By the time Ramon climbed out of the car they were both sitting on the hood. Amy was cradled on Layla’s lap, her small arms wrapped tight around Layla’s neck, her head nestled beneath her chin. Layla’s eyes met Ramon’s, and even in the darkness he could see them glowing with absolute and total satisfaction.
“We did it,” she said.
He shook his head, in complete awe of her. “No… You did it.”
Before too long the first patrol car screamed up, illuminating the clearing a little more. It was immediately followed by an ambulance and Sherriff Brown’s truck bearing Amy’s frantic parents. Layla handed the girl over to her sobbing mother, standing back with Ramon to watch their joyous reunion.
Sherriff Brown was overcome with joy as well, clapping Ramon on the back with pride. “Good job, son… But how did you know where to look?”
“I… uhm… George Williams confessed to us.”
“Us?”
Layla stepped forward. “Ramon and I were going out to dinner, but he needed to pick up something from the office.” She looked directly into Sherriff Brown’s eyes, “George told him where to look.”
The sheriff blinked, “Why?”
“Guilty conscience?” Layla suggested, even though she knew that the kidnapper had no conscience at all.
The sheriff was as relieved as a man could possibly be. “Good work Ramon. The FBI has already been called in, and we expect a field agent in the office first thing tomorrow. We’ll need to file a report for them to look over…”
“I’m sure it can wait until tomorrow,” Layla jumped in. “Ramon hasn’t had anything to eat all day.”
Sherriff Brown looked kind of distant, nodding in complete agreement. “Okay… Sure thing. Sure thing.”
Ramon looked at Layla curiously. He was shocked to see Sherriff Brown break his own rules so casually. The man was normally strict about following protocol, and here he was, acting completely against character. He didn’t know exactly what was going on, but it was pretty clear that it had everything to do with Layla.
“Come on,” Ramon took her by the hand, gesturing to his patrol car. “Let’s go.”
She nodded, running over her explanations as they climbed back in, torn between the impulse to force him to listen to her lies or risk telling him the truth. The euphoria of the successful rescue mission was slowly being replaced by the fearsome reality of having to explain everything to Ramon and risk being rejected once and for all.
When they were alone in the car he turned to face her, “Tell me how you did that.”
She looked at all the activity around them. “Not here.”
“Alright, Let’s go to my place,” he said.
She nodded, “Okay.”
As they drove along, Layla rubbed her temples, racking her aching head to try and figure out the best way to explain it. She’d always been able to rely on her ability to bend minds in order to push away questions, but for some reason she didn’t want to do that to him. Not anymore, and not after everything Ramon had done for her. A tiny thought started worming its way up through her subconscious, and when she looked over at him it began to grow stronger and stronger.
What if she just told him the unvarnished truth?
He looked over at her with the brightest gold curiosity she’d ever seen, and she knew that it was now or never. All of a sudden they were back in town, and he pulled up next to the hardware store and cut the engine.
“What are we doing here?” Layla asked.
Ramon pointed up to some windows above the store. “That’s my place up there.”
She followed him to the back of the store and waited while he unlocked the door, revealing a narrow, steep flight of stairs leading to the second floor. She followed him up, getting more and more anxious with each step.
There was a small landing on top, and Layla watched Ramon fumble with his keys, surprised to see that he was nervous too. “I took this apartment because it was so close to work… It’s probably not as nice as you’re used to…”
She followed him in, taking a look around. It was tidy but barren, with a comfortable looking couch facing a modest sized television. An end table held a lamp and a stack of magazines. The lights of the small town’s main street were visible through the window, and she walked over to look down. She saw a couple leave the diner, walking out into the cool night air arm in arm. Their pink and purple auras blended all around them, telling her they were in love.
“Layla?” Ramon’s voice startled her, and she spun around to find him standing directly behind her. “Well?”
“It’s nice,” she said, looking around. “I like your couch.”
He went over to sit down on it, patting the cushion next to him. She came over and sat, chewing on her lip and twisting the diamond tennis bracelet that sparkled on her wrist.
“Tell me what’s going on,” he said.
She took a deep breath and looked up to meet his curious gaze. “I will, but you have to promise not to tell anyone.”
He nodded. “Okay.”
“Promise me,” she said, looking into his eyes intensely.
“I promise,” he said quietly.
She exhaled, satisfied that he meant it. “Do you remember how your grandmother thought I was a witch?”
He nodded, his eyes narrowing.
“Well, that’s what they called my ancestors back in Scotland. Because of what they could do.”
“What could they do?” he whispered, his eyes glued to her face.
“What I just did.”
“Make people do what you want?”
She shook her head no. “I can make people feel things… Change their emotions. I can make them feel scared… relaxed… or sad.” Her eyes scanned his face, looking for a reaction. All she could see was more golden curiosity.
“But how?”
“I can see exactly how people are feeling. I can taste and smell their emotions too.”
“Really?”
She nodded yes. “Cali has it too. It’s an inherited trait… like our eyes. It’s a type of synesthesia.”
