Soul Mates (12 page)

Sophie laughed. “I knew you would.”

Jace took the last of the cookies on the plate in front of him. They were the kind his grandma used to buy, gingery with a swirl of icing on top. He thanked Sophie and headed down to his apartment, his mind racing with the possibilities before him. He’d just received an important piece of the puzzle, and that one piece suddenly made the whole picture much clearer.

SHE’D BEEN BACK several days, and Cassandra still hadn’t told anyone about her weekend. She was trying to sort through emotions that ranged from guilt and regret when she thought of how foolishly she’d acted, to pleasure and longing as she remembered the kiss.

Other thoughts had been vying for her attention, too. Sophia’s words were affecting her in a profound way. Cassandra had done more research and found plenty to support what her aunt believed. She kept coming across the term
Law of Attraction
,
a teaching that was in line with the laws of the universe Sophia talked about.

Sophia held that the universe was governed by five principles, and had explained two of them in detail so far. The first stated that all things are one. The second described thought as creative. Her aunt had explained that all matter exists in thought form before it manifests into physical. As Cassandra searched the internet, she found another term that caught her interest.
Vibration
was used to describe not only the energy itself, but people’s relationship to their desires. She learned that people, being essentially energy, vibrate at different frequencies depending on what their thoughts are focused on. Like a radio dial, thoughts could be tuned to match the frequency of a desire, therefore attracting it into their experience.

Her aunt had talked about the power of focus. She’d claimed that a person could have whatever they wanted in life if they could focus on it in a positive way. Cassandra clearly recalled her powerful words: You get what you expect from life, but what most people don’t know is that they can raise their expectations.

She stopped to ponder the statement.
I have high expectations already. Is that why I’m living such a wonderful, satisfying life?
 
She’d never questioned why she had all the affluence and luxury a person could want when so many others didn’t.

All of a sudden, she was struck by the reality of it.
Some people live on the street and don’t know where their next meal is coming from, yet I’ve come to expect a never-ending supply of lattes and caviar, designer clothes and holidays in Europe.
The acute awareness left her sad. Logic told her that even with her family’s considerable wealth, it would be impossible to help all the poor in the world. Not only that but if what she was learning was true, the poor were that way because they expected it. They were attracting it vibrationally. At an unconscious level, they expected struggle and hardship, and they got it.

Why did Aunt Sophia tell me this?
she wondered.
Does she want me to raise my expectations?
Her first thoughts were of material goods, and wanting more made her feel greedy. Then she examined other areas of her life.
Relationships,
Cassandra affirmed silently.
That’s one area I definitely want more than what I’ve experienced in the past.

Jace came to mind as he had often in the past few days, and she allowed herself to think about him. He had many of the qualities she wanted in a man. What had stood out the most to Cassandra was that he was real, down to earth, and not at all pretentious. He’d shown her his true self, even though he was aware of the difference in their circumstances. He’d told her about his dreams and the story behind his unusual name. She’d found it easy to be open with him, too, acknowledging her desire to do more with her life, knowing that he could relate.

Maybe I met Jace so that I could raise my expectations.
Cassandra could never settle for anyone like Nick again. He was too shallow and self-serving. She wanted someone like Jace.
Someone like him,
she sighed regretfully.
But not him.
Her actions the previous weekend had forever ruined the possibility of a relationship with Jace Rutherford.

JACE LOOKED through the brochures he’d picked up for night classes at the local college. He’d been thinking a lot about it since he’d mentioned it to Tanisha, and he was ready to pursue it. He wasn’t sure whether it was simply him wanting to improve himself so that he could justify attracting someone like her, or whether he was truly following his dreams. If the latter were true, his dreams had changed. Nevertheless, the idea of a business degree was appealing. He decided not to question his reasoning.

He figured he could afford it now. Sophie had offered to pay him three hundred a month plus unlimited use of her vehicle, and Jace was more than happy with the arrangement. The five hundred dollars he’d received for his old car had helped ease his debt load somewhat, and that was a relief. He tried to be aware of his thoughts, as Sophie had suggested, particularly how they felt.
Thinking about getting a business degree feels good,
he confirmed.
The thought of paying down my credit card does, too.

Congratulating himself on his efforts, he continued with his mission. He called the college administration office and asked to talk to someone about night classes. The woman was extremely helpful and gave him a plethora of information on the business programs they offered as evening courses. When he asked about prices, he was shocked at what she quoted him. She was obviously used to hearing silence after she informed people of the cost of programs, because she went on to tell him about his payment options.

Jace thanked the woman and hung up the phone.
It doesn’t matter how they break it down,
he sighed.
There’s no way I can afford to take classes right now.
Their programs were set up to allow working people to get their degrees quickly, so it would mean classes three to four nights a week. When he’d inquired about taking the same courses at a slower pace, she informed him that if he wanted to do it that way he would be considered a non-degree applicant and would be put on a waiting list. Priority was given to those serious about the program. Moreover, the courses were more expensive if he took them individually; he’d pay considerably more in the long run.

