Eternal Choice: (The Cursed Series, Book 2)

by Kara Leigh Miller

  Trent rubbed the back of his neck. “You said something the other day, at Simon’s.”

  “God, not this again.” I groaned.

  Was he really that obsessed with the idea of kissing me? Or rather, with the idea that maybe I might have wanted him to kiss me?

  “No, it’s not about that.” There was a trace of humor in his tone. “You said something else. That you feel like you know me, that you always have déjà vu around me.”

  “Yeah…” I tilted my head. That was what he wanted to talk about? He was so weird.

  “What things set off the déjà vu?”

  “Excuse me?” I took a step back. “Why do you care?”

  I really regretted saying anything to him about that. I was going to have to learn to keep my mouth shut and stop revealing things to virtual strangers. First, Jaxon, and then Trent.

  “I just do. It’s important. Please?”

  I blew out a breath and glanced down the road, praying I’d see Declan’s car, but there was no sign of him. Of course not.

  “It’s little stuff. Stupid things, really,” I said and shifted on my feet.

  “Like what?”

  “I don’t know. Like running into you outside of the bathroom and your hands and the way you rubbed your thumb over my knuckles.” Just saying that had my hands tingling with the memory of his touch. “When you asked to drive me home. The Post-it Note on my locker today.” So much for keeping quiet.

  He was staring at me so intently I snapped my mouth shut, refusing to say anything else. My heart was in my throat as I waited for him to say something—anything.

  Finally, he said, “May I?” and nodded at my hand.

  The déjà vu was instant and made my knees weak. My stomach roiled. What was going on? Every single time I was near him this happened. I needed to know why.

  Reluctantly, I held out my hand to him, hoping he didn’t notice how bad I was trembling, which was stupid, because of course he noticed. He took my hand into his, lacing our fingers, his thumb brushing back and forth across my knuckles. I held my breath and closed my eyes.

  I’m in pain, my hand throbbing. There’s warmth and compassion. A caress against my elbow. A jolt of energy up my arm.

  “Chloe?” His voice cut through whatever was happening.

  I forced my eyes open and yanked my hand from his.

  “Did it happen again?” he asked.

  “No,” I lied. “Nothing happened, and quite frankly, this whole thing is starting to freak me out.” I hitched my backpack higher on my shoulder. Declan’s car came down the road, saving me. “Seriously, Trent. You just need to back off, okay?”

  The moment Declan stopped the car, I was inside and slamming the door.

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN:

  Missing Pieces

  “AFTERNOON, CHLOE.” DECLAN CAUGHT MY GAZE in the rearview mirror. “Bad day?”

  “You have no idea.” I cradled my head in my hands, trying to make sense of Trent and my emotions. But they were nonsensical, and dwelling on it would only give me a headache. There was only one thing I could do—stay far away from Trent. And Jaxon.

  When I arrived at my father’s house, I thanked Declan and headed inside. Larissa was sitting at the kitchen table doing something on her phone.

  “Hey,” I said.

  She looked up and smiled. “How was school?”

  I shrugged. “Same as every other day.” I grabbed a bottle of water from the refrigerator. “Dad home?”

  “He’s working late. Again.” She frowned. “Do you have any plans tonight?”

  “No, but I’ve been wanting to ask you… Can I hang out with Simon Saturday night? He’s going to pick me up at six.”

  She smiled again, this time wider and brighter. “Two weekends in a row. Back in my day, we called that dating.”

  I rolled my eyes. “Trust me, we are not dating.” Although, I now knew that’s what Simon wanted.

  “Well, I think he’s a great boy. Very polite, and he comes from a good family.” She stood, slipping her phone into her pocket. “I don’t care if you go, but please be home by eleven, okay?”

  “Okay. Thanks, Larissa.”

  I went upstairs, dropped my stuff in my room, then headed to the office. Scanning pictures was a boring, mindless activity, and that made it a fantastic distraction from my thoughts.

  Two hours later, my eyes burned, and my back was stiff. I stood and stretched. My stomach rumbled, reminding me I hadn’t eaten much today. And I didn’t smell any food, either, which meant Larissa probably wasn’t cooking anything. Snatching my phone, I checked my messages.

