Through the Night (5 page)

Inhaling a deep, calming breath, Valerie cut into her chicken marsala and tried desperately to shake the compelling heat spreading through her that had her on the verge of doing something stupid … like climbing across the table, onto Chase’s lap, and giving in to the temptation in his gaze and the exhilarating rush of pleasure his mere touch evoked.

Oh, yeah, especially that.

She was quickly realizing that resisting a man like Chase was near impossible. Everything about him—from his
you know you want me
grin to his bold self-assurance and his pure, laid-back sex appeal—was too damned inviting. And hotter than any man had a right to be.

And he knew it, too, the cad, and didn’t seem one ounce apologetic for being so charming and seductive. In too short a span of time, he’d gotten under her skin, his lusty musings penetrating her thoughts like mind sex.
That
had never happened to her before. When he’d placed his hand on her lower back to usher her out onto the balcony, it was as if he’d been inside her head, whispering how he wanted to lick that sensitive spot where his fingers rested so sensually. She heard his internal monologue as clearly as if he’d voiced the desires aloud, their connection had been that strong.

Shivering at the recollection, she took a bite of her chicken, afraid to look directly in his eyes for fear he could see or read
her
thoughts.

“How did you come to work for Caleb and the Reliance Group?” Chase asked as he sliced off a section of his porterhouse steak.

Grateful for the change of topic, she speared a few glazed carrots onto her fork and finally looked across the table. His expression was curious and full of interest, which made it easy for her to open up to him. At least about work-related things.

“About four years ago, I moved to Vegas, and my first job here at the Onyx was as a reservations clerk. From there, I moved to a junior casino hostess position and was eventually promoted to executive casino host,” she explained before taking the bite of vegetables.

A moment later, after a drink of her water, she continued. “At that time, no one at the hotel knew of my psychic abilities, and I preferred to keep it that way. Being able to read people and see things that aren’t tangible isn’t something I put out there, mainly because of the skepticism and distrust that comes with admitting you’re clairvoyant.” Then there were dishonest con men who saw an easy opportunity and used her gift to swindle other people—all without her knowledge.

Her stomach cramped at the reminder of how gullible she’d once been, to the point that she’d let someone close for the first time ever, only to be deceived in the most devastating way. She’d let her heart rule her emotions and the decisions she’d made, instead of keeping a clear head and seeing past her ex-boyfriend’s bullshit charm for the unconscionable crook he’d been.

It was a lesson learned the hard way and had nearly destroyed her confidence and self-worth. Now, when it came to men and relationships, or rather,
affairs,
she purposefully kept things casual and short-term, because her biggest fear was letting her emotions get involved, which skewed her judgment when it came to seeing people for who and what they really were.

“I totally understand about keeping your psychic ability close to the vest,” Chase said in commiseration, completely oblivious of her inner turmoil. “When people learn what you’re capable of, a lot of them either tend to think you’re a freak, or a fraud.”

“Exactly,” she said, hating more than anything that her gift had been used to dupe an unsuspecting victim, and she’d unknowingly been part of the scam.

She forcibly shook off those dark thoughts and continued with her story. “I knew Caleb because he worked casino security, and one night he was escorting a man through the gaming area who was drunk and belligerent. As I was walking toward them, the other man stepped into my path before Caleb realized what he was doing. I had to put my hand on the man’s chest to keep him from knocking me over. The first thing I felt was the evil emanating from him, and that was quickly followed by flashes of a woman gagged and bound to a bed in a hotel room. It was the terror I saw in her eyes that convinced me that whoever this girl was, she wasn’t a willing party to whatever games he was playing with her.”

The unpleasant memory still had the ability to make her feel sick, and she set her fork on her plate until she finished the story. “As soon as Caleb handed the man over to his security guys, I pulled him aside and told him what I’d seen. Of course, Caleb was doubtful and suspicious, but just to be on the safe side, and because I wouldn’t give up, he had someone go up and check the drunk man’s hotel room.”

