I knew talk of the Order inspector had made its way around town, and I could feel everyone watching as we took our seats. To Rick’s credit, he went on as though we hadn’t just become the floor show for the night. He even managed to put me back in a good mood by the end of our meal. My guard was down, and I felt normal for the first time in years.
Rick was trying to talk me into splitting a dessert when a large group of men walked through the front door. The voices from the front were loud, and I froze. Oh, shit! I’d forgotten it was Sunday. Brad and some of the local law enforcement guys had dinner here every Sunday night.
I scanned the group, hoping he’d pulled duty. He wasn’t in the crowd by the door, but then I heard him in the lobby and looked away. If we left now, there was a chance he’d miss us.
“I think we need to go,” I told Rick.
The crowd by the door grew quiet, but I was still able to hear the low whisper of my name. Fuck, fuck! I sank low in my seat, trying to hide.
“Something wrong?” Rick asked, looking from me to the door.
“It’s nothing, really.” I heard Brad’s voice again and I looked over Rick’s shoulder, hoping for a rear exit. “Well, my ex just showed up.”
As if on cue, Brad strolled up to our table.
“Olivia, I’m surprised to see you here tonight. You’ve been so busy lately.”. His tone cut. I could smell beer on his breath and knew the guys had stopped at the bar before heading here. Brad reached down and touched my face. “I know how you get when you work too hard.”
He’d definitely been drinking, and how I responded would be crucial. I could tell Brad was on the brink of doing something stupid, and I fought the urge to take the ring off and soothe his hurt feelings. I took a deep breath and pulled power through the lotus, letting the calming energy settle my nerves.
Looking up, I met his gaze with an award-winning smile firmly in place. “Brad. How are you? I don’t know if you’ve met him yet, but this is Rick. He’s been helping me with that car accident case. I closed my investigation tonight, and Rick offered to buy dinner before he headed back to Indy.” I did my best to make everything sound casual and hoped Rick would follow my lead.
“So. You’re that FPD flunky they sent. You know, we might not be a big town, but we can handle our own cases. If you kept your criminals under control, they wouldn’t end up in nice towns like ours. ” Brad spoke loud enough for everyone in the restaurant to hear. The place went silent. I guess tonight’s entertainment was about to begin.
“Sorry to disappoint you, but I’m just a lowly Order inspector. And as for your ability to handle cases? Well, if you could handle it, then Agent King wouldn’t be here, now would he?” The tone of his voice may have been friendly, but an unspoken “Fuck off” came through loud and clear.
“I need to talk to you in private,” Brad said through gritted teeth. Not waiting for a response, he grabbed my arm and pulled me out of the chair. “Now!”
Gripping me tightly, Brad hauled me to the back hall. Rick shot out of his chair to follow, but I waved him off. I needed to handle this myself.
“What the hell, Brad?” I said, keeping my voice low so the nearest table wouldn’t overhear. “I don’t care who you are. You have no right to treat me like this.”
I tried to pull away, but he tightened his hold. I was pissed. He’d never treated me like that before, and I wasn’t about to let him start. “Get your hands off me. Or I’ll...”
“Or what, Olivia?” He loosened his grip, but didn’t let go. “What are you doing with that witch bastard?”
“That’s none of your business. If I want to go out with every witch this side of the Mississippi, I can. You lost the right to comment on my dating life when we broke up.”
“Damn it, Olivia. You’re not one of them. You grew up here. You’re supposed to be different,” he said, eyes pleading.
“Different? Different than who? You know who’s different? You,” I said, trying to keep my voice low. Every eye in the restaurant was now on us. “Since Mike Black was elected sheriff, you’ve become an asshole.”
I pulled out of his grasp and rubbed my shoulder. I knew I’d have a nice-sized bruise come morning. “Stay the fuck away from me.” I turned to leave but what he said next stopped me in my tracks.
“Mike was right about you after all. You are just an Order whore.”
Outraged, I whipped back around and gaped at him. Brad shot me a cocky smile and I slapped him across the face. He just laughed, rubbing his cheek.
