by S. E. Akers
Tanner tilted his head. “And do you think he couldn’t have cared less about your irritation?” he countered. “I have a hunch he felt every twinge of your distress.”
“Oh, I’m certain he felt it,” I replied. “The sneaky ass stripped me of my ruby cuff.”
“I’m sure there were a few times he regretted his decision.”
Just a few? I looked up at him with a thoughtful grin. If he doesn’t regret all of them by now, boy will he the next time Kamya shows up.
Tanner drew me closer to his chest. “And I’m sure he thought about taking you into his arms and alleviating your unrest countless times and telling you how he truly felt.”
“Then why didn’t he?” I posed, halting our sway. “Do you think it’s because the student feels more than her teacher does or is his will so fierce it can’t break?”
“I think if your mentor hadn’t had any restraint and if his faithful Djinn hadn’t reminded him of the reason why his student was there repeatedly whenever he saw him about to cave, there wouldn’t have been one shred of training going on this summer,” he confirmed. “I’m not your teacher anymore, Shiloh . . . and don’t want to be. I thought the hours I spent devouring your lips today would have put an end to any doubts about my feelings for you. So is that your last dig before we end this matter or are you suggesting that I need to try harder?”
I swept my fingers through his hair. “Last dig,” I assured, just before my lips found themselves helplessly lured to his, sealing my promise.
“Good . . . Then shut up and dance,” he grinned.
The longer we danced, the more a secret confession I’d always wanted to tell him came bubbling to the surface. “You know, this isn’t the first time we’ve danced,” I whispered into his ear.
Tanner pulled back with a curious sparkle lighting his eyes. “And when was that?”
“At the Homecoming dance,” I clarified. “When I was dancing with Ty, you worked your way into my mind when I was having one of my Emerald-Eyes induced visions.”
Tanner grinned, seeming noticeably amused. “And we were dancing?”
“Sort of,” I said. “We were mostly looking at each other.” I pushed away a blush looking to singe my cheeks. “I was standing there . . . wanting to kiss you.”
“I was there that night,” he admitted and looked deeply into my eyes. “Watching over you.”
Though I was secretly dying to ask him how he felt about me then, I chose to give his frame a tender squeeze and laid my head against his warm chest instead. “I like your admissions,” I said. “Especially when you tell me things about yourself.”
“I’ve been around for quite some time,” he rustled. “There’s plenty to tell.”
I pulled back and lifted my head. “I know,” I agreed. “And instead of hounding you with questions all the time, I’ve figured out the easiest way of finding out all of your secrets.”
“Do tell,” he encouraged.
“You’re free to tell me anything you want, at any time of course,” I began. “However, I get to ask you one personal question every day.”
Tanner pulled back playfully. “Do I reserve the right not to answer?”
“No,” I said. “That’s not in the rules.”
“All right,” he agreed, “But only if I can do the same to you . . . if I choose.”
“Fine,” I replied. “I’m pretty much an eighteen year-old open book.”
“Oh, I’m sure there are a few things I still don’t know about you,” he assured. “Everyone has things they hold secret.”
Yeah, I wasn’t going to let that remark bump me off my cloud tonight. We were talking about personal stuff anyway. Plus, Katie’s countdown-clock was steadily winding down to where her witchy-residence would finally be nothing but a distant memory within a few short days.
“So what would you like to know?” he asked.
For someone who had so many questions they wanted to ask, I couldn’t seem to come up with one that seemed meaty enough. So instead of a direct inquisition, I decided to give the floor to him. “Tell me something I would be surprised to know about you?” I submitted.
“Anything?” he posed, looking like he was already weighing a few options.
I nodded, all ears and eagerly waiting.
“Tomorrow is my birthday,” he said just as casually as if he’d announced that it was going to rain.
My steps halted like my feet had bumped an out of the blue curb. “When were you going to tell me?” I asked and quickly resumed my open-mouthed stance.
“When you’ve had as many as I’ve had, you don’t advertise it.”
