Shades of Atlantis (2 page)

He slapped the roof twice before walking away backward with a determined expression on his face.

I rolled the window up, muttering several swear words under my breath. What did my car ever do to him?

“What’s the problem?” Amanda asked, frustrated as ever at my indecision. “Why don’t you just give him an answer?”

“Because he’s an idiot,” Ben grumbled from the back seat.

“Because he’s an idiot,” I echoed, grimacing toward the cars ahead of me.

Amanda scowled before returning to her paint charts. Finally, I reached the road, hit the accelerator, and turned toward Camden.

***

Jen emerged from the front door as I pulled up outside her house. She was wearing a black silk blouse and a straight black skirt. I sighed, admiring how good she looked, even if her outfit was completely impractical for waiting tables. Her long, light brown hair bounced around her shoulders, and her tall slim figure fit the uniform in all the right places. She threw her jacket on as she walked down the sidewalk, then got in the passenger side and smiled excitedly. I sighed again.

“What’s wrong with you?” she asked.

I grunted, pulling away from the curb.

“Jeez,
Alitriona
,
” s
he said. “Crack a smile or something. You’re supposed to be impressing the new boss tonight, remember?”

“It’s just a job, and don’t call me that,” I muttered, forcing a fake smile.

Alitriona
was the name my mom and dad gave me, but I didn’t like anyone to use it now. Anyway, I wasn’t in a bad mood, like Jen seemed to think. In fact, I was feeling optimistic at the moment. Just over another six months and I’d be free from Camden. I was going to Europe; I’d been saving and planning for as long as I could remember. Between work, Christmas, birthdays, and of course the little bit of money my parents left, my bank balance wasn’t looking too shabby.

Jen filled the rest of our journey with talk about Caleb Wallace, his brother Joshua, and their friend and business partner, Seth Jameson. Seth and Joshua had moved to Camden six months ago and opened a restaurant that catered to Camden’s busy tourist trade. In the summer, people came to hike and head out in the windjammers from the bay for tours. When the temperature dropped, the winter sports enthusiasts arrived to ski, snowboard, and toboggan down Ragged Mountain, a snow resort with unbelievable views over the Atlantic. The rumor mill went into overdrive the day our latest residents arrived. Joshua and Seth were young, twenty-three or -four was the average guess, and they were both extremely handsome and charismatic. Money seemed to be no object in renovating their newly acquired premises on the high ground away from the main part of town into a modern, stylish distraction for people who could afford it.

We entered the driveway, its small embedded solar lights leading us to the imposing wooden building.

“Full house again.” Jen grinned. “Plenty of tips.”

Through the windows, we could see that all the tables were full and a bright orange fire flamed in the stone hearth that rose all the way to the ceiling. I drove past the customers’ cars, parked in the back, and entered the locker room through the staff entrance.

I hung my jacket up and walked through a door at the end of the row of lockers to a corridor with two rest rooms. Standing in front of the full length mirror with the door open, I surveyed my appearance. Smoothing my skirt, I thought I actually didn’t look too awful. The black suited my dark red hair and made the dark green of my eyes stand out against my pale skin. The deep color of our eyes and hair was another inheritance Ben and I got from our mother. My long wavy hair was tied in a knot at the base of my neck, and I checked it with my hand to make sure it would hold for the night. As I turned back to the locker room, Jen walked back in through the third door that led to the kitchen.

“He’s not here,” she moaned. I placed my hand lightly on her back, directing her back through the door and scanning the small white card in my hand across the tiny red light in the wall.

“Never mind,” I consoled her. “It will give you a chance to do some work—instead of just staring.” She threw me an infuriated look over her shoulder, not seeing the funny side.

Most of the town seemed to be eating here since it opened; even the outdoor deck area with views across the tree tops to the harbor was frequently full to capacity. It was covered by a pergola wrapped in bare vines, planned so that in the summer it would provide shade, but tonight the waterproof awning stretched across the top of it. On clear nights, the awning could roll back into a flap on the exterior wall of the dining room. The restaurant had the latest underground heating system installed outside, no expense spared.

