Locked Out of Love (21 page)

“Have you ever tried to Erase someone and bring them back?” she asked carefully.

His head snapped up so quickly she winced.

“Never.”

She jumped at the vehemence in his voice.

She held her hands up, palms out. “Okay.”

Joel squeezed her thigh sympathetically. “It's not a matter of fearing that he wouldn't be able to bring them back. It's a matter of where they go.”

Unease crept down her spine. “Where do they go?”

They all exchanged worried glances. “We're not sure,” Cali answered her.

“Then how do you know it's somewhere bad?”

Cali wordlessly handed Felix the basketball resting beneath their bench. Felix took the ball and glanced around to make sure no one was watching.

Melanie couldn't help it; she scanned the area too.

When it was deemed clear, Felix inhaled deeply and waved his hand. The ball vanished, but unlike on the basketball court he didn't bring it back right away. He seemed to be waiting for something.

A minute or so later he waved his hand again. The basketball reappeared at his feet.

Melanie drew back from the sight, Joel's hand steady on her leg. “It's okay,” he murmured.

When she overcame her shock, she leaned forward. “What the hell happened to it?”

The ball was covered with a faint pink mucus. It looked to be steaming, and the hiss of deflating air met her ears. There was a long gash in the side of the ball that looked suspiciously like claw marks.

Her eyes met Felix's. They were steady, but deep within she could make out the hint of fear. She'd seen that look in the mirror enough times these past few weeks.

Her heart went out to him and in the far recesses of her mind, she wondered if Felix wanted to be free of his powers.

That night Melanie fretted over what she was going to wear. Joel had dropped her off after basketball and invited her out for dinner. Just the two of them. Their first real date.

And she had nothing to wear.

“Damn,” she said under her breath and threw the shirt she was holding against her chest over her head where it landed with all the other rejected tops.

“Hot date?” Nathan had snuck into their room.

“The door was closed for a reason.” She glared at him.

He leaned back against the wall, a smile teasing his lips. “You totally have a date. Need helping picking out an outfit?”

“Ha. Like you would be any help.”

He shrugged. “Fine, but I think you'd look best in that loose floral skirt you put in Mom's closet for safekeeping.”

She paused mid reach into her closet. She'd forgotten all about that skirt. It had been one of her favorites, which was why she kept it from her room. She hadn't trusted Nathan with all of her possessions.

“See,” he said. “I can be helpful.” He turned and left.

She hastily followed after him. He was already in the hallway closet, sifting through the mass of clothes stored within. He pulled out the skirt in question and held it up for Melanie.

It was perfect.

Knee length and decorated with pale pink and blue flowers, it had captured her attention instantly when she'd seen it at the store. She'd splurged and bought it at full price, not wanting to risk losing it.

“How did you know this was here?” she asked. She distinctly remembered that he'd been zoned out of his mind when she'd got home the night she bought the skirt.

He looked uncomfortable. “I saw this.”

Her fingers tightened around the skirt. “Saw this, as in you stumbled through the closet and saw it?” But she could already tell by his expression that wasn't the case.

She lowered her voice. “You
Dreamed
of me in this outfit?”

He avoided her gaze and rubbed the back of his neck. “Yeah.”

Melanie didn't know how she felt about that. “What else did you see?”

He shrugged. “Not sure. Over the last couple days it's like my mind finally has time to catch up to everything it saw over the past few years. I remember things that I know I didn't see with my own two eyes. I just saw you in this.” He gave another shrug. He couldn't quite look her in the eye, and he disappeared to the kitchen before she could say more.

She shook off her unease. So Nathan saw her in this outfit, no big deal. She might have worn it to something else when he had the vision. She made her own destiny. With her spirits lifted, she marched back into her room.

She had the perfect blue top to go with her skirt. She debated whether or not to wear cowboy boots but ultimately decided to wear heels instead.

