After a few minutes he was in control, and he turned off the water. He grabbed a towel from the handle outside the glass shower door and wrapped it around his waist. A quick manipulation of the water and his hair and body were dry. He felt lighter on his feet as he headed for his closet, and images of her continued to play in his mind. He moved his gaze over his clothes and laughed as a thought popped into his head. Alicia, you’re not even here and you’re going to be the death of me.
Chapter 5
Alicia arrived to find Daniel outside the restaurant. He stood just beyond a grouping of wrought iron outdoor tables and appeared to be lost in thought as he stared out at the lake in silence. She watched him for several moments and observed his pressed dark slacks and matching blazer.
She couldn’t see his shirt with his back to her, but she liked the view she had all the same. After a few nervous swallows, she finally summoned the courage to walk over to him. No more excuses, Alicia. You’re going to give the guy a chance before you dismiss the opportunity. At least this time, right? Right? What am I doing? The urge to call her friends slowed her steps, and she gripped her purse as her nerves began to get the better of her. This was a bad idea. I shouldn’t be doing this. I don’t date. I don’t know anything about dates.
Part of her wanted to turn around and go back to the car, but another part of her kept moving one foot in front of the other despite her mixed feelings. As she continued to walk toward him, she felt her chest tighten, and a nervous energy surged up her spine. When he turned as she approached, she smiled and did the one thing she could think of to calm her nerves. She visualized his heart. Based on the size of his hands, he should have a normal presentation if there are no congenital deformities. I hope he’s not a smoker, that can cause all sorts of… Oh, just say hello to him.
*
It wasn’t intentional, but when Alicia got close enough, Daniel could sense her. Try to act natural; don’t say anything stupid. As he turned to face her, he felt a wave of relief rush through his water at being in her presence again. The moment he looked upon her, his eyes widened.
She wore a midcalf-length white dress that hugged her waist with a slim fit down her thighs. A light blue shawl draped her shoulders, and the entire ensemble was completed by her high-heeled strappy sandals, which made her gorgeous legs even longer. The white fabric of the dress contrasted against her brown skin and stretched over her body in a way that highlighted her figure without being too tight. She was fit but not sculpted, and the tone of her muscles was easy to spot. Her hair was in the same ponytail, which hung down between her shoulder blades.
As he took a breath, he noticed a different fragrance around her, and a small smile curved his lips when he recognized the scent of gardenias. The vision of her along with the pull he felt toward her left him in awe, and words failed him for a time. She’s … perfect.
“Hello again.” Her voice was a little shaky, but the smile on her face was warm and inviting.
“Good evening. You look lovely.” He watched her cast her eyes to the ground while her lips spread in a demure smile. It was too dark to see if her face reddened, but he imagined it did.
“Thank you.” Her voice was quiet, and if he didn’t know any better, he’d say it was uncertain. Don’t make her uncomfortable. He offered his arm, and when she took it, a surge of euphoria enveloped him. He felt invincible in her presence, and as he led her to their table, he had the sensation that his feet barely skimmed the ground.
When he pulled out her chair, he felt a bit of disappointment when he had to break physical contact with her, but he masked it and seated her. “What made you choose this place?” He took his own seat as he asked the question, and he was careful to hold his tie flat against his abdomen during his descent. Wet spots are not a part of the first impression.
“The lake. I love to watch it, but it seems to be more alive at night when the moon is out.”
Amazing. He had to fight the urge to widen his eyes as he listened to her answer. She said the exact thing he would have. The natural similarities in their way of thinking in this area sent his thoughts into daydreams of what else they might have in common. As his mind began to wander, the waiter arrived with menus and a basket of rolls in hand.
“Oh, no thank you. I know what I’d like to order.” Alicia offered a smile before she turned to him.
Locking eyes with her erased his logic for a moment, and he blinked a few times to gather his wits. Get it together, or she’ll think you’re some kind of weirdo. “I know what I’d like to order as well.” It was his turn to smile, but the expression was for Alicia alone as he never broke their eye contact. “After you.”
“Thanks.” Alicia lowered her gaze to the plate in front of her, a small grin on her lips.
There go those eyes again. Two things became clear to him as he observed her. The first, to his delight, was that she didn’t date very much. The second, and most important, was there was no force on Earth that would keep him away from this woman. The certainty he felt as the realization settled over him both excited and terrified him, and he shifted in his seat. She doesn’t know what I am.
“I’ll have the seared scallops with asparagus. Can I have brown rice with that instead of white?”
The waiter scribbled notes onto the pad before looking up. “Of course. And for you, sir?”
“I’ll have the jumbo grilled shrimp.”
“Very good. What would you like to drink?”
Alicia lifted a hand while she shook her head. “Water’s fine for me, thanks.”
“Likewise.” The waiter nodded and collected the empty wine glasses from the table. As soon as he was out of sight, Daniel leaned forward and prepared to ask his next question. “I’ve been thinking about this since we met.” He watched her eyebrows lift before she raised her glass for a sip of water. “What’s an ASD?” The laugh she released forced him to grip the arms of his chair in an effort to keep himself in place. The pull he’d always felt overwhelmed him, and he wanted to be closer to her. Come on, snap out of it.