Joshua Wallace was running the restaurant tonight and was, as Jen constantly reminded me, insanely good looking: tall and lean with broad shoulders, short dark hair which was almost black, and startling blue eyes set against lightly tanned, clean-shaven skin.

The evening passed quickly, and before I knew it the last of the customers was leaving. I was on the deck clearing a table when Jen appeared.

“He’s here!” she whispered excitedly in my ear with a huge grin on her face. She didn’t have to explain who she meant.

“Great…where is he?” I faked an interested smile, glad that she had forgotten my little quip earlier.

“In the kitchen. Everyone is leaving, so he’s kind of getting intros as they leave.”

“Sorry, I didn’t realize. I’ll be done in just a minute,” I apologized, hurriedly putting empty glasses onto a tray.

“Umm,
Triona
…” she mumbled, her eyes pleading with me. “Jonathan is here too—outside.”

As usual. Jonathan was here to pick her up. Apparently the fact she spent the last few hours drooling over Joshua Wallace had been erased from her memory. I continued to load the tray with the remnants of someone’s evening out.

“The usual then?” I asked casually, which was code for if her mom asked, I drove her home.

“You’re a pal.” She beamed and threw an arm around my shoulder to give me a grateful hug, then shot off back through the door.

I finished wiping the table down, balanced the tray in one hand, flicked off the light switch for the deck, and locked the door. The dining room was dark, the fading embers in the hearth casting shadows across the room. As I passed, the kitchen door swung open, and for a second the glaring light blinded me. Blinking, I tried to readjust. A dark-haired figure was standing at the door, his arm outstretched holding it open. Inexplicably, I felt my heart thud loudly in my chest and my knees wobble.

“Sorry, I didn’t think there was anyone left. Joshua didn’t say there was…”

The words rolled off his tongue like chocolate melting. The pale golden skin of his brow crinkled. “Are you okay?”

I could barely hear the concern in his voice over the deafening sound of my heart in my ears. “I’m—I’m fine,” I stuttered.

He let the door swing in behind him and approached me, placing one hand tentatively under my elbow. Instantly the hairs on my arm rose. His brow was creased, and he scrutinized my face with a peculiar look in his eyes. My stomach flipped. He looked so familiar to me, like remembering a dream, and I felt an impulse to run my fingertips over the golden skin of his cheek, which gleamed in the orange glow from the cinders.

“Are you sure? You seem totally unable to move,” he pointed out. His lip was twitching at the corner, threatening a grin.

“Oh,” I muttered, tearing my eyes away and immediately shifting my glance to the ground as the color burned in my cheeks. He was right; I was rigid. “Sorry.” I smiled, mortified, and made a conscious effort to relax my limbs.

“I’m Caleb.” He took his hand from my elbow and flashed a brilliant smile.

I had known who he was before he told me. I knew the new owner was here tonight, but it was more than that. I couldn’t explain it; though I’d never laid eyes on Caleb Wallace before, I recognized him instantly. I knew the contours of his face, the straight line of his jaw, the shallow dimple in his chin, the deep blue eyes that sparkled like sapphires, and I knew if I lifted my hand the way I wanted to and stroked his face, where his cleanly shaven skin should probably still feel rough, it would feel like softest velvet under my fingertips. My heart fluttered wildly, and I had to force myself to move to the door. Caleb followed.

“Leave that stuff on the counter; someone else can deal with it tomorrow,” he instructed. Was I imagining it or was his voice shaky?

“Okay,” I mumbled, avoiding his gaze. I was sure my cheeks were still flaming. “Thanks.” I walked through to the locker room, flashing my card at the door. Again he followed. What was wrong with this guy? Were we playing tag? I went to my locker and, keeping my back to the room, put one arm through a sleeve of my parka.