She borrowed some of Aunt Bertie's makeup and threw on a hint of lip gloss and a layer of mascara. It made her eyelashes feel heavy, but it was worth it. There wasn't much she could do with her hair; the bob went to her jaw and was too short to curl. She settled on running the hairdryer through it a few times and teasing the hair to give it volume.

There. Done.

She stepped back from the mirror and admired herself.

She hoped it was enough. The doorbell rang and her heart leapt into her throat. She snatched her purse from her room and ran for the door so no one else would answer it.

Unfortunately, the entire family was home on a Sunday evening, and as she rounded the corner of the hallway she saw her father open the door.

She came to a screeching halt as the two men at the door eyed each other.

Joel looked amazing. He wore black dress slacks and a navy-blue, long-sleeved button up that had thin, pale blue strips running vertically through it. The sleeves were rolled up to his elbow, exposing the scars both old and new on his arms. He was freshly showered and shaved, his damp hair looking as if it was combed back but starting to develop a mind of its own as it dried.

His black eye was nothing but a yellow-green mass on his face, and she could see her father zeroing in on it as well as the fresh cuts on his arms.

She hurried to the entrance, passing the kitchen where her mother, aunt, Paul, and Nathan stared openly. She grimaced and rushed to her father's side before he could say anything.

“Hey,” she said to Joel and smiled. He wore cologne, a faint woodsy smell that made her take in another lungful. “You clean up nicely.”

Joel blinked and gave himself a small shake. “So do you. Wow.”

Melanie's cheeks heated with pleasure.

“It's Sunday night.” Her father's voice broke the moment. “We're having a family dinner.”

Melanie whirled on him. “I'm going out to dinner. You can split my portion between the five of you.”

She brushed past her father, but he caught her wrist. “Melanie, you should not be hanging around this man. Look at him.” Her father gestured to Joel, who had stiffened but refused to drop his chin. “He's dangerous. I won't have my daughter going out and getting herself into another car accident, some knife fight, or worse.”

Joel's eyes darted down to his arms and he cringed.

Melanie tore her hand from her father's grasp. “Joel would never hurt me. And I'm past the age when you can tell me who I can and cannot see.”

She stormed past Joel as he gave a quick nod to her father before following. He lunged before her to open the car door and she smiled at him. “Thank you.”

“My pleasure.”

He hustled around to the driver's side and started the car. Melanie watched her father's silhouette as they drove off, getting smaller and smaller until it disappeared completely.

She deflated into her seat. “I'm so sorry about that. My father can be … ”

“Protective? Intimidating as all hell?”

She laughed. “Yeah, something like that. Please don't listen to him. You look amazing tonight.” She rested her hand on his forearm, feeling the scars beneath her palm. She traced one with her thumb absently, not realizing what she was doing until they came to a red light and Joel pierced her with a heated look.

His eyes flashed in the streetlight, a deep blue as to be almost black. The air in the car crackled and the hair on her arms rose. Her pulse jumped. She should pull her hand away but she couldn't. She wanted to feel his heated skin against her. She loved the feel of his muscles bunching beneath her fingers as he gripped and released the wheel.

The light turned green. The spell broke. But that didn't stop the fact that the car suddenly felt two sizes too small.

As soon as they parked Melanie jumped out into the night air. If she spent any longer inside that car they'd never make it into the restaurant. She was achy and needy and out of control. She inhaled the fresh scent of the ocean water so close by and let it calm her. The cool breeze ruffled her hair and she welcomed it.

The restaurant was small and quaint, with dim lights and deep red walls, the back wall filled with wine bottles.

“Wow,” she muttered as they were led to their table. Joel's hand rested on her lower back and the heat radiating from it seeped into every pore.

Melanie never had to ask for her water to be refilled, her steak was cooked to perfection, and the plates came and went off the table in a blink of an eye.

“That was amazing.” She leaned back in her chair, pushing the last of the mud pie toward Joel. “Please finish that.”

“You sure?”

