Amy Whitehouse lived on the shady side of town, not far from the building where I’d been mugged. Memories of that night and the fact that it brought Killian into my life rambled through my head as I read off the address to Nora.
“Isn’t this the area where you were attacked?” she asked as she slowed the car down to a crawl and leaned close to the steering wheel while studying the street numbers.
“We passed it a few blocks back,” I replied.
She glanced at me through the corner of her eye. “It seems so long ago and, in retrospect, not all that big a deal in comparison to everything else that’s happened.”
“Yes,” I said with a nod.
As if suddenly realizing what she’d said, Nora’s eyes went wide. “I didn’t mean that it was trivial. Being mugged and left for dead is not trivial. Nor is what Jason did to you while you were in the hospital. I just mean that…”
I quickly waived my hand in dismissal. “I know what you meant and I completely agree.” Heaving a huge sigh, I added, “Life has changed so drastically since meeting Lance.”
She took her eyes off the road and gave me an odd look. “Do you blame him for what’s happened?”
The sound of a horn honking a warning brought her attention back to the task of driving. She’d allowed the car to wander dangerously close to the opposite lane. The startling warning caused her to quickly pull it back where it belonged.
“Be careful, Nora. Pay attention to the road,” I scolded.
Ignoring my rebuke, she focused on driving, but asked me once more. “Do you? Do you really blame him?”
I shrugged. “I don’t know who to blame or if anyone at all should be blamed. I’m just pointing out that, since I was introduced to the world of magic and the supernatural by Lance, my life has not been the same.”
She nodded, “Nor has mine.” After a moment of silence, she added, “It hasn’t all been bad though…”
I vigorously shook my head. “No, it hasn’t. Simply different. In some ways it’s been spectacular, but, in many ways, more difficult.”
Nora grinned as she turned the car onto a side street. “I would have given anything to have a rich, handsome, and sexy soulmate search for me and take me back in time to marry him like Lance did with you. It’s so romantic. Not to mention that you got to experience, firsthand, life back then. What a phenomenal opportunity.”
I leaned against the window as the memories of my time spent back then floated through my head. “Other than the fact that Lilith tried to kill me and Jason impersonated Lance in my bed, it was a wonderful experience. Plus, I met my true parents.”
“Don’t forget your sexy cousin, Anton,” she giggled.
“Him too,” I chuckled.
She gave a wistful sigh. “So much romance…”
“Mixed in with peril and drama,” I sternly offered.
“You need to try to see the glass half full, my negative friend,” she said with a scowl. “You’re too young to have such an attitude. Young people are supposed to be resilient.”
I studied her for a moment before saying, “You certainly seem to have bounced back from your ordeal.”
“Better than you,” she said with a nod. “Although, I think that more happened with you or to you than you’re telling me. I don’t believe it was just about opening and closing portals for that devil.” Then, pointing to a small bungalow she eagerly said, “We’re here.”
Since I had no desire or intention of admitting my sex fest with Jason to anyone, I was grateful for the reprieve from our conversation as she pulled the car onto the short, narrow driveway that looked like it had once possessed a thick layer of gravel but was now mainly dirt with tufts of grass dispersed sporadically throughout it. It didn’t matter that I wasn’t really a willing partner. I knew in my heart of hearts that I could have and should have done something to stop him from using me in such a way. The fact of the matter was that I thought I’d been cheated by Lance and I’d lost all desire for life. When Jason informed me that Marduke had basically given me to him as a sexual plaything for some type of recompense as long as he didn’t syphon my shine, I simply gave up. Had I not been on a mission to save Nora, I probably would have laid down and died.
I didn’t want to admit that to Nora who I knew would ignore the fact that I didn’t resist like I should have and would have taken it upon herself to feel guilty that I’d submitted all of that time while I looked for a way to rescue her.
We sat in silent thought while we studied the small house’s weather battered exterior. Sadly in need of paint and new gutters, it was clear that the resident was not affluent.
I peered inside the thin folder that Nora had presented to me after I’d entered the vehicle while I mentally questioned if the woman could afford our fees.
“What is the case again?” I muttered as I focused on the information in the file.
Nora chuckled with disbelief as she asked, “Are you so eager to get back to work that you took a case without finding out what it was?”
“We haven’t actually taken the case,” I said with a hint of defensiveness. “Besides, I figured that it was something we dealt with.” I gave a sheepish grin. “It’s probably paranormal.”
She nodded. “I think it is.”
“You don’t know either?” I gasped with amused disbelief. If Nora was anything, she was thorough. For her not to know the facts of a case before taking it was very unusual. I don’t know why, but I found it to be a bit humorous. “You’re the one who collected the information when she called. That’s not like you.”
“The client is being harassed at night by something, but she isn’t sure if it is a person or a thing. She’s called the police with no luck so she turned to us,” my friend and business partner patiently explained.
“So, it’s paranormal,” I sighed.
“Possibly,” Nora mused. “There is the fact that she recently broke up with a longtime boyfriend who sounds like a scumbag. He wants to come back, but she’s come to her senses. It could be him harassing her out of spite.”
“That would be nice,” I said with a wistful smile.
“Essa!” she blurted before giggling.
I shrugged. “It would just be nice to have it be a simple case of ex harassing ex. That’s all. I’ve had enough of the abnormal.”
“An ex harassing an ex is normal?” she asked with a chuckle of disbelief.
“You know what I mean,” I said as I opened the door to get out. “Let’s go. I see a woman peeking out of the window. We’re probably creeping her out by sitting in the driveway like this.”
