Predestined (8 page)

“Well, I told my mom to come with
me. I pulled her into the kitchen and there was my grandma standing
there like I’d left her. She looked sad again and shook her head at
me. My mom didn’t see her. Instead she stared down at me and asked
me what this was about. I pointed to my grandma and still my mother
didn’t see anything. She frowned and looked back down at me and
said she needed to get back to the visitors. Then I told her about
grandma being there and Mom froze. The look on her face wasn’t a
happy one. She looked... really, really scared.”

I didn’t finish. I knew the boy
would run away from me now.

“So, you saw the soul of your
grandma,” he replied matter of factly.

I nodded, “I guess, if that is
like her ghost. Because I think I saw her ghost.”

“Yes, it’s like her
ghost.”

I wiped at my eyes. The tears had
stopped since the boy had shown up.

“It’s okay to see souls. It’s not
a bad thing. But your mom will never understand it. No one will. If
you want to keep from upsetting people you need to act like you
don’t see them. If you ignore them then they’ll leave you alone. If
you let them know you can see them then they’ll follow you around,”
he explained.

Frowning, I studied him. He seemed
to know a lot about this. Did he see dead people too?

“How’d you know she wasn’t the
first one I’ve seen?”

He shrugged, “I guess you’ve been
seeing them for about two years now.”

My mouth fell open. How’d he know
that?

“Do you see ghosts
too?”

He nodded and a crooked grin
appeared on his face. He really didn’t think I was
crazy.

“Yep, I see them.”

“Can I make myself stop seeing
them?”

He frowned and shook his head. He
must wish he couldn’t see them too.

“So we’re stuck like
this?”

“I’m afraid so,” he replied. “But
look at it this way, it makes you special. You can see something no
one else can. Think of it as a super power instead of a bad
thing.”

Not likely. I wanted to be able to
fly or maybe go invisible but I wasn’t interested in seeing dead
people.

“Pagan! Pagan! PEGGY
ANN!”

My eyes snapped open and Gee
hovered over my face.

“You were not supposed to go to
sleep while I went to check out things outside and around the
house. But what happens? I’m gone for maybe five minutes and you’re
asleep and that creep job is in your head.”

I stretched and sat up on the
couch. I was losing sleep due to these dreams. I couldn’t help it
that the moment I sat down I dozed off. Yawning, I shot Gee an
annoyed glare.

“I couldn’t help it.”

“Well, it would be nice if you at
least tried.”

“This time I’m glad I did. He let
me remember something I wanted to remember. It was a memory I’m
glad he gave back to me.”

Gee frowned, “What would that
be?”

“The day of my grandmother’s wake.
I saw her. I saw her soul. She was smiling at me because she knew I
could see her. My mother, of course, freaked out when I told her
about it but I got to say goodbye in a way.” Pausing I directed my
gaze to Gee. “Please tell me she isn’t a lost soul. Please tell me
Dank just hadn’t retrieved her soul yet.”

Gee stopped chewing on her thumb
nail and shook her head, “Your grandmother has gone on. Dank
checked on most all of your relatives. The ones you were close to
have moved on. I know for a fact your grandmother’s soul will
return soon.”

I let out a sigh of relief and
wrapped my arms around my waist. It was a nice memory. I’d loved my
grandmother. Upsetting my mother that day hadn’t been something I
remembered fondly but I understood why it upset her now.

“It was Leif that taught me to
ignore the souls.”

Gee rolled her eyes, “Well, let’s
give him a medal of honor for that act of kindness. Since the
reason you can even see souls is because of him.”

She was right of course. Still, the
Leif from my dreams was so similar to the boy I had known this past
year. It was hard to forget that. Nothing about him felt
dangerous.

“Now, I want some of that chocolate
stuff your mom made and I want to watch some more of that show we
watched yesterday. I’m exhausted from taking care of your ass. I
need some down time.”

It had been days since I’d seen
Dank and Gee hadn’t left my side once. I knew this wasn’t her ideal
job and I hated she was growing tired of it. I got up from the
couch and headed for the kitchen, “You want soda or milk with your
brownies?” I asked her.

“Milk. It makes those brownies
taste better.”

The
excitement in her voice caused me to laugh. I cut both of us a
large chunk of brownie and poured two tall glasses of milk. We
could comfort eat and watch
Gossip Girl
while she
cackled and made fun of everything they did. The crew from the
Upper East Side amused Gee to no end.

Dank

I hadn’t seen Pagan in three days.
Stepping into her room, I watched her as she brushed her hair. The
jeans she was wearing were a little too snug for my comfort. I
didn’t handle jealousy well. It would be safer if she wore
something a little less sexy. My eyes traveled up from the tall
black leather boots she wore to the extremely tight fitting jeans
that cupped her ass like a glove. Then the bare skin at the small
of her back flashed at me as she raised her arms to twist the long
dark locks of her hair up into a wild mass of curls on the back of
her head. She was gorgeous and she was mine.

I closed the door behind me and she
spun around startled. A smile instantly lit up her face when her
eyes seemed to drink me in. She ran toward me and threw herself in
my arms so quickly that a regular guy would have dropped her. The
jean encased legs of hers I’d been admiring were firmly wrapped
around my waist and she was raining kisses all over my face. Was it
possible for my heart to swell when I didn’t have one? I tightened
my hold on her waist, “ I missed you too,” I whispered, catching
her busy lips with mine. She didn’t press for more but let me taste
just enough before pulling back and gazing down at me.

“I’m so excited. I’ve missed you
like crazy.”

