by Deanna Chase
Gage looked heavenward. “Julie can get crazy jealous. I don’t know why. Why would I hook up with someone else when I’m with the hottest girl I ever seen?”
His final sentiment was practically romantic poetry coming from a guy like Gage. Kate apologized again and promised that she would no longer try to have visions about him. To be honest, she was relieved. Her eyes would probably burn out of her skull if she had to go through another vision of him participating in a Resident Evil marathon with his friends or fooling around with Julie in the backseat of his car.
Gage glanced behind him at the dance floor before turning back to her. He was still drunk, but coherent enough that she guessed Julie had gotten him to scale back on the alcohol. In a weird way, Julie and Gage did balance each other out well. With a wry grin, he asked, “What’s with the super psychic stud?”
“What do you mean?”
“He’s eye fucking you from across the room. It’s pretty obvious he wants you,” Gage replied.
“Eww gross,” Kate said and she could feel her cheeks burning. “And not exactly accurate. He’s been all over a ton of girls since he got here.”
“Whatever you say,” he said with a shrug and then met her eyes. “But if some guy was looking at Julie like that, he’d be missing his two front teeth by now.” Gage leaned down closer to her as she stood there feeling at a loss on how to reply. “Just be careful, Kate. Jared seems like an ok guy and I know you wouldn’t want to screw things up with him.”
“Thanks Gage,” she said and felt an ungodly urge to hug him. “Jesus, are we having a moment?”
“Yeah I think so.” His expression exactly matched the distaste in her tone of voice. “Let’s not do this again.”
“Agreed, we’ll get back to our regularly scheduled program of feeling only loathing for one another.”
He smiled and ruffled her hair before walking away. She tried to avoid looking over at Declan, but now that Gage mentioned it, he had been staring at her an awfully lot. Even now, his eyes seemed to burn tiny holes through her. When their gazes locked across the room, he pulled the girl he was dancing with closer while still staring at Kate.
Kate broke contact first and swallowed hard. Was he only using the girls at the party to make her jealous? Maybe his promise to not pursue her had only been a line. She couldn’t bring herself to believe that he was being sincere with her. He still had to earn her trust. It made it implausible to put her faith in someone who seemed intent on playing her.
Jared’s phone went straight to voicemail twice before she decided to give up on calling. Kate guessed since it was after one o’clock in the morning, he had turned off his phone before crashing. It was frustrating since he had asked her to call him when she was ready to leave the party. Although she would feel bad about dragging him out of bed, she was certain Jared wouldn’t mind as long as it meant getting her home safely. Instead, she was stranded at Gage’s house.
The shot had hit her hard and soon after Julie had coerced her into doing another shot with her. She was by no means falling down drunk, but she would never trust herself to drive. This left the options of either calling a cab or sleeping on the floor of Gage’s room. Trying to sleep on the filthy and uncomfortable hardwood floor in Gage’s bedroom was not going to happen. Going home by taxi made the most sense to her.
As she prepared to say her goodbyes to Julie and Gage before calling a cab, she heard someone creep up behind her. “Are you leaving?” Declan asked as she turned to face him. Trish hung on him as if he were a life raft that she wouldn’t dare want to let go. Her ginger hair was mussed slightly and her cheeks flushed. Her kitten smile made it obvious the two of them had been lip locked and his kisses left her desiring much more.
Kate had avoided him most of the night. Declan’s unsettling glances and Gage’s proclamations about Declan wanting her provoked her to stay as far away as possible from him. As much as she was falling hard for Jared, Kate didn’t want to invite any unwanted feelings for the psychic into her heart. She rationalized away any stirrings in her gut by telling herself any girl would feel something if a charismatic and good-looking guy began to take notice in her.
“Yes, I’m going to say goodbye to Gage and Julie before I head out,” she responded and fiddled with her purse from nervousness. When Declan didn’t reply, she said blandly, “It was good to see you.”
His brown eyes watched her warily. “Are you ok to drive?”