Chase’s gaze turned compassionate. “Where they found the woman,” he finished for her.

“Yes.” She really did hate seeing the worst in people, literally, yet she also knew she’d most likely saved that woman’s life that night. “She was a prostitute that the man had picked up on the Strip, and he’d had her tied up in his room for three days, physically and sexually assaulting her while threatening to kill her if she didn’t do what he wanted.”

Chase’s jaw clenched. “Son of a bitch,” he muttered beneath his breath.

That made her smile and helped to alleviate the dark mood at the table. “Yeah, he was definitely that. A few days after the incident, Caleb called me up to his office and asked me to be a part of the Reliance Group, to use my gift to help solve cases, and I agreed. I figure if I’m going to have this psychic ability, I might as well use it for good causes.”

Despite her decision to join TRG to help in the fight for greater good, accepting the cases Caleb assigned to her wasn’t always simple or easy. She was still thrust into dark, complex situations that completely inundated her, and she sometimes saw things she’d rather forget and that gave her nightmares for weeks.

But it was knowing that she had the ability to help people, and possibly spare them the kind of pain and devastation that could destroy a person’s soul, that kept her on TRG’s payroll. And knowing that
she
was ultimately in control of her emotions during those cases made all the difference as well.

This case with Chase was an amusing diversion, like a fun and entertaining scavenger hunt. There was nothing ominous or dangerous about trying to find the rest of Al Capone’s cane. And knowing there was nothing treacherous or detrimental about following information and clues to unearth a historical object was a huge relief.

The only thing that posed any danger on a personal level was their blazing, unavoidable attraction, which came with a sizzle and burn that felt too damn good. Yet, beyond the draw of the sexual heat they generated together, she could tell there was something else about Chase that threatened to chip away at the walls she’d erected after her heartbreak and disillusionment.

It had been years since she trusted a man on an emotional level, and though she wasn’t able to put her finger on exactly what that “something else” was when it came to Chase, her woman’s intuition—
not
her psychic abilities—was warning her that this man could easily charm his way into her heart if she let him.

Which she wasn’t about to allow. There was no doubt in Valerie’s mind that Chase was all about fun and flings, and while she wasn’t opposed to indulging in a no-strings-attached affair with a hot guy, she and Chase had a job to do, and sex had a way of complicating things when two people had to work that closely together. Their combined psychic gifts notwithstanding.

She finished eating her chicken, and having revealed enough about herself, she intentionally turned the conversation to him. “Where are you from?”

“Chicago.” Done with his meal, he leaned back in his seat, reached for his tequila, and wrapped his long, well-manicured fingers around the snifter. “I have an apartment in the city, but I’m not there much, since most of my time is spent traveling. It’s more like a home base in between jobs.”

Considering she was a girl who preferred stability in her life, she couldn’t imagine the upheaval and disconnect of always being on the road and away from those who mattered the most. And some of those people closest to her were the other members of the Reliance Group. “Is that where your family is? Chicago?”

He hesitated a moment as he absently swirled the amber liquid in his glass. “Yes, but I’m not close to them, and it’s been four years since I’ve seen my parents, brother, and sister. They don’t exactly approve of what I do for a living.”

She heard the thread of bitterness in his voice, and felt bad that there was discord in his family. “I’m sorry,” she said softly. She was certain there was a lot more to his story, but had the distinct impression he wasn’t willing to share anything more than superficial information.

“It is what it is.” Chase shrugged as if it didn’t matter, belying the tight set to his mouth. He took a long sip of his tequila, swallowed just as slowly, and seemed to relax. “What about you? Where did you grow up?”

Just that easily, she was the focus of their conversation again. “I was born and raised in Colorado.”

“Any siblings?” he asked.

Finished with her dinner, too, she set her fork on her plate. “No. My parents died when I was just five, and I went to live with my aunt and uncle, who raised me as if I were their own child. I grew up with my three cousins, and they are as close to me as siblings would be.”

