Eternal Starling (Emblem of Eternity Trilogy) (12 page)

“We’re having a picnic?” I asked.

“Looks that way,” he said, laying the food on the grass next to us. He handed me a sandwich, chips, and a drink.

I opened my can of soda and took a sip. “I have to admit, this is better than getting my butt kicked in pool.”

“You’re doing a lot better now than when you started,” Emil encouraged.

“Yeah, now I can usually get two balls in the pockets before you win.”

He laughed. “Well, at least people don’t duck for cover anymore every time they see you trying to hit a ball.”

I rolled my eyes. “Puh-lease, the ball only hit the tile floor once, all the others jumped off a couple of feet from the table onto the carpet.”

“Obviously, you haven’t noticed the people who deliberately move from the couches by the table whenever they see you playing,” he teased.

I shot him a playful glare. “It’s not my fault if the pool balls want to commit suicide,” I justified, taking a bite from my sandwich.

Emil laughed and we ate in silence, listening to the calming sound of the water as it rushed over rocks. When I finished eating, I took a deep breath and smiled. I felt carefree. Being with Emil made me happier than I’d been in weeks.

I slid my gaze to the side where I found Emil watching me, his eyes hooded, intense. Something fluttered in my stomach as thoughts of Emil raced through my mind and color rose in my cheeks. Emil inclined his head as if sensing my emotions, his blue-grey eyes darkening like storm clouds. He moved closer and pulled me to him until my back was leaning against his chest. His fingertips trailed over my palms and up and down my arms like the tip of a feather. My head rested against his shoulder as he brushed his lips over my cheek.

“There’s an old legend I’m fond of,” he said, his breath warm against my face. “In it, the world was created by Goddesses and their soul mates. The Goddesses were all powerful, and with their mates, they performed a ritual that created two souls—perfect matches for each other in every sense. These souls were called divine complements. But the souls needed to learn and grow, so instead of keeping the souls together, they were sent into the world, merging with the bodies of human babies about to be born. The souls spend their lives looking for their other half. When their human bodies die, their souls are reincarnated to continue the search. Déjà vu, or the instant connection people sometimes feel when meeting someone new is said to mean their souls knew each other in another life . . . and might even be that person’s soul mate.”

I sat for a moment thinking about the story and wondering why Emil would tell it to me. In the back of my mind, I thought it was a little strange Emil would bring up a story about soul mates when Alex had proclaimed he was mine a month ago. “It’s a beautiful concept,” I said finally, “But I’m not sure if I believe in stuff like that.” I turned my head slightly so I could see his face. “What do you think?” I asked, a teasing smile curving my lips. “Did we know each other in another life?”

He gave a faint smile. “I can guarantee it.”

I looked up at him, surprised by his seriousness. “Oh really?” I said, cocking an eyebrow coyly, “So what was I like, oh-expert-on-my-past-life?”

A smile touched his lips. As he thought, he seemed to be in another place. When he came out of his trance, he answered, “Similar to how you are now. Smart, funny, stunningly beautiful . . . and you were a horrible pool player then too.” He laughed as I punched him in the shoulder.

“Very funny,” I said.

“Your punches used to hurt less though.”

I fought the urge to stick my tongue out and tackled him instead, wrestling him to his back. It started with light-hearted tickling, but soon, our arms and legs were entwined tightly, Emil on top of me, his breath heavy on my neck. As our eyes met and held, the playfulness turned into something else entirely, something with a lot more heat. Emil leaned in, barely brushing his lips against my own he whispered, “We were good at this then too.”

As his soft lips met mine, my entire body felt molten—liquid and hot, moving seamlessly with his. He parted my lips with his tongue and deepened the kiss. One hand cupped my face as the other ran a line up and down the side of my body. My hands explored his back, stomach, and shoulders. As I came to his bicep, my fingers brushed over a bump that I’d never noticed before and Emil tensed on top of me. He broke away from the kiss and moved off of me. Clearly he wasn’t comfortable, and it had something to do with the bump I’d felt. I didn’t want to push him if he wasn’t ready to talk about it though, so instead, I waited. Though he’d moved away, he still held my hand in his and after several minutes of silence that I used to try and calm myself down, he finally said, “I’m sorry. I don’t mean to rush things.”

I rubbed his hand and met his eyes. “I wasn’t complaining.”

His lips curved. “No, I guess you weren’t.” He waited a few more minutes and took a cleansing breath. He changed the subject, unwilling to discuss the bump further. “We never decided when we’re going hiking.”

I nodded. “Yeah, we should do that soon. When do you want to go?”

“This week?” he asked.

“Sure,” I said, gathering my trash and putting it in the bag. “How about tomorrow?” Western State only schedules classes Monday through Thursday, so we have a three-day weekend every week.

“Sounds like a plan,” he said.

“I have some homework to get through tonight, so I should go.” I stood up and grabbed my bag. “But I’ll see you tomorrow morning around eight?”

He nodded. “I’ll pick you up at your house.”

I smiled and waved as I walked to my car. I realized that I thought of Alex much less often now that Emil was in my life. Alex had at least agreed to my wishes. I hadn’t heard from him since earlier in the week when he was jealously trying to convince me that Emil was dangerous.

There were still times though that something would remind me of Alex and I would be pulled unwillingly into a memory I wished I could repress. The thought of my upcoming hiking trip with Emil was one of those instances.

