My Soul to Keep (The Soul Keeper Series - Young Adult Paranormal Romance) (22 page)

     
“How
about I throw your clothes in the dryer and maybe by then the storm will pass.”

     
“Um okay?”
I realize to him it just sounded like I wanted to
get him naked and that would explain the large looming eyes he is throwing my
way.

     
“I think
I have a pair of Elijah's sweats around here somewhere.” I dash to his closet
and find a pair. I go back and hand him the pants. He takes his saturated shoes
off and walks to the bathroom. He comes back out wearing just the pants. Wow,
now I know I'm blushing, I just hope its dim enough in here that he doesn't
notice. My fingers trace the faint bruises still fading on his ribs. It tickles
him and he squirms away smiling. I take his clothes from him and toss them in
the dryer. He hits the button for the fireplace and takes a seat nearby on the
floor. I join him, pulling a throw off of the sofa. We sit shoulder to
shoulder. I am glad we are not on that couch; it still holds some very bad
memories. I glance to where the crack in the wall used to be. I assume Will
must have had it fixed while I was at school that day.
 
I'm so glad Sam doesn't remember anything
from that night. I know he would never forgive himself if he knew what he almost
did to me.

     
“I had
such a good time tonight, thank you for being my date.”

     
“You’re
welcome and thank you for making tonight one I will never forget.” He kisses me
on the cheek. The fire dances playfully in front of us as it warms our skin.
Sam takes my leg and pulls off my boot and then the other one. He rubs my feet
and it feels so relaxing. I have never had anyone rub my feet before. But then
again there is a lot I have never experienced. I think I could fall asleep
right now I am so relaxed. I yawn and Sam laughs. I sit up and stretch languidly.

     
“Feel
good?”

     
“Too
good, I may have to keep you around.”

     
“I
promise I'll earn my keep.” He smiles a devilish grin. Hmm, I think Sam has
many more sides to him than I have seen so far. It makes me curious about him.
I want to get to know all of his sides.
No,
not just his backside
, my subconscious seems to be thinking with her
naughty nurse brain.
 

     
“I have
no doubt you would.”

     
“No?” He holds
a playful gleam in his smile. He climbs on top of me he pins my hands above me
in one swift move, he is still grinning.
 
It’s the same position he held me in over a
month ago and I can’t hide the look of fear in my eyes that comes over me. His
smile fades into one of deep concern. His brows knit together and his soulful
eyes search my face for clues.

     
“What’s
wrong?”
       

     
“Nothing,
I just remembered something from that night,” I say as he releases my hands.
This man is not the one who attacked me that night. Sam is inherently good. I
see that with crystal clarity now.

     
“Bren,
did I hurt you that night? Please tell me what happened.” Sam sits up and his
eyes wander to the fire and back to mine.

     
“No Sam
you, didn’t hurt me.”
 
He looks concerned.

     
“I don’t
like you staying here by yourself. Wouldn’t you feel safer at Em’s?”

     
“Sam I
have a CIA agent nearby at all times, I think he would handle an attack far
better than Em’s parents. They had the alarm system upgraded, I’m fine here, don’t
worry about me.”
 
I smile and try to
lighten the mood. His brows smooth and I can tell he wants to do the same.

     
He
tickles my ribs while I giggle.

     
“Stop, ha
ha
, ah
ee
!” I wiggle
beneath him. He moves to my arm pit and I retaliate. I use my leg and leverage
to roll him over and pin him down. Sitting on his waist and holding down his
arms.

     
“You've
got me now what will you do with me?” I consider my options as I bite my bottom
lip, hmm?

     
“I think
a slow torturous death is in order.” I cover his eyes with the blanket and dip
my head down to his chest. I kiss his sternum with a feather light touch. He
lets out a sigh of pleasure. His skin is so soft. I slip the blanket off of his
face and am met with liquid chocolate eyes melting into me. I smile coyly. The
dryer buzzes. Time’s up. He sits up with me moving to his lap. He closes his
eyes and our lips find each other. I wish he would stay but I know we need to
slow down. I pull myself up and go to the laundry room. The thunder rumbles in
the distance. I hate being here alone when it's storming. The metal roof makes
the rain sound like we are barreling down Niagara
falls
in a steel drum. I fold his clothes and find Sam still on the floor staring
into the fire.

     
“What are
you thinking about?”

     
“How easy
it is being with you.” He takes his clothes from my hands and walks away to
change. The sight of his bare back and low hung pants has left me unable to
function for the moment. Tonight was easy except for the whole hiding in the
bathroom incident. I know I like Sam a lot and I will keep listening to my
heart. I will not run again. He emerges from the back of the house and I walk
him to the door. The rain has let up for a moment.

     
“Thank
you for drying my clothes.”

     
“No
problem.”

     
“What are
you plans for tomorrow?”

     
“I don't
have any.”

     
“Will you
come take a ride with me?” Oh, the surprise he never got to show me.

     
“Okay,
still no horses though right?” He laughs.

     
“No, but
you will be trained to ride in time.” He sounded like his line had a double
meaning. I give him a quizzical look.

     
“What
time?”

     
“Spend
the day with me. Come over about eleven.”

     
“Can't
wait,” I say less than enthusiastic.