“What? Don’t like being called a whore? Then you should stop acting like one.”
This time there was no hesitation. I hauled back and punched him, twice, with an arching right hook and a follow-up jab to the nose. Just like I’d learned in the self-defense classes Charlie and I took.
“Bitch!” Blood trickled from Brad’s nose. He wiped it with the back of his hand and glared at me. “You’d better leave before I have you arrested for assaulting an officer.” He looked around me to where Rick was now standing and said loud enough for everyone to hear, “This is a nice community. We don’t want your kind here.”
I pulled back to hit him again, but Rick grabbed my arm. “Don’t bother. He’s not worth the effort.” He let go, brushing his hand up my arm where angry welts were now forming. “Let’s get out of here.”
He didn’t have to tell me twice. Rick dropped a couple twenties on the table, and we pushed our way through the men at the front door. I could feel the heat of each gaze as I passed, but I held my head high until we reached the parking lot.
By the time we made it to the car, the tears were welling, almost spilling. I felt my world crashing down around me. There was no avoiding being the topic of every conversation tomorrow.
“Are you all right?” Rick asked as he opened the passenger door.
“I’ll be okay. I just need some ice for the hand.” I held it up and saw it was now taking on lovely shades of purplish red.
“You’re lucky you didn’t break your finger with that ring on.” He examined my hand and kissed the bruising digits. “I wasn't much of a date. Isn’t it the man’s duty to defend the maiden’s honor?”
“Last time I checked it was the twenty-first century,” I said with a half-hearted smile, but just couldn’t pull it off. I pressed my face against the cold metal of the SUV and choked back a sob. I wasn’t going to cry. “Damn it, I’m sorry. We were having a lovely night. I shouldn’t have hit him.”
“I heard what he said. Hell, the whole restaurant heard what he said. If you hadn’t hit him, I would have. Let me get you home, and we can take care of that hand.”
I got in the car and lowered my head to the dashboard. Deep breath. I kept pulling power through the tattoo until the heat on my back was too much to handle. I’d screwed up big time. All my life I had worked hard to maintain control, and tonight I lost it in the middle of a restaurant for the whole world to see.
When Rick parked the car in my driveway, I’d finally calmed down. “I’m sorry you got involved with that. I bet this isn’t how your dates usually end. Maybe we can try it again some other time?” I wasn’t holding out much hope for that, but it seemed like the right thing to say.
“I don’t know. This isn’t the worst date I’ve had. There was this one where I got picked up for B&E. I wanted to show her the city from the top of the Heritage Bank building. I mean sure, I picked the lock, but if they were serious about keeping people off the roof, they should have had a better one. The police officer didn’t share my opinion.”
I laughed because I could see him doing something like that to impress a date. It was just the kind of guy he was. “So, an Order inspector with a criminal past. We could get in all kinds of trouble, you and me.” That sounded a lot less dirty in my head. I looked away, unable to meet his gaze. “Well. It’s getting late, and I’m sure you have things to do in the morning.”
“I’m not leaving until I have a look at that hand. If we don’t get that ring off, it’
s going to cut off the blood supply.” He didn’t wait for me to argue. Rick just got out and opened the car door, offering his hand.
I unlocked the door and headed straight for the kitchen. My hand had started to throb and, worse yet, I didn’t think I could get the ring off. I swore under my breath. I’d lose the finger before I’d cut off my mother’s wedding band.
“Do you have any healing skills?” I asked, hoping he might be able to help.
“Nothing beyond the basics I learned at academy,” Rick said. I flipped on the overhead light, and he picked up my hand and examined it. “I think I remember a basic pain spell that could help. Let me give it a try.” He flexed his fingers and gingerly touched my knuckles. “Let’s see. It’s been a while. Poena Temporali.”
A prickling sensation shot up my arm, but the pain lessened. I slid my hand out from under his, studying it. Without the pain, I was able to flex my fingers, and I didn’t think it was broken. “Thanks. That helped.”