  Simon: SOMETHING CAME UP. CAN’T GO SATURDAY. SORRY.

  My shoulders slumped, and I stared at his message. Was he really that mad about what happened today when he’d kissed me? I’d been as gentle as possible when I told him we were only friends. Why couldn’t he accept that?

  I had a message from Abby, too. I opened it to find her, Gina, and Ellie standing in front of a mirror, the three of them in prom dresses. More pictures of them at prom arrived.

  Abby: SORRY IT TOOK SO LONG TO SEND THESE.

  Enlarging the photo, I studied it, a wistful smile pulling at my lips. They looked amazing, and I was happy for them. But I was jealous, too. I should’ve been there with them.

  “How’s it going?” Larissa stood in the doorway, arms crossed.

  “Good. Just taking a quick break.”

  She nodded. “The nanny is staying with Little Frank tonight while I go meet an old college friend for dinner. Want to tag along?”

  Hanging out with Larissa and her friend didn’t sound like fun, but spending another moment in this room with all these old pictures sounded like even less fun.

  “Yeah, sure,” I said.

  After using the restroom and putting my hair in a braid, Larissa and I were in the car and headed down the highway. “So, I should warn you. Belinda is a little… eccentric. She believes in a lot of things I don’t.”

  “What kinds of things?”

  “Otherworldly things. Ghosts, spirits, tarot, past lives. That kind of stuff.” Larissa got off the highway and headed toward the only restaurant on this street—a quaint Italian eatery. “She’s harmless, but I wanted to give you a heads up.”

  “Thanks.”

  It didn’t take long to find a parking spot, and once we were inside, Larissa waved to a woman seated at a table in the corner of the dimly lit restaurant. I followed her through the restaurant, noting the deep red tablecloths and flickering lanterns on each table.

  “Larissa, darling.” The woman stood and embraced her. “You’re looking as wonderful as ever.”

  “Hello, Belinda.” Larissa stepped out of her arms. “This is my stepdaughter, Chloe.”

  Belinda clutched my hands, hers were warm and friendly. “Chloe. I’ve heard so much about you.”

  “Nice to meet you,” I said.

  Belinda tilted her head and tsked. I looked to Larissa for some sort of context. But she wasn’t any help.

  “Oh, my dear child. Why so sad and confused?” Belinda asked.

  “Uh…what?” I said.

  Larissa rolled her eyes. “Honestly, Belinda. Can’t we just have a normal, quiet dinner?”

  Belinda finally released my hands, and I took a seat. Larissa had warned me about her friend, but I hadn’t expected her to blurt out—accurately—my current emotional state. Who did that?

  Once we ordered, Larissa and Belinda chatted about life and family and work while I nibbled on breadsticks and tuned them out, my thoughts wandering to Trent. I couldn’t seem to not think about him, no matter how hard I tried.

  The image of his beautiful blue eyes and sexy smile filled my mind. I didn’t have to try that hard to remember how close he’d been to me, how amazing he’d smelled, how my body had reacted to him. I really should’ve just told him I wanted to kiss him. That’s what he’d wanted to hear, and it was the truth.

  But until I knew what was going on, why I reacted to
him the way I did, and why he and his brother had lied to me about their connection, I refused to get anymore involved with either of them than I already was.

  Halfway through our meal, Belinda turned her attention back to me. I froze with my straw in my mouth.

  “How’re you enjoying Malibu?” she asked.

  I swallowed my mouthful of soda and set my cup down. “Um, it’s different than New York, but it’s okay, I guess.”

  She gave me a friendly smile, then turned back to Larissa. I blew out a breath. They talked about the new classes Belinda would be teaching—she was a college professor and a research scientist—when she mentioned studies about near death experiences and déjà vu.

  “Is that a common thing? The déjà vu?” I asked, suddenly interested in their conversation.

  “More than people realize. Have you ever experienced it?” she asked.

  I nodded, unsure if I should divulge the extent of my experiences.