She smiled, because her life with her relatives had been a good one, despite the loss of her parents at such an early age. She’d been surrounded by unconditional love and the security of knowing she was part of a family unit, even though she kept her emotional distance for fear of losing them as she had her mother and father. And eventually, when her aunt realized Valerie possessed psychic abilities, that issue had been handled with care and acceptance, too—unlike in Chase’s family.

They talked a bit more about her childhood, but like him, she avoided details about certain things—like her parents’ death and how, at the age of five, she’d seen the fiery accident that would claim their lives, even before it happened. And because she didn’t understand the vision she’d seen, she was too afraid to say anything to her mother or father when they’d walked out the door that fateful evening, and never returned.

Valerie’s chest grew heavy with old regrets and the burden of blame. Because not only had she done nothing to prevent her parents’ tragic demise, but she’d also relived a similar scenario all over again when she flashed on a vision of a coworker’s fatal accident.

She hated that her gift was the source of more pain than joy, and after that last incident, coupled with her ex-boyfriend’s duplicity, she’d instinctively kept herself, and her talent, guarded. She felt as though the rug had been pulled out from under her one too many times when it came to people she cared about, and she refused to put herself through more of the grief and heartbreak that had a way of inundating her when her emotions were involved.

Chase lifted the lid off a smaller plate on the table, revealing the dessert he’d ordered for himself. “Care for a bite of tiramisu?” he asked.

She shook her head, plenty full from her meal. “No, thank you, but you go right ahead and enjoy.”

“Oh, I will,” he said in a lazy, sexy drawl. “I love a good dessert.”

She watched him dig into the layered Italian confection with gusto, and suspected he approached life the same way—with passion, verve, and no-holds-barred enthusiasm. Quite the opposite of her more reserved and cautious nature.

“I guess I should ask, what’s next on our agenda? Where do we go from here?”

“San Francisco,” he said as his fork scooped up more liqueur-infused sponge cake. “We have a flight out of Vegas tomorrow afternoon at two, then on Monday we’ll take the first boat over to Alcatraz. I’ve made arrangements with a friend of mine who is a park ranger there who’ll escort us through the prison before it opens to the public.”

She knew that Al Capone had spent time on Alcatraz Island back in the 1930s, when it was a federal prison. Now, it was a popular tourist attraction. She’d never been there herself, and wasn’t sure how she felt about going to a former penitentiary that had once been filled with such darkness, corruption, and evil. It was the kind of place she deliberately avoided, because of the history involved and the intense emotions connected to the inmates and guards who once lived there.

Just the thought of stepping foot on Alcatraz Island filled her with a sense of dread, but she’d made a commitment to Caleb and this case, and would forge through her own personal apprehension and unease. “What do you expect to find there?” she asked him.

“I’ve already been to Alcatraz—a few times, actually,” he revealed, meeting her gaze as his tongue made a sensuous swipe across his bottom lip to lick off a dab of mascarpone filling smudged there. “And quite honestly, I didn’t find much.”

She tipped her head curiously, trying not to think about how that tongue of his would feel licking across
her
mouth. “So why are you taking
me
there?”

“Because of the obvious physical connection to Capone.” He set his fork down on the empty dessert plate. “Most of what I know of Capone’s time at the prison is what’s been written in books or secondhand information. I need to find something more tangible, and I’d like to see what, if anything, you might discover while we’re there.”

A light breeze blew, causing a few strands of her hair to tickle her cheek, and she tucked them back behind her ear. “Because of the intensity of the prison, I’m sure I’m going to be bombarded with all sorts of visions and disjointed surges of energy that will make it difficult to pin down anything directly related to Capone.”

Determination etched his features. “I know that’s a possibility, but there’s always a chance you
will
connect with something that I wasn’t able to. I’ll be taking you to more contained places, like the infirmary and solitary confinement, where Capone spent much of his time while at Alcatraz, so that should help narrow down the impressions.”