“Good. I have a great picnic in that basket.” She paused, her face twisting with worry. “You probably don’t want regular food. I forgot.”
“I can eat normal food. I just need a gargantuan amount to feed my hunger. Or to hunt.” And the day that I could indulge in all Allie’s caresses, my appetite would probably be insatiable given I’d waited over a century. We’d need at least a week alone. I smirked with the thought.
With Sage and Grace in the way of that ever happening, it wasn’t hard for my mood to darken again.
The sky was pale blue, dotted with fluffy, small clouds.
I tried not to sweat, because I hadn’t exactly been around Allie enough to be comfortable with damp armpits. Why couldn’t it be late August or September?
Hell. Would we see August or September?
Why couldn’t we be like normal couples and welcome the uncertainty of days ahead? The change in leaf colors, Halloween decorations, ghosts and goblins ringing the doorbell. All things we could happily experience when we got rid of Grace for good.
Allie was quiet as we strolled over the increasingly rocky terrain. The water made a thundering sound as it pummeled into the pool at the bottom of the falls. The sound blocked at least some of Allie’s thoughts, but a few broke through.
Will he change in front of me? Or will he ever be comfortable enough to allow it to happen in my presence? Will he still be dangerous when he shifts?
“Don’t worry. I’ve been working on the shift. And you’re right. I’m not going to give you any more reasons not to want to be near me, so I won’t be changing in front of you.” I put the basket down on a flat place under a tree. The thundering water was a little more muffled there.
“That’s still unsettling. That you can hear what I’m thinking. Is there no way to have a little privacy?” Allie wouldn’t look at me. She sat a bottle of wine beside the basket and spread wrinkles out of her yellow sundress.
“I’ll see what I can do to work on that too. I found a way to block a good bit of Ava’s thoughts, but I guess it was because I got tired of hearing her complain all the time. If it wasn’t flying out of her mouth, her thoughts were nothing but bitching.” I slid the basket over a little to spread out a blanket. I normally didn’t use one when I slept in the wild, but for Allie’s comfort, I would have carried a sofa out here if she’d asked me to.
As she spread a full buffet over the blanket, Allie’s shy smile warmed my frosty mood. “I don’t remember the things you liked most, so I brought a little of everything. I thought out of all this, you might find something you wanted.”
As strong as the hunger normally was, out here in the woods, alone with her, I was suddenly starved for only one thing. “Yes, there’s certainly something here I want.”
A cute giggle escaped Allie as she flattened her dress over her thighs. “I thought we were trying to be good.”
I tugged it back up. “That’s challenging in an un-chaperoned situation.”
“It was your idea.” She slapped at me.
“I promise to keep you as pure as possible until we’re married.” I gave her the grin I knew she loved. “After that, all bets are off.”
“I hate it when you make promises I know you’re going to keep.” She scowled playfully and began unpacking the picnic.
For a minute, we were a normal couple, in normal woods, having a normal picnic.
She was right. This was nice.
I could almost imagine a happily ever after. Almost.
Only now there was more than one reason why I had to keep my longings under control. Not only did I want to do things the right way, by God and all, but Grace could be haunting the property again. And after what we’d done to her, she was sure to be extra pissed.
Which brought me to the fact that I had to tell Allie about the motel room.
The urge to reach out and scoop her into my lap overwhelmed me so that a stiff whisker tried to push through.
No. Not now. You’re not going to ruin this moment, Cat.
Allie took a bite of a sandwich and sighed as she looked up at the heavy tree trunks protecting us from the scorching sun. She swallowed, and just when she started to speak, she stopped herself.
I had to block her thoughts. I’d stop eavesdropping and let her have her moment.
So I talked. “What sort of plans had you considered while I was away?”
“An orphanage or something along those lines.” She put her sandwich down and poured a glass of wine. Her face suddenly lit with a new glow that I was almost jealous I hadn’t caused. “The house has so many wonderful rooms with endless potential to be not gloomy and empty. I thought the laughter of children would be nice.”
The thought of having children with her settled over me. The immense need to create them now crushed the sweetness of the moment with heat that would have melted her underneath me.
“Shelby and Kaitlyn have been in contact with some people who are having trouble with their children. It’s not that they don’t want them, they just…” She took a sip, put the glass of wine down and turned to face me. When she was excited, she gestured a lot. She couldn’t know how cute she was. “There are other people like you. I mean, not exactly like you, but kids with similar afflictions. It’s not something I would have ever dreamed with my scientifically based mind. I’ve always operated under the understanding that the world is black and white. Now that you’ve come into my life, I have a soft spot for people with problems like yours. I thought it might help to have those people around you too. Not only would you help them understand their issues, but you might also be able to learn some things about yourself while you spend time with them.”
“Whoa. What exactly are we talking about here? I need specifics.” Especially if I was going to leave her with them running all over the house without my ability to be in more than one place at once if more than one of them happened to get dangerously out of control.
“There are kids who have abnormal abilities. Their families don’t know how to cope with them. So the kids are left not understanding their place in this world. I want us to be there for them. To let them know that things aren’t as bad as they seem.” Allie tucked a lock of brown hair behind her hair but the soft breeze blew it, anyway.
