Paula Graves - Forbidden Temptation

Rose caught her arm. “I know it sounds impossible.”

Melissa whirled around. “Let go of me.”

“You know me. Would I say this if it wasn’t true?”

Melissa shook her head, her brow furrowed. “I don’t think I know you at all.” She turned to open her car door.

“I saw a death veil on Alice Donovan’s face,” Rose blurted.

Melissa froze.

“That night at the club,” Rose continued, “when she was dancing and she turned toward us, I saw it on her face.”

Melissa turned slowly, a dangerous glitter in her eyes. “Don’t even-”

“That’s why I left right after she did. I wanted to catch her before she left, to try to warn her.”

Melissa’s shoulders stiffened. “Did you?”

Rose nodded. “I told her what I was seeing.”

“And she called you crazy.”

“More or less,” Rose admitted, despair washing over her.

Enunciating her words slowly and carefully, Melissa asked, “Did you do anything to Alice?”

Rose stared at Melissa, hurt. “Of course not. I was trying to warn her.”

“Like you’re trying to warn me.”

The tears burning behind Rose’s eyes spilled down her cheeks. “I don’t care if you think I’m nuts. Could it hurt to be extra careful over the next few days?”

“You know I had a new alarm system put in my house last week. My car has a state-of-the-art security system. I’ll be fine.”

“Just remember what I said, okay? Maybe you and Mark should get away for a few days. For your anniversary-make it a long weekend. Give the police time to track this man down.”

Melissa’s eyebrows rose. “You think the slasher’s going to get me? Like he got Alice?”

Rose looked away from the shimmering veil marring Melissa’s pretty face. “Maybe not if you get out of town for a few days.”

Melissa shook her head. “I have a wedding to plan, and now I have to find a new planner. I’m not going anywhere.” She slid behind the wheel of her car and started to close the door.

Rose put her hand on the door, stopping Melissa from closing it. “Don’t go anywhere alone, Melissa.”

“Get your hand off my car door.” Melissa’s voice grated.

Rose stepped back. Melissa slammed the door shut, gunned the engine and whipped out of the parking slot, tires whining.

Knuckling the tears from her eyes, Rose trudged to her own car. She felt achy and heart-sore, weighted down by the shroud of despair blanketing every part of her life these days.

Considering her emotional state, it should have come as no surprise when she arrived home to find her sister Iris pacing the back patio. She’d probably sensed Rose’s agitation all the way from Willow Grove.

Rose parked her Chevy, peering through the windshield at her sister. Iris glared back, her posture tense.

Lovely.

“What the hell is going on, Rose?” Iris greeted her.

“Nice to see you, too.”

Eyes flashing with equal parts concern and irritation, Iris held up a newspaper with a large headline: Police Confirm Link Between Three Murders. “I was reading this story about a serial killer stalking your neighborhood when I came across your name. You helped set up a neighborhood meeting to address the issue? How civic of you.”

Rose sighed. “Since when do you get the Birmingham News? ”

“Since my flighty sister pulled up stakes and headed to Birmingham without any notice.”

Rose pressed her lips together. “I’m fine.”

“And how did the neighborhood meeting go?”

“It went well. Lots of good information.”

To Rose’s surprise, Iris’s coffee-colored eyes filled with tears and her face crumpled. She sank onto the wrought iron bench by the door. “Rosie, what have I done?”

Rose sat beside her sister, putting her hand on Iris’s knee. “Done? Why would you think you’ve done something?”

Iris dashed away a tear with an angry jab of her thumb. “I don’t know, maybe because you moved out of the house on a whim and left me there alone, and now you won’t return my calls?”

“I’m sorry.” Guilt washed over Rose in a dark wave. “I wasn’t avoiding you. I guess I was trying to avoid me.”

Iris sniffled. “That doesn’t make a damned bit of sense.”

Rose chuckled through her tears. “I know.”

Iris put her arm around Rose’s shoulders. “The true-love veils still haven’t come back, huh?”

Rose rested her head on her sister’s shoulder, tears spilling down her cheeks. Iris’s strong arm reminded her of how much she’d given up by isolating herself from her family. Iris’s empathic energy radiated down Rose’s arm and into her aching chest, drawing out her pain like a magnet.

Iris took in a swift breath, tightening her hold on Rose. “Rose, my God-what’s happened to you?”

Rose withdrew from her sister’s embrace before Iris could feel the full brunt of her tortured emotions. “Everything’s gone so wrong, and I don’t know how to fix it.”

“Maybe I can fix it.” Iris reached for Rose again, but Rose dodged her touch, not wanting to inflict more pain on her sister. Iris dropped her hand to her lap but held Rose’s gaze. “Tell me, Rosie. I promise it’ll be better if you share it.”

Rose haltingly explained about the death veils, from the first appearance on Dillon Granville’s face to her recent experiences. Iris’s gaze revealed equal parts compassion and horror, tears sliding over her cheeks and reddening her eyes.

When Rose subsided into soft sniffles, Iris straightened her back. “Okay. You have a different gift now, that’s all.”

“A terrible gift,” Rose muttered. “I don’t want it.”

Iris brushed Rose’s hair away from her face. “I don’t blame you, but it is what it is.”

“I hate that phrase.”

“You were spoiled, you know. Having such a happy gift.”

Rose nodded, wiping her eyes with the heels of her palms. “I know you and Lily didn’t always like your gifts.”

“Lily ran away from hers for years.” Iris looked down at her hands. “I never ran from mine, but there’ve been lots of times I’ve wanted to. Feeling other people’s pain isn’t fun.”

“But you’ve been able to help a lot of people.”

“And maybe you can help people, too,” Iris pointed out. “Like with that meeting.”

“A lot of good that did.” Rose told Iris about seeing the death veils on the women in the audience. “What if I paraded the killer’s next victim right in front of him?”

“You may never know how many women’s lives you saved by helping them know how to avoid danger and protect themselves,” Iris countered. “Organizing that meeting and informing women what they’re up against was the right thing to do.”

“That’s what Daniel says, too.”

“Daniel?”

Rose flushed. “Daniel Hartman.”

Iris looked taken aback. “The criminologist?”

Rose quirked one eyebrow. “You’ve heard of him?”

“Uh, yeah.” Iris looked at her as if she were dumb as a stump. “Daniel Hartman, wonderboy profiler.”

He would hate that characterization, Rose thought.

“You’ve met him?” Iris asked, her voice tinged with awe.

The heat rising up Rose’s neck intensified. She’d done a bit more than just meet him, much to her embarrassment. “Yeah.”

“Is he as cute in person as he is on TV?”

“I guess.” Rose tried to sound noncommittal.

Iris’s eyes narrowed. “Just how well do you know him?”

“We’ve met a few times.”

“Met.”

“Stop it, Iris.” She couldn’t deny that she found Daniel attractive. But his rebuff after she’d kissed him left her with little indication he returned her feelings. She’d tried to convince herself that he’d kissed her back, that maybe the glitter she’d seen in his eyes had been desire.