Fire and Ash (Immortal Touch) (16 page)

He nodded.
That should buy him a few more minutes to daydream. They just didn’t get it - how could they? His father was an attractive ski instructor, his mom a former college cheerleader…neither of them could ever understand how hard it was for a shy, awkward, not-so-attractive social reject to find acceptance. To find someone who actually
wanted
to be around him. Imogen might not be perfect but she was better than nothing. Better than spending his spare time with nothing but pathetic fantasies of females he could never get. Females with auburn hair and green feline eyes who smiled at him as if he mattered and then went and married jerks like Julian Winter.

“…not doing this to be cruel. We just don’t want to see you throw your future away by getting involved with someone like her. She’ll wind up dragging you down to her level - I’ve seen it happen before. I wish you could just trust that your father and I know what’s best for you, honey.” She reached out to brush the hair from his eyes and he turned his head, irritated.

For a second he almost felt guilty at the hurt in his mother’s eyes.

But then she opened her mouth again and he retreated back into his own private world.

~*~*~*~

“You’ll never believe who just called me.”

Smiling to herself at her mother’s melodrama, Eva played along. “Um…Elvis Presley.”

“Okay, you joke about that, but I really did see his spitting image at that gas station when we drove to the
Grand Canyon that time.”

“Are you going to start that again? Elvis is not living in a motor home in the
Arizona desert. He’s dead. Deal with it.”

“Well, you didn’t see this man! I swear he - how did we get off on this? I did
n’t call you to talk about Elvis. I just heard from your father.”

“You did?” That in itself was almost as unlikely as an Elvis sighting. “What did he want?”

“He got his wedding invitation. He and Michelle are actually planning on coming, believe it or not.”

“Really?”

“Mm-hm.”

“Well…that’s good, I guess.” Eva wasn’t sure what she was expected to say
here. All right, it was surprising, but it could turn out to be a good thing. A little closure might be nice.

“You sure
this is what you want?”

“Of course I am.
We already talked about this.”

“I know…but I never expected
him to actually accept.”

“Are
you
okay with him being there?”

“Isn’t
my
wedding.”

“Think of it like this. You get to show up
looking all hot with Dr. Hunky and rub in Dad’s face what he’s been missing.”

Abby laughed. “I am looking forward to that,” she admitted.

“See? It’ll be fine.” Her mother seemed to be the one who needed reassurance more than herself. Poor woman had been put through a lot with her father. “I’ll make sure Jules doesn’t put them up in the same bed and breakfast as you and Dr. Reynolds. Other than the ceremony and reception, you won’t have to see him.”

“
Good.”

“He probably won’t even speak to you if Michelle’s with him anyway.”

“True…”

“Mom, can I call you back later? I’m in town right now and I have
to run inside the store and see somebody before they leave.”

“Oh…sure, honey.
I was just calling to let you know. You don’t have to call me back or anything - Grant and I are about to go catch a matinee anyway.”

“Tell Dr. Hunky I said hi,” Eva teased.

“I’ll be sure to do that!”

~*~*~*~

“Got a minute?”

Dane’s head jerked up from the floor he was sweeping at the sound of her voice. She always had this way of sneaking up on him, taking him by surprise…not that he minded at all. It was the nicest kind of surprise. He wished she’d do it more often.

“Hey, Eva.” His eyes darted around the store for the tall blond, but he was nowhere to be seen. Good. Maybe he’d gotten run over by a snowplow.

“Feel like taking a little walk?”

The broom handle dropped from his hand and clattered to the floor. Flushing, he bent to pick it up while silently cursing his own clumsiness. His first impulse was to take off with her, no questions asked. But he’d just returned from an extended three hour lunch break and Mr. Hinson was already super pissed. The man would have a stroke if he abandoned his work to go for a stroll now.

Why did she want to go for a walk with him anyway? “I…um…well, I just got back from my
lunch break, so…” Tongue-tied, his mind went blank. He had no idea what to say.

“It’s okay. Come on…just for a few minutes.” She smiled, which of course was the deal-breaker, and he trailed behind her to the front of the store where Mr. Hinson was breaking open a roll of nickels into the register.

Those intense eyes of hers looked directly at the store owner. She always had this way of looking at you as if you were the only person in the room. “Mr. Hinson, I need to borrow Dane for a little while. I’m sure you don’t mind, do you?”

“
Young lady, I most certainly
do
…”

“
No, you don’t mind.” Her voice practically purred.

“
I…oh. Of course I don’t mind. Don’t mind at all.” The gray-haired man had suddenly developed a blank look, and Dane wanted to laugh. Apparently even old dudes couldn’t resist her charm.

“Thank you
. I promise I’ll have him back in ten minutes.”

He yanked the green apron over his head and followed her outside into the chilly March air. His windbreaker was underneath the counter, but he wasn’t about to go back for it.

“I didn’t see your truck, so I wasn’t sure if you were working today,” she said.

Then she’d come here specifically to see him? No way… “My parents took my keys.”

“Oh. Why’d they do that?”

“They’re jerks.” He’d never been much of a conversationalist. Maybe because nobody had ever been interested in anything he had to say before.

“Oh.” Eva strolled leisurely down the street, apparently having no specific destination in mind. “So how’s the studying coming along?”

“Well…being homeschooled pretty much sucks ass. Especially when your mom’s always pissed at you.”

She laughed, and the sound was like summer rain. Everything about her was beautiful. It almost hurt him to look at her, sometimes.

“I saw your mom
a while back at the Inn. She seemed pretty concerned about you.”