“I’m going to take a cab,” she replied.
“I’ll drive you home,” he offered. Trish shot him an exasperated look which he pretended not to notice. Trish’s grip on his arm tightened, but Declan untangled himself from her grasp.
“I’ll be fine,” she assured him. “Anyway haven’t you been drinking all night? You probably shouldn’t drive either,” Kate said matter-of-factly.
“Nah, I’ve just had soda. Let’s go,” he replied and then tilted his head to speak to Trish. “I’ve got your number so I’ll give you a call.”
Kate felt her jaw drop as Trish’s face twisted into rage. Before she had a chance to reply or do bodily harm to Kate, Declan grabbed Kate’s hand and pulled her towards the door. Declan pushed through the crowds and did not pause until they were through the front door and the cool air greeted them.
“What the hell? I didn’t even see Julie,” Kate protested once they were outside.
“Send her a text. That girl was about to flip her shit,” he said shortly. “Better to get out now while we had the chance,” he said and took quick strides away from the house.
Obediently, Kate followed along. The street was empty and dimly lit. A buzzing streetlight gave the night an eerie feel. Declan didn’t bother to check if she was behind him as he rushed down the road.
“You can’t be serious?” Kate demanded as they stopped in front of a Hummer. Declan opened the passenger door. Her short legs and intoxication made it a struggle to get positioned onto the step rail of the SUV. Declan saw her fumbling attempts and decided to help give her a boost in by pushing her backside.
She spun around to glare at him. “So help me if you put your hands on my ass ever again!”
Kate heard his snigger as he shut her door. A second later, he climbed into the driver’s side. “I was only helping you in,” he said and the faux innocence on his face was infuriating.
“What is wrong with you?” she seethed. “First of all, who drives a Hummer anymore? You’re like ten years too late for this car to be cool. If you want to impress a modern girl, invest in a hybrid.”
“As you could tell, I have no problem impressing plenty of girls,” he retorted.
As she buckled her seatbelt, Kate gave him a piercing look. “You’re not giving me a line about only having a soda, are you?”
“I don’t drink…ever,” he said with enough awkwardness that it sparked her curiosity.
“Oh, that’s right you’re a stoner. I forgot about the illegal substances you offered me while my mom was ten feet away from us.”
“I don’t do drugs anymore either. I only told you that they could help you see more visions. I haven’t used in three years,” he mumbled.
The tension was obvious, but she got the feeling he really didn’t want to talk about it. Her biting tongue had gotten her in enough trouble to discern when it was time to keep her mouth shut.
Several minutes later she coughed to interrupt the silence. “Well…thanks for the ride. It wasn’t necessary, but it was very nice of you to offer.”
“No problem. By the way, do you want to work more on the psychic stuff together?”
“Definitely. I don’t think I’ll be able to get a good night’s sleep again until Max is back with his parents.”
They arranged to meet in a couple of days at his house in South River. Her wariness over going to his house wasn’t a pressing issue any longer. In all honesty, Kate was curious to learn more about him. She figured the more she discovered about him, the more comfortable she would be in his presence.
Declan slo
wed to a stop in front of her house. “I’ll text you my address and you can come by after class.”
“Sounds like a plan. Thanks for the ride Declan,” she said opening the door and hopping out of the car.
“Day or night, I’m at your service,” he said before pulling away.
As Kate watched his ostentatious SUV drive off, she felt more confused than ever over the mysterious psychic’s intentions.
Chapter Nine
“Your mom said the secret to waking you up on the weekend is to wave food in front of your face,” a voice whispered in her ear.
With a groan, Kate opened her eyes and wondered if she was having a vision. Jared was sitting on the corner of her bed smiling at her and holding a Dunkin Donuts bag. However, since Jared had never been in her bedroom before she figured he must really be sitting in front of her. He was freshly shaven and by the waves of energy bouncing off of him he must have been awake for hours.
