by Kat Stiles
Jay took hold of my hand and walked me to his small kitchen. “Are you okay?”
“I nearly lost you. Now there’s all of these people, what are we going to do if he comes after us? I don’t know if I can protect them.”
Jay placed his hands on my head, just above my ears. “Relax, my love. It isn’t your responsibility alone. Everything will be all right.”
The heat that washed over me in waves was a delicious reprieve from the panic building in me. I closed my eyes, savoring the warmth. His lips touched mine, and the sweet kiss that followed was enough to bring me back down.
“Get a room already!” The beautiful sound of Lukas’ voice. I wondered why he was sticking around.
“That fucking guy…” I muttered, returning with Jay to the living room.
“Look, if someone will teleport me back to Slovakia, I get out of everyone’s hair,” he said.
Zoe sighed. “I don’t know what I’m going to do. I’ve never just picked up and started over. I know I can neutralize powers, but I can’t fight them off if they have guns or darts.” She fidgeted with a ring on her finger. “That’s how they got me last time.”
Steve nodded. “If Derek is still alive, none of us are safe.”
“I have another place,” Jay said. “There’s plenty of room and you’re all welcome.”
Vi looked at me, as if to answer the question on everyone’s minds: what the hell is he talking about?
I smiled and shrugged. “This is news to me, too. Why don’t we just go and look? Then you can decide if you want to stay or take your chances on your own.”
A mischievous smile formed on Vi’s lips. “I’m game!”
Lukas and Vlad both looked a little apprehensive, but Zoe walked over to them. “Come on boys, what do we have to lose? Better than being Derek’s prisoner, right?”
“She has a point,” Vlad said, his eyes taking her in once more. “That guy sucks.”
I laughed. “I think so too.”
Steve agreed and we all joined hands. We waited to teleport, but nothing happened.
“Uh, Vlad?” Jay said. “Can you turn off whatever it is that disallows us to teleport?”
“Oh, right.” He closed his eyes, then reopened them shortly after. “Should be good now.”
Jay teleported us to his “vacation home,” which turned out to be a mansion on Long Beach Island.
Lillian ran to one of the massive windows to gaze at the shoreline outside. The beach was right there, but the property sat up high enough to withstand any hurricanes or natural disasters.
“Daddy, daddy!” Lillian exclaimed. “I want to go to play in the sand!”
Steve wrapped his arm around her. “Sounds like fun, baby.”
“Holy shit, Jay, you’ve been holding out on us!” Vi exclaimed, as she took in the place. It seemed like we were in the foyer, but I couldn’t be sure. A hallway so long I could barely see its end expanded out to the left. I could tell by all the little elegant touches – the elaborate crown molding, marble floors, and a breathtaking chandelier - it was unlikely the house cost anything less than a hundred million.
“Did you rob a bank or something?” Vi asked.
Jay blushed. “You like it?”
“Are you kidding me? I get to live here? Woo-hoo!” She ran down one of the long passageways, while Zoe explored the elevator. Yeah, it had a freaking elevator.
I was still kinda in shock, thinking when we transported, we’d end up in a regular house somewhere. Or a place like his apartment. I’d never expected a mansion. I took Jay aside. “What the fuck is this?”
“Look, I’m sorry I didn’t tell you this sooner,” Jay said, his gaze downward in a guilty manner, “but the truth is I don’t talk about it much, it’s not like it comes up in casual conversations, you know, and actually it’s kinda rude to—”
I cleared my throat to stop his rambling. “Jay, are you keeping secrets from me?”
“No! I mean, not on purpose anyway…”
“So what’s the meaning of all this?” I asked, gesturing around me. “You in the mafia or something?”
He laughed his geeky giggle, and even snorted. It was so cute. “Nothing like that. The truth is, I don’t have to work anymore.”
I looked at him sideways. “What are you talking about?”
“I took the job at USAcom for socialization mostly, and health benefits. It’s amazing what they charge just for a doctor visit.”
The skeptical look I shot his way must’ve tuned him into what I was thinking—why would a healer care about health benefits?
“Yeah, well, that was before I got my power, obviously.”
“You work to socialize?” I remembered dreading my time with Chad, and how socialization was the last thing I wanted at work. I had to laugh at the sheer absurdity of it.
He took my hands in his, and though I was still a bit miffed about being in the dark on this whole side of his life, the warmth was comforting. “Well, you were there, so even after I got my power I stayed on. Plus, they really need the help, their processes are ass-backwards.”
“Fuck yes, they are,” I said. “So if you don’t have to work, what are you, independently wealthy? Rich dead uncle left you billions?”
