by Sandi Lynn
“Show me to your kitchen and I’ll see what I can whip up for us. That is if you don’t mind me taking over your kitchen.”
“No. Not at all.” He smiled. “Follow me.”
I was in awe of the beauty of his home. Just about every wall was encased with floor to ceiling windows. Oak cabinets, gray marble countertops and state of art appliances filled the kitchen space. The large island made of marble was the focal point of the kitchen as were the gray bar stools that sat around it.
“Can I make you a drink or pour you a glass of wine?” Asher asked.
I opened the refrigerator to see what he had and saw a few bottles of beer sitting on the shelf. Grabbing one, I turned and looked at him.
“I’ll have a beer.” I grinned. “I didn’t take you for a beer guy.”
“I’m really not,” he spoke as he walked over to his bar. “A friend of mine just moved back from Paris and he stayed here a couple of nights.”
“Oh. Why did he move back?”
“He and his girlfriend broke up and he wasn’t happy at his job, so he packed up and moved back to New York. We’ve been good friends since college.”
“Sorry to hear about his relationship, but I’m sure you’re happy he’s back.”
“Yeah. It’s good to have him back.”
I opened the freezer, took out a bag of frozen shrimp and set it on the counter. Opening the refrigerator, I grabbed an onion, green pepper, red pepper and some really sad looking mushrooms.
“Do you have rice?” I asked.
“Let me check. Yep. Right here.” He took out the box of white rice from the cabinet.
“Then we have everything we need for a shrimp stir fry.”
“Sounds good.” The corners of his mouth curved upward.
Taking a knife from the knife block, I handed it to Asher.
“You can start cutting up the veggies while I start the rice. The faster we can get this made, the faster we can eat.” I smiled.
He set the knife down and rolled up the sleeves of his light blue dress shirt.
“Why don’t you bring women here?” I asked as I filled the pot with water.
He glanced over at me. “How did you—forget it.” He let out a sigh. “This is my home and my personal space, and I don’t allow women in it. That’s what my suite is for.”
“Then I’m honored you let me into your palace.”
“Only because you were already here, and we couldn’t leave due to the storm. Don’t get too used to it, because after tonight, you won’t be coming back here,” he said as he continued to cut up the peppers.
My back was turned, and I rolled my eyes. “Be careful, you’re going to —”
“Fuck!” he shouted as he threw down the knife and grabbed a towel. “If you were going to tell me I was going to cut myself, you couldn’t have done it thirty seconds earlier?” he spoke in anger.
“I’m sorry but it doesn’t work that way. Next time, I won’t say anything. Let me see how bad it is.”
“Shouldn’t you already know that?” He made the irritation in his voice known as he held the towel around his finger.
“Stop being a smartass. Let me see?” I grabbed hold of his hand.
“Ouch! Be careful.”
I slowly unwrapped the towel and examined his finger.
“You need to run it under cold water. It’ll slow down the bleeding,” I said as I led him over to the sink. “I don’t think you’ll need stitches which is a good thing, because I’m not sure we’d make it to the hospital in this storm. Do you have any butterfly bandages?”
“I don’t know. There’s a first aid kit in the bathroom down the hall.”
“I’ll go check. Keep that finger under the water.”
“Easy for you to say. You’re not the one feeling the pain.”
I pulled the first aid kit from the cabinet and dug through it. Luckily, there were a couple butterfly bandages in there.
“I found some,” I said as I took his finger and carefully dried it off.
“Ouch. For fuck sakes, Everly. Be careful.”
“Sorry.” I gave him a sympathetic smile.
After I put the bandage over the wound, I told him to go sit down.
“I’ll finish the stir fry. You go relax. And you might want to take some Motrin for the pain.”
“Good idea,” he spoke as he walked over to one of the cabinets in the kitchen.
I finished chopping the veggies for the stir fry and tossed everything into the wok that was heating on the stove. Grabbing my beer from the counter, I took a drink and saw Asher sitting at the island staring at me.
“Is something wrong?” I asked him.
“No. Not at all.” He picked up his bourbon. “I googled you last night.”
“You did?” I cocked my head at him. “You didn’t have to. You can just ask me anything you want to know.”
“It was late, and I was bored. You’re originally from Connecticut?”
I held my finger up as a small smile crossed my lips.
“You saw the article about that sixteen-year-old girl.”
“I did. I thought you grew up in Rhode Island.”
“I did.” I turned to finish making the stir fry. “I was six years old when we moved there, but I was born in Connecticut. Like I told you before, my mom passed away when I was five. My grandmother lived in Connecticut also. After they found that girl, the media had a field day with me. They wouldn’t leave me or my grandma alone. They wanted to know about me, what I could see, what I could do. You can imagine how scary that is for a six-year-old. I still didn’t understand it myself. The phone would ring off the hook with random people asking my grandmother to put me on the phone so they can ask me about their personal things. We couldn’t even go to the store without being recognized. School was tough as well because all the kids called me a freak. So, my grandmother knew it was best for us to move away from it all.”