“Don’t you know that a girl never wants the guy she likes to see her first thing in the morning?”
Kate only imagined the tortuous combination of bed head and morning breath Jared was witnessing. Since her visions caused plenty of tossing and turning, she never looked well-rested in the morning. Red Bull, coffee and other highly caffeinated beverages were her only salvation many mornings.
“I’ve never seen anything sexier than you in your koala bear pajama pants,” Jared said and positioned his body over hers.
Before she could reply, his lips found her. His kiss deepened and her head completely emptied of any coherent thoughts. As she kissed him, Kate hoped he felt how much she missed him. Her hands cupped his face and she grazed her thumb across his cheek lovingly.
As he moved to her neck, she was able to gasp out, “Aren’t you worried about my mom hearing us?”
“She let me in on her way out. Said she’d be back in a few hours,” he mumbled into her skin.
“Am I spending the day with you?” she asked hopefully. “We do need to buy furniture for your apartment,” she reminded him. It wasn’t fun to spend time sitting on a pair of folding chairs without even a table to set a drink on.
“I wish,” he answered with a forlorn look. “Duty calls again.”
“Dating a cop really sucks sometimes,” she said.
“I know,” he agreed, “and I feel terrible about last night. I got your message this morning. My phone must have died while I was at work and I didn’t charge it before I crashed. Were you able to get a ride home?”
“Yeah, Declan doesn’t drink, so he gave me a ride home.”
His surprise was apparent. Jared straightened and arched an eyebrow. “Declan was at the party?”
“Yes. We have some catching up to do.” She lifted up into a sitting position. Pointing at the bag of donuts in his hands, she remarked, “Donuts sound amazing, but I’m fasting today. Do you have time to talk while I make my cleanse drink?”
Jared had an hour to kill before work. She met him in the kitchen after running a hair brush through her rat’s nest and brushing her teeth. She went in for a quick kiss, but found herself lingering. Maybe she could use his handcuffs to keep him around for the entire day. He pushed a few of her hairs back from her face and inquired, “Glad I came by?”
“This fuzzy feeling inside of me when you’re around must be what people refer to as happiness.” She grinned before turning to take a pitcher out of the cabinet. “Will you be around tonight?”
“Yes. I was going to ask you to dinner, but that seems cruel seeing that you’re not eating and all. Do you want to go to a movie instead?” Jared asked.
He straightened his tie as he waited for her reply. His suit should’ve been a dead giveaway that he was due into work. It had been her own wishful thinking that foolishly made her believe he would be all hers for the weekend.
“Only if you agree to make-out with me in the back row,” Kate joked. “It will keep my mind off not being able to eat popcorn and M & Ms.”
“Sounds good to me,” he said. “Will you be eating again in a few days?”
“I should be.”
With a grimace, she looked at the recipe card for the ingredients in the cleanse. Was she really going to drink this crap? She made such a big deal about doing it, she now felt obligated. Her stomach growled and she wondered if she should at least have the donuts Jared bought before beginning.
“Because your mom happened to drop a huge hint that your birthday is on Wednesday and I wanted to take you out,” Jared explained. “When were you going to mention it?”
“Honestly, it sort of slipped my mind. The psychic stuff has taken over my life again.” She added after a thoughtful pause, “Plus, I haven’t done much for my birthday the past couple of years. My mom makes a cake and Julie comes over. My father will take me out to dinner the weekend after. Very low key.”
“Do you have plans yet? We could go to dinner wherever you want,” he offered.
“My mom hasn’t mentioned anything, so we can do cake with her the night before,” Kate said decidedly. Since the idea of thinking about restaurants on the day she was fasting seemed torturous, she suggested, “Why don’t you surprise me?”
“You’re on,” Jared said and his eyes crinkled as he beamed in her direction.