As the all-too-familiar discouragement settled over him, he was reminded again of Sophie’s advice. “Well, Sophie,” he addressed her aloud. “That thought felt like crap.”

Change your focus.

Jace frowned as he heard the typical response his wise old neighbor would give him. He had no idea how he could possibly change the way he felt about it when he couldn’t change the college’s policies or prices. He wanted to understand, however, so he went up and knocked on Sophie’s door.

“Hello, Jace.” She opened the door to invite him in. “Are you having a hard time with your thoughts?”

“How do you always know what I’m thinking?” Jace asked, slightly exasperated.

“I don’t know what you’re thinking,” she replied calmly, “but I can sense your energy, and given what we talked about the other night…”

“Okay, I’m sorry.”

“You haven’t offended me, Jace. I don’t offend easily,” she informed him. “Now, what are you having trouble with?”

“I’ve been trying to notice how my thoughts feel, like you said.” He summed up his recent efforts and then added, “How do you
not
feel bad about something when it just plain sucks?”

“If you could hear the message you’re sending out to the Universe right now, it would sound something like: This isn’t working. Nothing ever works for me. Everybody else gets the breaks, but I never get a break. It’s not fair!”

Though he laughed at her imitation of him, he had to object. “That’s not what I said.”

“It’s what your words implied.” She looked at him intently. “It’s what you feel, isn’t it?”

Jace couldn’t deny it. She’d perfectly summed up how he had been feeling for a long time. “Yeah,” he conceded, releasing a long, slow breath. “It is.”

CHAPTER 9

“I CAN’T believe you did that!” Tanisha exclaimed. “That’s so unlike you.”

“Tell me something I don’t know,” Cassandra replied miserably. “I feel terrible.”

“So you told a few lies to get some information,” her friend shrugged. “You were concerned about your aunt’s welfare. And given how rude the guy was the first couple of times you met, you had good reason to assume he was a creep.”

“I may have given him reason to be rude,” Cassandra admitted. Having reflected on their first two meetings, she’d concluded that she had been at fault. “I got mad at him for opening the door in my face when I was the one who opened the wrong door to begin with. And the next day I practically accused him of stealing my dad’s car.”

“Really?” Tanisha sounded surprised and a little annoyed. “You didn’t tell me any of that.”

“I guess I was so focused on his initial lack of decorum, I didn’t consider how offensive I must have seemed to him.”

“Still, what’s the big deal?” Tanisha asked. “You’ll probably never see him again.”

“I could easily run into him if I were to visit Aunt Sophia, and I can’t very well pretend to be you if my aunt is standing right there. Besides, I lied about my reason for being in the building in the first place.”

“Oh what a tangled web we weave…,” Tanisha quoted piously.

“I know, I know,” Cassandra moaned. “I’ve created a real mess, and I don’t know what to do.”

“Don’t worry; I’m going to help you,” Tanisha assured her. “We’ll figure something out.”

“I don’t see how,” Cassandra shook her head. “I’ve been over this a hundred times.” She appreciated her friend’s support, yet she remained skeptical.

“Let’s look at your options.”

“Well, first of all, I can’t set foot in my aunt’s apartment building unless I know for certain Jace isn’t going to be there. I can’t keep inviting her to the Town House; she’s bound to get suspicious. Plus, if Jace were to drive her, he might walk her to the door. And I can’t invite her here; she’d never come into the city.” Cassandra was sure she’d exhausted all possibilities.

“What about the summer house?” Tanisha suggested. “If she were to spend a week or two there, you’d have plenty of time to visit.”

Cassandra shook her head. “She and Mother don’t get along. It’s why she never visits them in town.”

“It’s not like they fight and scratch each other’s eyes out. She could stay in the guest cottage, take her meals on the terrace. They’d never have to see each other.”

“That could work.” Cassandra chewed her lower lip as she pondered the idea. “I’m spending the first two weeks in July there, anyway. Maybe if I asked her, she’d come.”

“I know,” Tanisha submitted. “Use the excuse that you’re busy for the next couple of weekends so you won’t be able to visit her in Port Hayden. Tell her you’re on holidays after that but you
really, really
want to see her, and invite her to the beach. Pour on the charm,” she added. “The old dear won’t be able to resist.”

“We’re not exactly untangling the web here, are we?” Cassandra grimaced, hating the idea of more lies. “And there’s still the risk of Jace driving her to the summer house, or picking her up. I can’t stay in hiding all the time, and I don’t want to chance running into him.”

“Maybe you need to face the music,” Tanisha advised.

“What do you mean?” Cassandra looked at her oddly. “Tell Jace the truth?”