Melody Unchained (10 page)

“It is your neck that’s going to get snapped by some meth addict stealing your purse to feed his monkey.”

“Oh, honestly.” Melody spun around. She shouldn’t have come out. She should have just let him sit in his car and stew.

“Melody, wait.” Jerry caught her arm in the middle of the road. Momentum swung her around to face him again. “I’m sorry.”

Great. Now she was stuck in the middle of the street, enveloped in the scent of his clean, piny aftershave and knowing it was all he would give her. She couldn’t grant wishes anymore; why did she so desperately want to grant his? “I defended myself.”

“I know. I just worry about you.”

“Which is why you told me I needed to be on my own. So you would not have to worry about me.”

He scowled, but didn’t argue. “It’s a no win situation. If I keep you with me, I won’t worry about you, but you won’t live your own life. If you’re on your own, you live your own life, but every minute I worry about you.” He stroked her cheek.

“I’m not helpless.” Melody clenched her jaw.

“Why didn’t you want Szabo to call me?”

“Who is Szabo?”

“The cop who took your statement last night.”

Melody lowered her gaze, trying not to lean into his hand. “I thought you’d be disappointed if I couldn’t handle it on my own.”

Jerry barked a laugh. “Melody, you really need to learn where the levels are.”

“Levels?”

“Getting groceries you should be able to do on your own. Being the victim of a crime you don’t have to do on your own.”

Melody looked into his eyes. “You’re very complicated.”

“I’ve been told I’m simple.”

“Whoever said it was wrong.” She leaned on his chest. “Will you let me be with you now?”

He stiffened and didn’t put his arms around her.

Now what? Why did he have to make everything so difficult?

“I’m sorry I left you the other day.”

“What other day? I told them not to tell you about my purse.” He’d called two days ago and the Monday before that. The last time they were together was the day he helped her finish moving out of Billy’s apartment. The day he hadn’t wished for her. Or she’d thought he hadn’t wished for her.

“No.” He turned bright red. “The day we–uh...”

Melody blinked. He still wasn’t putting his ams around her. “You mean at Billy’s when we–”

“Yes.” He looked like he was about to have a stroke or something. How odd.

“Why would you be sorry about that?”

“Because I shouldn’t have. Men shouldn’t do things like that. Not good guys. I thought you watched a lot of TV.”

“I do, but that happened to me all the time.” She shrugged. Was he wishing for her or not? Her face might be getting red now too. Her chest hurt. “Jerry, do you want me or not?”

“Yes.”

“Well, then hold me.”

“I’m trying to apologize because I was cruel to you.”

“I didn’t know that so there was no harm done. Please just hold me.” Her throat closed. Tears. Finally she would have tears when a master left her.

“Are you crying? Melody, I’m trying to make it better.”

Melody took a step backward. “Then you’re doing it badly because I feel worse. Do you wish for me or not?”

“Of course I do, but you can’t let me hurt you.”

“If you don’t leave me, you won’t hurt me.”

Jerry pressed his lips into a thin, white line. “You have a lot to learn.”

“Do I have to learn everything right now?”

His arms wrapped her around her shoulders. “What about your date tonight?”

“He isn’t as interesting as you.” Melody could hear his heart beating. With every beat, her body relaxed. He did wish for her. Finally.

“You can throw over a guy that easy?”

“I never threw you over. I was trying to do what you wanted me to by dating.”

He laughed. “So can I come up for coffee?”

“Coffee? I don’t think I have any.” After spending all day around it, she hadn’t wanted any in her own kitchen.

He started guiding her across the street. “Coffee as it was on
Seinfeld
.”

“Oh.” Melody grinned. He
was
wishing for her. Finally, a wish she could still grant. “Coffee! I have that.”

Christa Maurice

For my seventh birthday my brother gave me The Eagles’ Hotel California and I was completely enchanted by the title track. No clue what it meant, but I loved it and my fate was sealed. Unfortunately, as a hard core introvert, performing onstage in any capacity was off the table as a career choice. So I turned to writing and spent many boring college lectures detailing the adventures of Touchstone in the margins of my notebooks. Years later I decided to do something with them and wrote what became Heaven Beside You. These things do tend to get out of control with me. A fun side project that kept me entertained while I was teaching English in Korea turned into a series that I was working on through a stint in Chile, the US and the Middle East. And I’m not slowing down.

When not writing, I like to travel so much that I recently had to have pages added to my passport. I also enjoy eating, reading and listening to music. Often simultaneously.

Also by Christa Maurice

Drawn to the Rhythm Series

Satellite of Love

Heaven Beside You

Twenty Flight Rock

Let Me Be the One

Keep Coming Back to Love

Arden FD Series

Three Alarm Tenant

Struck By Lightning

Spark of Desire

Weaver’s Circle Series

Secrets Everybody Knows

Long Memory

One Ring to Rule

Melody Unchained

Lyrical Press books are published by

Kensington Publishing Corp. 119 West 40th Street New York, NY 10018

Copyright © 2013 Christa Maurice

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means without the prior written consent of the publisher, excepting brief quotes used in reviews.

Lyrical Press and the L logo are trademarks of Kensington Publishing Corp.

First Electronic Edition: March 2013

ISBN-13: 978-1-61650-448-9