“How many is that?” I questioned, smiling. “More than a peck and less than a bushel?”
Tanner lowered me into a dip straightaway. “I’m sorry, but you’ve used up your ‘one’ for the day,” he assured, his eyes as shrewd as they were sultry.
Suddenly a chill rocked my spine. But it wasn’t a creepy chill; it was a cold chill, like someone had kicked the air-conditioning down to freezing.
Tanner noticed my grimace and pulled me up to my feet not a second later. “What’s wrong?” he asked.
I gave my bare arms a series of brisk rubs. “I’m freezing,” I said, my teeth chattering.
Tanner studied me curiously. “The temperature hasn’t changed,” he remarked and griped my hands tighter. “And you don’t feel cold at all.” He started to take off his jacket when the icy feeling abruptly left me.
“I’m fine now,” I muttered. And I was, bizarrely. Then suddenly, what sounded like a set of the metal doors clicking shut echoed throughout the theatre. Our eyes swept the panorama, peering into the darkness fervently, but there was nothing there.
“Come on,” Tanner said and took my hand. “Maybe you just need something to eat.”
“Maybe,” I smiled. I really hadn’t eaten much all day, though I didn’t see where low blood-sugar would have me feeling like an icicle dangling in Tanner’s arms. Who knows? Maybe it was a side effect of inhaling a tourmaline on an empty stomach? Either way, at the mere mention of food my appetite was back and in full swing. Good thing they had a hefty spread to choose from.
The Washburn Pavilion and the Blue Wing were a little too crowded for both our tastes. We ending up dining and dancing the rest of the evening in the Skyline Room, which was much more intimate and boasted a lovely nighttime view of Boston and all its glittery lights behind the waters of the Charles River. The hors d’oeuvres we feasted on proved just as tasty as they were phenomenal-looking. Some of them were even far too artsy to consider touching, let alone destroying with my fork. But I did anyway. I figured that was a hint of Bea’s foodie-fetish coming out in me.
It was around a quarter till eleven when we both decided to wrap up our evening. I popped into the ladies room for a quick visit before hitting the road. With my toilet flushed and now feeling as light as a feather, I strolled out of the stall still rapt in my dreamy daze and laid my clutch beside the sink. I wasn’t paying a bit of attention to the other females around me when I reached for a pump of soap. And that’s when I bumped the hand of someone a little too close for comfort.
Clover Valorre jerked her hand back in a flinch. If we were two five year-olds on a schoolyard playground, I would swear she was about to cry, “She gave me cooties!”
“Pardon me,” I simpered and continued to pump a dollop of soap into my hands.
The white-washed witch stuck her hands back under the sink faucet, rinsing them with a testy glare. She still didn’t know me as the girl from Ms. Lá Léo’s Voodoo Shop in New Orleans — and this was the second time running into me in a little over a month. Of course, I supposed the chance of her actually recognizing me would require that she pulled that pasty head of hers out from underneath the tacky bustle covering her ass first.
My peripherals started picking up on something eerily disturbing — the way she was looking at me. Actually, it was the intensity guiding her stare as she scoured every inch of my frame,
almost like she was irrefutably intrigued. I glanced at my clutch as I reached for a towel, confirming a new mandatory “functional guideline” when it came to any future fashion accessory selections on my behalf. Maybe next time a little less Valentino and a lot more Voodoo? Tacky choice or not, right now I REALLY missed my leather bag.
I was just about to turn to leave when Clover rudely grabbed my pendant, clutching it for dear-life in her hands. Thank goodness it wasn’t a choker.
“That’s a very fascinating piece,” she remarked, sounding more curious than complimentary.
Well shit… Here was my cosmos-issued last “Bad-Thing”, right on-schedule. They always do seem to happen in threes…
I had to practically pry it out of her death-grip. “Thank you,” I muttered and started to turn again.
Clover hurried to jump in front of me, stopping me with a push. “Where did you get it?” she questioned.
