The Haunting (Immortals) (13 page)

She forced herself to focus on his hands. That was a mistake because she’d always had a thing for hands and his were large, strong, capable-looking hands; hands used to hard work. She found herself imagining how those rough palms would feel against her arms, her neck—her breasts. An invisible shudder ran through her.

She needed to get a grip. It wasn’t like she’d never been with a man before. She’d even been with good-looking men before. Ricco, with his refined features, was possibly the most beautiful man she’d ever laid eyes on, but Nick was handsome in that primal, rugged way that had her thinking of cowboys and Western romance novels.

He came toward her and Mai became enthralled with
the way his body moved. When he stopped, he was standing close enough that she could have traced the outline of his muscles with her fingertip—or better yet, the tip of her tongue. Yes, she definitely wanted to explore the contours of his six-pack abs, run her fingers across the breadth of his wide shoulders, down his arms…

He’d let go of the towel and now tucked his thumbs into the belt loops of his jeans, where his fingers drew her attention to the straining fabric in front. This was a man who had something to offer a woman.

“Do you see how—hard—it is?”

She gasped, heat flooding her face as her gaze ricocheted up to his face. “I beg your pardon?”

“Not to think of sex when the person in front of you is half undressed.”

“I don’t…I mean, I’m not…” Words failed her; she couldn’t think straight.

He seemed to know exactly what he was doing to her, because he bent his head until his lips were inches from her ear. When he spoke, his moist, warm breath brushed along the side of her neck. “Let’s eat,” he whispered slowly, uttering each word as if it was a caress.

Her eyelids fluttered closed as sensations swept over her. She became conscious of Nick’s soft chuckle and had to force her eyes open again. She was alone. And mortified. The vow she’d made to give up casual sex had some definite downsides.

Then she remembered the last stranger she’d brought home for sex. It had been Tain, one of Darius’ Immortal brothers, back when he was evil. The postcoital activities had involved hitting her with a blast of energy that sent her flying across her living room and almost killed her. The memory hit her like a cold shower.

She walked back into the kitchen with a practiced smile
on her face. Nick had his shirt on and was in the process of prying the lids off the food containers.

“What can I get you to drink?” she asked. “Water? Soda? Tea?”
Me? Stop it
, she thought.

“Water’s great.”

She filled the glasses with ice and water before carrying them to the table. Everything was ready, so they took their seats and began to eat. The lasagna they’d ordered was especially good and she suddenly realized how hungry she was. Every now and then as they ate, Mai cast a quick look at the mirror. It was not a good sign when the thought of having ghosts was almost reassuring. It was better than the alternative, which in this case would be that she was hallucinating—again.

She was about halfway through with her meal when she looked up to find Nick watching her. After a bit, she grew uncomfortable and tried to fill the silence. “Thank you again for coming over this morning to help us look for Sarah. That’s more than the police were willing to do.” She sighed. “It’s just so frustrating, you know? It’s like she’s vanished into thin air. Of course, I only just met her, so maybe she does this a lot.”

“If that’s the case, it’s likely we won’t find her until she wants to be found.”

“True,” Mai agreed, trying to put it from her mind. It was the man in front of her who really interested her. “So, you run a survival training program in addition to the bodyguard work? That sounds interesting. Is it hard-core training for the military or do you teach team-building courses to overweight executives?”

He smiled at her. “A little of both.”

“Is there a lot of demand for that kind of training?”

“Not when I first started the business. Back then, most of my clients were military.”

“You train year-round?”

“For the military, we do. I’m afraid the corporate types wouldn’t make it through a winter session, so we only offer spring and summer courses for them.”

Mai got an instant image of men and women dressed in camo-pattern business suits hiking up a snow-covered hill. She shook her head to clear it. “So, what’s the bodyguard work like?” Images of Kevin Costner and Whitney Houston sprang to mind. “Have you ever protected anyone famous?”

He laughed. “You mean like Brad Pitt or Jennifer Anis-ton?”

She felt a tingle of excitement at the thought that he might have been Brad Pitt’s bodyguard.

“Sorry to disappoint you, but no. My clients tend to be politicians.”

