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“That’s
right.” Hannah grinned and crossed her arms in triumph.

Moving
closer to Jessica, I looked down at Thomas, who was swaddled tightly in a blue
blanket. “If he was born yesterday, that means he actually arrived on his due
date. Impressive,” I said.

“Yep.
October 23
^rd
.” Hannah closed her eyes and sighed. “One of the most
amazing days of my life.” Her eyes popped back open. “Then again, the 8 hours
of labor is another story, and with his size, it wasn’t the easiest birth. But
he sure made a grand entrance – came into this world screaming at the top of
his lungs. Once all his little toes and fingers were accounted for, I finally
relaxed.” She rested her hand over her heart. “I can’t describe the feelings.
And holding him in my arms for the first time – I couldn’t have stopped the tears
if I’d wanted to. Let’s just say that becoming a mom is mind-boggling.”

“You’ll
be the best mother ever,” Jason reassured her and walked over and gave her a
hug.

“With
his name being Thomas Jason, will you call him T.J. then?” Jessica asked.

“I don’t
know.” Hannah looked at us quizzically. “I kind of imagined calling him Tommy
when he was little and there’s always Tom for short, but Thomas is such a good,
strong name to fall back on as well. Dan and I will have to talk about it some
more.” She was chewing on the inside of her lip, and I could tell she was
deeply contemplating the nickname issue.

“Speaking
of Dan, where is he?” Jessica asked, glancing around.

“Oh,
he’ll be back. After not much sleep last night, he said he needed some real
coffee, so he walked over to Starbucks.” Her earrings shimmered in the light as
the turned her head.

“Your
opals are beautiful,” I said, touching my ear.

Reaching
up, she touched one. “Thanks,” she said. “Daniel gave them to me yesterday
after Thomas was born. Apparently, opals are the October birthstone. My hubby
is such a romantic,” she said dreamily.

“I’ve
always loved opals; each one has its own unique, fiery color,” I said.

“Alex,
have you held Thomas yet?” Jason asked with a twinkle in his eye.

“No,”
I said slowly and wondered at the hint of amusement in his tone.

“Oh
good. Then you should.” He took Thomas from Jessica’s arms, and she gave him a
dirty look but relinquished the little bundle into his arms.

As he
walked over he said, “You have to promise not to drop him.”

“Jason!”
Hannah and Jessica berated him in the same breath.

“Well,
she’s a newbie,” he defended himself to them.

“True,”
Hannah said, making a clicking noise with her mouth.

Jessica
clasped her hands together and said gently, “Yes, do be careful Lexi.”

Bewildered,
I asked, “You guys are messin’ with me, right? I’ll have you know my first job
was in the nursery at a church. I think I can handle this little guy.

Raising
a brow, Jason stared down his nose at me. “This is different.”

As I
took Thomas from Jason I did jump in surprise, but rather than dropping him I
held him even tighter. My eyes widened with wonder and awe, and I glanced at
Jason before taking in the knowing smiles on Jessica’s and Hannah’s faces. Now
I understood what they were talking about. Little Thomas Jason’s Essence was
remarkable. The innocence…the purity flowing through him. It wasn’t that his
Essence was strong and powerful in the same way as Jessica’s; his was strong in
a different way – wholesome. Pressing my nose against his soft head, I inhaled
that newborn scent – soft, clean, and fresh like baby powder. “His Essence is
phenomenal,” I said.

The
next hour passed quickly as we took turns holding Thomas Jason and listening to
Hannah’s play by play account of every moment – from the time her water broke
to the time a proud Daniel cut the umbilical cord. When a wailing Thomas let it
be known he was ready to eat, I politely excused myself and told Jessica I was
going to stop in for a quick visit with Ava Rose but I’d be back after awhile.

As I
started down the hallway Jason called after me, “Hey wait up.”

Stopping
abruptly, I looked at him suspiciously. Clean shaven and casual in faded jeans
and his colorful t-shirt, he, for once, looked totally relaxed. He smelled damn
good, too – a spicy, masculine scent that teased the senses. “What?” I asked.

“Can I
come with you? I’d really like to meet Ava Rose.” His lips parted slightly and
he smiled.

