“I’m happy for you, honestly. You’ve had enough shit thrown at you, you deserve to have something good in your life. But can we stop talking about our feelings now? I have an irrational fear I’ll be menstruating soon if the conversation keeps going in this direction.”
She nodded and watched him carefully walk alongside her. He put up a good front, but she’d seen his past through visions. He’d been through a lot after getting hurt in a ski accident that led to the appearance of his psychic abilities. His family despised him and hadn’t spoken a word to him in years. He was similar to Kate in the way he had a hard time letting people in. Once he did, there was so much to like about him. He was hilarious, fiercely loyal and protective. Not to mention he was easy on the eyes. His muscles strained against the fabric of his red, fitted t-shirt and his low-rise jeans showed off his lean hips and cut abs.
She wanted the same happiness for him she’d found with Jared. Declan was flawed, but she was in many ways as well. Being psychic did irrevocable things to their psyches. Seeing into the memories of the people in their lives meant they could usually find out people’s deepest and darkest secrets. Their gifts made it difficult to trust and form new relationships.
After she developed her abilities, her friendships fizzled. Her former friends felt like she was either lying about being psychic or they were freaked out over the possibility of her reading their minds. Jared had been the first person in a long time who believed in the impossibility of her gift and, not only accepted it, but appreciated it. She wouldn’t lose him—she couldn’t lose him. She’d track down her nemesis on her own if she had to and murder him herself before she’d let Jared walk away with blood on his hands.
Chapter Nineteen
By the level of noise coming from the other side of the hotel room door, Kate guessed the entire bridal party had already arrived. Along with Julie and Kate, four other women were in Atlantic City to celebrate Julie’s upcoming nuptials. Kate had only met Julie’s friends a few times since shying away from the college scene after dropping out. However, Kate had been in touch over email while planning the bachelorette party and upcoming bridal shower.
As she opened the doors, she was greeted by ear-piercing, overzealous squeals. Taking a quick glance at the amount of empty bottles littering the room’s table, she guessed that the party had started early. A voice rang out, “Oh my god, Kate’s here and she brought a stripper!”
Instantly, Kate felt a migraine come on as the women rushed to the doorway to check out the “stripper.”
Declan ate up the attention and grinned in response. “Hey, what’s up ladies?”
Kate rolled her eyes at his cheesiness as he addressed her, “Hey, Kate, put on that music I played for you in the car, I’ll show them some of my moves.”
From across the room, Julie set down her champagne flute on the glass coffee table. She marched over to Kate and towered over her while leveling her with an intimidating stare. Julie was dressed impeccably and would certainly be turning heads during the night. Her dress had a scoop neckline dipping low enough to give a hint of her cleavage. The high-waist of the skirt accentuated her long, toned legs. Her height was exaggerated by the black stilettos on her feet. “Why is Declan grinding in the middle of my hotel room?”
Kate dared a glance backwards and cringed. So much for Declan being invisible during her trip. He’d started up his iPod and was lifting up the hem of his t-shirt while dancing seductively around the bridesmaids. “I’ll take care of it,” she said to Julie and rushed over to him. Wrestling the iPod out of his hands, she cut the music.
The women protested in unison.
“Declan’s not a stripper,” Kate snapped at them.
Julie’s friend Kimberly spoke up. She resembled a swimsuit model with long, straight blond hair and striking green eyes. Her complexion was flawless and she worked out methodically to maintain her perfect figure. “Then why is he here?”
Kate chewed on her lower lip thoughtfully before answering. “He’s our bodyguard for the night.”
“Our bodyguard for the night? Why would we need one?” the petite and redheaded Sidney asked.
“Because if any guys begin to hassle us, Declan will intervene,” Kate said with confidence.
Declan draped his arms across Julie’s remaining two friends, Tiana and Jasmine. The whites of his teeth sparkled as he remarked, “And if you don’t have anyone to bring back at the end of the night, I can always step in.”
