"The stylus. It's trying to go home. That's the closest jump to the science hall."
"How would the stylus know that?"
"Through its ancient memories. It's taking her where it wants to go. You have to get her back to Bankhead Mine."
Eric snorted. "And how do you expect me to do that? She's a thousand miles in the wrong direction." He fisted his hands on his hips and snorted at the monitor. How the hell had she done that?
"Jump with her."
"She'll know," Eric warned.
"Not if you do it right. Jump at the doorway. From one to the other. If you catch it right, she won't even know what the world outside of Stanshor looks like."
Crap. "That's a lot of 'ifs.'" He rubbed his temple, trying to work through the process.
"Too bad. If you can't keep her under control then you have to clean up her messes." Paxton motioned behind him. "Use the doorway in my office. You can dial up Stanshor, then let her out like she's expecting you to."
"Right. Good luck with that," he muttered the last under his breath, loving the new expressions he'd been picking up on the other side. And they were so apt. Storey wasn't stupid. She'd know something was up.
Eric walked into Paxton's office, wondering what he was going to say to her. If he let her know what she'd done was illegal in his world he could kiss his career goodbye. Keeping her in the dark was going to be even harder.
He set the coordinates for Stanshor and walked through Paxton's doorway to the entrance of Stanshor Mine. The development here was at least ten times bigger than the one in Bankhead. If she'd gotten lost in here, it could take days to find her. And that's if he knew where to start.
The door was locked as per standard practice. Using his soulkey, honored with the highest security, he unlocked the mine door. Taking a deep breath, he pushed it open. He could only hope she was there.
He stepped inside, careful to keep the door partially closed so she couldn't see out.
"There you are. What took so long?"
Her voice, sharp and stressed, snapped out at him. Temper? Or something else. Bemused, Eric could only watch as she strode toward him, backpack in hand. He partially closed the door behind him. He couldn't have her escaping until he'd made the changes. "Well, hi. How are you? Nice of you to come and rescue me. Sorry for being such an idiot and jumping into a cave again without anyone knowing."
Good. The sarcasm in his voice garnered him a disgusted look as she went to brush past him. Past him? Shit. He spun to close the door.
Her hand wrapped around his arm, a last grasp from a dying person. "I have to get out." A shudder rippled down her and she sucked air through her clenched teeth. Her eyes stared toward the crack of light. Eric studied her finely etched features and narrowed his gaze.
She was headed for a panic attack. He had to get her out of here and fast. Shit. The timing had to be perfect. "Let me go first." Not giving her a chance to argue, he stepped in front of her and strode the short distance to the door. Using his codex, Eric shifted the locations until the entrance to Bankhead Mine stood outside and not the entrance to Stanshor Mine. He'd never done this type of shift before. How long would his luck hold?
"I have to get outside." Storey burst past him, her voice tight, flat.
Crap. He grabbed her arm and tugged her back. She spun around and ended up in his arms. Huge chocolate eyes, so close to his own, widened in confusion. It's not what he'd planned but...he couldn't help himself. He lowered his head and swallowed her startled response with a quick kiss at the same time as he pushed down on the transporter button.
At least it was supposed to be quick. And he hadn't meant it to be hot. At least not that hot. He'd aimed for warmer than friends and cooler than lovers. Instead, sparks flew as flames licked across his skin, burning, searing the taste of her, the feel of her in his arms, forever in his mind.
He shuddered. Step back. Danger. It wasn't supposed to be like this. Eric pulled back, struggling for air. Storey stared up at him, her eyes the color of molten chocolate, confusion swirling in their depths.
"Hey." His voice wavered, just a bit. He recognized it. Thought she might have too. He cleared this throat. "That was an I'm just glad to see you alive kiss. Sorry it got a little out of hand. I was afraid you'd be lost in there forever." Turning her gently, he nudged her out into her world. She was dangerous. She'd wreak havoc if left on her own in his dimension. She was already wreaking havoc. With his heart.
