14. Caleb

FOURTEEN

Caleb

Josie’s parents were like bloodhounds on a hot trail. Everything I said, they questioned, and both of their auras screamed distrust. It was a bit insulting, really, given I had actually dated Josie in the past and had feelings for her now. Granted, not ones I could act on, but they were real. I couldn’t pin down why they were so sure we weren’t a real couple.

It wasn’t until they were dragging me across a damp lawn and accusing her of bringing a fake date that I realized how acutely they didn’t believe us. Her panic was so thick in the air, I could practically taste it.

“He’s… he’s…”

In that moment, watching Josie splutter, I knew exactly what I had to do. Call it angelic powers, call it intuition, call it basic male instinct. They were all in alignment, and I couldn’t let her finish the damning sentence.

I crossed the distance separating us in two long strides, sank my hands into her artfully-pinned curls, and slanted my lips across hers. Her eyes fluttered shut as electricity billowed out from the touch, lighting every sense I had on fire. How could I need her this badly and not be meant to have her?

There it was again, that phantom ache in the wings I no longer had.

She was everything perfect, and I was instantly addicted like it was the first time. To her touch, taste, scent. I tilted her chin up with my hands and her lips parted, our tongues tangling in a timeless dance, right there on the lawn in front of the heavens and her entire family.

But even knowing what she did now, she didn’t pull away, didn’t shy back. Instead, she looped her arms around my neck, her fingers teasing the short hair at my nape, and I had to bite back a low moan at the delicious sensations that sparked through me. It was like every cell in my body sang, and if I’d had any doubts about why I’d thought she was my Chosen, they dissipated like the morning dew.

The sudden flare of heat between us turned achingly tender, as I felt the buffeting shock of all those watching, their auras mingling in a distracting cloud around us. The kiss softened, our movements slowing, and finished with me planting a gentle kiss at the corner of her now-puffy lips. I dropped my forehead to hers, hesitant as I met her eyes. They were wide, but I didn’t sense a hint of regret in them.

Until her mother spluttered in shock, barely a foot away. Josie winced, and I let my hands trace down her neck lightly to her shoulders, then pulled her tightly into my side. I wasn’t throwing her to these wolves, even if they were related.

“Well, hot dog. I’d say we’ve got a live one!” Nana Geraldine whooped with glee and started tapping her spoon on the side of her champagne glass a little harder than was truly necessary. Josie tried to burrow into my side as the crowd of family and friends grew silent, and for a moment, it was as if they were all holding their breath.

“Here, here! For Josie and her hot-to-trot fella!” Nana Geraldine shouted.

A raucous cheer went up from every corner of the lawn, and Josie buried her face in my shoulder. I cupped the back of her head, suddenly questioning my choices.

The distrust had fled from her parents’ auras, though, with their signatures now reading sour but curious rather than accusatory. It was a baby step in the right direction.

Lena rushed up to Josie’s side and latched on to her other arm. “Come on, we’re taking a cousins photo down by the fountain. You’ll have to be parted from your lover boy for just a minute or two.”

Her father huffed his disgust at me being called his daughter’s lover boy and walked off, dragging Josie’s mother along with him. Nana Geraldine just laughed and went back to chatting with nearby birthday well-wishers.

“Will you be okay here for a minute?” Josie asked, turning to me with a gorgeous flush in her cheeks.

“Absolutely.” I trailed a fingertip lightly over her rosy cheekbone and gave her a reassuring smile. I loved seeing her flush with need. That was something I’d never question.

“I’ll be right back.”

“I mean, it might take two minutes,” Lena mused as she dragged her away. Josie cast me a last, worried look, but her cousin was relentless, and in a few seconds, she was swallowed up by the crowd of partygoers.

I was still following her signature down the hill when Nana Geraldine appeared back at my side, her face serious.

“You and I need to talk. Come with me.” She spun on her heel and marched toward the house with the stately vigor of a war general. Damn respectable for a hundred years old.

Once we were inside, she pulled me into a quiet alcove—or was it a laundry room?

“Don’t go snooping in here. I don’t need a handsome young thing like you seeing my dowdy old unmentionables!” she chided but didn’t look in the least shy about her unmentionables.

I definitely stopped looking around, though. There were things I couldn’t unsee .