“Yes, I'm stuffed. I'm going to have to up my yoga to five times a week next week.”

He shoveled the pie into his mouth. “I think this is the first time I've ever seen you not in yoga pants.”

She grinned. “And this is the first time I've never seen you in a graphic tee shirt.”

He pulled nervously at the collar. “I miss my graphic tees. These are a little constricting, and promise not to tell anyone, but I had to have Cali help me pick it out. As an artist she has a good eye for colors. Said this would,” he batted his eyelashes, “bring out my eyes.”

“Well, she was right. How're they doing by the way? Is Felix all right?”

Joel tilted his head fractionally. “Why wouldn't he be?”

She glanced around the restaurant, but every other couple was deep in their own little world. She dropped her voice anyway. “Because of what happened earlier, with the basketball?”

Joel waved it off. “That wasn't the worst incident, trust me. One time he Erased Syd's car—she was none too happy about that—then brought it back. We all kind of freaked out at the sight of it. It was covered with a pink mucus and dust, with dents all over and scratch marks that didn't look of this world. We learned that he also brought back an actual animal inside, if that's what you want to call it. We referred to it as the demon cat.”

Her expression must've betrayed her because Joel reached for her, concern on his face. “Are you okay? Don't worry, it's nothing to be afraid of. Felix put it back wherever it came from. He gains more control every time he uses his powers. We all trust him.”

“But does he trust himself?”

Joel sat back. “What does that mean?”

“He must be terrified all the time, wielding that kind of unpredictable power.”

“It's not unpredictable. He's got control over it.”

She stared at him. “And what happens if he brings back another monstrosity when he uses his powers? If he keeps using them all over the place, it's only a matter of time.”

Anger sparked in his eyes. “Hey now, Felix doesn't use his powers
all over the place
.” He gestured with his hands. “He's very conscientious of when he uses them and who he's around.”

“He used them during a basketball game,” she pointed out. “That kind of carelessness is dangerous.”

He gaped at her. “Carelessness? He brought the ball back instantly. That's not carelessness, that's being mindful of what he's doing and understanding his ability's limitations. You saw him demonstrate the knowledge of his own power. He kept the ball longer and it came back in ruins, which was why he didn't keep it there longer than necessary during our game.”

“And did you see the look in his eye when that basketball returned destroyed? He's afraid of his own power. What kind of a life is that? What if he could get help?”

“Felix has had a long time to deal with his powers. He doesn't need help. They aren't a curse, Melanie. You can't keep focusing on the bad.”

It was a direct hit. Her mouth snapped shut.

Was he right? Was she nothing but a biased party who would never see her abilities as anything more than a negative?

That afternoon on the basketball court had been the first time she'd felt accepted, like she could belong. Was she holding herself back from happiness by refusing to accept her abilities as part of who she was?

“Shit, I'm sorry,” said Joel after a few silent seconds.

“No, I—”

“Son of a bitch,” Joel cut her off.

“Excuse me?” Melanie's gaze shot up, but Joel wasn't looking at her.

She jerked her attention to where Joel was staring out the window.

Alexander.

He stood on the curb, probably waiting for a bus or taxi. He smiled when their eyes met. Melanie felt her temper rise.

“Give me your hand.” She laid her arm across the table, palm up for Joel without even looking his way. She didn't want Alexander to get away. Not this time.

She'd tried everything—avoidance, contacting the police—and she was sick of it. If she ever wanted her life back, she needed to stand up for what she wanted. And she didn't want Alexander.

She turned to Joel.

Her neck prickled with her powers.

 “What are you planning on doing?”

“I'm taking hold of my supernatural ability. I'm going to do what you suggested and scare him.” She wanted to use her powers. She wanted to give them the chance that Joel kept inspiring within her. She couldn't have someone fight her battles for her. If Joel faced Alexander, her ex would just misinterpret it as Joel was keeping Melanie from him. She knew she wasn't supposed to confront Alexander—that it could only encourage him—but she had to try something.