CHAPTER SIX
Storey wanted to look back on this moment and be proud that she'd acted like Eric's kiss hadn't just blown every other kiss out the water. In fact, she now knew she hadn't been kissed before. At least not properly.
Yeah, Eric knew how to kiss.
Come on, Storey, you can do this. Act natural and, for heaven's sake, close your mouth and quit gawking.
She forced a smile and lifted her face to the sky. Surely, he couldn't know about the tumultuous flutter of her heart or stomach. And the shudders wracking her spine were on the inside and not something he could see. She stole a glance his way, grateful he was checking out the entrance to Bankhead Mine and thankful she was outside and not still locked inside. She took several gulps of fresh air and closed her eyes, waiting for her senses to return to normal.
Why had he kissed her? And why like that? Or had the second part been a surprise for him, too? God, she hoped so. To think her reaction had been one-sided would be one of life's nastiest jokes.
Sensing his gaze, she opened her eyes. His blue eyes studied her. With a nonchalance she didn't feel, she said, "I didn't realize how wonderful fresh air smells and how warming, how healing, the sun is."
Pursing his lips, he gave her an understanding nod. "After being locked in a mine twice, that's understandable. The real question is – was the experience bad enough to stop you from repeating it?" He waggled his eyebrows and hooked his arm through hers. "Come on. I have to get home."
"Oh?" She shrugged. Trying to put more distance between her and that dynamite kiss she added, "I thought I'd stay and explore some more."
He grunted. "Damn good thing I closed the door then, isn't it? Does the law matter to you at all?" His voice rose in exasperation.
He grabbed her shoulders, spinning her around until she couldn't miss the sign in front of them. "Can you read that? No Trespassing." He snorted at her. "Is that simple enough? This is private property. You can't just wander around here. It's dangerous."
She stood toe-to-toe against him and glared.
"I got it. Except I'm not a kid anymore and I can make my own decisions. Something weird is going on and I'm going to figure out what it is. You don't like it. Fine. You don't have to get involved." That he was right wasn't enough to make her stop. She had to sort this out. She could hardly forget the whole thing happened, could she? "Thanks for helping me. Go on and enjoy your don't-rock-the-boat existence."
She stepped back and took a look around. "I wish you'd tell me how to open the damn door." At his look, she added, "Not going to happen, huh? Fine." She threw her backpack over her shoulder. "Thanks. I can manage on my own."
She strode off in the direction of home, her head and heart a mess. Then she came to a sudden stop. Spinning back around, she asked, "Where were you earlier? When you texted to say you had the door open and where was I?"
He shrugged, a sheepish look on his face. "I wasn't here yet. I thought the scare might stop you from playing these dangerous games."
She gasped. "That's so mean." She strode off, almost running to get away from him. How could he have done something like that? And then there was that damn kiss. Why did he mess with her feelings so badly? Whatever. She didn't intend to spend time with him anyway.
The sun shone bright and warm, helping to chase away the last of the uneasiness lingering in her mind. The panic had subsided and the anger had burned through the rest of her nervousness. She took a deep breath and sighed.
Strong arms grabbed from behind.
Eric spun her around un
til she stood facing him. A very pissed off Eric. So why did she have to notice how anger lit the deep blue in his eyes and hollowed out his face, highlighting the strength of his jaw bones? She did so love the dimple in his chin.
"Are you always so disagreeable?"
She raised one eyebrow and refused to back down.
"I guess that means yes, huh?" His jaw clenched as he glared down at her.
Odd how nice it was to look up at a guy. "That's not fair. You don't know everything that's gone on. You're judging me without having all the information."
"Then talk. Explain it to me." He stepped back and crossed his arms, waiting.
She snorted then shifted to look up at the sky. She shouldn't have brought it up. What to tell him? How much would he believe? No one would believe everything. "I don't know how much to tell you."
"Everything." There it was again, that dominant, implacable wall.
She sighed and tucked her hair behind her ear. "You won't believe me."