“It stands for atrial septal defect. It’s a type of congenital heart disease, which means a person is born with it. People with ASDs have an abnormal opening in the dividing wall between the upper filling chambers of the heart, or the atria.” A calm seemed to take over her as she spoke about her work and she smiled, as if amused by the subject.
“This is something you can repair?” He didn’t expect it, but he was intrigued. An admiration for her bloomed inside him, and he began to wonder if he would be able to survive the training required for such a profession. Who are you kidding? There’s no way.
“Yes, it can be repaired in many cases. The call I received today was for a patient who was flown in from several states away.”
It was hard not to stare at her small hand as she took another sip of water. An image of her working hard to fix a hole in someone’s heart came to mind before thoughts of that same hand in his took over his mental scenario. The woman who handled hearts for a living had no idea she held one she couldn’t see. Focus, Daniel, Enki-ak-si lilu. “What made you decide to become a surgeon?”
He watched her take a deep breath before she told what she called the condensed version of the story. Their meals were brought out not long after she began, and they ate while she continued.
“So, how old are you, Alicia?”
“Twenty-seven. How old are you?”
“Twenty-seven? Now I feel like I have wasted my life. And the answer to your question is twenty-nine.” My Dau-Hael is a genius. A beautiful, charming, caring, goddess of a genius.
She lifted her napkin to her mouth as she released a light chuckle, and when she lowered it, she spoke with a smile. “I’m sure you haven’t wasted your life. But I am curious; what do you do for a living?”
“Freelance mainly. I take contracted jobs here and there as needed, mostly for defense. Unfortunately, they’re the kind of assignments you need to have clearance to hear about. My education is in el
ectrical engineering and chemistry, so I cover a wide range of things.” He told the truth, but he didn’t tell her everything, which made him uncomfortable. I can’t just come out and say: ‘I’m an enforcer. I’m sent out on missions for our king to quell any threats to our nation, our existence, or our way of life. Oh yeah, and I’m not totally human. That’s cool with you, right?’ I can already picture the look she’d give me. Even worse, she’s a doctor. She could legally have me thrown in the loony bin.
“Interesting… So where are you from?”
Thoughts of home pulled him out of his disquiet about his true identity, and he sat forward in his chair a bit and smiled. “I grew up in Hawaii.”
“Really? Do you miss it?” She sounded intrigued, and he appreciated her interest.
“I do. What I miss most is the water.” He didn’t intend to, but he began manipulating the water inside his glass, turning it in a slow circle as he described the ocean to his Dau-Hael. When the speed of the water increased, he studied her and released his control. She has this effect on me already? She’d kept her gaze on his face. He was relieved she hadn’t noticed his water play, so he continued to share his thoughts. The smell of the water, the sound of waves crashing, every single detail he could recall. He told her what he loved most about the sea and allowed himself to get lost in the memory of those specific waves.
Alicia seemed to be both captivated and deep in thought, and she sat in silence for long moments.
“Alicia?”
Her eyes widened, and her gaze moved to her plate before she spoke. “I’m sorry; my mind wandered there. I could picture what you described so clearly. It was a vivid image.”
“I’m glad it translates. Do you like the water?” Her answer was important, and he focused his full attention on her mouth as he waited for her to speak.
“I love the water, but it scares me sometimes.”
Her response was both wonderful and concerning. The way she stared out into the restaurant after she spoke bothered him. “Scares you?”
She gave a slight nod before she pulled her shawl tighter around her shoulders. She looks … uneasy. This change in her demeanor filled him with an urge to hold her. He knew too much contact too soon would probably put her off, so he elected to slide his chair closer. “Would you be open to telling me about it?”
He was surprised when she spoke without hesitation, but he took it as a positive sign as he watched her face.
“When I was little, about three or four years old, my parents took us on a trip to the beach. My brothers were running and playing in the sand. I wasn’t really paying attention to them or the water. I was too busy trying to build a sand castle using my yellow plastic shovel and pail.” A deep inhale interrupted her speech, and she stared out into space as if in a daydream.
She can remember the color of her toys from that long ago? That’s … amazing. Daniel leaned forward a bit more and resisted the urge to hold her hand. The water of her body beckoned to him in a way he hadn’t expected and made it difficult to concentrate. All he wanted was to touch her, envelop her in his arms, and share the water of his body with hers.
“My oldest brother told me I could make the castle stronger with wet sand, so he brought buckets of water from the ocean closer to where I was playing. Eventually, I needed more water, and my brothers had run off on their own adventures, so I walked toward the waves.” Alicia continued to stare off into the far reaches of the restaurant. She appeared to be almost lost in the memory, but as she continued to speak, a slight wrinkle creased the skin between her brows.