“You’re
Triona
, aren’t you?”

His warm breath grazed over my cheek, and I spun around to meet his eyes. They were the color of the ocean, deeper than the ocean and framed in long black lashes. His eyebrows came together.

“Are you sure you’re okay?” His smooth voice made my heart beat faster.

“Yes,” I choked out.

“It’s just you’ve stopped moving again.” He grinned but his eyes were still boring deep into mine.

“Damn,” I whispered under my breath. I turned my back and quickly pushed my other arm through the sleeve.

“Is that your car outside, the purple one?”

I turned again, and my heart jumped. He face was inches from mine, and I inhaled deeply. Caleb was so close I could smell his scent, woody and clean, the kind of smell you get after rain in springtime: sweet, and again, strangely familiar. My legs trembled. He looked at me curiously, and it was like a magnetic force was pulling me to him. An ache deep inside me made me want to bring my lips to his and hold him. I longed to be in his arms. I belonged there.

I shook my head. I was going to lose my job at this rate, since I couldn’t keep working here if I stopped in my tracks every time the boss looked at me. His lips pursed in confusion—he was staggeringly handsome. I couldn’t begin to contemplate how anyone would look at Joshua or Seth, gorgeous as they were, with Caleb around. He continued to stare into my eyes, and the magnetic force pulled us closer. My heartbeat grew even louder, and I hoped he couldn’t hear it.

“I’m fine, really,” I stammered.

“I didn’t ask you that.” His lips widened into a smile that reached his jewel eyes, shimmering at me.
Oh my
.

“What?” I asked, staring at him and feeling slightly dazed.

“I asked if that was your Marina outside,” he clarified, still smiling at me like we were old friends. I blinked several times, trying to focus. His hand lifted hesitantly, his fingers curved to the shape of my face and trembled a little. My breathing came in heavy gasps, and I flinched away. If Caleb touched me again, my heart would explode out of my chest and mess up all the renovations. He pulled back, and his expression changed, but I didn’t give myself a chance to consider it.

“Yes, yes. Sorry.” Shaking my head, I looked down to the floor. “Yeah, it’s mine. Hard to miss.” I tried to laugh at my own pathetic attempt at a joke, but it came out sounding kind of manic. I slipped out the narrow gap between Caleb and the lockers and moved toward the door.

“Nice car,” he called after me.

“Eh, thanks.” The cold air hit me at the door, cooling my burning face. Putting the key into the lock of my car, I realized my hand was shaking. It took three attempts to get the door open.

“I really don’t think you should be driving.”

Startled, I spun around, and the keys that were still in my hand ripped from the lock and hit Caleb full force in the chest. He didn’t appear to notice; his face still wore the same amazed and bewildered expression he’d had inside. He very likely thought I was insane.

“I’m sorry.” I shuddered with embarrassment, glad that at least it was dark here and he couldn’t see my flushed cheeks.

“I could give you a ride,” he offered, pointing over to another car. I was momentarily distracted to see a small silver Porsche parked behind us. Caleb’s voice rang in my head, so soft and strangely compelling, that I wanted to do whatever he told me to.

“Oh, no, that’s okay.” I smiled, and again it felt manic.

I managed to unlock the door and jump in, reaching out to pull it closed after me. Caleb’s hand held the frame, and it wouldn’t budge. He leaned in closer, his eyes fixed on mine for a moment as if he was waiting for something. He swallowed hard and then inhaled a long deep breath. The proximity of his face stunned me. He watched me again for what couldn’t have been more than seconds but felt like hours.

“It’s you,” he murmured barely audibly, almost like I wasn’t meant to hear. I didn’t understand.

“Unbelievably amazing.” My voice sounded strange and strangled. Panic gripped me. Did I just say that? Oh no. I was thinking it, but I didn’t mean to say it out loud.

He beamed a smile at me, his eyes crinkling at the corners. “You’re not too bad yourself,” he returned.