"Try me."
There just wasn't any give in him. "This might take some time."
"I have all the time we need."
"Really?" she challenged. "I thought you had to go home."
"I'll make my excuses later."
She grimaced. Of course he would. "Fine. But I want to sit down somewhere first."
"Over there."
She checked out where he pointed. Several large rocks sat under the boughs of a blue spruce. "Okay. But don't blame me if this all sounds a little farfetched," she warned.
He sat down, crossed those long legs of his and waited.
She frowned. "I don't know where to start."
"At the beginning."
Well, duh. She sat back and took a deep breath. "Several days ago, well maybe a week now. I don't know. The days have whipped by so fast." She chewed her bottom lip, trying to understand how that had happened.
"And," he prompted.
"I found a pencil. That weird one you asked about."
"Where?"
He said it so abruptly she paused, thrown off track. It took her a moment. "On the way to school, I walked through the park and saw it by a rock at the side of the creek. Just lying there."
There'd been a sense that she'd been destined to find it. That she had a connection with it. Not that she was going to tell him that. "Anyways, I've always done artwork of some kind, only...after getting that pencil, it's like I've been obsessed." She slid a sidelong glance his way. "I mean really obsessed. I don't notice when I'm drawing, but it's like I go into a trance or something. I cover every available space on any page. Sometimes, it's just doodles and other times it's really cool stuff. One of the drawings was a door."
Eric leaned closer, his eyes narrowing at her words. "What kind of door?"
She shrugged. "It was scrunched up, so I redrew it on a clean sheet."
She paused.
"And?" Impatience prodded him up off the rocks to pace around before coming back to crouch down in front of her. "What happened next?"
Storey puzzled over his attitude. But she'd started so she might as well carry on. "I got mad one day because the drawings wouldn't leave me alone. They wanted me to draw, draw and draw some more. I felt like I was losing it. Or that they were controlling me." She took a deep breath. "I threw the book down on the floor in my room. I had been on my bed and I was so frustrated, so angry...I don't know...anyways I stomped on it...and that's when things got even weirder."
"Weirder?" His gaze caught hers and held on. She couldn't break the link, it was so intense. "How?"
She took a deep breath. "When I jumped onto my book, I went through my bedroom floor. One simple hop off my bed and I ended up inside Bankhead Mine."
***
So, that was it. Eric sat back, stunned at the sheer simplicity of the steps that led to her crossing the veil and entering his world. At the same time, it scared the hell out of him. If it happened once, or twice in this case, it could happen anytime with anyone. Not good. If anyone else had picked the stylus up, the stylus probably would have remained dormant. However, with Storey being an artist, an open young mind, the stylus had a perfect tool to get it home.
He studied Storey's face. She'd dropped her gaze to the rocks at her feet. Ashamed? She appeared to be over her panic attack and now sat looking curiously embarrassed. He still had trouble reading her facial expressions.
"So, now that I've told you, I'm heading home." She sent him a quick uncertain glance before hopping off the big rock.
"Wait."
Hesitating, she stalled, her back to him. "What now?"
"I believe you." He walked around to stand in front of her.
The impatience drained from her face as hope filled her eyes. "You do? Really?"
"Yes."
They stood and looked at each other for a long moment, the beginning of acceptance sparking between them.
"Don't suppose you'd care to demonstrate, would you?" Eric asked.
A half frown crossed her face. She glanced at the sky and then back at him. "Only if you know how to unlock the damn door from the inside."
Right. That's how she'd gotten out both times – he'd helped her. He looked back the way they'd come, his mind spinning with possibilities. "Maybe."
"Maybe, isn't good enough. I don't relish the idea of being stuck in there any longer than I was today." She continued in a barely audible voice, "And preferably not that long."
"Can I see the book and the pencil, if you don't mind?"
She studied his face. "I suppose that's okay. We have to go to my house then."
He motioned toward the path and grinned. "After you."
