“I know he’ll hate being a third wheel, but thanks. Dana’s been asking to hang out quite a lot and she knows I’m going away. Do you think she’d try anything on with him?”
“She better not.” Gemma cringed as she thought about one of the most manipulative girls at school. She and Courtney used to hang out all the time before Gemma found the confidence to make a new friend. Dana had been simmering ever since. Gemma wouldn’t put it past the girl to go after Darren just to spite Courtney.
“Will you kick her butt for me if she does?”
“Courtney.”
“Just keep Darren busy so they can’t hang out. Promise?”
“I’ll do my best.”
“Thanks.” Courtney’s dimples popped into place as she reached her arms wide. “Here’s a cyber hug since I won’t get to see you.”
“Call me as soon as you get home, okay?”
“Bye.”
Gemma waved at the screen then hung up. A knock sounded on her door. Swivelling her chair, she turned to face her father. He pushed the door wide and leaned against the frame. A pair of boxing gloves swung from his finger.
“Want some practice?”
“No thanks.”
“I’ll let you get a few hits in. It might make you feel better.”
Her right eyebrow rose the way her mother’s did when she was unimpressed. Alistair Hart rolled his eyes.
“Come on Gem, you can’t spend the rest of the night sulking in your room.”
“Yes I can.” She stood from her chair and slumped towards the bed.
“Gemma.”
She returned his stern look with one of her own.
Her father’s eyes narrowed. “We are letting you date him and work with him every day, surely that’s got to score us some points.”
“I guess it does.” She shrugged.
“Come on, how am I supposed to get a smile out of you?”
She ran a hand through her hair and folded her arms. “Let me have dinner at Harrison’s after work on Friday?”
Her father sighed and went for that deadpan look she hated.
“What? It’s not like I’m asking him here.”
His eyes stayed dark and hazy.
“Would you rather I lied and told you I was going somewhere else?”
“Is that what you’ll do?” Her father’s eyebrows bunched together.
Gemma bit her lip then pulled her shoulders back and lifted her chin. “I will if I have to. I’m sorry that makes you mad, but I want to spend time with my boyfriend. Ruby and Dom-"
“This isn’t about Ruby and Dom.”
She looked to the floor, annoyed her plan wasn’t working. Well if he was going to be pig-headed about it, he could get the hell out of her room. She gripped the edge of the door, forcing a polite goodbye to her lips.
“Alright fine, but it will cost you a training session now, a one hour run in the morning and you have to be home by nine on Friday.”
Gemma forced her expression to remain nonplussed. “Nine-thirty.”
“Eight-thirty.”
“Okay, nine’s good.” She couldn’t help a grin now.
Her angelic smile was met with a mixture of anger, defeat and maybe just a touch of amused pride? She kept the smile in place until his expression morphed to his usual straight-faced army man.
“Now come and spar with me before I change my mind.”
Gemma took the gloves and followed her father down to the training room. She would make it her best training session yet. In spite of her previous anger, she somehow felt she owed him big time for the Friday night privilege.
Chapter Six
St Augustine, Florida – 2011 AD
Gemma looked like a black panther as she stepped out of the sunlight and into the garage. Her long, olive legs were sporting a short pair of ripped off denims, and her tank top was fraying around the waist and covered with wet splotches. But it was the way she moved that made him think feline. Her strides were sleek and smooth. Her dark braid flipped like a tail, snapping back in the opposite direction as she turned to greet a shouting Sam.
Harrison grinned as he watched Gemma catch his six-year-old half-brother in a flying hug. In another unwitting demonstration of her strength, she chucked him over her shoulder and spun him dizzy before dropping him back to the floor. His giggling laughter filled the concrete space, bouncing off the walls with delight.
Gemma hauled the giddy boy back to his feet and tousled his hair as they walked into Bryan’s office. She leaned against the doorframe, her arm still draped around Sam’s shoulders as she waited for Bryan to end his phone call.