Julie stomped her foot impatiently. “Kate, a word,” she commanded. Kate sulked after Julie and mentally prepared for her wrath.
Kate pinched Declan hard on the arm as she walked by. “Behave,” she hissed as she followed Julie into the bedroom of the suite. Kate was impressed by the ample room they would have. The sitting area had two large couches with a flat-screen TV set between them. The space was also large enough to accommodate a table with four chairs, a mini-fridge and wet bar. With the five members of the bridal party chipping in, it had made the room affordable. Julie was getting the bedroom to herself with a king bed to stretch out on and a Jacuzzi tub in the connected bathroom. The rest of the women were sharing the couch and crashing on the floor.
“Did you get my text messages? I also called to warn you,” Kate started.
“Yes, I just saw them. Right after I listened to Jared’s apologetic voicemail. He said not to be upset with you and Declan was only coming because he insisted.” Julie sat down on the edge of the king-sized bed and tucked down a corner of the satin bedspread. “I’m glad you’re here and Jared’s watching out for you. Can you just talk to Declan and tell him to tone it down a bit?”
Kate opened up her mouth to reply, but Declan’s raucous laughter traveled through the bedroom. “I’ll keep him out of our way, I promise. Forget about Declan, this is your night and we’re going to have a great time!”
“It feels surreal. I’m really getting married in six weeks,” Julie said. Her eyes were faraway as she focused on a spot above Kate’s head.
“You’re going to have the best wedding New Jersey has ever seen,” Kate said, taking a seat next to Julie. “And you’ll definitely put all other brides to shame.”
“I didn’t think I’d be nervous, but I am. Do you think I’m making the right decision by marrying Gage?”
Kate started to answer, but Julie didn’t let her friend get a word out. “Forget I asked you that, I know you hate him.”
Kate took a second to weigh her words before speaking. Bad-mouthing the future husband of her best friend was something best avoided. “Gage and I clash, but it doesn’t mean I think he’s a bad person. He’s madly in love with you, so nothing else matters.”
Julie smiled. “I love him. I guess it’s hard to wrap my head around the idea of being tied to one person for the rest of my life.” After a beat, her neutral expression returned and she nudged Kate’s shoulder. “What about you? Will I be getting to plan all of this for you anytime soon?”
“Umm…no,” Kate answered. “The big wedding thing isn’t my style.”
“Why not?”
“First of all, not enough people like me to show up. Also, I’d hate being the center of attention for an entire day.” She fell back on the pillow-top mattress and relaxed into the plush bed. It was very likely she’d be bunking with Julie later. The king-sized bed was much preferable to the floor or pullout couch.
“So, what? You’ll never get married?” Julie pouted.
“No, I would. But I’d do the tropical island thing. Jared already knows that’s my dream wedding.” Sitting up, Kate said, “And before you complain, of course you’d be invited.”
“I could see you wanting that. I bet it’s hard to imagine your dad walking you down the aisle at this point.”
Her head started to pound at the mention of her father. “I haven’t talked to him since we had the blow-up over the inheritance money. As far as I know, he’s still a suspect for my attack. Jared wants me to dig around in my dad’s head more, but I don
’t know if I can stomach it.”
“Do you think he did it?”
“No. Especially now that I know this man has abducted a woman. Michelle looks familiar, but I don’t think she’s connected to my dad. And it’s impossible to imagine my straight-laced father donning homicidal maniac outfits and terrorizing the town.” She cleared the distress from her expression. “But let’s not worry about that now. I’ve been working day and night to find the woman and it’s back to reality tomorrow. Tonight is all about you.”
“You don’t have anything embarrassing in store for me, do you?”
“Me,” Kate replied with faux innocence. “Never.”
***
“Oh, I can see that girl’s thong, I get another spot on my bingo board,” Declan remarked, pulling out one of the printouts Kate had brought along. The object was to people watch at the bar and mark off things like “bra strap showing” and “fake tan.”