***
Storey didn't know how she'd ended up so involved with Eric. Every time she turned around – there he was. If only the other girls could see her now. Not that they'd believe their eyes. They'd barely believed it when she dated Jeff. Still, her heart lurched at the thought of her old boyfriend. He'd wanted her to move on. He certainly had. The corner of her mouth drooped.
"Tell me what happened today."
Presuming he meant the jump to the mine, she explained the series of events that led up to getting lost again. "I thought I could find the door on my own this time." She took several more steps, before continuing. "I paced off specific distances and marked the floor with chalk to stop me from getting lost." She shrugged carelessly. "Somehow, it didn't work out that way."
"Plans rarely do." The cryptic tone of his voice confused her. Studying his face didn't give her a clue to his thoughts.
At her front door, she stopped. Who was home? It was Saturday, so her mom would be home. Annalea, her assistant, would be minding the store again today. "My mom is here."
"Is that a problem?"
She groaned. "All the time, just not for the reason you might think."
"Oh?"
Refusing to answer, Storey opened the front door.
"Storey? Where have you been? I thought I'd let you sleep in only to find you weren't even in bed—" Her mom, dressed in her typical lounging pant set, stopped her all-out flight down the stairs as her gaze landed on Eric. Flustered, she finished descending and fluffed her hair.
Storey rolled her eyes.
"Hi. I'm Storey's mother. Nice to meet you."
Eric smiled down at her. "I'm Eric. A friend of Storey's."
Stepping back, Storey watched the two interact. No surprise registered in Eric's voice or face as he looked at her Wiccan mother. But then he might not know about her religious beliefs. Wasn't this an important weekend for her, too? In the back of her mind, nearly forgotten under the weird mine stuff, the memory of her mom mentioning a special ceremony poked at her.
"How nice. Please come in. Storey, where were you this morning?"
Storey stiffened slightly. "Same as yesterday. I woke up early and walked through the park with my sketchbook. I met Eric there."
"I wish you'd told me or left me a message. I don't like waking up to find you gone."
"Sorry, M
om. You were still asleep, and I didn't want to wake you." Storey brushed past her and headed up the stairs. "I'm just going to show Eric some of my art. We don't have much time – he's expected back at his house."
"Oh." Her mother smiled at Eric. "In that case. She's very talented, you know."
"I've noticed."
Storey watched from the landing as Eric smiled at her mom, then she took the stairs two at a time. He followed her up. At the top landing, he glanced at her, a questioning look in his eyes. "Problems?"
"No." She led the way to her room.
At her doorway, she paused. Had she put her underwear away? How humiliating if she hadn't. With a grimace and a deep breath for courage, she flung the door wide and stepped inside. Her sketchbook lay on the floor, just as she'd left it. Pointing it out, she stood back and watched him approach it. One thing was for sure, from the care he took with the sketch, he might actually believe her.
She couldn't help leaning back against the wall, a little stunned at the realization that she had a guy in her bedroom. Wow. Kind of cool. Then again, she was behind the times. Many girls at school were already having sex. Of course, there were those with parents who would freak if they saw a guy in their daughter's bedroom, too. Her mom had let Eric waltz right in.
"So where's the stylus?"
"Stylus? You mean the pencil?" Why would he call it that?
"Right. Where is it?"
"In my bag." She slid the bag off her shoulder and pulled the ties open. Rummaging through, she remembered that she'd stuffed the pencil in her pocket. Pulling it out, she handed it to him.
He snatched it up, then dropped it immediately. "Ouch." It landed on the floor and rolled several feet.
"What is your problem?" She scrambled to pick it up. "It's a pencil, not a knife or a bomb." Straightening, she sat down and held it out for him again. His response was tentative at best. Narrowing her eyes, she watched him grasp it as if the stupid thing was going to bite him. She had to admit seeing it in his hand made her nervous, like she was in danger of losing something precious. After a tense moment, she said, "Hand it over."
"What?" He stared, mesmerized. "Awesome pencil. I'd love to have one myself."
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