Honey, no offense or anything, but you look exhausted, and if you aren’t going all the way up there to the frozen Canadian syrup factory to fulfil your lifelong dream of changing your a
ccent, then you can afford to take a few weeks off to rest and recharge,” she says, her eyes flashing when I shake my head.
“I can’t though. I mean, I am super grateful to you all for the help, but I… I have to keep going. I sorta…have this guy who isn’t…right? He’s…uh…sort of stalking me. I think. I mean, I haven’t seen him again. Thank God. But he said he was going to find me and…I can’t let him,” I explain, blinking when Hannah chuckles and shakes her head.
“Then you should definitely stay here. Stick around, get a…job in town, and rest for a while.”
“But…I just told you that I have some…maniac…looking for me. I can’t just stay here, and besides, I don’t have any money,” I mumble, scowling at the thought of using my cards this close to my destination.
If Logan has indeed had my car towed, then I’ll have to charge it to the card as well, and then I definitely can’t stay here.
“You should definitely stay if you’re having trouble. The ma—men in this town are not going to like hearing that we let you ride off into the sunset with some idiot stalker looking for you. Trust me, if he comes here, he doesn’t stand a chance. Logan and Banner would probably kill him. As for money, you can hang out here with me. I’m sort of lonesome now that my best pal Beeber is playing house with her…husband. I could use some company, and I could ask around if you need a job,” she says, making it sound so simple I want to believe it’s possible.
It isn’t. For one, I am not leeching off two people who are virtual strangers, and for another, like I said, I have to pay for the tow with my card and no way am I risking Gregor coming all the way here only to find me. Because I got complacent.
Shivering at the memory of the way he just…burst with hair and teeth and…oh God, I can’t think about it or I’m likely to hyperventilate. Calming myself by saying it didn’t happen, no, nope, it was just the chili, I breathe deeply and try to smile.
“I appreciate that. Really I do, but I just can’t. I need to leave and put some miles between myself and…him. Anyway, what difference will it make if I stay a few days?”
I want to stay a few days, just long enough to not sleep in my car and maybe take a deep breath for the first time in weeks. I’ve been at this for so long now I feel worn down, burdened with stress and the fear that I’ll see him around every corner.
At this point, I just don’t know if I should give up and just have myself committed for insanity. I’m probably insane. I have to be.
“You’re not insane, Cass. Trust me, I know. This female I know, Mika, now her mother is batshit crazy. She lost her husband, Mika’s dad a few years ago and then she tried to shoot Mika when she wanted to sell the house. To hear Mika tell it, her mother just lost the will to live and started going fruity. After that, she had to have her mom committed. Like for real. Now she just sits and stares out at nothing. Like there is literally nothing there. Poor hu—woman. She’s just this side of dead already,” she sighs, shaking her head.
“Oh, that is so sad.”
“Yes, it is. Mika just had a yo—ahem, I mean a baby a few months back, and she was excited. She thought maybe her mom would snap out of it but”—she sighs—“she’s still declining. The doctors have declared her an invalid, and she’s on oxygen as well now. Won’t be long.”
I hate that. My own mom wasn’t a good or bad person, just a normal woman who worked hard, raised her kid alone, and didn’t veer from that path until she stepped off the bus one day and just dropped dead.
The doctors said embolism. I said I was eighteen, and my mom knew she didn’t have to keep going anymore. It’s sad to think that way, and most days, I do feel sad for losing her before she could see me make something of myself.
It was fast though. Nothing at all like watching someone you love just float away and leave a husk behind.
“She must be so sad.”
“She is, but she’s got Bear and her son Brandon, so she’s okay. I think Mika accepted a long time ago that her mom isn’t really here anymore, so that makes it easier. As for you and crazy? You’re not. I just think you’re tired and in need of some vacation time. Stay here. Rest. Make some money if you don’t want to use your cards, and don’t stress about things so much. It ages you.” She sniffs.
I laugh until I realize what she’s said and narrow my eyes with a frown.
“Did I say I didn’t want to use my cards?”
Hannah goes tense before her eyes light up and then giggles, as if she’s got a secret. I think. This woman is so hard to read.
“You talk out loud sometimes. I believe Logan said you were an only child.”