“I told you that you’re excluded from playing. Besides, the prize is a spa basket.”
“What else am I supposed to do? I don’t drink and since your friends want to stay at the bar, I can’t hit up the blackjack tables,” he complained.
“I told you to go. I’ll be fine. We’re in the middle of the bar, what could possible go wrong?”
Declan frowned. “Damn it! Now I can’t go for sure. You just foreshadowed your certain doom.”
“My feet are killing me anyway from dancing. I’ll let the others know we’re going to play a hand of blackjack.”
She checked her watch and saw it was just past ten. They were at the casino bar after finishing a fun and delicious dinner at the Italian restaurant. The club was the first stop on their bar crawl through Atlantic City. Kate had switched to drinking water since her tolerance couldn’t match Julie and her friends. Kate’s head had already started pounding after three beers and two shots.
After twenty minutes of being seated at the blackjack table, Kate grew bored. She didn’t know how to play well enough to confidently get dealt in. The players made bets fast and confidently. Besides her lack of skill, she’d hate losing her hard-earned cash.
“This is boring me to tears,” Kate whispered into Declan’s ear. “I don’t know how you can sit here and continue playing when you haven’t won a hand yet.”
Declan twisted his body away from her. “Will you quiet down?” he snapped. “Your job is to look sexy and bring me good luck. You keep breaking my concentration with your nagging.”
“I think you’d be better off at the Russian roulette table,” she countered. Looking at his cards, she said loudly, “Shouldn’t you stand when you have an ace?”
Frustrated, he ran his hands aggressively over his cheeks.
She laughed at his annoyance. “Okay, I’ll leave you alone. I’m going to take a walk around.”
His expression was uncertain. “I’ll go with you. You shouldn’t roam around by yourself.”
“I’m not. I’ll get another bottled water and then head back to the bar.” Before he could protest, she waved and sauntered off. As she lost sight of Declan, she exhaled. As much as she adored her friend, it was an inconvenience having him shadow her since they arrived. When she had to use the restroom during dinner, she had to force him to stay in his seat and not follow her to the door.
At the casino’s café, she bought bottled water and gulped it down greedily. A part of her wished she could sneak off to the room and fit in a nap, but she needed to rally for Julie’s benefit. It was also one of the first times in a while Kate spent more than five minutes getting ready. Her black skirt rested above her knee and she matched it with an emerald green, sleeveless blouse. She’d styled her hair in soft waves that hung loosely down her back, darkened her lashes with black mascara and applied a pretty pink stain on her lips.
Lost in her thoughts, she meandered to the fountain in the lobby. Sitting on the edge, she watched the water for several minutes. Although she hadn’t intended to, she began to think about Michelle and wondered what kind of hell she could be going through. Kate needed another vision of the woman more than ever. If Kate could find any sort of clue during a vision, she could have Michelle rescued and catch the villain threatening Kate’s life in the process.
Her body stiffened as large hands settled on her shoulders. She whirled around and prepared her body for a fight. As a scream built in her throat, she forced it down when her eyes settled on a familiar face. “Jared!”
She had to do a double take to make certain she wasn’t seeing an apparition. She smiled at her handsome boyfriend who stood before her dressed in khaki pants and a blue polo shirt. He was freshly shaven and showered and a pleasurable ache formed in her belly at the sight of him.
“Hi, you have no idea how good is to see your face right now,” he breathed into her neck while lifting her into a firm embrace.
She hugged him back. “What are you doing here?”
He set her back down. “First I have a question for you. Where is Declan? I need to find him so I can kill him for leaving you alone.”
“It’s not his fault, I ditched him,” she admitted. “When did you get here?”
“Just a few minutes ago. I was able to get off of work earlier than expected and figured I’d take over for Declan. I just couldn’t shake the feeling that if I wasn’t here, you weren’t safe.”
She smoothed his wrinkled brow. “I’m fine. You didn’t have to worry.”