“You mean shape shifter kids?”
“Not exactly. They can do things others can’t. Like moving things with their mind. Burning things without thinking about it.” With a hopeful look, she waited.
“You’ve already moved ahead with the plans, haven’t you?”
“Sort of.” She knotted a corner of the blanket.
I took a long draw of her wine. “I think we need some time to dig through some of our past baggage before we bring other people into it. It’s messed up enough.”
Allie’s face darkened. “That’s why I thought we could form a new normal. We’re not like everyone else. It would be nice to be surrounded with other people who understand.”
“You mean, like misery loves company.” Shit. The wrong thing fell out of my mouth once again.
Her big brown eyes looked up to meet my gaze. Definitely the wrong thing to say.
“I don’t plan on being miserable. I hope you have the same outlook.”
“Did you read any of that journal, at all?” I concentrated on her facial expressions so they’d take the place of her thoughts.
She was upset again. What she thought of me right now was probably not pleasant.
I couldn’t get out of protective Cole mode.
“The first few pages, but I didn’t want to jumble my memories with stuff I didn’t remember. It was all too confusing.” She let the blanket go and took the wineglass from me.
“You’re still scared of what you’ll learn about yourself. I mean Annabeth.” Glad for the support, I leaned back on the tree.
Allie took the last sip of wine. “I guess I am. I want to be me. Not a mixture of me and someone else. I want you to forget about all that past life stuff and mov
e forward with our life together. I want us to be us. Not people who worry about the past repeating itself.”
“Your sister killed herself and you in the process to keep us apart. That’s pretty damned hard to forget.” I pushed some of the picnic stuff out of the way and stretched out.
“We’re here now. I know the past won’t go away, but I just want some time with you without it hanging over us every second. I can handle your animal shifting thing, but I don’t want to share you with a past we can’t change.” She needed more than this.
This life I’d created.
How could I have let her fall into it? How had I been so selfish as to think she would be okay with it now?
Allie absently rested her hand on my leg as she took bird bites of a sandwich again.
I gathered her into my arms, knocking over a bowl in the process.
She giggled and righted the dish, but fell back against me. With her beautiful, hope-filled gaze, she stared up at me.
I kissed her forehead, leaving my lips there a little longer than usual. God her skin was soft and fragrant. “I love you, and whatever it takes to keep you safe is what I have to do. If you don’t inform yourself about our past, then you won’t understand why I’m so fixated on putting up this wall of safety around you.”
“I’ll read it. I just need a few days to get my head together. And for the record, I want more than your wall of safety wrapped around me. I want to be in your arms as much as possible.” She cuddled as close as she could to me, her dark hair contrasting with the white of my shirt.
“When I stayed at the motel, I did a lot of soul searching and worked for hours on end to fight the change. One day, when I was especially exhausted and mentally spent, I changed to go eat. When I came back, the door to my room was opened slightly. I thought you’d found me and had gotten a key to the room or something.” I paused. I’d never wanted to kick my own ass as much as I had right then, but I had to keep going.
“Someone broke in?” Her voice was soft and innocent.
“Cole! Don’t tell her yet. Have you listened to this chick’s thoughts? I don’t think you have a new crazy stalker.” Shelby’s thoughts were frantic. “She’s the same old one, but somehow she’s inside another person’s body.”
“What did you do?” Allie turned to look up at me.
“I found some girl in my room. I sent her out.” It was the truth, but the rest would have to wait. For now, I needed to focus on Allie’s safety. I might be able to give her that luxury along with making her the happiest woman in the world. “Allie Knowles, will you marry me?”
Her eyes widened, and her mouth dropped open as if she were about to speak.
“No. Don’t answer aloud. There’s a very good reason I’m not using words. Please don’t ask why, just trust me. Yes? Or no? A simple thought will do.” A wide grin spread across my face, but my chest squeezed with pain. I hated lying any longer, but I had to do right by her even if it meant doing wrong by her for a few more days.
“You just said you didn’t want to get married.” Allie sat up and faced me.
I took her hand. “I didn’t. I mean, I did. I do, but I just want you to be safe, but I’ve come up with a plan. I know you had your heart set on a big wedding, but we can’t do that and keep you safe. Not right now. So we’re going to leave. I’ll give you the big wedding you want later. I promise.”
The shocked look on Allie’s face transformed when her eyes lit up. She sat straighter. “You’re serious?”
“Dead serious. I want you to have the time with me you’ve hoped for without interruption. We just go. Then Grace won’t know where we are for at least a few days. It always took her some time to search for me.”
She looked past me toward the house, then back at me. “Where?”
I brushed her cheek. “Leave the details up to me. The less you know, the safer you’ll be.”
“Yes.” She jumped into my lap. “The answer is yes.”
My heart swelling with happiness I hadn’t felt in a long while, I gripped her tight in return. When we were done with the wedding and the stay at my secret getaway, I’d leave Allie there, come back here, find a way to kill Grace for good, then return for my bride. I’d spend the rest of my life trying to make her happy.