“Synes-what?”
“Synesthesia. It’s a neurological condition. It happens when your sensory perception is… Mixed up– cross wired– We have an unusual type that allows us to see emotional states.”
“Okay, so you can see them… But how do you change them?”
She grimaced, because this is where the science got sketchy. “I can generate a feeling and project it onto people… more like into them. It’s like painting them a color or something… To make them feel things.”
He ran his fingers across his scalp, letting it sink in for a moment. “So that’s what you did to George Williams… You made him sad.”
“A lot more than sad,” she said seriously. “I made him as miserable as I possibly could.”
He couldn’t help laughing, “You sure did. I wouldn’t believe it if I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes.”
His laughter made her feel better. Her heart lightened a little and she smiled tentatively.
“Can you read minds?” he asked.
“No. Only feelings.”
He struggled to understand, turning everything that had happened over in his mind. “And you can change the way people feel. You can consciously make people feel things.”
She nodded, “Yes.”
He studied her face. “You certainly make me feel things. I haven’t been able to stop thinking about you from the first moment I saw you.”
The smile died on her face. “I swear… You have to believe me. I haven’t used it on you.” She squeezed her eyes shut. “Well, except for that one time…”
“When I questioned you?”
She turned away, embarrassed. Cali’s words about earning Calvin’s trust never made more sense than they did at that exact moment. She felt his hand on hers and looked up to see him smiling with amusement. “I was wondering why I couldn’t seem to stay focused… I kept getting–”
“Distracted.”
He smiled wryly, “And here I thought it was because I liked you so much.” He reached for the phone, alarming her.
“Who are you calling?”
“What do you like on your pizza?” he asked, dialing.
She hesitated, a little surprised that he still wanted to spend time with her. She halfway expected him to take her home in revulsion, or to be afraid to look of her like Max and all of his men. “Anything’s fine,” she whispered.
“Hey… How did you know that I skipped lunch?” he asked her before lifting the phone to his ear.
“I guessed,” she replied, “You looked like you were probably too upset to eat.”
“I was,” he said, regarding her with growing pink affection.
She listened as he ordered, and every time their eyes met he smiled at her, dimples popping on his smooth cheeks. When he set the phone down he looked at her in wonder.
“You scared Jose into letting Rosa go… And you made Sherriff Brown let us go too… didn’t you?”
She nodded. “All I did was make him a tiny bit more relieved… and agreeable.”
He chuckled. “I suppose it’s a good thing, because we need to get our stories straight in case they want to make a big deal about me letting you in to see a suspect.”
“There’s nothing to worry about,” she said. “You stopped by the office to get something and his guilty conscience made him confess to us. They don’t need to know anything more than that.”
He cocked his head, and his eyes twinkled with amusement. “I like the way your mind works.”
She shrugged self-consciously. “Thank you.”
“You know, even if we could have gotten a warrant to search that property we might never have found Amy… At least not in time…”
Layla nodded in solemn agreement. “Thank you for believing me.”
He chuckled, pursing his lips. “I didn’t really… But I couldn’t resist humoring you. I still can’t believe you did that… My Abuelita was right.”
She looked at him reproachfully. “I’m not really a witch. I was just born this way.”
“And thank God for that. If it wasn’t for you…You saved that kid’s life.”
A little smile flitted around her lips as she recalled the intense joy and sweet, sweet relief she’d tasted when Amy was re-united with her mother. The satisfaction of rescuing a child was the best feeling she’d ever had in her life, and a look of pure happiness crossed her face and ignited her eyes as she savored the memory.
Ramon studied her, thinking she’d never been as beautiful as she was at that exact moment. He reached up to brush a curl from her face and her eyes met his, drinking in the sweet warm colors he was flooding her with. It felt so good she closed them with a sigh, only to snap them back open when his lips brushed hers.
His colors strengthened and deepened, and he took her in his arms and kissed her gently, sweetly. She kissed him back, giddy with relief that revealing her secret hadn’t put him off. Soon they were clinging to each other like they had at the museum, their bodies pressing hungrily together. Layla had never felt such powerful emotions directed at her, and a crazy thought occurred to her.
Maybe he loves me.
He kissed her again, deeper and longer, and there was no mistaking his intentions this time. Layla’s scalp tingled, and her pulse quickened at the thought. She relished his every touch, feeling the warmth of his passion, stroking the back of his head and neck. Her hands left a trail of fire on his skin, coloring him red hot with desire.
Both of them were breathing heavily when a buzzer rang, prompting him to pull away reluctantly. “Pizza’s here,” he said gruffly, heading to the door and down the stairs.
Layla had composed herself by the time he returned, tucking her hair behind her ears and sitting primly upright with her knees together and her hands folded in her lap. For some reason it drove him crazy, and he nearly tossed the pizza aside to fall upon her and kiss her some more.
Instead, he set the pizza down on the coffee table in front of her, asking, “What do you want to drink?”