Dropping the hood of the Ford pick up he’d been working on, he sauntered towards them. Bryan hung up the phone just as Harrison got to the door and placed a light kiss on Gemma’s neck. He noticed her skin prickle and grinned.
“Enough of that, you two.” Bryan rolled his eyes as he lifted his clipboard and studied the computer print out.
Harrison hooked his finger in Gemma’s belt loop and rested his hand on her hip. He loved the fire that shimmered over his body every time he touched her.
“Right.” Bryan dropped the clipboard on his desk. “Harrison I need you to head down to Daytona Beach. There’s a guy there with an old Mustang convertible that I want checked out. Apparently it’s still driveable, but it’s gonna need a little work. I don’t want to pay more than five hundred bucks. If that guy’s being honest about the rust damage, which he’s probably not, it shouldn’t be worth more than that.”
“That’s cool. I can negotiate if I need to.”
Bryan’s eyes filled with pride. Giving him a firm slap on the shoulder, he handed over the wad of cash.
“Mind if I take Gemma along?”
“Who else is going to drive my truck back?”
Harrison squeezed his girlfriend’s hip and watched her face light with glee.
Bryan’s eyes narrowed then opened up with a pleasant smile.
“Wanna go too, Sam? I’m sure these lovebirds could use your company.”
“Awesome!” Sam jumped into the air, punching his arm high with a loud whoop.
Gemma giggled as Harrison’s hand and shoulders slumped.
“Come on then boys, let’s go check out this Mustang.” She smiled as she plucked the keys being lobbed through the air towards Harrison.
“I can drive if you want.” Harrison made a swipe for the keys.
“Or I could.” Gemma swiveled away from him.
Their scuffle ended with raucous laughter when Gemma finally allowed Harrison to pin her to the ground and wheedle the keys out of her hand.
“It’s not like we’re taking your Stingray!” She protested with a door slam as she slid into the passenger’s seat next to Sam.
“Tell you what, babe,” Harrison started the engine of the swanky pick up Bryan had just purchased, “you let me ride that bike of yours and you can drive to Daytona and back.”
Gemma tipped her head to consider him for a moment before wrinkling her nose. “Not worth it.”
He grunted and ignored her smug smile as he headed towards the I-95.
Forty-five minutes later the trio were pulling off a main street and onto the forecourt of a run down gas station.
Sam’s incessant talking had dominated the entire trip. Harrison felt his nerves fraying as he pulled up alongside the building and cut the engine.
“… and you wanna know why?”
Harrison gripped the wheel and muttered through clenched teeth. “No Sam. No. I don’t want to know why Joey Berrillo keeps his boogers in a jar, okay?”
He let out a frustrated sigh as he watched Sam’s face melt into a pout. Lowering his tone, he patted his brother’s head.
“Just stay in the car. We won’t be long. Here, I’ll even leave some music playing for ya.”
Turning the key, he set the radio to Sam’s favorite station and got out of the car. Gemma’s hand slid around his sweating back as they walked into the air-conditioned store.<
br />
“That has got to be the longest trip of my life.”
“Thanks for not making me stay to find out why Joey keeps his boogers. I really wasn’t looking forward to that story.”
They both chuckled as they approached the counter and Harrison pulled a piece of paper from his back pocket.
“Yeah, hi. I’m looking for…” He glanced at the paper again. “Simon Baker. I’m here to see him about a car.”
The man’s eyebrows rose in greeting before tipping his head towards the door. “It’s out back.”
Harrison laced his fingers through Gemma’s as they wove their way around the counter and out into the cluttered back yard. The black Mustang sat old and dejected in the dirt, grass sprouting from beneath its axles.
Harrison pasted on a smile as he opened the door and popped the hood. The car groaned with the movement, making him even more dubious of what he might find. His spirits were lifted on closer inspection as he studied the details of the engine. It looked solid and workable, nothing a few new spark plugs and fan belt couldn’t fix.