My
world tipped sideways and butterflies gathered in my stomach. I focused on the
crescent scar in his eyebrow, so I wouldn’t lose my train of thought, which
would most certainly happen if I stared into those hypnotic eyes a moment
longer. “I suppose,” I said and continued down the hallway. Under my breath I
muttered, “Looks like Dr. Jekyll is making an appearance today.”

He
caught my soft-spoken words and laughed as he traipsed behind me. “Oh yes, I’ve
left Mr. Hyde at home; he really has no place here at the hospital.” I took a
deep breath and ignored him, but I was all too aware that he’d caught up with
me. I could see him out of the corner of my eye even though I didn’t turn my
head to look at him. As we walked along he said, “Have you noticed anything
unusual lately?”

I gave
him a weird look. “Such as?”

“Well,
even though we’re keeping a close eye on things, and we haven’t detected any
Ray-pac activity, something really weird happened the other day,” he said,
scratching his cheek.

“Oh?”
I gnawed anxiously at the inside of my cheek, wondering where he was headed.

“Did you
hear about that semi-truck accident?”

I
nearly choked but managed to cover with a cough. “Oh yeah, I saw that on the
news.”

“Well,
Madison and I ended up at the scene after she had a premonition of a semi-truck
exploding. Anyways, that’s not what’s important here. What really matters is
that for a couple moments I thought I sensed another person, someone who was
linked. Someone who is not a Guardian. But it happened so fast and the feeling
was gone in a flash. I just don’t know what to think.” He sighed deeply, his
brows furrowed. “I can’t figure it out. I mean, maybe I was just picking up on
something that wasn’t there because of all the commotion and knowing the truck
was about to blow.” He turned and looked at me. “I know I’m probably just being
hyper-sensitive, because if the Ray-pacs were back we’d know about it. But I
want you to be extra careful anyways. I just can’t get past the feeling that
something wasn’t right.”

I
swallowed hard. How could he not see the guilt flashing in my eyes? I touched his
arm, reveled in his Essence for a moment. “I haven’t noticed anything unusual,”
I lied, “but I promise to be careful. You too, okay? I worry about Kieran
coming after you.”

“Lexi,
you’re the Amethyst. You’re the one he wants. I don’t want you worrying about
me when you’re the one who needs protection.”

As
hard as it was, I maintained my composure and smiled. “Thanks for caring.”
Inside, I was crying, screaming, and raging. I wanted to hit him I wanted to
kiss him. But mostly, I wanted him to love me. In the end though, I just needed
him safe.

We
walked on in silence. “What did you think about Thomas Jason?” he finally said.

A
broad smile crossed my face. “He’s beautiful. How could I not fall in love with
him? His skin is so soft and smooth, and he smells heavenly.” Kind of like you,
I thought. “His Essence is amazing. I didn’t think any human was perfect.”
Except you, I whispered in my head. “But, I think I’ve changed my mind.”

He
looked at me with his penetrating stare and said in a velvet smooth voice, “My
thoughts exactly.”

I
couldn’t stop myself. I reached out and touched his face, savoring his Essence,
reveling in its intensity. So fresh and untainted compared to Ash’s. It dawned
on me just how distinctive Essence was from one person to another. I knew I’d
recognize Jason even if I was blindfolded and lost in a football stadium of
people. His Essence was familiar and reassuring – it always felt like home.

Looking
at me cautiously, he said, “What?”

I
slipped my hand back to my side. “Nothing. I just think that little guy is
lucky to have you for his uncle.” I barely breathed, trying hard to suppress
all my feelings, barely keeping them below the surface. A couple nurses in blue
uniforms passed us in the stark hallway and nodded.

“Do
you want to have kids some day?” he asked out of the blue.

I
gulped. “I’d always planned that I would,” I said carefully, not wanting to
betray that I now knew that was never gonna happen.

“How
many?”

“How
many kids?” I repeated dumbly.

“Yes.”
He looked at me funny. “Are you feeling okay today? Because I could grab that
hospital bed there in the corner and wheel you into a room?”

“Oh
yeah, what are ya gonna do then, huh? I’m the one with all this insurmountable
Essence, and you can’t touch me anyways.” He looked at me speechless and I
continued quickly, “Oh forget it, I’m just playing with you.” I shuffled ahead
a little faster. “Maybe two or three.”

“Huh?”

“Kids.”

“Oh,
right. Well, I’m thinking four,” he said adamantly. “Two boys and two girls
would be nice.”