These fluttery feelings were definitely lifting her mood. She hated to ruin it by bringing him up to speed on Declan’s psychic tutorial and the lack of progress on Max’s abduction. Since Jared’s time with her was limited, Kate tried to hurriedly sum up everything he missed in the past few days. Purposely, she left out the part about Declan’s flirtatiousness at the party. It would only create weirdness and she had already made it clear to him there was nada interest on her side.
Jared tilted his head as he listened carefully. “You think he’s not being straight up with you?”
“I can’t shake the feeling he’s not telling me everything. Like he’s putting me through a test and won’t reveal anything until I pass it. Part of me wants to stay as far away as possible from him, but he does seem to know a lot more about our gift than I do…” her voice trailed off.
“It won’t hurt to question him some more. The more you know about your gift, the better control you’ll have over it,” he said and checked his watch. “Crap, I have to go. Text me later about what movie you want to see.”
“Alright, I’ll just be here enjoying my delicious drink.”
Kate held the glass up for him to view. She wasn’t surprised to see his face screwed up in repugnance. The concoction was grayish colored and probably the most unappetizing thing she had ever seen.
Jared took it out of her hand and took a sip. By his expression, she could tell it took a lot for him to not spit it out. “I give you an hour until you cave.”
“Want to bet on it?” she challenged lifting an eyebrow.
“Not a chance. I rather you just eat. Give me a kiss to help me through the hell day I have waiting for me at work,” he said and motioned her closer.
Walking over to him, she first ran her hands through his dark hair until splaying her fingers across his shoulders. She pressed her body against his and pulled his mouth to hers. The passion began to build and lust coiled in her belly. Their kisses were fast and furious and she could feel his want matching hers. His hands began to move up her back underneath her tank top, setting her skin on fire.
His face was tortured as he pulled away. “You’re killing me, Kate Edwards.”
She gave him a coy smile. “Try to concentrate on work after that, Detective.”
Her mother arrived back home a few hours later. Kate was trying to keep busy to distract her from the hunger pangs. Her mom was impressed by the sparkling kitchen, folded laundry and mopped floors. Darlene gave her a hug in greeting. “I figured you would be sprawled on the couch. It was after one when you got in.”
Kate wasn’t sure if it was normal to have such a close bond with her mother, but she would’ve been lost without her. She could tell her mother anything and knew she
would give her good advice. It was touching to think she waited up for her to get in. Julie battled with her own mother on a daily basis and told Kate regularly how lucky she was to have such a good relationship with Darlene.
Her mother spoke, “How was the party?”
“It was good. The cookies were a big hit of course,” she replied.
“Who dropped you off?” she questioned rapping her fingertips against the table. “I saw you get out of someone’s truck I didn’t recognize.”
Most girls may be annoyed that their mother was keeping such close tabs, but Kate understood where she was coming from. It had been only a month or so since Kate was abducted right in front of their house. The experience had shaken Darlene and brought out her fierce protectiveness. Almost losing Kate twice in two years had left her mother wracked with anxiety.
“Declan gave me a ride home,” she answered shortly.
Her mother made a noise that distinctly sounded like “harrumph.” Kate inquired, “You don’t like him?”
“Well, I don’t really know him, honey. We only met briefly the other day.” Her mother waved her off.
Like that mattered, Kate thought. Her mother could nail someone’s character down in under a minute. One of the reasons she had confidence in her relationship with Jared was because her mom held him in such high regard. Jared wasn’t being coy when he said that Kate’s mom liked and trusted him completely. Otherwise, Darlene would have never permitted Jared to be alone with Kate in her bedroom that morning.
“Well, you obviously have an opinion and I wouldn’t mind hearing it,” Kate responded.
There was no defensiveness in Kate’s tone—she truly wanted to know what her mom thought about Declan. Kate may be the psychic, but her mother was more intuitive. A part of her was fearful about her mother confirming her own fears. Declan wasn’t dependable and Kate would be better off trying to find Max on her own.
“I don’t want to judge too hastily, but I’ve met a lot of Declans before. I mean I’ve slept with more than a couple Declans in my day…”