“Now, I’ve asked you here because I sense there’s something more about you. Am I right?”

I scuffed my palm over the back of my neck, unsure what to say. She was a hundred and lively, but if I gave her too much of a shock… Better to stick to the safe side.

“Well, I?—”

“Ah-ha! I can smell a lie brewing. I’ve lived a long time, and you’re not my first run-in with the paranormal, boy, so don’t try it.” She leveled a pointed gaze down her nose at me, which was incredible because I was at least a foot taller than her.

“The only thing that matters to me is this—does Josie know what you are?”

“Yes, she does.”

She nodded her approval at my answer.

“And are you serious about my great-granddaughter? Or is this a passing fling? She’s been hurt before, and I don’t care what kind of myth in a scrumptious package you are, if you plan to hurt her, I’ll toss you out on your ear, God as my witness.”

Somehow, I doubted even God would mess with Nana Geraldine. Especially not if she called him scrumptious. I felt dirty.

“I have no intentions of hurting her, ma’am.” I made that mistake once already, and I swore to myself that I wouldn’t repeat it. Even if I was going to be waking up in twisted sheets, thinking about that kiss and how her lips tasted every night for the next month.

“Excellent. She could use somebody like you. I think you’ll be good for her.” She patted me lightly on the chest, as if I were a puppy or a kitten and not an angel with the power to flatten everything within a hundred-yard radius with a snap.

But how could I explain to Nana that this was all just an agreement, a deal Josie and I made since we couldn’t be what we were before?

“Nana! Are you in here? It’s time to cut the cake.”

“Duty calls, young man.” She paused, one foot through the arched doorway. “You do right by my great-granddaughter, or me and the dancercise posse will swoop down into that big city and show you what for.”

“Yes, ma’am. Oh, wait! I have something for you.”

I reached into my jacket pocket and held out the bow-adorned package. It was a set of watercolor paints, made by a master artist in Italy. I’d come up with the idea while working on Josie’s gift, though I hadn’t found the right moment to give it to her yet. The delicate first edition warmed my breast pocket, safe and sound until I could slip it into Josie’s hands.

“Oh, these look lovely. Won’t you blow on them?” It was an odd request but easy enough for me to fulfill. “Thank you, dear. I always did appreciate a bit of heavenly good luck.” She patted me again with a twinkle in her eyes and then zipped off with surprising speed for someone her age.

“Caleb? What are you doing in my nana’s laundry room?” Josie peeked her head through the door, looking at me quizzically .

“Your nana wanted a private chat. She sensed that something was up with that kiss.”

“Ah. And I suspect she saw your”—she waved her hand up in a spiral—”magical fix-er-oo on the champagne glasses. She’s sharp, and she wouldn’t let something like that just go by without a question.”

“Does it make you uncomfortable when I… fix-er-oo things? Or rather, your family members?” I tried hard not to laugh at the term, but I was so relieved that she seemed to be coming to grips with who I was and what I could do, I didn’t dare do anything to jeopardize it.

“I’m getting used to it. It still knocks me back a step because it’s not something you see every day. But… look, Caleb, I’ve had time to get used to the idea that you’re not like the rest of us. I think so long as I know that you only use your powers to help … I’m okay with it. I trust you.” She furrowed her brow and looked away briefly, a sense of guilt rolling across her aura for reasons I couldn’t figure out.

I trust you. The words were sweet poison, yet I drank them down just the same, relishing the rush they gave me.

“I’m glad to hear it.” I took a step closer, letting my hand slip around her waist. We were alone for the first time since that kiss, and it was still fresh on my mind, despite it needing to be fake .

“Actually, there’s something I should probably tell you about the last few years—” The words died on her lips as I reached up and cupped her cheek, running my thumb lightly over her soft skin.

The back door burst open. Emily pushed through, juggling half a dozen tiny plates with brightly colored cake on them. “Josie! Need your help. So much cake, so little time. Also, you already got one hella-good kiss in tonight, so sneaking off to make out in the laundry room is really just rubbing it in.”

Josie jumped to help her cousin, taking half the plates and tossing a guilty look over her shoulder at me. “We were not making out.”

