by Jamie Magee
“When?” I asked feeling even more disgusted with Esterious.
“I don’t know...at least ten years ago. That’s why I think we need to be careful. I don’t want anyone’s blood on our hands,” Landen said, pulling me closer to him.
“I don’t think we hurt anyone last night. We could do the same again tonight,” I said.
“I thought the reason we left our home without warning was to spend time alone, away from what Esterious has done to us, to our family and friends. We stumbled last night. I think we should be more careful and focus tonight. We need a break. We can go back when we understand it more,” he said in a final tone.
I wasn’t fond of being told what to do. I never have been. I sat up quickly and went to find a shower. He knew I was furious.
“What’s wrong?” he asked, grabbing my bag and following me to the bathroom down the hall.
“What’s wrong?” I repeated sarcastically. “You want to go home and get everybody’s opinion on last night. You know what will happen—we’ll be pulled in every direction, only to find out that no one even knows one way or the other. All the while, people in Esterious are going to be living in their own personal hell. It’s not fair.” I pulled my things out of my bag and began throwing them on the counter in the bathroom.
Landen caught my hands before I could toss my brush. He gently pinned my arms behind my back and pulled my body against his. He dipped his head slightly so I would I have no choice but to look him in the eye.
God those eyes of his were lethal. It didn’t matter if I was in a foul mood, terrified, or basked in his bliss they would seize me. Right now his stare was telling me to take a breath. To stop and listen to the reasons he had.
“Now, you know that’s not my intent,” he said, tilting his head a little, while letting his eyes carefully glide down my body.
I wanted to stay mad at him. But he had me under the spell. The boy could make my heart race with nothing less than a glance. When I felt his vibe, how the love was raw and had no boundaries—how on fire it felt, my crazy broke away, under it I saw my way to compromise.
Landen’s intent was to protect me; to help me become what fate had asked of me. His intent was for us to become more powerful as one. Silently he was telling me that had to occur before we could help the souls that I yearned to save.
“I just want it to be over with. I don’t have the patience for all of this to unfold. Why can’t we just help and move on with our life?” I asked.
Landen kissed my forehead then let his lips gently slide down to my cheekbone before they finally found my waiting lips. He teased me at first, kissing my bottom lip, then my top before melding our lips together. When he deepened our kiss to a level that invited passion I felt my soul pulse, wanting to be as close to him as I possibly could be.
He reached down and picked me up, wrapping my legs around him and leaning me against the sink.
“You’re distracting me Chambers.”
“Not well enough.” He thought as I felt his hands move around my waist.
I signed feeling the warmth of his touch against my flesh.
I slowly opened my eyes to see him staring at me as if I were the most precious soul he had ever laid eyes on.
“We’ll figure this out. Our insights are already colliding. We have to be in sync before we can help others.”
My hands moved across his shoulders. “So your theory is that we take off alone,” I let my lips barely graze against his. “Let our gifts strengthen, and then go back and get everyone all rallied up again?”
“Go back and help,” Landen corrected as he leaned in and stole a kiss.
“Everybody wins my way,” Landen said under his breath, as his grin spread.
Landen Chambers had to be the most addictive soul in this universe. And he was all mine.
Acknowledgements
Over the past four years I have published twenty novels, Insight is my debut into the writing world, and each of the acknowledgements are moved from one novel to the next. That wasn’t done to take short cuts, but because on this journey I have been blessed enough to keep the same souls at my side. I wanted to take the time with this acknowledgement to state how precious they are to me.
To my Creator, for I know this passion comes from a powerful, enigmatic source that humbles me with its constant greatness.
My husband, no doubt, deserves some kind of medal! The man is there from the first instant the idea is thought to life, through the long days of writing where I slip into another world. He manages the blessed life we have built, taking care of our little ones, making sure that there is some kind of substantial meal on the table for each of us. He’s a saint when it comes to telling me what day of the week it is, and letting me know that dawn is approaching and it might be a good idea to get some sleep. He understands that music drives me and is just fine with the same song playing on repeat for days until I have the scene trapped in words. He’s used to having a conversation with me and in mid-sentence I stop and rush to write a line down. There is no doubt that he didn’t sign up to share his wife with the fictional family that always dances in my mind, but he rocks it all the same. I can’t tell you how amazing it is to have someone want your dreams as much as you do, someone that never lets doubt creep into your mindset.
My children, they make me smile every day. They are now to the point where they’re all for naming characters, dancing to that same song that plays over and over. They love to joke about ‘mom’s bubble’—they know that mom dreams wide awake and tease me when they have to pop that bubble to tell me something.
Steffini Walker, Sabrina Hoover—there are not words to express how thankful I am to have found you both! I love you girls!!
Special thanks to Amy Donnelly, Steffini Walker, Alysia Kurtz, Jan Galloway for working through the edits on this episode!
Graphic designers are one of the unsung heroes of the publishing world. Which is sad because they’re the ones that give your daydreams a face, they bring the emotion and definition to your work that readers new and old will recognize over time. Emma Michaels is another gift; she not only helped me find the image for my debut novel, Insight, but has also been through each of my covers since. She has a way of understanding exactly what I envision and does not rest until that vision is there before us both. This cover was far different from the others. It had to be more than an image that may or not change over the course of time. It had to be a logo, a brand, something that could be identified with this story for seasons to come. Emma rose to that challenge, and I have to say this is one of my favorite covers. It’s almost as if she saw the emblem in my mind clear as day and worked until it was created. Emma, you are amazing!
My Betas are amazing. It’s their truth that makes them that way, how they are not afraid to tell me what they like and don’t, how they don’t bat an eye when I hand them a contemporary story, a YA story, or this story. They read each with an open mind and their feedback is priceless. There is not a doubt that it always mirrors the feedback my readers will give me once the story is published for the world at large.
I have the best street team ever! Thank you girls for sharing my daydreams with me!
Readers. I swear to you, to this day it blows my mind that there are people on this earth that I will never have the chance to meet that have shared these stories with me, people who get it, who leave reality and step into my daydreams with me if only for a moment. You humble me. I can’t stress that enough. Thank you so much for taking a chance, giving up your time to read my work.
As you can clearly see, people often think that writers have solitary lives, and in some real fashion we do, but more so than not, the story you are reading was impacted by not only those that walked the publishing line with the writer, but the world at large. Inspiration is everywhere, in every dark and positive moment, in every song, drive, commercial. Everything is inspiration. Life is beautiful, even the dark stressful moments. You just have to find that beauty, and thankfully I have o
utstanding people in my life that ensure that I notice it each and every day.
WHERE TO FIND JAMIE ON LINE
authorjamiemagee.com
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