“I stared at the water. For some reason it was like it was alive, but I also felt like someone was watching me, calling to me from beneath the surface. Each wave moved in, and as it rolled out, I would step forward. It was the strangest feeling. I was completely drawn by the sight of it, the sound even. When I walked into the water, it was like the waves actually pulled me forward, as if they had invisible arms and hands. I was in a current, I guess, pulled underwater and going farther and farther away from the shore. For some reason, I didn’t panic. I just remember how fast I moved.”
Daniel noticed a slight movement at her chest and looked down in time to see her grip her shawl tighter, twisting the blue material in her hand.
“The next thing I remember was a large hand gripping me tight, and then I was pulled above the surface. It was my father. I could see my mother on the beach with my brothers. Tears were rolling down her face, and my father put me on his back and told me to hold his neck as tight as I could. He held onto me with one arm as he swam toward the rest of my family.
“Then the strangest thing happened. It seemed like he swam in place for awhile before he finally made progress toward the beach. Since that happened, I feel that same pull whenever I’m near the ocean and…” She shook her head. She reached out for her glass of water and took a long drink. The small action seemed to bring her back to reality, and she stared at her plate as if she was thinking about something important.
Daniel tried to remain calm, but he wasn’t sure he’d win the fight. He was seething inside as he realized what Alicia did not. How dare they try to take her! And she still feels this. What are they doing? Why are they after her?
“I’m sorry; I probably sound like a crazy person.” She moved her gaze to the lake and placed her hands into her lap. She looked dejected as she chewed on the corner of her lower lip, and the urge to soothe her took over his thoughts.
“No, no. I think I understand what you mean. The sea can be both terrifying and beautiful. Despite the dangers that can lie below the surface, many people are drawn to the sea. I’m one of them.” It was hard to smile after what she revealed, but he latched on to the wonder of being in his Dau-Hael’s presence and reached over to take one of her hands in his. When she didn’t resist his touch, he gave her a light squeeze in reassurance. “Don’t be embarrassed.”
As his hand touched hers, he could sense her feelings through her water. There were other benefits to the Enaal bond. It confirmed she was his; he could sense her feelings just by touching her now. He could feel her inner turmoil as she wanted to take two opposite paths. Part of her wanted to move closer, and the other part wanted her to leave for fear of looking insane.
A strong need to comfort her caused him to send waves of calm through her body. As he soothed her, he pulled out the childhood memory she described and studied it. I’ll have to think about that later. He didn’t let his analysis interrupt the flow of tranquil feelings he sent her, but his connection to her revealed a more fundamental need. She’s exhausted.
He could feel the fatigue in her muscles, and he wanted to sweep her off her feet and place her in bed to sleep. At least I can make her feel better, and then we can leave and she can get some rest.
He watched her relax her shoulders and slow her breathing as he held on, and when her eyes closed, he stopped projecting and just held her hand.
He felt her surprise a moment before her eyes popped open, and he fought the laugh wanting to escape his lips. He could hear her internal dialogue, and it was hard for him to refrain from chiming in with reassurances. She was mortified about falling asleep at the table, and she berated herself almost endlessly.
“Oh my God! I’m so sorry. I—”
“Don’t worry about it, Alicia. You’re a doctor. You have a very demanding profession. I’m just glad to be here.” He smiled and tuned in to more of her thoughts as she settled on a tactic to keep herself more alert.
“So, Daniel, would you like to take a walk around the lake for a bit?”
“Sure, if you’re not too tired. I know you’ve probably had a long day.”
“I think I have enough left in me for a little stroll. I usually like to run around here, so walking shouldn’t be a problem.” A warm smile spread her lips before she placed her cloth napkin over her plate. “Give me just a minute or two to freshen up a bit.”
Daniel was on his feet in a heartbeat, and he pulled out her chair. He watche
d after her as she headed to the ladies’ room, and when she was out of sight, he signaled the waiter to bring the check. When she returned, he stood again and offered his arm.
“But the check…”
“Is taken care of. So how about that walk?”
* * * *
The date with Daniel was going better than Alicia had expected, and when she took his arm as they prepared to leave the restaurant, she thought over their exchanges. He actually showed genuine interest in what I do, and he didn’t make me feel like some kind of freak when I told him about my education. The lightness she felt was soon tempered when she recalled the conversation about her childhood, and she glanced at the side of his face as they moved through the tables to see if he noticed her change in mood. I can’t believe I told him that story. Why am I so comfortable around him? When he held my hand, it was almost as if… Why did I feel better? It was like he took the panic away, but… What am I even thinking about?
The coolness of the night air shocked her out of her inner thoughts, and she took a deep breath as they moved onto the paved path near the water. The three-quarter moon’s light reflected off the lake’s still, black surface. The sound of leaves as they swished and swayed in the wind filtered down, creating a background din that made her feel as if the trees cheered for them as they walked by.
The light wind blowing in her face was like a cool caress, and she closed her eyes for a brief moment and tried to turn off her thoughts. “It’s beautiful out here tonight.”
Waves of Change Page 3
