by Sandra Elsa
"Do you trust me at all?"
"I suppose."
"Then trust me on this, I won't ever hurt you, or ask you to do anything you're not ready for. You wrapped your arms around me when we met in Seventeen. What's so different now?"
I contemplated retreating to silence, but if this was going to work at all, I needed to open up. "Now it's real. I think. I'm not sure. Damn it, why do you have to confuse me so much."
"Because every time you lay a finger on me, it's like tapping into a line from the solar generators. You make me feel things I've never felt before, and I like it. I want you to like it too. I'm not pushing for more; only to make it back to where we were. Pretend it's nothing more than an act. I don't care as long as I get to feel you wrap your arms around me again."
I wanted to. Just wasn't sure I could get over my phobia of being close to someone. "I'm exhausted. Can we not talk about this anymore?"
His jaw clenched.
"I'm sorry! This was not my fucking idea! I don't do personal."
His knuckles whitened on the steering wheel. We passed several stoplights before hitting a red one. As we waited for it to change, he seemed to get control of himself. His grip relaxed and the tautness eased from his face. "Where are we going?"
I struggled to control the level of my voice. "Let's go to Thirty-nine and get a room. That way as soon as Sleeping Beauty awakes, we can get him a new ident kit."
"Why don't you just do yours right away too?"
"We'll see how much time it takes. We have other things to do."
"Like what?"
"Well, if you don't remember, I'm not going to remind you."
"I remember that." He smiled. "But it took less than an hour for me to get my kit."
"You're right. And we should have plenty of time; I just like to plan for surprises."
"Then they're not surprises."
"If nothing happens, that's the biggest surprise of all. A pleasant surprise, but still a surprise. Do me a favor; don't try to tell me how to plan out my day."
"Mouth, shutting now." We drove towards the gate but the presence of a blue Taurus made us keep going straight past. "What now?"
"Head down the road here and pull into Lakor's parking lot."
"You want to shop now?" His voice was incredulous.
"No, Idiot. I want a busy parking lot where I'm not likely to be noticed digging through my belongings."
"Don't have to call me an idiot."
"Don't have to be judgmental when you don't even know what's up. I told you to stop questioning me. Do I really seem like someone who would waste her time shopping when there are problems to be dealt with?"
He pulled into Lakor's parking lot and popped the rear door. I hadn't yet gone through the boxes Mage Jallahan collected from my apartment.
Harrison came around back. "What exactly are we looking for?"
"Wigs. Makeup. Anything else we can use for a disguise. I'm still debating if I should send you on and let you risk using illusion to hide the car and yourself."
"I'm not leaving you here."
"I'd be on the next bus out. Without me, you can use your magic on the car. But if you use your magic on the car, they're likely to notice you. They're going to be looking at us because of the type of car."
"So we're better off if you stay with us." He tipped a box over and pulled out a brown wig. "We go together."
'
Chapter 30
I twisted my hair in a knot and put the wig on. He pulled out a second, also brown. I twisted his hair up underneath the wig and tucked it in. I found mascara and darkened his eyebrows then I put it on myself. Lipstick, scarlet. I kept digging in the box. My latex cosmetics were there too, along with fake eyelashes. We grabbed everything and moved back to the front seat. Ten minutes later we tossed a blanket over Sleeping Beauty and headed back for the gate. I scooted into the middle of the seat and leaned on Harrison's shoulder, twirling a lock of brown hair on my finger, sitting with one leg bent underneath myself, my nine-mil tucked in between the two of us.
As we approached the gate, the man and woman in the Taurus sat up and stared. The woman stepped out and stood in the middle of the road. Harrison slowed down but didn't stop. After a moment the woman jumped out of the road and went back to the Taurus. We stopped beside the picket and Harrison rolled down his window and told the man on duty. "Whatever they're doing, it's not safe having them stand in the road. If my girlfriend had me any more distracted, I might have hit that woman."
The picket smiled and nodded. "I'll take care of it, Sir. Drive carefully."