Oh yeah… She’s sensing something. It could have very well been the charged amethyst that had her mouth drooling ravenously, but I had a sneaky suspicion it was more like a big ole smelly waft of capital “M”, capital “E”.
“It’s a heirloom,” I lied. The last time I’d claimed that something was “a gift” ended up landing me into a bit of hot water. So to be on the safe-side, I went with something that left the buck stopping right where it started with me.
“I want it!” Clover demanded, her nose so high she’d completely lost eye contact with me. “I can pay whatever you would like.”
I clutched the pendant with a firm grip. “Sorry. It’s not for sale,” I smiled and then headed towards the door for a third time. Oh, I wanted the bitch to put her paws on me again. Let her see what three times of something will get’cha! Past experiences practically dictated that it wasn’t a party until my dress got ripped.
“I can pay anything you ask!” Clover blared in a huff. “Just name your price. Everyone has one.”
Hearing that crap again just flew all over me. I whipped around and puckered my lips. “Well, I don’t. I never have, and I never will.” I said. “And besides, I only trade in ‘punch-cards’ . . . Remember?” Yep. That particular crack had been stuck in my craw from the very day she’d slapped me with it. Then I stepped through doorway and rounded the corner sporting a grin that could last for days. Let’s see if your haughty butt can figure that out.
I was making my last turn to step into the main atrium when low and freaking behold the other half of her sideshow was standing straight across from me. I stopped, mouth-cracked, at the sight of Castor Valorre. And judging from the unsavory look on his face, he knew exactly who I was. He was starting to slink his way over when Tanner breezed by, grabbed my arm, and starting escorting me out of the museum.
“Did you see who was back there?” I asked him, though from his hotfooted gait, I already knew his answer.
“Yes,” Tanner acknowledged. “And I’m guessing from the icy look frosting his eyes, he recognized you as well.”
“His sister sure didn’t when I ran into her in the ladies’ room,” I revealed. “Though she was dead set on buying the necklace you gave me.”
“I honestly didn’t think they would be here,” he grumbled. “They never stay in town for too long, but they’re still members of Boston society.” Tanner glanced back at the twin set of turn-of-the-century-looking albinos. “After all, every circle has its freakshow.”
“Should I be worried?” I asked. They were witches after all.
“No,” Tanner insisted and wrapped his arms around me. “They’re harmless, for the most part. But let’s not make a habit of running into them, all right?”
“That’s fine with me,” I said.
We were in his ’Vette and cruising home before long. This time, I timed his warp-speed run. Forty-seven minutes and fifteen seconds. Naturally I was impressed, but I also knew it meant our evening was coming to the end of its road as well.
The lights were doused when we entered the foyer, and there wasn’t a sound to be heard stirring, not even the hum of the A/C. Now it really felt like the party was over. Every detail of my idyllic evening fluttered through my head as Tanner walked me down to my room. He knew it too, just from the angle of my far-off stare and the dreamy look glazing my eyes.
He paused at my door. “You can’t end our evening and head off to bed until you ply me with one last kiss from those strawberry lips,” he breathed.
I laid my hands on his chest and then glided them slowly along the lapel of his jacket, all the way up to his neck. “Thank you for a perfect evening,” I whispered, my eyes a bit misty and my head filled with his woodsy-musk scent.
Tanner smiled. “I should be thanking you,” he said with a soft rasp clinging to his words. “You ensured it would be.”
My insides felt as light as air, while a sweet ache rolled throughout my body. Though I said nothing, my gaze never faltered from his fervent stare, right up until our lips had secured their sought out hold. And I knew his feelings matched mine in every way, like our souls were casting a reflection of two mirror images. No direct-line was needed, not when I could rely on the passionate caress fueling his lips and the velvety dip of his tongue.
Our release came too soon for my liking, though anything less than forever was too quick for me at this moment. He turned to head down the stairs instead of going into his room. Now I really couldn’t hit the hay for the life of me.
“Can I ask you one more thing?” I called out.
His steps came to a halt, and he pivoted back around compliantly. “You want a bonus question?” he grinned slyly.