They ate a little, but sitting so close together was distracting, and soon they were in each other’s arms again, tickling and cuddling, savoring the newness of each other’s touch. Layla smiled with happiness as Ramon’s combed his hands through her hair, cupped her face and peppered it with kisses. He paused for a moment, and she opened her eyes to see him smiling at her, his gaze heavy lidded.
“What?” she breathed.
“I just can’t believe how amazing you are.”
“Thanks,” she gasped, watching with big eyes as he leaned in to kiss her softly on the forehead.
“I love your freckles,” he murmured, moving lower. “I want to kiss them all.”
“I have lots of freckles,” she said solemnly. “All over.”
“Then I’ll have to find every single one,” he lunged for her again and she giggled, falling back on his soft couch, pulling his body down onto hers like a magnet.
She kissed him with a passion that rivaled his own, making him shudder. She felt like she was floating on a cloud, only conscious of the warm weight of his body, his hands stroking her, and his voice in her ears, telling her how beautiful she was.
He started kissing the soft skin of her neck, undoing the tiny buttons on her blouse one by one, and she felt a rush of insecurity, suddenly all nerves but not really sure why.
She stopped his hand. “Wait a minute. I don’t know… I’ve never…”
“Never what?” he whispered in her ear.
“Never had sex,” she answered honestly.
“You’re a virgin?” he was shocked. He drew a ragged breath and pulled away, sitting back up. His lustful colors faded, replaced by a blend of guilt, shock, and worst of all, regret.
She sat up and smoothed her skirt. “I’m sorry,” she said, blushing as red as a human being possibly could.
“Don’t be,” he said. “It’s only… I’m a little surprised.”
“Why?”
He wasn’t sure what to say. She’d always seemed so sophisticated and worldly to him, so much more mature than any twenty-one year old he’d ever met. When the professor said that some guy named Max stole her away Ramon had figured she ran off with a boyfriend. Plus, he knew that she’d been seeing Conrad, and he wrongly assumed that meant she was experienced in more ways than were obvious.
“I always thought you seemed so…” his voice trailed off and she looked petrified, staring at him with her big green and brown eyes.
Now he felt awkward, afraid if he kept kissing her he’d seem pushy. He wanted to be with her more than ever, but he didn’t want her to think that he couldn’t control himself. If only she didn’t smell so good…
Being here alone with her was simply too tempting, and he didn’t want to do anything he might regret. “I’d better get you home now,” he said.
~
Layla watched his profile while he drove, wishing she’d kept her mouth shut. All of his passionate desire had changed to worry in the blink of an eye, and she was afraid that she’d ruined everything. Maybe Cali wasn’t right about telling him the truth about everything. Obviously, her lack of experience was a big turn-off for him.
There was only one remedy for that.
“Is the drugstore still open?”
“I think so. Why?”
“Do you mind stopping by there for a minute? I need to pick something up.”
“Sure… No problem.”
He pulled up and waited in the car while she ran inside. She came back out, smiling at him nervously. When they pulled up at her house she kissed him first, wanting to make him feel the way he did before she’d opened her big mouth. He kissed her back, but she could feel him resist, waging an internal battle against the intense passion she had created in him before.
He pulled away first, looking at her with earnest eyes. “I want you to know that I respect you for saving yourself for marriage.”
Her brows knit to
gether. “Who said anything about marriage?” she asked.
He was a little taken aback. “What I mean is… We don’t have to rush into anything… We can take it slow… We can get to know each other.”
“Don’t you want to have sex with me?” she asked.
He nearly choked. “Uhm… uh… Of course I do.”
She reached into her purse and handed him a box. “Cali said that if I had the nerve to buy my own condoms, I’d know.”
“Know what?”
She was so totally guileless when she explained herself that he knew she was speaking the truth, “Know that I was ready to do it with you.”
And for what felt like the millionth time that night, Ramon found himself shocked completely speechless.
~
Chapter Eighteen
BAIT
~
Ramon blinked, bemused. “Am I dreaming?”
“No,” she answered.
Once he got over the shock he started chuckling. Soon he was laughing out loud, and when Layla looked into his dancing eyes she started laughing too, although she wasn’t really sure what was so funny.
Ramon took her hand in his and raised it to his lips, his warm breath tickling her knuckles, “I’ve never met anyone like you.”
“I know,” she agreed, launching him into a fit of laughter again.
He leaned over to pull her close, pressing his forehead against hers. “I still think we should take things slow,” he said seriously, immediately contradicting himself by kissing her until both of their heads were spinning. They finally managed to disengage long enough to make plans to see each other the following night.
“Do you want to try again tomorrow?” Ramon asked, quickly adding, “I mean, to go see a movie… and have some dinner. We should celebrate.”
“I’d like that,” she said.
“I’ll call you tomorrow,” he said.
~
She woke up to a bright sunny day, immediately thinking about Ramon. She couldn’t wait to see him again, and she reached in her bedstand to retrieve her phone, turning it on to see that there were dozens of missed calls.
The Caledonian Inheritance (The Athena Effect) Page 16