I grin, nodding my head and think about where I go from here. I really do not want to get back in that car and keep driving. At this point, my ass must resemble that seat and I must have muscles in my arms from holding the wheel for hours at a time.
I could really use a break, just some time to figure things out and not kill myself over what I did or didn’t see. Although, no matter how much I want to tell myself it wasn’t real, the two jagged lines in my shoulder where that freak tried to bite me sure make it real.
Hannah blinks when I have that thought, and I could swear I hear her curse before she smiles and lifts her brows.
“So…you’ll stay?” she asks, looking at me expectantly.
“If I can find a cheap place to rent and a job,” I say, giving in easily because I want to.
I need to.
“But—”
“I’m not staying here sponging off you and your husband, Hannah. Thank you, I really appreciate the offer, but it’s not me to do something like that. Besides, you’re completely right, I need to stop and think for a minute, and it may as well be here. If that…if Gregor does find me, at least I won’t be alone, and it’s time I started over anyway.”
Who knows, maybe this is the place for me. I wasn’t happy in California, I have nothing to tie me there, and this town seems…nice. Not that I’ve seen it, but the people are nice. It’s a little cold this far up north though, something I’m not used to, but it’s almost spring in these parts, and it just feels right that this is happening now. Sort of a new season for me.
“Excellent! I’ll call Logan and see if he can find you a cheap place, and I think we can do something about you drawing money without drawing too much attention. Oh yeah! Another friend who isn’t a bag of desperate emotions,” she trills, clapping her hands happily.
I have no idea what that means, but at least she just called me her friend, right? That’s a lot more than I’ve had in the last few years. Yeah, I think, Jesus may have led me here.
“Oh, this is so exciting! Logan is going to be so happy. He was afraid you’d just leave in the morning, and I told him I’d make sure you didn’t. Oh, don’t look that way, Cass, we’re not freaks or anything. It’s just that…well, I think you were meant to come here and be part of this community. In fact, I know it. And well, we didn’t want to just let you leave and be out there in the world unprotected. I can’t wait to see how things go from here,” she trills, standing up to waddle to the counter where her phone is.
I don’t listen to her conversation. Instead, I find myself drawn to the glass doors where I see a spectacular view of the bare trees and some snowfall that must have occurred during that night.
I’m not as used to snow and the seasons up here, and I guess I just thought things would start changing soon, but from what I see, it’s going to be another month maybe.
It’s beautiful anyway, but that is not what’s drawing me. No, I feel like something out there, like something not too far from this house is just waiting for me and I need to get to it.
Weird. I must be really tired to be feeling this way, and this arousal, God, I really do need to rest, I think, watching the trees sway in the wind.
Chapter Four
Cass
I really don’t know what to think as I stand in the bathroom and wipe the steam from the mirror, taking in my appearance and wishing that it looked better
than it did about five seconds ago when I still looked like watered-down dishwater.
You know that color that is between grey and clear, only on my skin it makes me look like I’ve been frightened about ten times and deprived of sleep for days.
If that doesn’t explain it, then I’ll say I look like shit.
My hair is lifeless, hanging in wet, dark strings down to my ass, and my eyes are bruised from fatigue because despite last night’s rest and the relaxing day I had talking to Hannah and showing her how to work the oven and microwave, I still feel exhausted.
Three weeks in a car and all-encompassing fear will do that to a girl, I guess. Staring into the mirror, I see my reflection and ask myself exactly what it is about me that Gregor became so fixated on.
I mean, I’m not ugly by any stretch of the imagination, but neither am I a raving beauty. I have plain brown hair thanks to whoever fathered me, blue eyes so dark a blue some people have stopped and told me they look purplish with dark black rings that only make them seem more vivid.
I have small boobs, the bane of my existence because they don’t fit with what’s underneath them. My waist dips in dramatically and looks all the worse because my hips are wide—real childbearing bitches—and my ass is about the size of two normal asses, making pants a problem for me to wear because the waistband bags unless I take a size that fits, which means the jeans won’t go over my ass.
I’m short, standing five two max, and I have absolutely no muscle tone because I’m allergic to exercise. No, seriously, that shit hurts me in ways that have me convinced it’s not good for my body.
In short, I am just average, a girl from a middle-class, single-parent upbringing, who is neither popular nor a nerd. I’m just me. Normal. Nothing to turn heads or speak about.
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