“Have you ever worked with Bill Preston?”

“The mayoral candidate?” He frowned. “No. Why do you ask?”

“No reason in particular,” she said, being evasive.

He obviously wasn’t going to let her off that easily. “Please don’t tell me you’re doing a story on Preston.”

“No, of course not.”

He scowled at her. “You’re a bad liar. What kind of story?”

“I’d rather not say if you don’t mind. I’m still working on it.”

“Just the fact that you’re not telling me lets me know this is some kind of exposé, am I right?” She refused to answer him, so he went on. “Be careful, Mai. Some of those politicians with skeletons in their closet are dangerous. You don’t want to be part of the body count.”

“Are you speaking figuratively?”

“Not necessarily.”

“I’ll be careful,” Mai promised, not sure what else to say. Fortunately, the phone chose that moment to ring.

“Are you going to get that?” Nick asked.

“No. It’s probably just a solicitor.”

They fell into an awkward silence as they listened to the machine pick up the call. Mai listened to her own voice tell the caller she couldn’t come to the phone, followed by the tone.

“Yeah, it’s me,” Lenny’s voice said. “I’m not calling again. You want to talk? Meet me tonight at the Obelisk in Central Park. It’s nine o’clock now. I’ll be there for the next hour and then I’m leaving town—forever.”

Mai glanced at her watch. With traffic, it would take her twenty minutes to get to Central Park if she took a cab. At least she knew exactly where in the park to go once she got there. Only one thing was keeping her from leaving. “I’ve got to go,” she told Nick.

He stared at her, aghast, his food only half finished. “You’re kidding? What about our dinner?”

“I’m done, but you can stay and finish. Just please lock the door when you leave.”

“Please tell me that you’re not planning to go to Central Park at night.”

She rolled her eyes. “Of course I am.”

He shook his head. “I’ll go with you.”

“No, thanks. I’m a big girl. I can take care of myself.”

He sighed. “I’m not going to talk you out of this, am I?”

“No. This is too important.”

“Okay.” He set his fork on the edge of the plate and wiped his mouth. “I guess I’ll leave so you can get out of here. I enjoyed dinner.” He pushed away from the table and stood.

“Thanks for coming over,” Mai said, feeling guilty to be
rushing him out the door after everything he’d done for her.

“Glad I could help.” He gestured down her hallway. “Do you mind if I use your bathroom one last time?”

She waved him on. “Help yourself.”

She followed him down the hall, turning into her room as he shut the bathroom door behind him. She shut her bedroom door and quickly changed clothes, wanting to wear something warmer and less likely to attract notice than what she currently had on. She was still trying to decide between two shirts when she heard the bathroom door open.

“I’m going now,” Nick hollered to her. “Don’t bother showing me out. I’ll call you later—and be careful.”

He was gone before she could even say good-bye. His abruptness struck her as odd, but she couldn’t afford to think about it. Instead, she shoved money into her pocket, grabbed her credit card and keys and left.

In the end, she decided taking the subway would be quicker than a cab. On the ride to the park, she knew she should have been preparing her questions for Lenny, but she couldn’t get thoughts of Nick out of her head. When the man wasn’t irritating her, she actually liked him. And there was definitely a physical attraction between them. Anytime he was near, she felt her body come alive. That worried her because if he ever wanted to do more than steal a kiss here and there, she didn’t think she’d put up much resistance. Then, when he got tired of her and moved on, she’d be a worse emotional wreck than she already was. Psychotic
and
heartbroken—what a great combination.

Mai was still in a bit of a daze as she climbed the steps out of the subway. The Upper East Side was always busy, so even though it was dark, she still felt perfectly safe. She slipped into a park entrance and began quickly making her way toward the secluded bower behind the Met that
housed the Obelisk. The farther into the park she walked, the fewer people she encountered. And the looming museum ahead did nothing to calm her nerves. Just as she rounded the last curve, she stopped dead in her tracks.

The walkway sloped down and at the very bottom, Lenny lay on the ground, blood pooling beneath his body. Hovering over him, a figure searched Lenny’s pockets.