  “Care to share?” She pushed the basket of breadsticks toward me, a warm smile on her face.

  “It’s nothing major, really. Just small things. Like when I’m riding in a car or someone says something that sounds familiar.” I shrugged and pulled a breadstick from the basket.

  “And do you find that these experiences happen more often when you’re around certain people or in specific places?” she asked.

  I half expected to find her recording my answers or taking notes. Shifting in my seat, I cleared my throat. My thoughts circled back around to Trent, but I shoved him from my mind.

  “Yeah, sometimes,” I said.

  She nodded like I was saying the most fascinating thing she’d ever heard.

  “What causes déjà vu?” I asked.

  “Well, that depends on who you ask.” Belinda laughed.

  Larissa sliced a look in my direction, amusement on her face. I couldn’t tell if she was truly pleased I was taking an interest in her friend or if she thought I was just being polite.

  “Some think it’s just a medical thing, a warning sign of a potential seizure. Others dismiss it as nothing more than a strange sense of familiarity,” she explained. “Personally, I think déjà vu are repressed memories from a past life.”

  I nearly choked on my breadstick. “What?” My eyes watered, and I took a drink of my soda.

  “Is it really that far-fetched?” she asked simply. “There is so much we don’t know about our world and our minds. Isn’t it even remotely possible that these instances of déjà vu are just us remembering something from a different lifetime?”

  She explained it like it was a no-brainer, and it was easy to believe her. But past lives? I wasn’t sure I believed that.

  “Okay, Belinda, I think that’s enough,” Larissa said in the same tone she used to reprimand Little Frank.

  I didn’t know if I was relieved or upset that Larissa intervened. Belinda was definitely eccentric, and she’d certainly given me a lot to think about, but I highly doubted I had a past life with Trent that was coming back to haunt me. Unless… Was he experiencing the déjà vu around me, too?

  I didn’t say much during the drive home. I couldn’t stop thinking about everything Belinda had said. The only time I had déjà vu was when Trent was around, so clearly whatever was happening to me was tied to him and only him. But why? Sure, I had the unshakable feeling that I knew him, but I knew, deep down, that I didn’t. Did I?

  “Thanks for inviting me tonight,” I said when Larissa turned onto our road.

  She smiled. “Thanks for going. I hope Belinda wasn’t too much for you.”

  “No, not at all. I actually thought she was pretty cool.”

  As soon as Larissa pulled into the garage, I was out of the car and in the house. I raced up to my room, closed my door, and called Abby. If anyone could fill in the missing pieces, it was her. Thankfully, she answered on the second ring.

  “Hey, what’s up?” she asked.

  Now that I heard her voice, I was second-guessing my decision to call her. What was I supposed to say? She was going to think I was crazy. I sure felt like it.

  “Chloe? You still there?”

  “Yeah, sorry. So, can I ask you a question?” Kicking off my shoes, I sank onto my bed, tucked my legs underneath me, and chewed nervously on my pinky nail.

  “Yeah…” She drew out the word.

  This was a bad idea, but it was too late now. “Okay, this is going to sound crazy, but… just answer me, okay?”

  “Okay.” Her tone was packed with confusion.

  “When I was in Keene Valley, did I ever go out with anyone?”

  Abby laughed. “What kind of question is that?”

  I frowned. “Just answer me. Please.” I shifted farther onto the bed and sat with my back against the headboard. “It’s important.”

  “There was that one guy. What was his name…? Brett? No, that’s not right. Trevor?” She ran through a list of names, but I tuned her out.

  I dated someone in Keene Valley? I had no recollection of that at all. How was that possible? My heart thudded painfully against my ribcage.

  “Maybe it was Matt? Hmm.” She paused. “I honestly don’t remember.” She laughed. “You only went out with him a couple of times, though, and then he just disappeared.”

  I blinked rapidly, trying to clear the confusion that swirled around me. “Was there ever a guy at school named Trent?” My voice trembled.

  “Trent who?”

  “I don’t know,” I admitted, realizing I had no idea what his last name was. “But he’s tall. Dark hair. Gorgeous blue eyes.”

