Chapter Three
He relaxed his grip, his thumb caressing back and forth. My skin tingled. I swallowed, his gaze never left mine. "We were just leaving," I heard myself say.
Beside me, Nick sighed in disappointment. "We're heading to my place."
Lee didn't look at Nick, he pulled me forward, closer to him. "Why don't we go with you? Or we can all go to my place." Somewhere behind his casual words, a threat lingered, not to me, but to anyone who would dare try and take me away from him.
In my mind, I heard his voice whisper, "I'm not letting you go." I'd heard of telepathy but never expected to experience it.
Nick placed his hand on Lee's arm. I glanced at Nick and knew without a doubt he was crushing hard. Nick tried to move between Lee and I but Lee pulled me to his side. I should have been scared but wasn't.
The five of us exited the diner. Reluctantly, I retrieved my hand. Confused why he'd held on for so long.
Night spread raven wings across the town. Street lights glowed grey, dimly burning matches in the heavy winter fog.
I'd never been alone with so many men before.
Lee and his friends wore long black trench coats. Something in the way the others fell behind him and bowed their heads gave the impression he was their leader.
I tried to fall to the very tail of the group, follow at a safe distance. Lee stopped, everyone stopped. I glanced at my feet, at everyone's feet looking for clues about what was going to happen.
"Why don't you walk with me?" Lee asked.
I was the embarrassment, the last one chosen, no one wanted to walk with me. This didn't make sense. I glanced at Lee. The crowd parted, waited. Lee stood like a commanding statue, snow fell on his shoulders, white melting into the black. Was he being genuine? Or was this a ploy to push me into an oncoming car? Maybe the rumors hadn't reached him. Maybe he didn't know.
I remembered the last time a guy from this dusty trailer park town pretended to like me. It had been a ruse to set me up. I wasn't going to fall for the same trick twice.
Lee held out his hand unmoving. His expression conveyed he was content to wait until morning for me to make up my mind.
Nick was less than thrilled. He'd been keen to glue himself to Lee since we left the diner.
Lee ignored him.
Taking a chance I stepped through the first gate of bodies expecting my arms to be seized. Nothing happened. I held my breath and stepped passed the next gauntlet of Nick. I paused waiting for the ax to fall at my back.
When Nick didn't say anything I took the last step to Lee's side and looked back. Heads were lowered, in deference to me or him, I didn't know. Lee dropped his hand to his pocket when I didn't immediately take it.
At his side, a sense of déjà vu gripped me, as though this life and another overlapped. Trees instead of buildings, a veil instead of a ponytail. It felt like something that had happened a hundred times, but would never happen again. Like rehearsing a play over and over then the performance is over and everything ends.
Headlights blinded me, bringing me back to this world instead of the other. The car grumbled past, shattering the night's reverence. I looked again at this stranger, something about him as familiar as myself.
There was no reason to trust him. No reason to think this wasn't a game. No reason, except I did. As we walked conversation came easily. Other than Lachelle, no one in this town ever seemed to understand me.
Too loquacious, too serious, too much of a dreamer, I was like a fish trying to swim in a sea of desert sand.
I studied his face and realized he fit the description Debbie gave as we sat in the alcove while music played, and we hid from the world. She thought sexy was a goatee, dark hair, light eyes, a long black trench coat and tats.
I suspected Lee had tats and wondered if my place in his life was merely to introduce them.
Nick called out from behind us, "Lee, have you seen Superstar?"
Lee barely glanced over his shoulder, "No." Then his intense focus returned.
I looked back wondering if I should again fall behind and let Nick take my place. Nick was reaching out to grab Lee's arm but one of Lee's friends stopped him. The guy acted like a henchman protecting his boss. On the guy's face was the warning 'You really don't want to do that.'
Nick's face twisted in confusion before his eyes went dead. He fell back, talking to Lee's friends who now seemed to be acting more like prison guards than civilians. Prison guards who made sure Lee and I had enough space to make it feel like we walked alone.
Nick's face reminded me I was taking something that didn't belong to me and I wondered how much worse this walk was going to make my life.
Several years ago I'd been stupid enough to think I could be friends with my next door neighbor, Cass. The day we planned to have lunch together she got locked in a classroom by the popular girls and several older guys jumped me taking me out back where they proceeded to beat me. I curled into a ball and let my back take most of the punishment.
It almost seemed planned that the bruises were hidden by my clothes.
Covertly, I glanced around and hurried my pace. There weren't a lot of cars but I could hear chatter up ahead at the gas station and it had the ring of high school rebelliousness.
"Why are you hurrying?" Lee asked keeping pace with me.
It took only a moment to think of a believable excuse. "I'm cold."
Lee placed his hand on my arm. "Want my jacket?"
It was freezing, there's no way I would do that. "Just my hands," I smiled, enjoying the rare moment of kindness.
Lee pulled one hand out of my jacket pocket and wrapped both of his around it. He took our hands to his mouth and blew hot air onto my chilled fingers. "Better?"
Forgetting how to speak, I nodded. He placed my hand in my pocket before doing the same to the other but this time he placed the entwined hands in his pocket.
His jacket hadn't looked warm but heat radiated from our entwined palms moving through me. Just this was enough for me. Tomorrow, whatever came, it would be worth it.
"Um, where are we going?" I asked. It didn't seem like a decision had been made.
Lee squeezed my hand. "Lady's choice."
I glanced at Nick hoping for guidance. He obviously liked Lee but Lee took no notice. Nick wasn't 'out' yet so that wasn't surprising.
Since Lee seemed to know Nick and I weren't together, I didn't know what to do. He was the most gorgeous specimen of human I'd ever laid eyes on and he saw me, something that hadn't occurred since it happened.
"Bad Seed," was the first theory. Then the cats died and "X-files" theories surfaced. First, it was I'd pushed her down the stairs with my mind. Next, I'd used a voodoo doll. Then, I'd sucked her soul from her body and she just fell down the stairs.
After that last one, I stopped paying attention. Sticks and stones may break bones, but words leave scars that no one can see.
Lee's eyes searched my face. "Something wrong?"
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