 
    
Sam kisses me good bye and heads out to his
truck. The rain is just a drizzle and the air is colder. I shut the door, shuddering
from the chill. A front must have moved in. I turn off the lights. The house is
dimly lit with scattered plug in wax warmers. I chose different fall scents
like pumpkin spice, and caramel apple, to fill the air with the aroma of
Thanksgiving. I wonder what Sam has planned for us tomorrow. The wind chimes
outside play a chorus as the front continues to move in. I slip into a tank top
and flannel pants, and slide under my down comforter. I drift off quicker than
I thought possible.

I have no idea what to wear, but decide jeans are a
safe bet. I pull out a dark green Hollister sweat shirt and pull it over my
thermal wear. It is freezing out this morning. I tie the laces on my running
shoes and head downstairs. I take my ski jacket just in case we will be
outdoors for any long period of time. I pull a knit hat over my head and greet
the blustery day, shielded inside my toasty warm car.

I drive into Sam's ranch. The live oaks have shed
their leaves, and are stark naked, making this gray day feel even colder. I
pull up to the house, and see Sam's dad is on a ladder, already decorating for
Christmas.

“Hi, Mr. Montgomery!”

“Hello, Brennen. It's good to see you again. Go on
in.” He waves from his perch with a string of lights bundled in his hand. I
smile and return the gesture. I open the front door and see Sam's twin sisters
watching television on the sofa still in their pajamas.

“Hi Mia, and Macie,” I greet as Sam gallops down the
stairs.

“Hi Brennen,” They sing in unison. They are too
adorable for words.

“Good morning.” He kisses my cheek tenderly. His
sisters giggle. “I'm almost ready. I'll just be a minute okay?” I nod and go
join the girls on the sofa.

“What are we watching?”

“We are watching Phineas and
Ferb
.”

“Excellent, I just love Perry the Platypus!” They
sit just a little straighter and I already love them like my own siblings. Mia
has Sam's wavy sandy blonde hair cut into a soft bob. Macy has long wavy hair,
other than that they are identical.

“Okay ready babe?” I hug the
girls
good-bye.

“It was good to see you, bye.”

“Bye Brennen,” they echo.

“So are you going to tell me what we're doing?”

“What would be the fun in that?” He holds his truck
door open for me and helps me step up. I scoot in to the middle seat where he
prefers me to ride. Sam climbs in next to me, and his arm takes its position
around my shoulder. I don't see Sam's dad out front anymore but the lights are
strung along the roof in a neat line. I bet this place is spectacular at
Christmas time. I guess this is their first winter here, the climate is
similar, but Ft. Worth probably gets more snow than we do here. Sam drives
south and I tune the radio to a country station. Sam sings along to a song I
have never heard, matching the singer's smooth tenor voice note for note.

“Wow that was impressive. I didn't know you had such
a beautiful voice.”

“Thanks I guess I like to sing, mainly in the car or
shower though, never in public.”

“We should go do karaoke one night.”
“Oh no, you can't get me on stage.” He laughs. Ah, I have found his weakness.

Almost an hour later we pull into a small airfield
and drive around to a hangar. I click to why we are
here,
fear and panic almost have me bolting from the truck.

“Sam, no way am I getting on a plane with you.” He
scowls at me in a playful way.

“Bren, this is my first supervised run, I have
logged thirty hours of flight time. You are in good hands.”

“You know I was in a plane crash and that was a
great big jumbo jet liner. I cannot get into one of these death traps.” Oh my
gosh those evil little bastards would have a field day tearing one of these
tiny planes apart with me in it. And just maybe by the luck of one brawny soul
keeper I would survive, but Sam? He wouldn't stand a chance.

“Brennen I'm sorry, I wasn't thinking. I just wanted
to share this experience with you. If you don't want to fly I understand.” He
rubs my neck attempting to soothe me.

“Can you take me back, please? I don't want to be
here.” A hurt look crosses his face.

“Here in this hangar, or here, with me.” I care
about Sam, and now I have just painted a target on his back.
           
“You don't need to be in a
plane, there are perfectly nice trucks and trains right here on the ground.”

“Brennen I love to fly, I promise it is totally
safe. There will be an instructor ready to take over if anything goes wrong.” I
want to say, “What good would the instructor be if little goblins are running
rampant inside the engine compartment?” But I know that would only get him
killed too.

“Sam please,
take
me back.”

“I'll take you back, but Brennen what is wrong? I
know you have flown since your accident. I know you didn't take a ship from
Japan.”

“The difference is I care about you and I can't bear
to lose you too.”
 

“Alright,” he resigns. I know he is angry when he doesn't
put his arm around me.

     
Ten
minutes goes by and he hasn't spoken to me. I feel guilty for making him miss
his flight lesson. I also am feeling bad that this is my life. I am always
living in fear that someone I love will get hurt because something wants me
dead, not just something, the president of hell with a faction of demons at his
disposal. In the end, fear wins out over the guilt. I am so afraid that if open
my mouth the truth will spill out like warm champagne. When we pull into his
drive way, forty-five silent minutes later, I wonder if ever wants to see me
again.

He turns off the ignition and gets out of the truck.
He doesn't look at me.
Oh no
. By the
time I step down and fish my keys out of my purse he is already inside.
 
I stand there for a moment, shocked at his
behavior, tears spill over my eyes as I get in my car. I put it in drive and
try to blink back the tears.
 
How can he
be so callus? I have a legitimate fear of flying. Yes I have flown since the
crash and heavily sedated each time I might add. But I don't owe him any
explanations and he can stay mad at me for all I care. At least he'll be safer
far away from me. In fact Emily has become someone in my life they make take
interest in hurting too. I need to do a better job at distancing her.