Once he rolled up the window Harrison pulled through the gate. "Turn right, I told him." There was another Taurus at the entrance to Thirty-nine. I was still sitting next to Harrison, he placed a hand on my knee. and I leaned in and kissed him on the cheek. The picket waved us through. The two people in the Taurus sat up and stared, but didn't bother getting out of the car.
Once inside, we drove to a hotel and rented a room on the ground floor. As we parked near the side entrance Harrison squeezed my knee and said, "I'd almost like to thank them for giving me an excuse to touch you."
I hadn't given the intimacy a second thought beyond getting through the gates. His casual words made the skin under his hand burn as I scooted away. "Get Jerry. I'll get the doors."
I hobbled to open the side door while Harrison struggled with the awkward, floppy, weight of his cousin. Fortunately the room was only about five doors down from the entrance. Harrison carried Jerry in and laid him on one of the beds. "I assume I get to sleep on the floor."
"We can put Jerry down there. He'll never know. Or you can sleep with him. Or you two can have this room and I'll go get another--"
Harrison walked to the bathroom mirror peeling latex off his face, "No need for that. Are you sure he won't wake up?"
"I've never seen anybody Dee kissed wake up in less than twenty-four hours. Given Jerry's condition it may be longer."
"So how does that work? She kisses somebody and they go to sleep? Unless she's stealing their money while they're passed out how can she make a living as a hooker?"
I walked over and peeled my latex off then picked at the bits left behind and removed my wig and false eyelashes before scrubbing at my face. When the person looking back at me looked like me, I answered him. "First of all, very few of the ladies in District Eleven consider kissing to be part of what can be purchased. Second, every time you point your finger at something, do lightning bolts shoot out of it? Intent has to be a part of it. I don't know of any talent other than mine that's always on, whether I will it or not."
He nodded. "Of course. Lest you think me an idiot, I did know that. I'm a bit overwhelmed by life and your proximity."
I grinned. "Do I stink so bad you can't concentrate?"
He slowly stretched a hand toward me and pushed a lock of black hair behind my ear, a smile settling on his face. "You know what I mean." He stopped and sniffed. "But if I'm going to marry you, I would appreciate it if you took a shower."
I sniffed him back. "You're no rose yourself."
"Well why don't you get a shower and I'll bring your stuff in from the car."
"I don't want to leave my weapons where they might be stolen, but most of it can stay out there."
"You know when I saw that collection, it seriously scared me that my talent thought you were the woman for me."
"That's all right, because when I saw what you did to my safe it seriously scared me that somebody that could do that, might be after me."
"I scared you. That's funny."
"Go get my weapons. A change of clothes would be nice too, but don't bring the whole box."
"I'll bring them in, then I'm going to go find a shop to buy a change for myself. I guess I need to rebuild my wardrobe."
"Suit yourself. Zurn's is just around the corner unless you're looking for more of a specialty shop."
"That's fine. Now go shower."
He spun on his heel and headed for th
e door. I closed the bathroom and started the shower, checked for towels, then stripped down. I tore the fresh liner from the trash can and wrapped it around my leg, then stepped in the shower. I spent time letting the water run over me, cleansing away stress and strain, then scrubbed my body with the hotel's jasmine scented shower gel and washed my hair with the shampoo from the dispenser. Not my brand but I wasn't ready to be picky, clean felt so good.
When I got out I dried off and wrapped a towel around my torso before exiting the bathroom. Harrison had actually brought a decent nightgown along with jeans and a t-shirt but a strapless skintight black dress also lay on the bed. It was getting dark outside and I didn't plan to go out anymore tonight so I put on the nightgown, realizing with a start it was the one I had worn the night he crept into my life.
I crawled under the covers and picked up my handheld, looking for something to read. I downloaded a fantasy with unicorns in it written by a fairly new author, in other words he was most likely still alive rather than a thousand years dead. There weren't too many current writers who delved into genre writing. I wondered what he would think if we populated the outside world with unicorns and mermaids.
