Total pages in book: 92
Estimated words: 85616 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 428(@200wpm)___ 342(@250wpm)___ 285(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 85616 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 428(@200wpm)___ 342(@250wpm)___ 285(@300wpm)
“Has there ever been, like, a mistake? Can fate make mistakes?” I tried to make my question sound as innocent and benign as possible.
“No, never in recorded history. Soulmates are bonded at the moment their atoms are formed. A universal law written into the code of their being. Sometimes these souls don’t meet for multiple lifetimes, but there’s always a pull, a magnetic draw as strong as the poles on this earth. Then, when they meet, the connection should be obvious to the both of them. Does that help?”
“Um, yup, that’s helpful, thanks.”
Miles gave me a weird look before turning his attention back to Hunter. “It’s safe to leave, right?” He pointed toward the door. The vines hung ominously, framed by thin red curtains fluttering in the wind.
“Oh yes. They won’t react anymore, I’ve called them off.”
“Okay, cool.”
We still exited with a bit of caution. I couldn’t help but feel a swell of anxiety as we crossed underneath the motionless vines. They seemed so harmless now that they weren’t trying to kill Miles. I glanced over my shoulder as we reached the car. If they attacked this time, then I’d be ready.
They didn’t move. We got into the car and sat for a moment, decompressing in silence.
I was the one to break it. “So, you said you had a massage table at your place?”
Chapter Sixteen
Define “Crazy”
MILES
“So you said you had a massage table at your house?”
The suddenness of his question and the absurdity of this whole day blended together and sent me into a laughing fit. It felt good, stretching and using my muscles that had been starved of oxygen a little less than an hour ago. Dyl joined in on the laughing. The sound of his joy was infectious and likely bolstered by the fact that we both left that druid’s home alive.
I was definitely relieved by that, at least.
“Yes, yes, I do.”
“Okay, good.”
“You need a massage?”
Dylan shook his head. “No, actually I think you need the massage. I’m no professional but I think I can work out whatever knots you’ve got going on after that mess.” He gave me a sideways, apologetic glance. “I’m sorry about that, by the way. Maybe we should have called ahead…”
“Don’t stress about it. Even if we called ahead, those watcher vines would have still reacted.” That led me to another, deeply troubling thought. “Reacted to what, I don’t know.”
“Do you think it could really have to do with black magic?”
“It sounded like he was pretty sure of it. If so, I have no idea what happened or how it happened. I don’t really know much about black magic but I can’t imagine anyone close to me in my life practicing it, especially not against me.” I went through a mental Rolodex of connections and friendships in my life. Could it have been a previous coworker? A physical therapist I worked with that had seemed overly friendly with me at times? Maybe it was one of the guys I worked with on my previous team? Could it have been someone even closer? It set a wave of tingling sensations crawling down from my neck to my spine. I didn’t open up to a lot of people and kept my inner circle tight throughout my life. The closest person to me had to be Emmy, and I was certain he had nothing to do with this. There were Veronica and Martin, two good friends I had left behind in Philly and the only other people I had told about my move to Burlington. But they were not only incredibly trustworthy, they were also happily married with a kid on the way.
I started up the car and pulled out of the long driveway. The vines dangling off the porch took on a much more ominous appearance than they had when we first arrived. The radio turned on but Dyl lowered the volume. “Let’s see what Hunter can find out. And in the meantime—after your massage—maybe we can do some searching of our own. There’s got to be something we can figure out.”
I shook my head and tightened my grip around the steering wheel. Even though I was the one who almost died, I still couldn’t deny a powerful protective flare that whipped up inside me. “I really don’t want you getting dragged into this any further. I need you to promise me that you’ll let me handle this.”
There was a moment of heavy silence before Dylan said one simple word. “No.” He took a breath and continued. “I can’t promise you that, Miles. I’m not someone who just sits by on the sidelines when someone I know needs help. I also may not be the sharpest tool in the garage but sometimes I surprise even myself. I want to help.”
I smiled at that. His word-swap with garage and shed was endearing. And so was the way he looked over at me, his brow arched expectantly. I found myself suddenly wanting to lean in and kiss the birthmark. I’d let my lips linger on every part of him that was special—which would be everything from the bottom of his feet to the top of his head.