“Yes to the first question.” A sheepish grin appeared. “I designed some phone apps and games that went viral. Sold some of them for a lot of money, still get residuals on others.”
I laughed, thinking it was a joke. IT people had very active imaginations, especially programmers. But he wasn’t laughing with me.
“Are you serious?”
“You don’t believe me?”
“But you’re Jay. Quiet, lovable programmer with an unnatural fondness for quirky old sci-fi shows. I mean, I kinda expected to see a nerdy collection of old action figure toys in a closet somewhere, but this…”
“Oh, so now you’re saying I’m not smart enough?” He did his best to look offended, but I could tell he was playing.
“Come on, you know I wasn’t saying that,” I said, as I wrapped my arms around him. “You’re the most brilliant person I know.”
“That’s better,” he said and laughed, hugging me back.
“You think we can get a tour? Afraid I might get lost in this place.”
“Hold on a second,” Jay said. “I’ll be right back.”
My horror movie training kicked into gear. “Nope. With Derek still out there, we need to have a buddy system. Where are we going?”
“Okay, but not you,” he said. “Vi, Vlad, can you come with me a sec?”
Both Vi and Vlad nodded, and then joined Jay.
Before I could ask again where they intended to go, they poofed out. What the hell was that about?
I noticed Zoe hop back out of the elevator, right before the doors closed, as if it were some kind of mechanical beast trying to eat her. I tried to suppress a laugh.
She heard me and smiled. “This place is something else. Kinda reminds me of the former White House.”
She almost had to yell from across the way, so I walked over to her. “I know, it’s a lot to process.”
“Wait a minute, you really didn’t know about all this?” Her black curls bounced as she turned around, her arms out. “About him being rich?”
“No fucking clue,” I said, and looked down. “Speaks volumes about our relationship, doesn’t it?”
“Oh sweetie, I’ve seen the two of you together. That boy is crazy about you.”
“Yeah, I know. I guess that’s why I’m not making a big deal out of it.” I felt my cheeks blush. “Truth is, I’m in love with him too.”
Her smile held such an indescribable radiance, it was like it lit up the whole enormous area. I had a feeling we would become good friends.
“What about Vlad? He seemed really into you.”
She laughed. “You think?
“He couldn’t take his eyes off you, when we were reviving Jay.”
Her eyebrows scrunched together, as if she were trying to process the id
ea. “Why would he…” She let out a nervous chuckle. “But that doesn’t mean he…”
“He is kinda cute, in a badass sort of way,” I noted. “You know, when he isn’t electrocuting you.”
“Yeah, I guess I could see that.” She giggled, before she turned serious, as if a light bulb went off over her head. “Hey with your powers, you could check! Read his mind, right?”
I arched an eyebrow. “You want me to read Vlad’s mind?”
“Yes, baby, find out for sure.” Her sweet smile faltered. “I’ve been hurt before.”
I could sense she’d had a hell of a time with relationships, but a few sad memories filtered through to me, the worst of which was her getting left at the altar.
“I’ve mistook kindness, or worse, for interest before,” she said, and sighed. “It’s like if you don’t look a certain way, fit into this impossible mold…” She straightened herself upright. “Don’t get me wrong, I’m not embarrassed by my curves, I love the way I look. People who don’t give me a chance because I’m not a size 2…well, they’re the ones missing out, not me.”
“Damn straight,” I agreed. There was a genuine conviction behind her words—I could tell she believed them. And of course she was right, she was an amazing woman. I’d never warmed up to someone so fast in my entire life. Not even Vi. “Okay, I’ll do it.”
Her gorgeous smile was contagious. “Thank you!”
“Where is food?” Lukas’ voice echoed through the place. “Surely even beanpole like Jay has to eat.”
Before I could answer that I had no earthly clue where the kitchen was, Vi and Vlad popped back in. In Vi’s arms was a very freaked out Pickles. The cat jumped down, but didn’t go far. He sniffed the air, looking around him.
I kneeled down to pet him, but it didn’t help, the cat was just plain scared.
Jay popped back with a fluffy, brand new cat bed. I picked up Pickles, who proceeded to dig his claws in my back to hold on.
“Is there some room we can get him set up in?” I asked, wincing in pain as I pulled his arms off my back. “It might help him calm down a bit.”
Jay nodded, leading the way. We ended up in a huge, gorgeous master bedroom with the most elaborate king size bed I’d ever seen. Jay placed the rather comfy looking new cat bed on a small dresser next to a huge window with a perfect view of the ocean. I gently placed Pickles in the bed. He did a few circles and then collapsed in it, still looking around the room.
“I wanted to surprise you,” Jay said. He looked at Pickles, who still seemed apprehensive. “Is he okay?”