The book was well-written and the tale engrossing. I glanced up as the door opened then went back to reading. Only to be disturbed again as the aroma of pizza wafted through the room. I turned the handheld off and sat up, blankets pooling around my waist. "Smells great."
"Sorta thought you might want to stay in." He brought the pizza over and deposited it on my bed, sitting down beside it. He'd gotten pepper, and onion and had it liberally sprinkled with jalapeños. I could learn to appreciate a man who listened when I talked. I grabbed the slice with the most jalapenos and started munching. Between us we ate all but two slices. During the course of devouring the pizza Harrison managed to slide further onto the bed until his hip brushed my knees. I chose to allow it.
Neither of us could eat anymore and he stood to put the box over on the dresser then returned and resumed the same position without the use of stealth-mode. His hand rested on my thigh. "How far is it to the man you hope will make an ident for Jerry."
"He's only three blocks away."
"We can get this done early then?"
"If he'll do it. I know they're cracking down on fake idents. That's one thing your father can legally convince the watch to do."
"I can't believe he has people on all these gates," Harrison said.
"He's pissed and he's desperate. His plans fell apart when you left. It would seem he has near total control over District Seven. Or are all these guys in their matching cars your version of the watch?"
"Pretty much. And I can't imagine either the watch or the regular citizens are at all happy about their incursion into the real world. That's why I figured I’d complain as we left Thirty-Two. The sooner unrest makes itself known, the sooner he's going to have to draw back and make the presence of Seveners more discreet."
I laughed. "Am I rubbing off on you, or do you refer to yourselves as Seveners."
"You're rubbing off on me. That's one of the worst slurs you can say in my old district."
I started laughing, unable to help myself. He looked at me questioningly. "Oh dear god," I gasped between peals of laughter. "The first time your father ever heard me speak I didn't know he was there. Thought I was talking to Detective Thompson I cussed Seveners several times. He didn't seem upset but he was doing his damndest to use his persuade on me when he spoke. I did notice in my meeting with him that he's really good at not showing what he's feeling."
"You two should get along good in that aspect."
"What do you mean by that," I drew myself upright and demanded to know how he could think I had anything in common with his father.
"I'm just saying you're really good at masking your feelings. I apologize for comparing you to him in any way. For instance I don't know right now if you're tolerating me or if you like me being this close. You're not blasting me so I want to believe you really don't mind. But I thought that earlier, and the moment I drew your attention to it, you moved away so fast I thought I must be burning."
"I'm sorry. If we're in private, which we are, except for Sleeping Beauty, I'll let you know what I think if I'm not happy with you."
"I hoped you'd say that. Now I'm going to push my luck one step further." He straightened his leg out and dug in his pocket coming up with the bag from the museum. From its depths, he pulled out a box and opened it, staring at it for several moments before turning it around and holding it out to me. "By this time tomorrow, you're going to be my wife. Will you wear a ring telling the rest of the world you're mine?"
I plucked the ring from its box and examined it. The crystalline depths of the jewel were murky but possessed a strange luminosity. It was shaped like the bud of a peach tree and I marveled at the creation in my hand. "It's beautiful."
"They assure me the toxins that turned it to stone are not dangerous anymore. Something about the synthesis process. I saw it and knew it represented us far better than any diamond ever would."
"Are you the wood or the toxin?"
He shook his head. "Together we will make beautiful things. Make crystal trees nothing more than a striking reminder of the past. An oddity amongst graceful green forests."
"It's perfect." I leaned forward and touched my lips to his. A tentative peck. Nothing more. But he leaned back and sighed happily as I slid the ring on my finger. It fit perfectly. "And I wouldn't have worn a diamond."
"I thought you'd say that."
"So do we watch TV now?"
I pushed him off the bed. "You get a shower. I'm going to read a couple more chapters before I catch up on some well-needed sleep." He dug in a bag he'd carried back from his journey outside and came up with pajama pants, then headed into the bathroom. I was lying on my side, back toward him, reading when he returned.