Allie went almost limp in my arms as she stared meaningfully into my eyes. “The honeymoon part isn’t that important to me. I don’t want you to suffer trying to make me happy.”
“I’d break the moon in half and give it to you in pieces to make you happy. You deserve the night we missed a hundred years ago.” I regarded her with more intensity. “Leave in the limo, call your mother, and tell her to stay home. I know you wanted her to visit, wedding or not, but she could be in danger. If she’s halfway here, I don’t care. Tell her I’ve come down with Malaria or something. I’ll get Shelby and Kaitlyn on the rest of the preparations.”
Allie nodded, though a cloud of disappointment dampened the glow of happiness in her eyes. She wanted the whole big white wedding thing. She hadn’t had only thoughts of my happiness in mind. But we’d get it one day. I’d find a way. It just couldn’t be this time around.
Chapter 5
Allie and I scooped up the remnants of the picnic and found the twins in a huddle in the library at the house.
“What are you looking at?” Allie asked the girls.
An open book spanned the width of their laps.
“Just a book on possession.” Shelby glanced at me.
“We’re brushing up on our skills.” Kaitlyn didn’t look at us, and she shifted in her seat.
“Get her out of here. We need to talk.” Kaitlyn’s thoughts were more anxious than they’d ever been.
“Where did Sage say she was going this morning?” Shelby said.
“To shop.”
“Nice clothes won’t cover up that stench. Oh, it’s her all right. Test her. I doubt you’ll have much trouble pulling the truth out of her.” Kaitlyn glanced at Allie. “We’re so happy for you both. I’m glad you could come to alternate arrangements.”
“And use protection. We don’t need little shapeshifting rug rats running all over the place until we have the house a little more ghost proof.” Shelby grinned as she looked back to the side of the book on her lap.
“I don’t know what to say to that.” I turned to Allie. “I need to make some plans I’d like to keep a surprise until we get where we’re going. Could you go on up and pack?”
She gave the three of us a suspicious look but sighed. “As you wish.”
“I’m not your master yet.” I kissed her hand.
Allie shoved me. “I don’t think you’ll ever be my master. I might let you help me make decisions, but master? Nope.”
“I like it when you’re feisty.” I popped her on the backside.
“Watch it, buddy.” Allie wagged a finger at me and left us.
As soon as her footsteps hit the staircase, which the girls couldn’t hear because they didn’t have near the heightened sense of hearing I had, I let it fly. “How in the hell did she get inside another body?” I paced the floor. “I thought she could only possess Allie?”
“We were just as stumped as you until we did a little research. As long as the human asks the spirit to enter him or her, the possession can take place.” Kaitlyn wound a lock of blond hair into a tight knot.
“What happens to the body’s original soul?” Why couldn’t we have a few minutes of peace? A string of expletives flew through my mind so fast they jumbled together.
“We haven’t gotten that far yet, but we’re still searching.” Kaitlyn’s eyes widened as she looked past me.
“Good afternoon, darlings. I’m so glad I have all of you in the same room. Maybe you can tell me which dress will cover up the signs of decay.” Sage or Grace or whoever she wanted us to call her plopped bags down on the library floor.
Slowly, I turned.
“Don’t do it.” Shelby must’ve had a l
ittle precognition at that very moment, if she hadn’t already had some. I was about to strangle the bitch.
Grace wore a white formfitting dress. The sleeves stopped at her elbows and she wore white gloves to match. Her heels were so steep I thought she might get a nose bleed or break an ankle. On her tight up-do, she wore an extra broad hat a model might wear on the runway. And she glistened with diamonds.
“Holy Coco Chanel,” Shelby said.
“Thank you. I pride myself in looking better than anyone around me.” Grace considered her gloved hand.
“And being bitchier.” I stepped closer to her. “Grace. How long do you plan on staying where you’re not welcome?”
“I’m welcome. In fact, after you rejected Sage, she was so down on life that she went back to her hotel and tried to commit suicide. I caught her just before the final slit and asked to borrow her body.” Grace took a box of shoes from her bag. “Aren’t these the most darling thing you’ve ever laid eyes on?”
“I’m sure Sage didn’t try to kill herself because of me.” I shifted a few steps away from her.
“It spiced up the story a bit, though. Don’t you think?” Grace said. “And why wouldn’t that be a fitting story? You’ve got girls dying all over the place to be with you.”
I lunged at her, but Kaitlyn jumped up and held me back.
“Choose your moves wisely.” Kaitlyn turned to face her.
“You have to want something more than your normal perverse demands. What is it this time?”
“A hundred years hasn’t dulled your senses, I see. You’re right actually. This poor waif’s body will wear out in a week or less, so you have a quick decision to make. Either I torture, maim, and kill every person around Allie, including her mother as I drive her completely insane with acts of cruelty beyond your wildest imaginings or you take your own life and join me in the In-between. You choose. Now do I get my way around here or do I have to go notify Allie of our motel room escapades, of which I’m sure you’ve been too much of a scaredy cat to tell her about? I love my little cat jokes, don’t you?”
Though she wasn’t in her original form, I couldn’t miss the evil staring out of the poor girl’s eyes. Grace Rollins had once again surprised me.
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