“Uh-huh. I’m not saying I blame you, because hello sailor .” Emily tossed a saucy wink at me, and Josie elbowed her in the side. “But seriously, there’s so much cake. We need your help.”

“I’ll help, too,” I offered, but put a hand on Josie’s arm to stall her. “We’ll be out in just a moment.”

“ Sure ,” Emily said with another wink before slipping back outside.

“What is it?” Josie asked.

“Just a little something I didn’t get a chance to give you before Fred interrupted us in your car.” I slipped the first English edition of Dante’s Paradiso out of my blazer pocket, nothing but a bright red ribbon for adornment, and pressed it into her hands.

“Oh.” She breathed the word so softly, it was barely audible. “This is… phenomenal. Where did you find this, Caleb?”

She slid the red ribbon off, carefully cracking the front cover so she could look at the copyright page.

“Italy, a private collector.”

“Eighteen-oh-two! This could be in a museum. It’s so beautiful.” She reverently closed the cover, letting her fingers lovingly dance over the stamped spine. “Thank you, Caleb. I’ll treasure it always.”

“I’m glad. A special book for a special woman.” I couldn’t resist. I let my finger trace the inside of her wrist. It was a selfish indulgence, but the more time we spent together, the more I needed to touch her. Everywhere. There was a flash of heat in her eyes that made me want to push her against the closed laundry room door, kiss her until her lips turned pink and swollen, and strip her right out of that skirt. We’d have to be quiet, with her whole family on the other side of the door, but I could swallow her screams with a kiss.

She tasted way better than cake frosting.

But we were here to do a job, and this was a fake date, I reminded myself with no joy whatsoever.

“We should get back out there and help Emily with the cake,” I said, the words full of quiet regret.

The last time we’d had cake together, she’d been telling me all those dirty memories. Memories about her coming on my fingers, about her screaming my name. At this rate, I was never going to be able to look at cake without thinking of Josie and getting hard again.

“Right! Oh, shoot. Can you keep this safe for me until we get back home?” She pressed the book carefully back into my hands. The heat of her touch was a brand, promising that however this ended, I’d always feel her soft fingertips.

She was everything soft and perfect and good in life, and my time with her was running out, faster and faster. One day soon, all I’d have left to hold on to would be the memories.

“Of course,” I murmured and then followed her back outside into the exuberance of the party, my devastating thoughts a cruel juxtaposition.

The rest of the night passed in an uneventful blur of smiling faces and raucous laughter. Nana Geraldine knew how to party, and I used the free-flowing champagne as cover to pull as many strings as I could, gently starting conversations and mending old fences, one by one. Now that I had her blessing, I didn’t hold back. It was small in the grand scheme of things, but it was a start toward healing in Josie’s family. By the end of the night, Josie was practically dead on her feet.

As we ambled to the door together, Fred stopped us.

“Wait up!”

We stopped and turned toward him. He ran a hand through his wind-swept hair, the flawless style from a few hours ago long gone. He opened his mouth, then closed it. The tension was already building between the two of them again, and I could sense he wanted to say something. So, I sent him a gentle suggestion to take the leap.

“I just wanted to say… I’m happy for you, about your shop. It seems to be the perfect thing for you.”

Josie’s mouth dropped open, and she cast a surprised glance at me, as if to say, are you hearing this ?

I gave her a soft smile and a pointed glance back at Fred, reminding her that she should say something.

“Uh, thank you. It’s a wonderful place. Especially if you like cats, and I know you do. I was serious, earlier. If you ever want to stop by…”

“I’m not in the city often, but maybe. I might even bring Mom and Dad along. Maybe one of these days, we’ll turn up and surprise you.”

“That would be great, Fred. Any time.”

They smiled at each other, the first genuine warmth I’d seen between the two of them all night.

“Great. You two drive safe.” He shoved his hands in his pockets and turned to leave but then stopped. “I’m really happy for you, sis.”

“Thanks, Fred. That means a lot.” She nodded and leaned heavily into my side as Fred continued to stroll back inside .

Josie trembled in my arms as we walked to the car. Today felt like so much more than just a party for family reconciliation, more even than a fake relationship to appease the parents. So much more than a deal between friends to help each other out.

I squeezed Josie tighter, and she squeezed me right back. There was something far too fulfilling, far too right about having her in my arms.