The front door flew open before either Nora or I had an opportunity to knock on it. A petite, slight blonde with captivating, rich blue-green eyes that watered just enough to remind me of the ocean greeted us with nervous warmth.It wasn’t until she’d invited us into her home that I realized that her vision was impaired. She informed us that she could see shapes and colors, but not much in the line of details. This made her legally blind. It was because of this affliction that she was unable to determine exactly what was happening in her home and why she needed our help.“I can clearly smell him even if I can’t clearly see him,” she explained as she served us tea with such ease and expertise that we were hard pressed to remember her vision impairment. “When he gets close enough to touch and I reach out, there’s nothing there. It’s so frustrating. If he were a technolog
“What do you think?” Nora asked as she slowly backed the car out of the driveway. “Normal or paranormal?”“I hope it’s normal,” I huffed as I adjusted my seat belt, “but, with my luck, it will be paranormal.”“We really need to work on your attitude lately,” she scoffed.I shrugged. She was right. I’d been incredibly moody and negative since we’d escaped through the portal and returned home. It was more than the mess with Lance and Killian. I knew that, but I just couldn’t pinpoint what it was.Staring out the window at the row of shabby and ill-kept homes, I went over my life in my mind. My childhood was something that I considered normal. I had no recollection of being taken from my birth parents and transported into the future to my new parents. College was so normal as to be considered dull. The fact that my life wa
Making love with Lance never ceased to be a special and exciting experience. Just the mere touch of his hand would send tiny electrical currents through my body that extended far beyond my erogenous zones.Like a typical male, he’d always fall asleep almost immediately afterwards. I didn’t hold it against him. I had the idea to research why men did this years ago when I got offended by my partner continually falling asleep right after sex. I learned that men release a cocktail of brain chemicals, including norepinephrine, serotonin, oxytocin, vasopressin, nitric oxide, and the hormone prolactin during their orgasm that makes them tired and sleepy. I wasn’t able to find research stating that women released the same type of cocktail, so I forgave the opposite sex for what appeared to be a lack of romance long ago.I listened to his steady breathing as I lay next to him. Peering through the darkness, I focu
It wasn’t until I felt the thick carpeting of the first step beneath my bare foot that I realized how profoundly affected I was by the news that Lance intended to take me back to his time. My legs trembled like they were made of rubber and my knees threatened to buckle beneath my weight. Worried that they wouldn’t hold me, I held tight to the railing and pulled myself up. First one step and then another. Looking up at the steep and seemingly never-ending climb awaiting me, it felt like a daunting task.I instantly regretted getting out of bed to investigate what was happening downstairs.“You’re pretty affected by this news, my sweetheart,” Killian whispered as he swept me into his arms.I rested my forehead against his shoulder and wrapped my arms around his neck as I weakly protested, “Put me down.”“I will just as soon as we reach the top of the stairs,” he replied.
“Bloody hell, what am I seeing?” Anton bellowed.“You know what you’re seeing,” Nora snapped over her shoulder while glowering at me.It was at that moment that I fully understood the term, ‘If looks could kill.” My dear friend was clearly furious with me.I let out a small squeak while pushing at Killian’s chest. If he was aware of the commotion about him, he made no indication of it while he continued to seek his second climax. He must have been on the verge of it when Nora opened the door because after just a few more thrusts I could feel his release inside of me.Shuddering with orgasmic satisfaction, his body collapsed against mine and I pushed all the harder.“Killian,” I said in a harsh tone that was still kept low to avoid waking Lance while I aggressively slapped his shoulder. “Get off me, now.”Eyes that always reminded me of a cle
“What about Amy Whitehall?” I asked as I slathered butter onto my toasted blueberry bagel. “We accepted her case.”“You’re more worried about her than you are your parents?” Nora said with surprise.I shook my head. “It’s just that I plan on coming back and I don’t want our reputation tarnished because we didn’t work a case that we’d contracted for.”“I’ll work your case for you if it means you’ll come back,” Killian said as he entered the room. Sauntering over to the coffee pot, he grabbed a nearby mug from the mug tree and filled it with the rich, black liquid. Grabbing the free half of my buttered bagel before I could slap his hand away, he took a quick bite.With his mouth full of my coveted bagel, he asked, “Is the case normal or paranormal?”“We don’t know yet,” Nora offered. &
It was almost noon before we ceased making plans for our return to the past. Lance was far more understanding about my desire to maintain a good relationship and reputation with my clients than Nora had been. So much so that he offered to wait for us to return to the past until I’d solved the case. When Anton entered the room and explained to him the entirety of Jason’s evil doings, he quickly changed his mind.“You beat me to telling him,” I said with a nervous chuckle once he and Anton finished their conversation.It was the truth. I’d intended on informing Lance of Jason’s nasty doings myself. In fact, I was just formulating my explanation as to why we needed to go back right away and I’d have Killian act in my stead where Amy Whitehouse was concerned when my cousin of old entered the room.I don’t mind saying that I was filled with relief over being spared discussing Jason wi
Nora and Killian sat, side-by-side on the ugly yellow sofa in the servant’s quarters as Lance, Anton, and I clustered together in the foyer at the foot of the grand staircase.“Is this enough to keep us out of the way?” Nora asked.“You should be good,” Lance said with confidence. “Although I cannot guarantee you will appreciate what you see.”“I found it fascinating the last time,” she replied.“And… how did you say it? Creepy,” he said. “This could prove to be even more creepy to you.”She turned to Killian. “Have you seen something like this before?”He nodded. “Not in a long time, but I have.”“Is it creepy?” she timidly asked.He shrugged. “I didn’t think so. It really depends on the mindset of the person.”After a moment’s thought, she took a