“Good
for you,” I said. “I think you’ll make a great dad some day.”

“Fortunately,
I’ll get lots of practice being an uncle first.”

When
we reached Ava Rose’s room, I was surprised to see she’d gained a roommate. The
pale pink curtain between them was drawn, so I walked over and peeked around
the edge.

Her
blue eyes shot up when she spotted me. “Lexi! I missed you. You’re here for a
surprise visit. I’m so happy.” I gave her a big bear hug, explained why I was
at the hospital, and asked if she’d like me to introduce her to a friend of
mine.

“Oh
yes,” she said excitedly, readjusting her bandana which matched her orange
sweater.

After
Jason hugged her, she blushed but smiled from ear to ear. Gazing at him shyly
with her big blue eyes, she batted her long eyelashes at him – rather
skillfully I might say. For once, she was actually tongue-tied. Amazing, I
thought. Jason seemed to have that effect on any female between the ages of
eight and eighty-eight. I wondered if this was Ava Rose’s first case of puppy
love. If so, the girl had great taste.

“So,
what are you working on there?” he asked and pointed to the paper in her hands.
Sitting next to her on the metal table were the paints I’d given her as a gift.
Scattered around the room, were several of her paintings. Some were tacked onto
the walls and others sat drying on the floor. The room smelled slightly of her
watercolor paints but wasn’t bursting from fumes like it would if she’d used
acrylic paints.

“Oh, I’m
trying to paint a tiger for my new roommate Lisa. She hasn’t been feeling so
well, so I thought maybe I could cheer her up. She loves tigers,” Ava Rose said
fervently. Studying her picture, she made a disgusted face. “I’m not very good
at tigers yet. This looks more like an orange kitty cat. Something is missing.”
She turned her picture for our inspection.

“I
think it looks great,” Jason said. He sat down on the bed next to her and
pointed at her picture. “You could add some black stripes in through here, and
you’d just about have it.” She nodded in agreement and thanked him. Secretly
delighted, I watched as he interacted with her, taking what seemed to be, a
genuine interest in her art.

When
she finished, Ava Rose set it aside to dry and looked nervously at Jason. “I
could paint you a picture.”

“That
would be wonderful,” he said.

“What’s
your favorite animal?” She readied another piece of paper.

“How
about an orca whale. You know what they look like right?” he asked.

Ava
Rose gasped. “Of course.” She looked at me. “That’s so funny, isn’t it Lexi?”

“What?”
Jason asked.

“Well,
I’m really good at painting orcas. That’s Lexi’s favorite animal, too.” Slowly,
he turned and locked eyes with me, and I could feel the heat creeping up my
neck. “Have you ever seen Lexi’s room?” Ava Rose asked, reaching for a
paintbrush and completely oblivious to the meaningful look passing between me
and Jason.

“No, I
haven’t, but I’d like to sometime.” He didn’t smile, nor did he blink. His
expression was unreadable – his best poker face. Our gaze remained locked.

“You
should,” she said innocently, “because Lexi told me she’s hung my paintings all
around her room and it looks awesome. I’ve even painted her some eagles,” she
rattled on, “but I’m not as good at those.”

Clearing
my throat, I looked away from Jason and moved closer to her. I bent down and
touched the tip of my nose to hers. “Yes, my room is like an Ava Rose art
gallery, and I think of you every time I look at your colorful pictures. You’re
a wonderful artist.”

As Ava
Rose got back to painting, Jason told her stories about seeing the orca’s out
in the waters of the San Juan Islands. By the time she was done with him, he’d
promised to take her for a ride on his yacht the following summer, and he’d
promised she could invite as many friends as she wanted. She was so excited.
“Do you think we’ll really find the orcas? And Lexi you’ll come too, won’t
you?”

Jason
reached out and grabbed her chin. “I promise we’ll search the ocean until we
find them. A whole pod of them. And of course Alex will be with us.”

“Alex?”
Ava Rose looked at him funny.

“Sorry,
I’ve always called Lexi, Alex,” he clarified.

“Oh,”
she said softly and looked down at the floor. Her eyes darted up a short time
later and she said, “Are you Lexi’s boyfriend?”

Too
stunned to respond neither one of us said anything right away. “No,” we both
finally said in quiet unison. It was an awkward moment. Jason and I looked
opposite directions while Ava Rose continued talking.