Dentelle (6 page)

Sounded like the games were highly competitive.
A variety of challenges were scheduled so everyone could participate in
multiple events. Some individual contests catered to specific Flairs, while
others, like swimming, martial arts, and archery were open to most anyone.
Kayaking, speed and agility trials, and obstacle courses were popular for the
“linked only” division. Of course, that meant Ash and I would be competing
together, while Jason and Madison were paired off. While I wasn’t thrilled
about that, there was nothing I could do about it. Jason assured me we’d still
see each other, especially when we played paintball, football, and capture the
flag. Those games were geared at pitting one Circle of Guardians against
another, so we’d be on the same team then. At the end of the competitions,
points would be tallied and separate awards would be given out for individual,
linked, and group events. Medals, trophies, and a few vacation packages were awarded
as prizes, but mostly everyone fought for bragging rights.

All of a sudden, we experienced a little
turbulence, and I grabbed hold of my glass. Raising the shade on my window, I
blinked rapidly when bright sunlight flooded through the acrylic layered
window. I couldn’t see anything below us because a blanket of white pillow-top
clouds buffered any view. Above the clouds, blue sky extended for miles and
miles. Our plates jostled around as the airplane shook again.

There was a loud “bing bing” as the seatbelt
light lit up, and the captain’s voice boomed over the intercom, “Ladies and
gentleman, we are passing through an area of local turbulence. I’ve turned on
the ‘Fasten Seatbelt’ sign, so please remain seated until our ride smoothes
out. Shouldn’t be more than ten minutes or so.” I secured my seatbelt, because
turbulence freaked me out. For added comfort, I grabbed a piece of gum and then
offered one to Jason. After I was finally situated, I rested my hand on his leg
and said, “So, how do you feel about bumpy rides?”

“I like ‘em a whole lot when I’m with you. Your
touch is amazing.” His eyebrows fluctuated up and down, like he was trying to
be flirtatious and sexy at the same time, but he looked absurd. “Oh, and your
Essence isn’t bad either.”

“Glad I can please,” I said. “Just keep that
positive attitude when we’re at the Ranch and we have to act indifferent
towards each other.”

“I’ve been meaning to talk to you about that,”
he said, suddenly solemn.

My nerves flared, and I pulled my hand away. The
tone of his voice had my belly doing flip-flops. “What do you mean?”

“Well,” he sighed heavily, “I was talking with
Michael, and he thinks maybe the Senior Council has heard some rumors about you
and I having a relationship. If that’s true, they’ll be pushing harder for you
to move away from Bellingham.” Worry etched into the lines around his mouth. “I
suspect that’s why they want to talk to you.” He bit his lower lip and shook
his head. “I don’t want to lose you. I can’t lose you. So, I’m thinking you and
Ash should put on a good show– pretend you really are a couple. You know…hang
out together, eat your meals with each other, and hold hands… just to throw
them off our trail.”

“Whoa! Stop there. Right now.” I held a hand out
for emphasis. “I can’t do that. How weird and uncomfortable and…and besides, I
can’t ask Ash to do that.”

“I already did.”

“What?” I clutched the armrest.

“He said he’d play along if that’s what you and
I wanted him to do. He doesn’t want to move away from Bellingham either, and he
understands that we need the Senior Council off your back.”

“I can’t believe you two,” I steamed.

He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his
knees. “Alex, I don’t like it anymore than you do. Believe me. The last thing I
want is to see you guys laughing and holding hands or kissing…”

“Excuse me. Who said anything about kissing?
That’s where I draw the line.” I sliced the air with the edge of my hand. “And
you aren’t making all the decisions here. Are we clear on that?”

“Fine. I’m just saying…your relationship with
Ash needs to appear authentic to anyone watching your behavior. If people see
you and Ash together a lot, and they see you working well as a team, especially
during the linked competitions, they might assume you are more than friends,
which is what the Senior Council seems to want. So that would be a good thing.”
His voice sounded so calm and reasonable, but his eyes were full of raw
emotion.

