“You smell like sweet pears and cinnamon,” he whispered. “The last time you smelled like this you left me at the laundromat waiting for a burger.”
My insides froze and my mind told me to push him away. My arms rose to his chest, but not fast enough. Not before he did the unexpected. His tongue darted out, and he lightly licked the edge of my ear. I went stupid. Forgot how to talk. Forgot how to move. I forgot how to breathe. Darn the man.
“Are you running again, Bethi?”
I struggled to gather my wits. His questioning, boyish look helped bring back a little clarity. He’s scared, I realized. “I will come back here when I’m done,” I managed to say. My internal self was chanting “More kisses, more kisses!” at the top of its lungs so I couldn’t be sure my words came out coherently.
Luke stepped back, his uncertainty clear on his face. “Watch her closely, Winifred. She’s up to something.”
“Of course I am,” I said indignantly. “I already said that.”
His lips twitched and a full smile lit his face. It melted my insides, which made me nervous. He might not forgive me for this.
Containing my doubts, I left the apartment. Nana followed me quietly.
We let ourselves into the padded room, once again stopping conversation.
“Is everything all right?” Sam asked Nana.
She held out a chair for me. “Bethi, sit. You’re looking pale again.” She turned to Sam. “I’ll let Bethi explain.”
Clever Nana.
I gave her my best wobbly smile. It wasn’t hard. All I had to do was think of Luke’s reaction if my plan actually worked.
“Okay,” I said with a deep breath. “Like I said, Luke found me a couple of weeks ago. I’d run away from home because of those dreams I mentioned.” I met everyone’s eyes briefly. Elder Joshua nodded for me to continue, so I guessed the Elders had recapped my last conversation for him. “Anyway, I wanted to run away from Luke, too, after he showed me what he was, but the dreams weren’t so bad with Luke around. And he kept me safe, you know?”
They all watched me, waiting for me to get to the point.
“But he only makes the dreams better when he’s next to me. And he keeps leaving,” I said with true annoyance. I took another deep breath, carefully planning my words as I flattened my palms on the table. “I don’t want these dreams anymore. I don’t care about puzzles or their stupid pieces. They don’t make any sense and they’re scary. Terrifying. I think it would help me if I Claimed someone.”
I uncurled my fingers with effort. The subject annoyed me to the point that I’d fisted my hands.
“I asked Luke, but he told me I was too young. I almost had Paul convinced to let me Claim him, but Luke showed up and scared him away.”
Grey gave me an indulgent smile as if to say “of course, he would scare the boy away.”
“If Luke won’t Claim me, I’m asking for your help to find me someone who will and to keep Luke out of it.” Because I don’t want him hurt, I silently added.
No one made a sound. Nana kept her face perfectly straight, but I could still see her surprise. In fact, all of their faces registered different states of shock. Joshua’s also held a note of thoughtful concern.
“Does Luke know you’ve come to us?” he asked.
“Luke knows I’m talking to you guys, but I didn’t exactly tell him why.”
“I thought you wanted us to help you figure these dreams out,” Sam said, finally finding his voice.
“No, I wanted to know why I was having them. After this last one, I don’t care anymore. I just want them to stop. Will you help me?” I looked around the table and didn’t see much approval. Nana looked like she was having an internal struggle. No doubt she was regretting her promise to support me. “Please.”
Nana sighed. “If Luke is denying your Claim, you have a right to request Introductions.” She didn’t sound happy about it, but she was going along with it.
Silence wrapped around the occupants of the room. I waited, keeping calm, meeting everyone’s eyes. I could see the discomfort growing in Grey. Sam looked seriously troubled. Nana looked just a tad angry. I couldn’t blame her. She probably felt betrayed on Luke’s behalf. Joshua though, kept his eyes on the table, deep in thought.
Finally, he broke the silence. “We should consider this carefully before we move forward with anything.”
Good.
“If he is waiting for her to mature,” he glanced at me and gave me an apologetic smile, “then it is possible he will challenge whomever she Claims. We don’t want to be reduced to chaos when there are so many other elements concerning us.”