“Why Rhode Island?”
“It’s where Daniel and his family lived. So we packed up and lived with them for a while until my grandmother found our house. Then she rented a space in downtown Providence and opened up her shop.”
“What kind of shop does she own?”
“A Metaphysical shop.”
“What’s that?” He cocked his head.
“You know. Crystals, tarot cards, sages, oils, candles, books.”
“I see. I guess I’m not surprised, considering.”
“I help her with the shop in between running my business. After we moved, my grandmother had a long talk with me about not letting people know what I can do or see. She said it was very important we kept it to ourselves and within our small family. As I grew older, the more frequent the dreams became. Boy.” I smiled. “I bet I’m the weirdest person you ever met in your entire life.”
“That is true.” A smirk crossed his lips.
I gave him a small smile as I found the plates and served the stir fry.
20
Asher
I couldn’t help but stare at her as she prepared the stir fry. As much as I never wanted her here or intended to never bring her here, I found myself liking it. I supposed it wouldn’t hurt bringing her here more often since she wouldn’t be in New York for too much longer.
“Tell me about you, Mr. Remington,” she spoke as we took our plates to the table.
“I’m sure you already know everything there is to know about me.” I smirked.
“Actually, I don’t.”
“I find that hard to believe, Everly.” I arched my brow at her.
“Your father was always your protector. The two of you were very close, weren’t you?”
“He was, and yes we were. Sometimes I felt he protected me too much.”
We were in the middle of eating and having our conversation when suddenly, the penthouse went dark as well as the buildings around the area.
“You have got to be kidding me.”
“Do you have any candles?” Everly asked.
She placed her hand in mine and I led her up the stairs and to my bedroom.
“I like your virgin bed. It’s so comfy.” I could see her smile by the light of the candle flickering.
“It’s not a virgin bed anymore.” I sighed.
“We can pretend we didn’t do anything,” she said as she placed her hand on my chest.
“I don’t think that’s possible.” I smiled as I pushed a strand of her hair away from her face. “Can I ask you something?”
“Of course.”
“Have you seen my father recently?” I reluctantly asked.
“No. I’m sorry. I’m sure he moved on once you didn’t go through with the merger.”
“What do you mean?”
“People usually stick around because they either have unfinished business or messages for their loved ones before they can move on. Your father needed to make sure you were safe from your uncle before he could rest.”
“You know I’m still a little bit skeptical.”
“I don’t believe that. I think you’re just afraid to believe.” Her finger lightly stroked my chest as she let out a yawn.
“You’re tired and it’s late. We should get some sleep.”
“I can sleep in one your guestrooms. Just point the way and I’ll be on my way.”
I stared at her as my finger ran across her bare shoulder.
“If you do that then how am I supposed to fuck you in the middle of the night if I want to?”
The corners of her mouth curved upward. “Mhm. I think I’ll stay then.”
I leaned in and brushed my lips against hers before rolling over and away from her.
“Good night, Everly.”
“Good night, Asher.”
Everly
As I closed my eyes, I prayed the dreams stayed dormant. At least for tonight while I slept next to him. Unfortunately, my prayers weren’t answered as I found myself in the hallway of a hotel where that same song played again. Following the sound of the music, I looked at each room number as I walked down the hallway until I discovered the door of room 502 was slightly opened. Stepping inside the room, I saw the backside of a man. Buzz cut, blond, gray dress shirt and black dress pants. He was strangling the life out of a woman. Red hair, tall, red dress, tattoo on her shoulder. She fought like hell until her body went limp. Looking at the clock on the nightstand, it read: 8:15 pm.
I sat up as I held my throat and gasped for air. Asher quickly sat up and grabbed my arm.
“What’s going on? Are you okay?”
I sat there for a moment as my breathing rate returned to normal.
“I have to call Daniel.”
“Everly, it’s two a.m.”
Climbing out of bed, I went downstairs, and all the lights had come back on. Grabbing my phone from the island, I dialed Daniel.
“This better be important, Everly,” he sleepily answered.
“Did you find another woman in a hotel room tonight around eight fifteen?”
“No. Why?”
“Okay. I’m sorry for waking you. I’m coming down to the station in the morning. I’ll see you then.”
“Alright.”
“What the hell is going on?” Asher asked as he stood behind me.
“There’s going to be another murder. Another woman in a hotel room. But he did it different this time. Instead of strangling her on the bed, he did it while standing behind her. When I looked at the clock it was eight fifteen p.m.”
“Jesus, Everly. Please tell me it’s not going to happen at The Remington again.”
“No. It’s a different hotel. The only thing I know is it’s room 502.”
“Come back to bed,” he spoke as he grabbed my hand.
We both climbed in bed and he held out his arm.
“What?” I looked at him.
“What do you mean ‘what?’ Come over here.” He gestured.