“It’s going to be hard for me to
concentrate on that stage tonight with you strutting around in
jeans that showcase your incredibly beautiful body. You know that
right?”

Giggling, she wiggled in my arms
and grabbed my face with both her hands and kissed my nose and
forehead.

I immediately took advantage of the
situation and laid her down on the bed. Her eyes went big and round
with surprise as I lowered myself over her and began kissing her
neck and taking small little licks at her collar bone. This was the
kind of kissing we could do safely.

The pleased sigh from Pagan made me
a little crazy. I loved the sexy little sounds she made when we
were together like this. “Mmmmm, kiss my mouth,” she
whispered.

I shook my head knowing a kiss
would end this moment too soon. I wasn’t ready to stop just yet.
I’d been fantasizing about her unique scent and taste for days. Now
that I had her under me, I was greedy. I needed enough to get me
through tonight.

“AH,” she gasped as I bit the
tender flesh at the curve of her neck and shoulder. Smiling against
her warm silky skin, I inhaled deeply.

Pagan lifted her hips pressing
closer to me. Insane need ignited inside me and I knew I needed to
put distance between us. When she rubbed and pressed against me so
trustingly it always ended up being my undoing. I pushed up from
the close contact of our bodies putting some much needed space
between the warmth she seemed so willing to share with me, I
groaned in frustration and denial.

Pagan sat up and crawled over to
wrap her arms around my neck. Her soft lips kissed my temple.
“Trust me, Dank Walker I will only have eyes for you. No one else
even comes close.”

With a teasing growl I turned my
head and nipped at her ear. “Good to know. No need for some
clueless guy to meet Death tonight when it isn’t his time to
go.”

“Dank!”

I chuckled and shrugged, “I’d say I
was kidding but I’m not.”

Pagan shook her head in
exasperation and reached for her jacket then stood up. “Let’s go
see my rocker boyfriend in action,” she replied with a
smirk.

Tonight was about having fun with
Pagan. I wasn’t going to let the issues surrounding us get in the
way. Leif had kept me away from her enough. I needed to do a gig
with the band and Pagan wanted to experience it so this worked out
perfectly.

Pagan walked into the hallway then
glanced back over her shoulder and smiled, “You coming or
what?”

Pagan

Smoke curled up from the floor of
the stage as strobe lights flashed and fans screamed. Dank pulled
me up against him and kissed my lips, “You stay here. I’ll be back
and forth between breaks. I want to be able to see you while I’m
singing.”

I nodded excitedly and he pressed
one last kiss to my forehead before running out onto the stage
where the other members of Cold Soul were already in place and
ready to go. The full intensity of the stage lights came on and
Dank joined the drummer and bass player in a wild intense opening
to a song I didn’t recognize.

Dank sauntered up to the microphone
as his fingers danced across the guitar strings. I had the urge to
scream along with the crowded civic center. The tight charcoal grey
t-shirt he wore highlighted every delicious ripple in his stomach.
I was very thankful for the guitar that covered his impressive abs.
I didn’t necessarily like the idea of the girls screaming his name
getting such an eyeful of his perfectly formed body but I was
forcing myself to deal.

His head turned and his eyes locked
with mine. A pleased gleam flashed in them then he winked at me. Of
course he’d heard my worries. Not surprising that he liked the fact
I was unhappy about other females looking at him. The wicked grin
on his lips grew and his sexy little dimple flashed at
me.

I blew him a kiss and he reached up
with one hand and acted as if he was catching it then touched his
lips with two of his fingers before turning back to the crowd.
Honestly, I was very close to having a swoon moment myself. Who
would have thought Death could be so incredibly sweet?

Suddenly the screaming crowd
quieted as if on cue and Dank opened his mouth to sing.

“Daylight fades away
as I watch you.

Darkness claims the sky and I wish
you knew

that nothing you can do can keep
me from you.

But I stay out of sight and only
whisper to you.

Words I can’t say. Words you don’t
need to hear.

Words I can’t keep from tangling
my way.

Now, I can’t stand
alone.

Now, I am under your
influence.

You’ve taken over me and Now, I
can’t ignore what I’ve been shown.

You’ve claimed me and I don’t care
who knows.

You’ve claimed me and I don’t care
if it shows.

I’m weakened and I’m strengthened
in your arms.

You’ve claimed me and I need to
feel you close.”

My heart sped up as his eyes turned
to me. I hadn’t heard this song before and I had all his albums on
my iPod. His tongue barely peeked out from his lips as he wet them
then held my gaze and opened his mouth again.

“You stand
wanting more than you could ever understand.

I stand helpless needing to give
in to your every command.

Wanting to see you smile has
consumed me and tied both my hands.

Nothing I offer could ever be
worthy of your love.

It’s a miracle that you saw me and
never ran.

I will spend my whole life trying
to be the man you think I am.

Now, I can’t stand alone. Now, I
am under your influence.

You’ve taken over me and Now, I
can’t ignore what I’ve been shown.

You’ve claimed me and I don’t care
who knows.

You’ve claimed me and I don’t care
if it shows.

I’m weakened and I’m strengthened
in your arms.

You’ve claimed me and I need to
feel you close.”

His lips puckered slowly as if to
kiss me before he turned his attention back to the crowd and
continued to sing.

“You hold fire
within your gaze.

It mesmerizes everyone you allow
into your maze.

I know nothing of your
thoughts

but I need to bask within the
warmth of your rays.

Nothing you do could ever be
wrong.

You’re forever perfect in every
way.