The relationship between Emil and I was so different than my relationship with Alex had been. Emil was mysterious and charming. When we touched, it ignited a different set of feelings than I’d ever had before. Kissing Emil was like having a close encounter with a lightning bolt—and I liked it.

When I got home, there was a message from Jasmine telling me to call my mom. Most of my recent communication with my parents had been by email, so I grabbed the phone and dialed the familiar Montana number. Mom picked up after three rings.

“Hi, Mom,” I greeted her when she answered.

“Evie!” she sounded excited. “Hold on, let me take care of this customer.” My parents own one of the gas stations in White Sulphur Springs. She came back on the line. “I’m so glad to hear from you. How’s everything going? How’s school?”

“It’s great,” I answered. “My classes don’t seem like they’ll be too difficult. How are you and Dad?”

“Good. Things are busy at the station. Your dad is getting the motorcycles ready for the sand dune trip. Let me know if you can come, we would love to have you there.”

“I’ll see how classes are going next week,” I said.

Mom went silent for a few seconds. I could guess what she was going to ask next. “How are things with Emil?” She seemed concerned. My mom had been incensed at Alex’s sudden break up. I had talked with her about Alex frequently when we were together, and my mom had been thrilled I was happy. When Alex and I broke up, I was confused and depressed. My mom threatened to come down and take care of me several times, but Jasmine was able to convince her I was fine. Needless to say, both my parents were upset with Alex for how he’d left me and were leery about Emil, but they were also glad I seemed to be moving on.

“Jasmine’s note said you needed to tell me something,” I led.

“Oh, well the nicest guy came into the station the other day looking for you.”

I had no idea who would be looking for me in White Sulphur Springs. “Who was it? Someone from high school?” I asked.

“No, not at all. He wasn’t from around here.”

“That’s strange,” I said. “What did he say?”

“He said he knew you from college. He said you’d mentioned where you grew up and that your parents owned a gas station there.” Now it was really getting odd. I rarely mentioned my hometown to people, let alone my parents’ occupation.

“Huh. I don’t remember telling anyone about that, but I meet a lot of people,” I rationalized. “Did he say what his name was?”

“Yes, he said it was Caleb.”

“He didn’t give a last name?” I was racking my mind trying to remember any Calebs I’d met at school. I couldn’t think of one.

“No, but he was very nice,” she said. “He had your dad fix a flat tire for him and asked me a bunch of questions about you while the tire was being worked on.”

An uncomfortable feeling started to build in the pit of my stomach. “What kind of questions?” I asked.

“He wondered if you were enjoying school. I told him you really liked Western State and how it was close to the mountains. He asked if you lived in the dorms. I said you lived with your friend in a house near campus. Things like that.”

The knot in my stomach was getting bigger. “He said he knew me from college?”

“Yes.”

If he knew me from school, he would already know the answers to most of the questions he’d asked my mom. “Did he say Western State specifically?”

My mom paused as she thought. “Well, no, I guess he didn’t. I assumed since he knew you and was talking about school . . .”

I didn’t know who Caleb was or why he was looking for me, but he had now met my parents, knew where their business was, could easily find their house, and knew more about me than I wished he did. Another problem with living in a small town: everyone thinks they can trust everyone else.

“Mom, if he comes back, you need to tell me right away,” my voice was tense. “And, don’t give him any more information about me, or you and Dad.”

Now my mom was concerned. “Why, Evie? What’s going on?”

“Nothing, it’s just a precaution,” I said. “I don’t know anyone named Caleb, and don’t remember mentioning so much about where I grew up to anyone. Plus, he never said he went to Western State. It seems shady to me.”

The other line was silent for a moment. “I’m so sorry, sweetheart! I didn’t even think about it. He seemed to know you so well!” Her voice was getting higher, which meant her anxiety level was surging. “Should I call the police chief and let him know what’s going on?”

Most people call the cops when something goes wrong, not my mom—she goes straight to the Chief of Police. “No, I don’t think so,” I said. “If Caleb comes around again though, it might not be a bad idea.”

“Okay,” she said, worry still in her tone. “What if he tries to find you though?”

I thought for a minute, unsure of what I would do. “I’ll call the police,” I said. “What did he look like?”

She thought about it for a minute. “He had auburn hair that fell past his ears and he was probably close to six feet tall.”

That description fit about half the guys on campus, but I didn’t want my mom to be even more concerned than she already was. “It’s probably nothing. If a stranger who looks like that tries to contact me, I’ll call the police and it won’t be a problem.” I knew my mom was worried sick. “It’s fine, Mom, really. I’m always paranoid. You know me.”

“I know, but I want you to keep me updated if anything strange happens,” she said in a concerned voice.

I was as alarmed as my mom, but didn’t want to make her any more upset than she already was, so I changed the subject. “Emil’s been teaching me how to play pool.”

“That’s great, Evie! So the two of you are spending a lot of time together?”

“Yeah, pretty much every day,” I said. “We play pool or hang out after classes. He’s really nice.”

“I’m glad you found someone who treats you well.”

“Me too,” I said. “We’re going hiking tomorrow. I’m excited.”

Through the phone, I heard the bell on the gas station door ring. “Evie, I have to take care of this customer, but I’ll email you the details about the sand dune trip.”

“Okay, I’ll talk to you later. I love you.”

“Love you too,” she said. “Your dad says to remember to check your brake fluid.” The car maintenance reminders from my dad were his way of telling me he loved me without actually saying it.