His arm securely wrapped around me as I snuggled into him and laid my head on his chest. I was confused and a little shocked, because—well, he was Asher Remington, and he didn’t do things like this. After a dream like that, I always felt rattled for a while. But now, at this moment, I felt calm and safe in his arms.
21
Everly
I awoke when I heard his alarm go off at six a.m. Wrapping my arm around him, I told him good morning. He reached over and shut the alarm off, climbed out of bed and went into the bathroom, shutting the door behind him. It was awkward to say the least. Not a word came from him. He probably regretted last night and thought it was best if he didn’t say anything. I heard the shower turn on, so I climbed out of the comfy bed, dressed myself in last night’s clothes and left. I needed to get home anyway. With any luck, Daniel would still be there.
Stepping inside the apartment, I saw Diana in the kitchen.
“Good morning.” Her brows furrowed at me. “I’m surprised you’re back this early.”
“Asher was in the shower, so I left. Is Daniel still here?” I asked as I took a seat at the island.
“He just left five minutes ago. Hey, are you okay?” she asked as she handed me a cup of coffee.
“Yeah. I’m fine.” I gave her a small smile.
“Okay. I need to finish getting ready for work,” she said as she grabbed her coffee and went to her bedroom.
It bothered me that Asher didn’t say a word to me this morning. Even if he did regret last night, a simple good morning would have been enough. It hurt and I was pissed off at myself for letting it. After I showered and got dressed, I headed to the precinct where I found Daniel and his partner sitting at their desks.
“There you are,” Daniel spoke as he got up from his seat. “What’s going on?”
I looked at James and then back at Daniel.
“It’s okay. I may have told him a thing or two about you.”
I gave James a small smile while the usure look on his face told me he thought either Daniel was crazy, or I was.
“I had a dream last night. I was in a hotel. Room 502. The time was eight fifteen p.m. So, I’m assuming it’s going to happen tonight.”
“Do you know which hotel?” Daniel asked.
“No.”
“Did you perhaps see the guy?” James asked.
“Only the back of him. He was about six feet tall, blond hair, buzz cut.”
“And the woman?” Daniel asked.
“Five foot eight with her heels on, long red hair and she had a tattoo on her shoulder. It was of a half-moon with stars around it. It was different this time, Daniel. He didn’t drug her first. He came up from behind her and strangled her, while she was fully conscious. Maybe she refused the wine. I don’t know.”
“Thanks for coming down and telling us.”
“I’m sorry I couldn’t give you more information.”
“It’s okay.” Daniel placed his hand on my shoulder. “If you think of anything else, call me.”
Asher
When I got out of the shower, she was gone. Probably because of the way I got out of bed without saying a word to her. I couldn’t. I didn’t want the good mornings and the smiles. I was an asshole. I knew it. But I had my reasons and somehow, I knew Everly knew what those reasons were.
I was in the middle of work when there was knock on my office door.
“Come in.”
When the door opened, I looked up and saw Noah standing there.
“Hey.” I smiled. “I was going to call you later and see if you wanted to grab some dinner tonight.”
“Hey, bro. I was just down the street at a job interview and thought I’d stop by and see what you were up to.”
“I’m busy right now. How about we meet at Bill’s Burger and Bar at six-thirty? It’s always been our favorite spot.”
“Sounds excellent. I’ll meet you there, and I’ll let you get back to work.” He smiled as he left my office.
After one of my many meetings of the day, I decided to step out of the office and head to Bonobos on Fifth Avenue to get fitted for a couple new suits. I didn’t have a lot of time since I had another meeting scheduled in an hour. But it was just enough to get some fresh air and clear my head for my next meeting. When I was finished and approached my office building, I saw Everly step outside the doors.
“Everly?”
“Oh, hey.” She smiled.
“What are you doing here?”
“Just walking Diana back. We had a quick lunch.”
“I see.”
“I better get going.” The smile never left her lips. “I have some errands to run.”
She started to walk away so I reached out and lightly grabbed hold of her arm.
“Wait,” I said as she turned and looked at me. “About this morning—”
“No big deal, Asher. Just forget about it. I really need to get going.”
“Yeah. Sure. I’ll call you.”
“Yeah.” She gave me a nod and turned around.
Placing my hands in my pants pockets, I watched her walk away. She said it was no big deal, but the look in her eyes told me something different.
“Sorry I’m late,” I spoke to Noah as I sat down across from him.
“No worries, bro. I just got here myself. Traffic is terrible.”
“It’s always terrible.” I chuckled.
We ordered our drinks and then placed our dinner order for a couple of burgers and some fries.
“How is the job hunting going?” I asked.
“It’s not. The company I interviewed with today already called and offered the job to someone else.”
“I told you, you can come work for me.”
“Thanks, Asher. I appreciate it, but—”
“I know. I know.” I put my hand up.
“I don’t know what I’m going to do. I had to wire a bunch of cash to Eloise today for my half of the bills we shared. I’m running out of funds quickly without having a job.”