I wasn’t so certain, nor was I excited about
spending all my time with Ash. And while I might not be happy about it, I knew
it might be the right move if we wanted to keep the Council fooled. “Maybe,” I
said sulkily. He touched my face for the briefest of seconds, and then let his
hand fall away. Gazing directly at me, he continued with candor, “I’m confident
in our relationship, so I will do whatever’s necessary to protect it. That is
why I’m suggesting this, but you need to play the part – as much as you don’t
want to – and you need to be convincing, or we could end up separated for good.
And even though I won’t let that happen, I don’t know what that will mean for
our future with Guardian Network.”

I put my head in my hands and tried to gather my
thoughts. The seatbelt sign beeped, and I imagined the signal light had turned
off, because we hadn’t bumped around for awhile. Desperation and panic rose
within me, and my stomach churned.

“Alex?”

I raised my head and stared into those
bewitching eyes of his. “I get it. I will play my role when I have to. But
don’t you ever forget, my heart is – and always will be – with you.” I could
feel tears gathering in the corners of my eyes, as I fidgeted with my opal
necklace.

“I know, sweetheart. And mine will always be
with you.”

For awhile after that, we sat in thoughtful
silence, as close as we could without him getting burned. I reflected on his
words and contemplated what I might say to the Senior Council. Eventually, I
gave up. Instead, I sparked a conversation about Maine and all the sights I
wanted to visit next time. We kept things light-hearted, as both our hearts
were burdened enough. A red-headed flight attendant, who hadn’t been attending
our area, appeared and cleared our trays away but left a lingering floral
fragrance behind. I took a couple short, stifled breaths but couldn’t hold back
the sneezing frenzy that descended upon me like an angry swarm of bees.

From somewhere, Jason came up with a tissue and
handed it to me.

“Thanks,” I blathered.

“Anytime.” He laughed. “Brings back memories,
though.”

I laughed too and dabbed at my eyes. “Are you
referring to the bug-repellent-smelling guy at Village Books?”

“You know it. Despite your incredible Essence, I
thought you were gonna die that day.”

“But you rescued me.”

“Like any good Guardian would do.” He cocked his
head and studied me. “Serious though. When that guy started talking to you,
jealously took the place of all rational thought. I wanted him gone. If I
remember correctly, he even used the old ‘big brown eyes’ pick-up line, and I
wanted to puke.”

Glancing at my feet, I wiggled my toes. I always
took my shoes off on airplanes. Chuckling, I looked up at him. “I’m glad it
worked so well.”

“What worked well?”

“I only spoke to that guy, because I was trying
to make you jealous.”

He looked at me as if I’d fallen from space. “Really?”
He rubbed his chin. “I should have known. Women can be devious creatures.” He
paused and tapped his finger against his seat. “I knew I was in trouble the
first day we met – when I nearly plowed over you on the sidewalk.”

“That was just because of my…”

“No. I mean, yes, I was amazed by your Essence,
but there was more. Besides, you were so damn cute with your paint-flecked
face. You were ticked too, because your body was shaking, and your skin was
flushing – either from outrage I’d run into you or outrage I was checkin’ you
out.”

“Both,” I admitted. In a quieter voice, I asked,
“Did you really feel something that day? Something other than my Essence?” His
expression softened. “Yes, I did. And every day after that. You were like
gravity, pulling me towards you and I was helpless to resist.”

“That’s how I felt about you,” I said with an
engaging smile. Completely oblivious to what else was happening in the first
class cabin, we continued on like that for quite awhile. When we were together,
face to face, we could laugh and speak for hours without ever tiring of each
other’s company. Our relationship felt so natural. So right. Except I hated we
couldn’t hold hands or snuggle like normal people. We definitely didn’t have
balance when it came to the physical aspect of our relationship. And that was
frustrating.

Eventually, I excused myself. I needed a
bathroom break but headed towards the back of the plane rather than utilize the
first-class bathroom because I wanted to stretch my legs. My eyes widened, and I
gaped as I passed Ash and Madison sitting in the same row. Granted, Ash was on
the aisle and there was an empty seat between them, but I wondered how they’d
ended up together. Across the way, Max, Laci, and Hannah all sat together.
Laci, who was in the middle and appeared to be asleep, had her head of golden
curls resting against Max’s shoulder. Max was working on his laptop. Hannah,
who would be catching a connecting flight from Montana to Seattle when we
landed, was utilizing the overhead light to read on her Kindle. Neither of them
noticed me.

