Significance (51 page)

“You’re pretty amazing,” I said softly.

“Hey, that’s my line,” he said grinning.

“I’m serious. Any other guy would be upset.”

“Any other guy,” he leaned close, “wouldn’t be in their girlfriend’s head.” He kissed me. “I have an advantage other guys don’t. Plus, the whole soul mate thing,” he said flippantly and waved his hand like it didn’t matter.

“Yeah, just that.” I grinned at him. “So, you never told me what your ability was.”

“Well,” he dragged out and looked at me a bit oddly.

I felt his amusement drain away, replaced with humiliation and unease that threaded through me and I felt like an idiot for not getting it sooner. He had been hiding it from me. He hadn’t received his ability yet, which was unheard of.

“Ah, Caleb.” I put my hand on his knee. “I’m sorry. I was so involved in my own drama I didn’t even care about yours. What does it mean? Maybe you just haven’t figured out what it is yet?”

“We always can sense our ability,” he explained. “Like you knew you could reach out to people to go into their minds even when they weren’t thinking something specific. You just know and I just...don’t.”

“What does it mean?” I asked again softly.

“It’s one more thing dad’s looking into. No one else knows but him. It’s never happened before. He’s freaking out a little bit.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be,” he crooned and put his hand on mine on his knee. “I’m not happy about it, but I’m happier that you have an awesome ability. Maybe you’ve got enough power for us both. I can practically read minds myself since I can read everything that comes through yours. Like with Chad just now, I saw everything you saw in his mind, through you. I saw it all just like it was my own thoughts. I felt them, through you.”

I nodded but didn’t like it. He was the Ace, I was some imposter. He’d waited his whole life for this, to ascend and get his ability and now I took it and he got nothing. I felt wretched.

“Don’t.” He pulled me under his arm. “I’m fine. Really. I mean...I’m not
fine
but I’ll worry about that later. One thing at a time, remember? Oh, and here’s your new cell.” He pulled a black square object with a touch screen out of his pocket. “It’s the same number as before, I just added you to my plan and I went ahead and programmed the numbers I knew you needed to be in there. You can do the rest later.”

“This is the new IPhone. I had a cheap Motorola.”

“I know but, you can check your email and use the internet on this too while we’re gone, keep in touch with your father better. See.” He showed me how to go to the web and smirked in smugness as I looked on in awe.

“You didn’t have to do this,” I protested softly. “I don’t want you spending so much money-.”

“Flight #197 to San Diego Airport, first class only is now boarding at gate #3B,” the loud speaker announced.

“That’s us,” Caleb said and jumped up.

“She said first class, Caleb.”

“Yep.”

“We’re riding first class?” I asked incredulously.

“Yeah. It’s a long flight. We’re gonna sleep most of the way, I wanted you to be comfortable.”

I stood and looked at the men in business suits with their rolling luggage heading to the too peppy attendant who checked their tickets and wished them a happy flight and wondered if I was ever going to get used to the idea that Caleb had loose pockets when it came to spending. He was the kind of guy that didn’t worry about money at all and I always had been responsible and cautious with mine. He was going to try to spoil me, I could see it now.

He laughed and kissed my forehead as he shouldered our bags.

“You bet you’re pretty tush I am.”

“Caleb, I am perfectly fine with riding coach. If that’s what it’s even called,” I muttered. “You don’t have to impress me, really.”
“This is not about impressing you. It’s about you being happy and comfortable. I have the money, you were right, money doesn’t matter to me. I’m not taking it for granted I just think that’s the point of having money to begin with, to live and to do things for the ones you love. Let me. It makes
me
happy.”

I groaned and knew I was going to get nowhere.

“Your dad doesn’t care that you’re spending all his money?” I said and knew I was reaching.

“No.” He handed our tickets to the attendant who smiled angelically at him and waved us on. “He doesn’t, especially if I’m spending it on you but I’m not spending his money right now. I’m spending mine.”

I balked.

“What? How do you have money for first class last minute tickets to California?”

We smiled at the stewardess as she directed us to our seats and he pushed me gently to the window seat with his hands on my hips. He sat down beside me and smirked at me.

“Believe it or not, my love, I am not the spoiled brat you have me pictured as in your mind.”

“I don’t think that-”

“I know,” he said laughing. “I started a tutoring service for middle school age kids. I always had the hardest time then and as you know, I love geometry so that’s what I started teaching. At first it was the community service thing, ya know, for college kids to put on apps for scholarships and stuff but it really took off and soon I had a company want to partner with me to offer an affordable statewide service that works out of community buildings to keep cost down. So the parents can spend practically lunch money on a tutor for their kid, college students who tutor make book money and application credit and I have a little spending money for my girl.” He kissed my cheek and smiled. “I just don’t ever tell anyone about that, it makes me look all geeked out.”

Holy crap. How did I not know about this? He was a saint, an angel. I did that girly little sighing thing you do when you can’t handle all the sweetness anymore and bit my lip. The corners of his mouth lifted slightly and he rubbed his chin bashfully.

“It’s nothing,” he assured me.

“It’s not nothing. Here I was, running you down the river because of you spending your dad’s money and you’re like the sweetest guy ever.”

“Geek,” he said and raised his hand like he was claiming the title.

“Not geek. Sweet. And hot,” I whispered and bit my lip again.

“Really?” he said hopefully and leaned closer. “Well, I also give them apples to snack on.”

I laughed and received an amused knowing look from the stewardess as she asked if we wanted a drink. Caleb ordered us something and then turned back to me.