But even though the pain was gone, the swelling remained. I would need to ice it before I tried to get the ring off. I rummaged in the freezer and found a bag of peas. When I turned around, bag wrapped around my fist, Rick laughed.
“What?”
“Come here,” he said. “You’ll never get the swelling down with peas. This is something I can help with. Just let me know when it starts to hurt.” He reached over the counter. “Come on. Give me your hand.”
I held out my hand, still wrapped in the bag of peas, which he unceremoniously plopped onto the counter.
“Hold still,” he said. As he held his hand about an inch away from mine, power began to build around us. The air around my hand grew cold, and my fingers went numb. After just a few seconds, the numbness became a sharp ache.
“Stop. I think that’s enough,” I cried, pulling my hand back.
It was beet red and hurt, but surprisingly, the swelling was down a little. I could probably get the ring off. I went over to the sink and soaped up. It hurt like hell as I slowly twisted the ring up my finger, and I swore every foul word I knew. When it finally slipped past the knuckle, I thought I was going to cry in relief.
I slid it the rest of the way off, but the soapy ring sprang from my grasp and landed on the floor in front of Rick. He leaned over and picked it up, examining the intricate etching along the band.
“You know, your charm’s not charged. We could have just cut it off. It would have hurt less. I think you’ve done more damage to your finger.” He looked at my hand. It had started to bleed where I’d forced the ring off.
I stepped toward him and snatched the ring from his hand. “It’s not just an old charm.” The words came out harsher than I’d intended. “It’s my mother’s. My father made it for their wedding day, and it’s the only thing I have that belonged to her.”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t realize your mom was dead too.”
“She’s not. She’s just gone.” I rubbed the warm gold between my fingers and slipped it into the top pocket of my jeans. Determined to change the subject, I looked up and smiled. “That was a cool trick, no pun intended. Is that part of your air magic?”
“Aerokinesis. And yes, it is, but it’s a lesser known skill. I’ve been training for years to work with my talent. You’d be surprised some of the things I can do.” With a devilish smile, he stepped into my space. “With practice comes skill. You should give it a try.”
“I’m not sure I want to practice my talent,” I said, more to myself than him. “I don’t always have control. When I was a teenager I influenced the people around me, or worse, took on their emotions. You want to talk about teenage angst. I was a complete nightmare. My charm was the only thing that’s ever helped keep it in check.” I instinctively fingered the ring, spinning it round and round my finger.
Rick grabbed my hand. “It doesn’t have to be that way. There’s no reason to be afraid.”
My heart began to pound in my chest as he raised my left hand and slipped off the silver band.
“You shouldn’t have to hide your power,” he said, the ring resting in the middle of his upturned palm. “You have a powerful gift. Never be ashamed of who you are.”
The small band started to spin, rising a few inches. I was mesmerized by the illusion of a disk created as it spun faster and faster. When it stopped, suspended in mid-air, I held my breath unable to look away.
The ring fell to the floor. He pulled my naked hand to his lips and kissed it softly. “Never be ashamed,” he whispered.
“Stop. I can’t...” My voice came out as a whimper. “Please, I can’t handle skin contact without the ring.”
“Yes you can,” he said, pressing his lips against my hand again. “Let me prove it to you.”
He took my hand and pressed it against his cheek. A protest died on my lips as I braced myself for the onslaught of emotions, but it didn’t come. His mind was still and deep, like the lake out back. Feeling brave, I closed my eyes and touched the surface, and I was hit by a wave of desire. I couldn’t tell if it was his or my own. My eyes flew open and I met his intense gaze.
“What do you feel?” He whispered, his eyes remaining locked with mine.
“I’m still trying to figure that out.”
His fingers ran down my arm and came to rest on my hip, finding a small strip of bare skin at the waist of my jeans. I sucked in a breath as his hand met my skin. Pinpricks of energy raced up my spine, and now I was sure the growing arousal I felt was his and my own.