I nodded.
“All right,” he replied, looking eager.
My head tilted coyly. “Where do you go at night?”
“Someplace private . . . Somewhere I like to go when I want to be alone with my thoughts,” Tanner whispered, his gaze the height of serious. “In fact, I’m heading there right now. I would invite you, but it’s way past your bedtime.”
“I’m not really sleepy.” My lips pursed gently. “I sort of used a green tourmaline earlier,” I confessed.
Tanner let out a light laugh. “I’m surprised there were any left.”
His lack of elaboration about the dwindling tourmalines popped my eyes open even further. And oddly, he didn’t seem to care that he’d said it at all. Now I really planned on sticking to him like glue for a while, hoping to get a couple of my questions answered.
“So girls aren’t allowed in your club house?”
Tanner edged closer. “Not little girls.”
I wasn’t exactly sure how I should take that comment, but my willfulness won out, and I kept charging on. I nodded to my bedroom. “Lest you forget, I’ve still got a phantom crystal in there, and I’m not afraid to use it,” I warned, my brow fully arched.
Tanner backed me against the door and smoothed his fingers down the side of my face until they reached the pulse-point on my neck. “You don’t need it,” he assured. “You’ve ruled my soul from the day you ran into my arms.”
My lips parted with an abrupt, arousing breath. Then my mind sent me straight back to that memory, baiting my senses with a thousand naughty do-overs — none of which right now I would regret for even a second.
Then he linked his hand with mine and led me down the steps, straight to the exact dead-end spot where I’d trailed him countless nights. My eyes fell to the circular elemental symbol at my feet, tessellated with sparkly mosaic squares and all of them drenched in various watery blue hues.
Tanner started to place his hand on one of the stones within the recessed archway, but he stopped. “Are you sure you want to know all of my secrets?”
“Yes,” I replied.
“No matter where they lead?” Tanner posed, his brow bent strategically.
I nodded wholeheartedly.
“If that’s what the lady wants, then how could I ever deny her request?” Tanner announced and then kissed the back of my hand, his obedience the epitome of gallant. He started t
o turn towards the opening, but instead his sights shifted down to the bottom of my dress that was trailing over the mystical water element medallion on the floor. I lifted up my hem just as the three swirling patterns peeled apart in a flash. My head had no sooner snapped back up to meet his gaze when the floor completely disappeared. I was falling less than a second later. My high-speed drop down the dark tunnel ended exactly where I suspected it would — plunging into a deep pool of water.
I swam up to the surface feeling the tug of my dress. My surroundings were pitch-black, and Tanner was nowhere to be found. The taste of salt in my mouth was an unnerving reminder of the last time I was in this amount of water and with this much darkness all around. Then something rather sizeable bumped my thigh that jolted all of my senses. Oh, my eyes were definitely on a major high-alert after getting clipped by what had felt like a small submarine. Though at this point, all I hoped was that my date hadn’t planned on ending my perfect evening with another daggone test.
A large swell swirled around me several times as I bobbed in the chilly water. Whatever had made the curious surge was now deep below the surface. Just as I was about to take a look for myself, the mysterious creature gently floated up to the surface beside me, revealing its large dorsal fin first. Thankfully it didn’t turn out to be a shark or even a monster of any kind. Staring me straight in my face was an extremely curious killer whale. So yeah… You could say I was rightfully taken aback.
Tanner came swimming along only a few seconds later, less his tuxedo jacket but still wearing his white dress shirt. His tie was off as well, with several of his shirt buttons unfastened. I spied something instantly—his larimar necklace—lying like a bull’s-eye between his pecs.
“See where your nosiness will land you,” Tanner teased.
I smoothed back my drenched tresses. “That’ll learn me.”
“Mad?” Tanner questioned, though his tone suggested he couldn’t have cared less.
I started to reply when my frisky black & white playmate dove under the water and started tugging on the bottom of my gown. Two good yanks later and the only thing left of its length was a few scraps dangling from my hips.