“Gem, jump in and start it up for me, will ya?”
She took the keys from the man and slid into the driver’s seat. It took a few spurts and starts, but the engine eventually spluttered to life. Harrison watched it move into action, casting a critical eye over each working part.
“Okay that’s good!”
Gemma cut the engine and got out of the car. Harrison noted the way the gasman’s eyes traveled over his girlfriend’s sleek frame and shot him a dark look.
“What do you think?” Gemma murmured into his ear.
“Well, the engine’s pretty good. Bryan was right about the rust though. I’m a little worried about that front axle.” Harrison crouched down to look under the car, reaching his hand beneath and feeling around the frame.
Standing tall, he brushed his hands on the back of his pants and looked over at the man.
“Would you take two hundred?” he said with a smile.
The man was looking dubious and shaking a no when Harrison felt it sweep over his body. A sense of dread started at the base of his spine and shot up each vertebrate, exploding in his head with warning.
“Sam!” he whispered, bolting from his spot and back into the store.
Chapter Seven
Daytona Beach, Florida - 2011 AD
Gemma watched Harrison wrench the door open and fly through. Her muscles were tight as she chased him out to the forecourt. She arrived just in time to see Bryan’s new truck screeching away with a screaming Sam in its passenger seat.
Harrison stood puffing on the forecourt, his eyes wide with shock, his lips exploding with one repeated expletive. Gemma placed a calming hand on his shoulder as he reached into his pocket for a cell phone. She watched the truck swerve around a car and flinched.
Her eyes scanned the court for any cars she could “borrow” for pursuit, but the need was ripped from her when a motorcycle pulled up and screeched to a halt at her feet.
“Get on.” The man kept his eyes on the retreating truck.
Gemma's insides recoiled as she recognized the dark hair and tanned skin of the man from the beach.
“I’m not going anywhere with you!”
“Do you really want do this now? I can’t get him back on my own. Now get on the bike!”
Harrison’s eyes were wild as his gaze flickered between the two of them.
“Is this…” he began to ask, but was cut off. “Yeah, police?”
Gemma watched him pace away, running a frantic hand through his hair as he spoke. Her legs began to jitter as she looked at the expectant gaze of “beach mystery man” then took on a mind of their own as they swung over the seat.
“Damn it,” she muttered as she wound her arms around the man’s waist and hoped Harrison would forgive her.
She heard her name being called as they accelerated away from her boyfriend.
At the speed the bike was going they soon had the truck in view on the I-95. Gemma winced when she realized she couldn’t see Sam’s little head screaming from the window anymore. Panic sizzled through her system.
“I’m going to pull up alongside the truck. Slap my shoulder when you’re ready to jump on and I’ll hold her steady.”
Gemma listened to his yelled instructions, emptying her brain of fear and focusing on the task at hand. The highway traffic whizzed and honked as they wove towards the erratic truck. Gemma braced her hands on the sturdy shoulders in front of her and carefully brought her legs up onto the seat. Crouching in that position, she narrowed her sights on the pick up and was relieved to see the passenger window was open.
“Passenger’s side!”
The bike slid up beside the truck. She noticed Sam huddled on the floor in tears, but there was no blood. Her heart began palpitating again. Slapping the man’s right shoulder, she launched herself towards the window, managing to slide most of her body through in one movement.
The truck swerved. Hauling herself through, she grabbed at the wheel while trying to fend off a couple of fierce punches. She jabbed her elbow back in a swift movement that had the carjacker releasing the wheel and grabbing at his bloodied nose.
Gemma ignored his indignant cries of pain as she kicked his foot off the gas and headed towards the shoulder. Guiding the truck to an abrupt stop, she flicked the door open and shoved the boy out with a firm boot to the backside. He crumpled to the ground just as police sirens wailed into hearing.
Swiveling back, she reached for the whimpering boy on the floor and heaved him into her arms. His little hands snaked around her neck and he clung like a limpet.