So that’s what this was about. God, couldn’t his mom ever keep her trap shut about anything? What was next - broadcasting the age at which he’d been potty trained? “She’s overreacting.”

“What’s your side of the story?”

“My side?”

“Yes. I heard your mother’s opinion of Imogen…now I want to hear yours.” She watched him intently, making him even more nervous. He was surprised that she would be interested in
his
feelings on the matter.

“Imogen’s not that bad. She’d just…a free spirit.” He borrowed the
very term that Imogen liked to use to describe herself. He wasn’t blind, and he wasn’t as stupid as everyone made him out to be - yes, he knew she was prone to making bad decisions. But it was exciting being around someone like her. Someone who didn’t play by the rules.

“Personally, I think it’s great that you hit it off with her. Sounds like she could use a role model like you.”

“Me?”

“Sure, you. You could be a really good influence on her. Maybe you should point that out to your parents. Suggest that you have Imogen over when they’re home
- maybe if they got to know her a little they wouldn’t be so quick to judge her.”

Imogen and parents…not a good combination. Her own dad was a stone cold alcoholic, and her mother
…well, she’d been in a mental institution since her daughter was twelve. “I dunno,” he said doubtfully. “They pretty much already made up their minds about her.”

“Hm. Look, Dane…I’m just gonna cut to the chase here. Whatever’s going on between you and your parents is your business, not mine. It’s not up to me to say that their decisions are
right or wrong. I already know you well enough to know that you wouldn’t let someone talk you into doing something reckless - you’re way smarter than that. I just want you to know, if you ever want someone to talk to or unload on, I’m here. That’s all.”

“Okay.” Feeling that the conversation was coming to a close, he tried to think of some way to prolong it. “So…you gonna give me your phone number then?” Even as the words came out of his mouth, he couldn’t believe he’d said them. But she gave it to him without batting an eye, and he wanted to throw his arms around her for not laughing in his face.

“Promise you’ll call me if you need anything?”

“Yeah…I promise.” Like he’d ever have the nerve. Anyway, what was the point? She thought of him as a kid
, nothing more. Besides, she was engaged to Blondie.

“All right. I’m trusting you to be mature enough to stay out of trouble, Dane. Don’t let me down.”

“I won’t.” He stared down at his Nikes. Suddenly he felt eight years old…and he didn’t like it. Her last comment sounded like something his mother would say. Why did she have to go and ruin everything like that?

“Well, I guess I better let you get back to work.
We don’t want Mr. Hinson to freak out.”

“Yeah
, I guess.” It hit him painfully then…she was only here as a favor to his mother. She didn’t really give a damn what he was doing. The charismatic redhead put up a good front, but deep down she was like everyone else, wasn’t she? Seeing him as nothing but a dumb kid who couldn’t buckle his own belt without guidance.

Her parting words only fueled his resentment.

“Keep your nose clean, sweetie…or you’ll have to answer to me!”

~*~*~*~

Was she ever pissed.

Ash wanted to
double over with laughter every time he flashed back to the sight of that austere little tightass flailing about in the ocean, screaming like the world’s most foulmouthed banshee. And boy, did she ever know some colorful expletives. Where on earth did the frigid librarian pick
those
up? He couldn’t believe some of the phrases she’d tossed his way. Jesus, what a temper.

He wondered just how mad she’d get if she had any idea that it wasn’t dear darling Rick calling her in the middle of the night. Originally it had been his intent to frighten her
, weaken her defenses. He hadn’t even known until she confided in him that they were already associated by circumstance, connected like two stars in a constellation. To think, one of his victims had been her romantic rival. The irony of it all was delectable.

And the would-be intruder? Well, if you
gave a wino enough cash he’d do pretty much anything, no questions asked.

The few times he happened to catch a glimpse of Sami during the week, she deliberately avoided looking his way.
Somehow that made the situation even more intriguing in his eyes. Sure, he’d lost ground with her but that was okay. Bringing her back around was all part of the challenge. He’d never met a woman quite like her. Unwilling to cater to him, unimpressed by his money and influence and sexual magnetism. What would it take to crack her tough shell? What was her personal kryptonite?

His own was
calling to him even now.

O
n one end of his balcony, nestled in a large ceramic planter of potting soil, grew the vampire’s Achilles heel…a plant that had been introduced to him long ago. One of the most highly guarded secrets ever revealed to him by Cecilia, whose own personal weakness had turned out to be her foolishly blind love for a treacherous husband.

Belladonna
, also known as deadly nightshade, was indeed deadly to humans. But its most beneficial use was the unique ability to render a vampire almost helpless, weakening him into a vulnerable state. Asher had used it more than once on his enemies to gain an advantage. The leaves could be brewed into an infusion that was easily injected into the bloodstream. It was fast-acting, creating a euphoric hallucinatory state while reducing strength and agility for a matter of hours.

As a matter of fact, being the only chemically induced high that could affect a fanger, he loved to sometimes shoot up with it himself.
It was an exercise in fortitude. To see just how fucked up he could get and still maintain control.

What the hell. He had no plans tonight.

~*~*~*~

“Well, it’s about time you called. I was beginning to think you’d forgotten about me already.”

Sami grimaced at Kelly’s reprimand, though she knew it was delivered lightheartedly. “I know. I’m sorry. They’re keeping me pretty busy around here.”

“How ya likin’ it?”

“Oh, it’s great. Pretty laid-back, actually. Everyone’s super nice too. Well, almost everyone.”