“How did I not know this?” I said once she was gone. “I have got to stop worrying so much and start digging around in your brain like you do mine.”

“Maybe we should wait until we get to the house,” he said quickly.

“Why?” I asked, perplexed.

“Well...” His mind was filled with possibilities. He was excited about it but cautious. “I told you before how you’d like it, to be in each other’s minds, right?”

“Uhuh.”

“Well, you will like it, a lot. That’s why I haven’t really showed you how to do it yet. Once you get started looking into someone’s mind and you’re completely into you too, it’s very...intense.”

“But we’ve done that before haven’t we? And you’ve been digging in mine apparently.”

“Yes, I have but it’s one sided. Before, that was peanuts compared to what we can do now. See, when we do it together, on purpose, with intention, your kind of consume the other person.” He looked amusedly entertained and his cheeks seemed to pink a little. I tried to look into his mind to see why but he was holding back. He wanted to explain without me seeing first and not rush me. “It’s like nothing you’ve ever felt or done, even with me, even imprinting. It’s amazing, from what I hear.”

“What you hear?”

“My dad. He explained it to me. We got this talk along with the birds and bees talk.”

“What do you mean?” I said in complete misunderstanding.

“You see-” he started and then switched to speaking in my mind.
It can be kind of like...sex.

I felt my eyebrows raise and I stared at him. He stared back with a little smile.

I don’t understand. We’re just reading each other’s thoughts right?

No, I told you it’s different. It’s like we can feel each other, though we’re not touching. You can feel every emotion, every feeling of the other person all over you. It’s all consuming and intense and can be very...sexual. It’s Ace non-sex. They call it mutuality.

But Gran said that Ace’s get pregnant the human way, so you have regular sex, right?

We do, after the wedding, but mutuality is different, we don’t need to wait.

After the wedding?

Yeah. We wait til our wedding to...consummate.
He had a little grin.
Just like you want to
. My mouth opened for a second before I remembered that I don’t have to tell him things anymore.
But remember that most people only wait a couple weeks to get married, it’s not that big of a stretch.

But you do both...sex and mutuality once you’re married?

Yes and when you do them together...it’s supposed to be insane. Like uncontrollable, really powerful...pleasure.

I was blushing just talking about it, let alone doing it.

I’m not pressuring you.
He smiled and ran a finger over the length of my jaw and chin.
I’m just letting you know that if we get all entangled in each other’s minds, our bodies will go that direction. It’s instinct. It’s not sex, it’s all in the mind but it’s definitely sexual. And I was just joking about waiting until we get to the house, we’ll wait as long as you need to, no rushing.

He smiled reassuringly but I’d already seen in his mind how excited he was about it. It’s one of those things you have to wait until you’re ascended to do, like a lot of other things. He asked his dad about it since we had imprinted. He knew real sex was out of the question for a long while and I was grateful for that but he was very intrigued and interested in the other, the mutuality.

You don’t want to wait...to do that?
I asked.

He smiled and rubbed the back of his neck. I could feel his embarrassment and caution. No. He didn’t need nor want to wait but he did and would if I wanted to.

Baby, listen.
Even though the fasten seat belt sign came on he leaned over in his seat towards me and put his head to mine.
I did used to think that all this was a sham, that everything my parents used to talk about was over exaggerated and more about personal perception than facts. Then it happened to me- you happened to me, and even though I used to act all aloof about it, I had waited for that day my entire life. When it happens to other Aces, they jump right in to being together and starting their lives. It’s instinct, I know you feel it too. But...with us being so young, especially you -
He continued quick when I mentally rolled my eyes -
we need to keep it toned down and not just jump in all at once, like our bodies want us to. But. I have wanted everything there is, all of you, all of us, since that first second. It’s drilled in my bones from the imprint to... I don’t want to scare you.

He shook his head and started to move back but I stopped his by grabbing his shirt sleeve.
“You’d never hurt me, I know that. I’m not scared of you or anything you have to say. Tell me,” I pleaded and he sighed and then continued.

It’s rooted in my blood to consume you and be consumed by you. To protect you. To please you, in every way.
His fingers raked through my hair.
To make you shiver when I touch you.
And to his enjoyment, I shook with goose bumps. He smiled and skimmed his fingers down my arm.
To cause your heart to beat faster.
He tapped his finger over my heart as he’d done once before and it didn’t make me calm down any more than it had before.
To make you happy
,
to do anything and everything with you, to date you, spoil you, love you...marry you. So yes, I want to make love to you. I want to mutualize with you. I want to live with you. I want to marry you and have kids with you. But not today. Not right this second. We have all the time in the world, Maggie. I told you in the very beginning that I’ll let you set the pace and that still stands. I’m ready for anything, whenever you are but I’m not pushing you, ok? I’ve waited this long for you and I’m happy.
He kissed my stunned lips softly as I fought to keep my composure and breaths even.
I’m happy, just like this, for now.

I had no idea what to say to him after that. My chest was too shallow and my eyes were brimmed with tears, but I wasn’t sure what they were for, happiness, gratefulness or fright. My vision was spotty and blurry and Caleb’s breath blowing in my face wasn’t helping anything. He smiled cockily and brushed my bottom lip with his thumb.

“Breathe, Maggie.”

I took a deep breath and felt more clear just as the captain came over the intercom and instructed us we were about to take off. I felt the floor and seat vibrate and shake beneath me. I gripped his hand on the armrest between us and gasped at the jolt as the engines fired.