A small gasp escaped Mai’s lips and the figure looked up. Their gazes met over the distance and Mai found herself looking into her own shocked expression.

Time stood still as Mai stared at—herself? This couldn’t be right? Was it another hallucination?

A ringing started in her ears and tiny tremors shook her body. What was wrong with her that she would have visions about killing a man? What kind of person was she?

An unstable one, she thought. One who could no longer tell the difference between reality and illusion. Unlike with the mirror, she couldn’t blame this on ghosts.

A new sound penetrated the ringing in her ears. It was a sharp staccato accompanied by a bite at her ankles. The ground seemed so far away. With a sense of detachment, she watched a tiny chunk of sidewalk break away in a puff of dust inches from her foot.

A flash of movement in front of her caught her attention and she looked up to see the figure racing toward her, yelling something, though the words were incomprehensible. Mai didn’t move, half expecting the image to vanish before it reached her and half hoping it wouldn’t.

Between one breath and the next, everything returned to normal speed.

“Run!”

With her double almost to her, Mai heard the ping of
something hard hitting the sidewalk and finally realized what it was—a bullet. There was another burst of dust and when Mai looked down, more of the sidewalk was gouged out.

Someone was shooting at her!

Before she could react, her double caught up to her. Grabbing her arm with what felt like a real flesh-and-blood hand, her double spun her around and shoved. “Run.”

Mai didn’t need any encouragement. Maybe if she ran hard enough, fast enough, she could escape this nightmare.

The path curved and Mai raced around it, the other woman on her heels. Up ahead, the public restroom came into view. Mai’s double steered her to the far side, where they stopped long enough to catch their breath.

“Are you all right?” her double asked, running her gaze over Mai like she was searching for injuries.

Don’t answer
, Mai cautioned herself.
Don’t give in to the hallucination
. Images of padded cells and straitjackets flashed through her head and a wave of dizziness washed over her. She must have swayed a little on her feet because her double reached out and grabbed her by both arms, a look of alarm in her eyes. “Damn it, Mai. Answer me. Are you hurt?”

“I’m fine,” Mai said between gritted teeth. “Most likely insane, but I’m not hurt.”

The pressure on her arms eased as her double leaned back against the wall again. “Keep your voice down,” she whispered. “And you’re not crazy.”

“No?” Mai hissed back. “Listen to me. I’ve taken talking to myself to a whole new level. I think that qualifies as crazy. At least my visions are getting better. Those bullets seemed almost real.”

Mai’s double winced. “The bullets
were
real, which is why we need to get you out of here.”

The shadows in the areas of the park where the lights didn’t reach were dark and ominous. Anyone could be
hiding there. The last thing she wanted to do was step away from the protection of the building, out into the open. “I’m good right here, thanks,” she whispered.

“No, we can’t stay here.”

“I can’t believe I’m standing here arguing with myself.”

“Quiet,” her double cautioned her again, turning to place her finger over Mai’s lips when her voice got louder. “You’re not arguing with yourself, you’re arguing with me.”

Mai arched an eyebrow at the woman. “Then who the hell are you?” she whispered around the finger.

“Nick.”

“Nick?
My
Nick?” The words were automatic and she saw the woman smile ever so slightly.

“Yeah.
Your
Nick.”

Mai ignored the way he stressed the word “your.” “Prove it.”

“Mai, we don’t have time for this.”

Mai crossed her arms over her chest and continued to stare at her double, who quietly cursed under her breath.

“Fine. My name is Nick Blackhawk. I came over for dinner tonight, a dinner which, by the way, you were supposed to treat me to. Instead, I ordered Anthony’s, which ended up all over my shirt.”

“Anyone could have known that.” It was his turn to arch an eyebrow and she capitulated. “Okay, fine. You’re Nick. Why do you look like me? How is that even possible? And where’d you get those clothes?” He was wearing a T-shirt and pair of jeans that looked suspiciously familiar. The shoes, she finally noticed, were definitely his own.

“I stole them from your bathroom before I left, okay? As for why I look like you, I’ll explain that later,” she—he—promised.

Son of a
…“That was my favorite outfit,” she lamented.