He strode across the room. The measured, muffled tread of his bare feet betrayed his purpose. I tensed as he lay down on top of the covers and molded his body to mine. He draped his arm across my shoulder, hand dangling perilously close to my breast before shifting lower and settling on my stomach. As he stopped moving, I relaxed and went back to reading my book. He didn't stay still long, he grabbed the second pillow, folded it in half and placed it under his head. Then he briefly lay still again until he started stroking my belly, a gentle, understated motion, that shifted up my side, then down my thigh.
"Don't get too confident." I let him know enough was enough and he stopped.
"You have no idea how badly I've wanted to do this since I first laid eyes on you." His hips moved, pressing his erection tightly against my rear.
"Well, this, is as far as it's going. If you can't accept that, you need to get up off my bed."
"Forgive me. Some parts of my body have their own mind. I have every intention of marrying a virgin bride. Please tell me getting married means more to you now than it did this morning."
"I'm warming up to the idea."
"Thank God. Because I can't pretend I don't want to make love to you. I'm not that good an actor."
I snorted laughter and he raised the upper half of his body to peer down at me. "You think that's funny?"
"You just reminded me of when I was following Mrs. Ludovissy around. You were in my notes as TMS until I found out who you were."
"And that's funny now because?"
"It stood for The Movie-Star. Wally asked me what the hell I meant by that and I told him you were so good looking I’d watch any movie you starred in. Now you're busting my bubble by claiming to be a poor actor."
His smile widened. "Then you did like what you saw."
"You didn't have to undress for that."
"I can't imagine how I didn't feel you watching me. Your proximity should have broken through the siphon's magic. It would now. I'm so in love I don't think she'd stand a chance of entrancing me."
"I have a great camera. Don't have to get close to take pictures. You get close the target
feels somebody's watching."
"Stop working, Frankie." He eased back down into the comforter, gently stroking my hip and thigh then working back up my side to drift daringly forward over the curve of my breast. My nipples hardened, abdomen tightened and moisture dampened my panties. Until this moment in time, I'd never thought I could possibly be missing anything. I suddenly found I'd never wanted anything more than I wanted Harrison to finish what he started.
He leaned forward and kissed my neck then nibbled it lightly and goose bumps ran down my chest. "What scent are you wearing," he whispered in my ear as his tongue teased the lobe. "You smell divine."
That was sweet, but honestly I used the same soap and shampoo he did. I opted not to ruin the moment by answering with the truth. I apparently lacked the skills to come up with a romantic response. Silence was my friend. Lips worked their way back down my neck to my shoulder tugging the comforter away removing the barrier between us. His hand cupped my breast, thumb and index finger gently pinching my nipple through the silk of my nightgown. I shuddered with the light delicious squeeze and pressed myself against him, offering, without words, every and anything he wanted.
He backed away from me and I followed the gentle pressure of his fingers and rolled on my back while he got rid of the comforter altogether. He lowered his mouth to mine and kissed me. His tongue teased my lips then probed my mouth, retreating as I experimented with my own tongue which seemed clumsy to his darting, teasing, strokes. He tugged the straps of my nightgown down my arms then the top of the material below my breasts, never once releasing my mouth. With my breasts exposed, his teeth grazed my tongue, then tugged on my lo+wer lip. My swollen lips felt bereft as his mouth trailed down my chest to delight my breast. I moaned with pleasure, running my fingers through his hair, pushing his head down to meet the breast I thrust deeper in his mouth. His hand lay on my abdomen as his tongue swirled around my nipple then released me to begin again on the other breast, his hand stroked lower on my abdomen until he cupped my soaked mound
A clear tenor voice said, "Continue as you are, she'll be pregnant tomorrow." Harrison jumped like he'd been stung. We spun to gape at Jerry. Red eyes stared at us from a face taut with effort. Once he had our attention his face relaxed, eyes closed and there was no evidence he'd awoken. His words were icewater on the sheets though.