“You okay?” She cupped the back of his head, closing her eyes in relief.
“That was so cool,” Sam sobbed into her shoulder. “What you did was so cool.”
Gemma shook with relieved laughter as she pulled Sam away from her and looked into his laughing, crying, smiling face.
She grabbed him back into her arms and shimmied out the open door. The police were cuffing the young teen who was busy yelling about how she had broken his nose and sending cusses her way like bullet fire.
She wrapped herself and Sam in a bubble of ignorance as she stepped away from the vehicle and headed to the safety of the bank. Her eyes scanned the surrounding mayhem looking for the black haired rider, but he was gone.
A shiver laced through her belly.
He’s been following me.
She clutched Sam against her shoulders and sat down with a thud. With her spare hand, she rubbed at her aching head.
He’s been… How long has he been…
“Gemma!”
Harrison raced towards them. He skidded to a stop at her feet and wrapped her and Sam in a shaking embrace. Sam struggled free of the sandwich hug and gave his brother a shy smile.
“You okay?” Harrison brushed the damp curls away from his brother’s face.
“Yeah, Gemma saved me.”
His adoration made her blush.
“It was nothing, kid.”
Harrison’s eyes were rich as he leaned towards her with a kiss. He pulled away and shot his brother an amused look.
“Now see, that’s a story I really want to hear. How about we head home and you can tell me all about it.”
Sam beamed as he reached for his brother. Harrison stood tall with Sam in his arms.
“The Mustang?” Gemma followed the guys to the truck.
“The Mustang can wait.”
“And the police?”
Harrison’s shoulders slumped. She slid her hand up his back and squeezed the nape of his neck.
“I’ll deal with it. You take Sam home. I’ll give a statement and get the cops to drop me back to Bryan’s.”
Harrison was shaking his head, but she ignored the gesture and pushed him towards the truck.
“I’ll see you at home.” She put a finger to his protesting lips and stopped him. “Sam needs you more than I do right now.” Kissing him lightly, she turned and walked towards the
police cruiser, giving Harrison no chance to argue.
* * * *
The garage was quiet as the police car pulled to a stop.
“Thanks for the ride.” Gemma shook the policewoman’s hand with a smile before waving goodbye. Reaching into her pocket, she drew out her bike key and flipped it around her forefinger as she approached the Ducati.
Bryan had closed up early for the day. She could just imagine his reaction when he heard the news. Helen would have been even worse. She hoped they were coping okay.
Swinging her leg over the seat she reached for her helmet and smiled as she pulled out the note inside.
We’re all at home waiting to lavish you with hugs and kisses. I’ll see you soon. Love you. Harrison.
She had been expecting a P.S. Something like… we need to talk about the guy on the bike that whisked you away from me with no explanation. You scared the crap out of me. Don’t do it again.
He may not have written it, but she knew to expect it. Gunning the engine, she slowly turned her bike onto the road and accelerated towards the Granger/Chatsworth residence.
The reception was overwhelming. Helen’s embrace was unrelenting as she whispered repetitive thanks. Gemma tried to brush it off as nothing, but she could tell her antics had moved her up a notch in the whole aura category. She was worried this might happen. She didn’t want them to look at her this way. She just wanted to be normal like everybody else. Why, oh why had God blessed her with the ability to jump off motorbikes and into moving vehicles at 100 miles per hour!
She could feel her shoulders straining with tension as the evening wore on. Her mind was tensed for questions that never actually came. If it had been her, she’d be wondering why this strange girl had the ability to do such things and who the man was that had helped her. In the end she figured they were too blinded with relief to really analyze the situation.
But what about tomorrow when the dust settles?
Harrison noticed her quiet distress and came to her rescue an hour before she had to leave. Pulling her up to his room, he shoved her onto his bed and began kneading her shoulders.
Black Blood (Time Spirit Trilogy, #2) Page 4