“Wow! Hot
chick alert! Sexy lady walking by.”

I started cracking up.
“Where? I don’t see her.”

“You know
I’m talkin’ about you, woman.”

He flirted and called me all sorts of names when
we spoke telepathically; names that would raise eyebrows if he said them aloud.
I knew it was just Ash being Ash, so I typically refrained from scolding him.
Despite my relationship with Jason, Ash and I had remained super close. I loved
him a lot; I just wasn’t in love with him. Luckily, he knew that, and so did
Jason, which is probably why they were both okay with the idea of playing
charades at the Ranch.

 
I’d been
so surprised when Ash and I had successfully linked and lived to tell about it.
Then, after we had survived our stand-off with the Ray-pacs, I’d had high hopes
for a promising future with Jason. I’d truly believed we’d link at the next
full moon, and our forbidden relationship would become permissible. I’d
imagined us working together, saving Innocents, and remaining part of the
Bellingham Circle of Guardians for the rest of our lives. And life being
perfect.

Wrong. Those foolish dreams came to a crashing
halt with that first full moon when Ash and I remained linked. To make matters
worse, the first couple months after that, things between Ash and I had been
awkward, too. But then one day he’d sat me down for a heart to heart and said,
“Lexi, you know after my family died I hated myself for being alive and I hated
life because I’d been left to live it alone. I was an emotional wreck.
Bitterness came easy. Then one day I grew up and realized I was on a dead-end
street. That’s when I decided I couldn’t let the moments of my life define me.
I
needed to define the moments of my
life.”

At that point, there had been some tears, and
I’d tried to respond, but he hadn’t finished talking yet. He’d continued on,
“The people in my premonitions still needed me. And I had the ability to save
them – and save their loved ones from the same hurt and pain that almost
destroyed my life.” He’d grabbed me by the shoulders. “Lexi, I don’t like how
our relationship has been strained lately, and I can’t take the thought of
losing you, too. I told you before; you are like family to me, and I mean that.
We’ve been through so much together, and even though we seem to be permanently
linked and you’re in love with Jason, I need things to be normal between us
again. I respect you and accept your relationship with him, but I need our
friendship back.”

That little speech was all it had taken, and we
were back on track with a friendship that was, and always had been, comfortable
and antagonistically fun. A few days later, he’d had a long conversation with
Jason, which I had not been part of, and after that, the two of them were
friends, as well.

“Looks
like you haven’t been able to captivate, or should I say melt, the Ice Princess
with your charms, yet. That pretty boy smile and cocky attitude not working for
ya these days?”
I teased, as I continued down the aisleway.

“She’s not
that bad. She’s just misunderstood. And no, I haven’t lost my touch. I’m just
not sure I want to make a move.”

What was the world coming to? Ash defending
Madison?
“Wise choice. But if you do,
make sure I’m aware of your funeral arrangements beforehand,”
I hassled him
back.

“My, my. Aren’t
we saucy today?”

“Gotta be.
Especially if you and I are going to play charades at the Ranch.”

There was a long pause.
“Glad you guys figured it out. And while I’d like to say I’m looking
forward to that, I’m not. Too much history between us. And while Jason insists
it’s necessary, I don’t think he’s going to be so encouraging when we’re
holding hands or something. I get why we have to do this, Lexi, but let’s make
sure we have balance, too.”

There was that word again. Balance.
“I’m with ya, Ash. We’ll talk later.”

I wondered how larger people felt about these
cramped bathrooms, because I was only a size six and the space seemed tight. It
was almost suffocating, like I was wearing clothes two sizes too small and
could hardly breathe. Resonating like a commercial vacuum cleaner, I cringed as
the toilet flushed. Thank goodness I’d closed the lid, because otherwise I
think I would have been sucked into the tank.