Hungry for more, I pulled his mouth against mine. The kiss was soft and questioning at first, but when his desire washed over me, I pressed closer, demanding more.
He was the one who pulled back. He closed his eyes and took several deep breaths, and when he opened them again, I was met with an intensity that shocked me.
“This isn’t what I was intending. But God, Olivia, I won’t deny that I’ve wanted to do that since I met you. Do you want me to go?”
“No. Yes. I don’t know.” I looked away. I’d never experienced anything that intense. The feedback I was getting from him was hedonistic and terrifying. “Don’t leave. But I need to warn you, I’m not sure I can keep myself in check.”
“You won’t hurt me, I promise.” His hand caressed my cheek and trailed down my neck. “Just let me know if I’m doing something you don’t like.” His lips had replaced his fingers on my neck. “Just tell me to stop.”
Heart pounding, I moved my hands to the small of his back and pulled him closer. He growled, low and raspy, and covered my mouth with his. I couldn’t have asked him to stop even if I’d wanted to.
I closed my eyes, and let his desire stoke my own, bringing it to new heights. Tentatively, I probed deeper, and let myself get lost in the sensation. I’m not sure how long we stood in the kitchen kissing, but I was feeling brave. I did something I’d never done with another lover. Something I wasn’t even sure I could do. I opened up and shared my own desire with him.
A small moan escaped his lips, and he pushed me against the counter. His hands slid under my shirt with a sense of urgency, and I pushed into his touch wanting to feel him against my bare skin.
His lips moved to my ear. “Olivia, whatever it is you’re doing don’t stop,” he breathed.
My fingers found the front of his shirt. I fumbled with the buttons, and with increasing desperation, he pushed my hands away, tearing the shirt over his head. I ran a hand across the well muscled plains, tracing the outlines of a massive buck tattooed across his chest. It was magnificent. Echoes of power tingled up my arm as I followed the lines.
My body ached to get closer, and I pulled back to remove my sweater. Dropping it to the ground, I fell once more into his arms. My bare skin warmed with the connection, bringing a whole new level of sensation. Trails of heat formed everywhere his fingers touched. The ebb and flow of energy between us was like nothing I’d ever experienced.
When he cupped my breast a low, guttural sound escaped my throat, and I felt myself lifted onto the coun
ter. I reached around to unhook my bra, when a sharp, piercing tone broke the spell.
“Shit.” Reality flooded back in a painful flash when the sound came again. “It’s my work phone.”
“Ignore it,” he breathed against my neck. I could feel his lips trace a path along my collarbone and down to the swell of my breast.
“I have to take it.”
The phone rang a third time, and it took every ounce of willpower to answer. I was going to kill Dan. He was on call, and unless the building was on fire, he was a dead man. I fished the phone out of my front pocket, despite the fact Rick continued to kiss my neck.
“What?” I practically shouted into the phone.
There was a hesitation on the other end. “Olivia, its Dan.”
“Damn it, Dan. Whatever it is, you can handle it.”
“Tell him you’re busy,” Rick whispered against my ear. His hand brushed across the lace of my bra, and I had to choke back a moan.
“Ian was in an accident. Some idiot wasn’t paying attention and swerved into his lane. He hit a tree and was unconscious when they found him.” Dan paused for just a second, then said. “Olivia, he called earlier and said he could link the girl from the car accident to the teens found at the lake. He was on his way to your house to talk to Agent King.”
Faster than a cold shower, those words killed my desire. Now they would reopen the cases. “When did he call?”
“About two hours ago. I wasn’t worried, but after I heard about the accident, I thought I should call.”
“I’m glad you did. I’m going to the hospital. Thanks, Dan.” I flipped the phone shut and slipped it back into my pocket.
Rick must have picked up on my sudden change in mood, because he’d stepped back. “Everything all right?”
“I have to go.” I reached down and grabbed my discarded sweater, and started to dress. “Ian, the coroner, was run off the road tonight. I need to go to the hospital.”
Dark Secrets: A Paranormal Romance Anthology Page 190