  “If there was a guy at school who ever looked like that, I’d remember him.” Abby laughed again. “What’s with all the weird questions?”

  I sighed, letting my head fall against the headboard with a thud, and closed my eyes. “I feel like there are all these missing pieces in my head. I can’t explain it, really, but it’s like most of my memories from my time in Keene Valley are just gone.”

  “Gone how?”

  “I don’t know,” I said, frustrated. “It makes no sense at all. I mean, the other day I just randomly remembered Rachel. Out of the blue. And it hit me that until that moment, I had completely forgotten about her.”

  “Oh.” Abby’s voice dropped to a flat, sad tone.

  “I’m sorry.” I hadn’t meant to bring up painful memories for her. “I didn’t—”

  “No, it’s fine.” She sounded anything but fine, though. “You remember Marc, don’t you?”

  I hesitated. “Marc who?”

  Abby sighed with frustration. “Seriously? You don’t remember Marc? He was my boyfriend for a little while. For some reason, you never liked him. And then he died shortly after Rachel.”

  I blinked rapidly, my mind racing through the information she’d just shared. Abby had lost both her best friend and her boyfriend? And I barely remembered either of them? Well, I’d remembered Rachel, but I had zero memory of Marc. Clearly, I’d lost my mind—literally.

  “What else have you remembered that you’d forgotten?” Abby asked.

  “I can’t shake the feeling I was with someone while I was there, but I don’t know who.” I laughed, but it was forced and sounded strangled. “I don’t know. Maybe I’m just slowly losing my mind being here.”

  “I’m sure you can find some hot surfer guy to help keep you sane.” She giggled. And just like that, Abby was back to her normal self. “You should stay there for the summer so I can come visit. Find myself a hot, rich boyfriend, then we can come home.”

  I scooted down to lay on my back and scrunched up my face. “Trust me, you won’t like it here. Dad and Larissa are super strict. Worse than your parents.”

  “Wait. He’s Dad now? When did that happen?”

  I hesitated, trying to remember exactly when I’d stopped calling him Frank and started calling him Dad. But like so much else, I simply couldn’t remember. What was wrong with me? Was I suffering from some form of teenage dementia or memory loss? Was that even a th
ing?

  “I’m not sure. He hasn’t been so bad lately.” I shrugged, not that she could see me. “We’re not hugging and sharing warm fuzzies or anything, but we’re not ripping each other’s heads off, either.”

  Abby laughed. “Good, because you have to come home.”

  “Oh, I am. Don’t worry. As soon as school is over, I’m telling Frank that I’m visiting you guys for summer break, and then I’m just not ever coming back.”

  She gasped. “For real?”

  “Yup. What’s the point of coming back here? I’ll be eighteen in a month, and I am not spending my senior year at Snobby Central.”

  “What?” Her voice was muffled. She must have moved the phone away from her mouth. “Hey, I gotta go,” she said a moment later. “Text me.” And then she ended the call.

  I blew out a breath and tossed my phone onto the nightstand. Talking to her usually made me feel better, but not this time. I was more confused than ever. How could I forget people and big events, like Marc and his death? Why hadn’t Abby ever brought it up when we talked?

  Did I know Trent from somewhere else? If so, where? And how? But more importantly, why did my entire body come to life around him? And how did Jaxon fit in to all of this? What did he know that he refused to tell me?

  Questions I couldn’t answer circled around in a never-ending loop, and my head spun with the stress of trying to figure it all out. I couldn’t lay here any longer. If I didn’t do something, I really was going to go crazy.

  I sat up and looked around my room. There wasn’t much homework to do considering the school year was nearly over. Reading didn’t seem all that exciting, either. My only other option was to work on all those pictures.

  I heaved myself off my bed and trudged into the office. At least this task was repetitive enough that I lost myself in it, my thoughts peacefully silent. But I was still more determined than ever to finish this puzzle and put all the pieces together—I needed to know who Trent was and why I was so drawn to him.

  As soon as I was in the office, my phone buzzed. I pulled it from my pocket and scowled when I saw who had texted me.