Wherever She Goes (Psychic Seasons, ReGina Welling [novels to improve english TXT] 📗

“The key?”

“Equinox is getting closer. We should plan a get together this weekend to see if we can find the last key.”

Chapter 15

With all eight of them crowded in front of the spring themed stained glass window, Julie could not help but take a moment to reflect on the journey that had brought this group together.

She saw herself a year ago standing here alone, worried about the future of Hayward House and wished she could tell that lonely, scared woman from the past to keep the faith, things would change for the better.

She watched Zack step forward to scan the window looking for anything that might help them locate the final key. The math clue Julius had given to Kat made no sense yet so they decided to start with the magic garden, spring style.

Julie smiled at Tyler as he sat poised with his laptop, ready to note down their findings on one of his famous lists. No matter what they turned up this time, she already had all the treasure she needed—a loving husband, a home no longer in grave need of repair, a group of friends who made up her new family, and a few extra months with her beloved Grams.

Like the other windows, its centerpiece was a large tree depicted in the lighter, fresher greens of spring. Below the tree, a carpet of new grass studded with abstract flowers was rendered with intricately cut glass in bright, Easter egg colors that provided a visual balance and counterpoint to the pale blues and whites of a gently clouded sky.

While they watched, Gustavia sidled up to Julie and whispered, “Look at them. Do you see it? Chemistry.”

“Oh, I see it.” It was nothing overt, more like an extra bit of awareness between them but if you were looking, it was hard to miss.

“And how does that make you feel?” Julie tried to imitate Freud but her fake German accent was so bad it came out sounding more like French.”

With a giggle, Gustavia replied, “Well, Sigmund, it makes me feel all fluttery inside. And like, maybe, we could give them a little nudge.”

Gustavia met Julie’s grin with an exaggerated eyebrow waggle and raised her voice to ask, “Find anything?”

“Yes,” Kat glanced over her shoulder. “We’ve either found a set of red herrings or multiple possibilities.”

Intrigued, the other six crowded even closer while Kat showed them. “There’s a set of pins the same as the ones that held the painting of Julius on the first window.” She lifted her chin toward him and Zack swung them into place.

“Here, here, here, here, and here I’ve found exactly the same types of ledges that held those lenses from the second window. And then there are three spots where the leading feels exactly like the sections with the hidden prism brackets—the same as the ones on the winter window.”

“Do you think we need to find a new set of keys or use the ones from before?”

“One plus two plus three equals four. I think Julius meant for us to use those keys again. That would fit with his math clue.”

It felt right and Julie figured that if they were wrong, Julius would hound them until they looked deeper.

Chapter 16

If Gustavia had been here, she would have told him to trust the universe. He didn’t know if he believed in fate but the fact that he had walked into another of Kat’s unfortunate dates was a coincidence even he could not ignore.

He could tell she didn’t want to be there by her body language. Elbow on the table, shoulders slumped, her cheek resting on her hand, and her eyes were glazed over with boredom while the man across from her droned on.

It was his civic duty to rescue her yet again. Protect and serve. So what if neither of those quite described the current situation.

Zack knew the moment she noticed him standing there. It was evident in the delicate tension that ran through her body. He hoped for more but her only response was a wry twist of the lips and the slightest hint of an eyeball roll.

Unable to resist, Zack made his way to the table. Completely ignoring the man sitting on the other side, he leaned down, grasped Kat’s arm gently and hissed just loud enough for her date to hear, “There’s not much time, follow me.” He glanced behind him as though looking for someone who might be tailing him.

Kat wasted no time jumping into character. She darted a glance left then right and pasted a frightened look on her face as she let him gently drag her to her feet.

With only an apologetic shrug to her erstwhile date, Kat grabbed her coat and purse from the back of the chair and left the restaurant.

“Come with me if you want to live,” Zack pulled her along gently but forcefully.

“Really?” Now she was getting worried, had something happened?

“No,” once outside and around the corner he stopped to grin down at her, “I just always wanted to say that.” Before he could help himself, he bent down and pressed his lips to hers.

Kat trembled before the onslaught of desire overtook her and she kissed him back. What had started out soft and sweet very quickly turned passionate as she wound her arms around his neck and pressed her body to his. He was like molten lava running through her veins, igniting fires in places she never knew existed. Fires that threatened to burn out of control.

A split second of surprise at her response flitted through his mind before he abandoned rational thought and gathered her closer, then closer still and poured the whole of himself into the kiss.

Sparks of electricity raced across her skin, arrowed into her gut until there was no escaping the fact, she wanted—well, she didn’t know what exactly but she knew it was something that only he could give her. “Please,” she whispered.

Thinking she was asking him to stop,