Before he could reply, Kate noticed Julie and Sidney walking towards them. Sidney was swaying slightly and had to readjust her posture to keep from falling over, but Julie looked stone cold sober. For a woman that barely cleared a hundred pounds, she could hold her liquor.
“Jared Corbett, what the hell? I expect this kind of behavior from your minion, but not from you! Can’t I have my best friend to myself for one night?”
Jared’s smile was charming and Kate could see Julie’s anger dissolve. “Of course you can. Declan and I will keep our distance.” He brushed his soft lips against Kate’s mouth. “Have fun and we’ll talk later.”
Julie pulled Kate away hurriedly. “Your boyfriends can be overbearing pains in the ass. I only put up with their nonsense because I realize they’re looking out for you.”
“One boyfriend; singular,” Kate corrected.
“Sure, whatever you say,” Julie said sarcastically. “I’m way too sober, so it’s shot time.”
Kate nodded before daring a glance back at Jared. He smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. Her initial excitement at seeing Jared faded as she wondered why he hadn’t been able to let her go for the night. She wondered if there was danger around every corner or if his paranoia about her safety was getting the best of him. She trusted his instincts, but how far was he willing to go to protect her?
Chapter Twenty
“This is my last night out before I get married, so who’s going to buy me a drink?” Julie shouted to the patrons of the crowded beach bar. Within minutes, she had a drink in hand, purchased by a group of men with British accents. As Julie ogled them and sipped her fruity concoction, she said, “Don’t let me do anything stupid tonight; because those guys are looking way too hot for me to resist.”
Kate decided to run interference. She tugged on Julie’s arm and pulled her towards the dance floor. The men were no longer in view.
Julie whispered, “Thank you. I think the alcohol is finally hitting me.”
Kate was in amazement over how Julie was still upright. It must have been the plain sodas Kate had been sneaking her friend in between drinks. When she complained the drinks weren’t strong enough, Kate was convincing about how she saw the bartender put the shots in them.
Jared had kept his promise and had been hanging in the background with Declan. The guys were sitting at the bar counter, scanning the crowd without getting in the way of Julie’s night out. Once in awhile, Kate would send a wave Jared’s way and he’d wink back at her.
“Jasmine is spazzing over something by the bar. Let me see what sh
e wants. I’ll be right back,” Julie said as the music died down.
Kate looked over her shoulder and saw Jasmine holding up a shot glass and waving frantically for Julie to come over. Kate decided to stay in place since she wasn’t in the mood for another drink. As the band started up again, she began to move wildly to the music, hoping to sweat out some of the alcohol coursing through her bloodstream.
A hand on her elbow had her stumbling and she lost the rhythm of the music. Expecting to see Jared, she was surprised to see an unfamiliar man with blond hair and a matching colored mustache. He stared at her unabashedly, instantly making her feel awkward.
“Can I help you?” Kate’s inflection was intended to show her disdain. If the guy wanted to dance with her, she’d show her disinterest right away. She’d warded off a couple of men already, making excuses to walk away when they attempted to grind against her ass while she danced. Even if Jared wasn’t in the immediate proximity, she found it revolting.
“Are you Kate?” he asked. Kate didn’t answer and instead memorized every feature about the man. Alarm bells were ringing and she wanted to get a good look before she took off running. He was several inches taller than her, nearing six feet. He was husky, carrying a spare tire in the form of extra ten pounds around his midsection. His features were beady with dark eyes giving her a critical onceover. He wore a tank top advertising Coors Lite and a pair of cargo shorts.
He caught her trying to dart away and grasped her elbow tighter. He leaned in close and said, “I’ve seen your picture and I know who you are. I have a message for you. He hasn’t forgotten and he will see you bleed again.” The room was spinning as she saw him reach into his coat. This could be it, she thought. Her life could end on the floor of a seedy Atlantic City bar when a stranger pulled out a gun to shoot her dead.
The Final Omen: Second Sight Book Four Page 13