“Just going to take awhile to get used to the new place,” I said. “Him and me both.”
“Do you like the room?” He asked, as he slowly stroked Pickles. Within seconds the cat was purring up a storm and even offering his belly. It didn’t surprise me Pickles enjoyed the heat of his touch as much as I did.
“Of course you can have your own room, if you want, I just thought—”
I cut him off with a kiss. “You thought right. We’d love to stay with you.”
He smiled. “I’m so happy, Kate. Being here with you is like a dream come true.”
“Jay, are you sure about this? About me?” I looked down. “I mean, you can have anyone, why settle for a bitchy DBA who can fry people’s brains?”
He took my hands in his and smiled. “You haven’t heard? I only date bitchy telepathic DBAs.”
“Bitchy, telepathic, telekinetic DBAs?” I asked, as I focused on him and lifted him up a few inches in the air with my mind.
“How cool!” he exclaimed. “Your power is evolving.”
I lowered him back down to the ground. “It would seem so. I was so angry when they took you from me. You need to listen to me next time. I…I don’t think I can handle losing you again.”
He embraced me, and the warmth of his hands was soothing and inviting at the same time. I wanted nothing more than to be with him, this time having him all to myself. But I knew we had to figure out what the hell we were going to do first. While hiding out in a huge mansion on the beach sounded fucking awesome, it wasn’t a solution. Derek was still out there.
What do we do now? I kept thinking, as Jay toured the vast estate with all of us. Vi called dibs on one of the nicer suites, but as the tour continued on, I realized there were no shitty rooms. All of them were large, lavishly furnished, and complete with a breathtaking view.
I caught Vlad trying to sneak glances in here and there at Zoe. In his mind, the predominant thought was simple: he wanted her. He found her curves beyond sexy, and the poor guy was desperate just to talk to her (among other things, most of which were R-rated in nature). But then I glimpsed a girl dying in his arms and sensed regret. With her power, there’s a chance I could be with her, without hurting her.
Vlad a kindred spirit? Wouldn’t have called that one. But I felt myself warming up to him, having had that common experience of inadvertently hurting someone with my power.
At the end of the tour, I shared what I’d learned with Zoe. She was giddy happy, and I was overjoyed to be a part of that reaction. He caught us staring in his direction, so I waved him over. There was a culpable electricity in the air between them, or maybe that was just Vlad’s powers. Either way it felt like I was intruding, so I rejoined Jay, taking hold of his hand.
“What next?” Lukas said, in between bites of an enormous sandwich he’d made when we toured the kitchen. “I mean this is great place, for sure, but what are we going to do?”
Jay pondered the question. “I think we should band together. With our powers, we could be unstoppable. And if we take the time to develop a better plan, now that we’re all here, we might just have a shot against Derek.”
“Like a real life X-men?” Vi said. “That’s so fucking cool!”
“Maybe not quite like that. I’m not exactly as noble as Professor X…” I said and laughed. “But it would be nice to train with you guys. We could do a lot of good together, you know?”
Jay smiled. “That’s exactly what I was thinking. Stop Derek from imprisoning anyone else like us, ever again.”
“Yes!” Lillian cheered. “No one should be a prisoner.”
Steve’s eyes watered, and I wondered how long that guilt would linger for him. He embraced his daughter tightly, hugging her from behind and planting a kiss on her head.
Lukas made some kind of grunting noise, or perhaps that was his stomach digesting. I couldn’t tell if he agreed or not.
But then he nodded in approval. “I’m in.”
The others nodded as well, with the exception of Vlad.
“This sounds great and all,” he said, “but do you think we could have a few days off first?” He looked at Zoe, and a small, but hopeful smile spread across his face.
Zoe was positively glowing. “It would be nice.”
“That’s an excellent idea,” Jay agreed, squeezing my hand he held. “I think we’ve all earned it.”
A wicked smile formed on his lips, and I got the impression he was as eager as I to return to his bedroom. Our bedroom. Where my rotten cat was likely sunbathing, listening to sounds of the ocean only yards away. It was hard to believe, after all that happened, that this was my life. Jay lifted me into his arms and carried me. Once we were out of view of the others, I kissed him passionately, burying my fingers in his hair.
He carefully placed me down on the bed, still kissing me. It almost felt like being intoxicated, lost in the sensation of his lips, his heat, his amazing energy. I relaxed, taking my time with him. Exploring every inch of his body, reveling in his responsiveness, his raw desire to be with me. His acceptance of me, exactly as I was, with all my issues and imperfections.
I guess Derek was wrong after all. I did get my happy ending. Though looking back, I realize it was only the beginning.
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