Gena Showalter - Playing With Fire (tales of an extra ordinary girl)

I popped my jaw. Lexis, who should be punched in the face right now, was working her way up my People to Punish When I Could Control My Powers list. But much as I wished I could discount the “cause trouble” comment, I couldn’t. Not after the fires, the ice and the car chase. “Who’s Sunny?”

“Our daughter,” Lexis told me haughtily.

I stopped breathing for a moment. Our daughter. As in Rome ’s and Lexis’s. So. Rome had been intimate with this beautiful, perfect woman. Was he still? My hands twitched at my sides. Other than the fact that we’d admitted we wanted to sleep together, I had no claim on Rome. Still, I was feeling very possessive at the moment.

“You want to take me to your friend’s house, huh?” I said quietly, darkly. “Are you two married?”

“Not anymore,” Rome said. That was a relief, at least. I hadn’t kissed and fondled a married man. To Lexis he said, “I’ll go wake Sunny up and get her things packed.” He strode away in the same direction he’d taken Tanner, leaving Lexis and me alone again.

We didn’t speak. Not a single word. We didn’t even look at each other, just stood there. Uncomfortable. She was the mother of Rome ’s child, for God’s sake.

I used the time to inspect the apartment. I don’t think I’d ever been in the presence of so much wealth. A panoramic wall of windows consumed the far edge of the apartment, looking out onto the heart of the city. Vibrant paintings of oriental flowers pulsed with life. Mint-green-and-pearl marble flooring swirled in rivers of iridescence. Scattered throughout were chests and tables composed of bright blue and green lacquer. A crimson velvet couch with silk pillows adorned the center of the living room.

Running out of things to look at, I peeked at Lexis. She was as sophisticated and elegant as her home. She wore a bold green dress that hugged her slender curves, each seam threaded with gold. Gilded leaves adorned the hem. Such loveliness was irritating. And Rome had seen her naked, which was even worse.

He returned none too soon, holding an angel and a bag. The angel’s hair was as black as his and-gag-her mother’s, with just a hint of curl. Her eyes were up-tilted and green, also (gag) like her mother’s. She wore a nightgown with brown bears scattered all over the fabric. One of her delicate arms was wrapped around Rome ’s neck and the other clutched a teddy bear. She yawned.

Seeing father and daughter together made my chest ache. Love radiated between them, a shining force of trust, comfort and serenity. A quiet bond that no one would ever be able to break. I had that with my dad, I thought, homesick.

“I missed you so much, sunshine,” Rome told her.

“Missed you, too, Daddy,” she said sleepily.

She was four years old, was my guess, and the cutest thing I’d ever seen. Until her gaze latched on to me. She frowned. “Who,” she said imperiously, “are you?”

“This is Belle. She’s a friend of Daddy’s,” Rome answered for me. Tenderly he smoothed a hand down the girl’s hair. “Let’s be nice to her, okay?”

“I don’t like her,” was the reply, stated as conversationally as if she’d said, “My bear needs a hug.”

Lexis smirked.

I crossed my arms over my chest. “Mind telling me what I did wrong?” I asked the girl.

“She doesn’t like anyone,” Rome told me. He kissed Sunny’s plump little cheek. “Except me.”

“It’s true,” Sunny said, sounding like a college professor. “Oh, I like Mommy, too.” She shook her head and her hair swished over her shoulders. “But strangers are bad, bad people who do bad, bad things.”

Rome beamed with pride. Sunny had probably quoted him verbatim.

“They sure are,” I agreed. “So I guess this means I can’t like you, either, since you’re a stranger to me.”

She giggled, and the sound lit up the room. “I’m not a stranger.”

“Are you sure?” I asked, tapping a finger to my chin. “You look like a stranger to me.”

“Very sure,” she said with a laugh, and Rome smiled. He gave me a soft look that nearly melted me into a puddle.

“Brittan is here,” Lexis said, and moved to the front door. She opened it, revealing a tall man whose fist was poised, ready to knock. He wore black lounge pants and a gray T-shirt. His dark hair was rumpled, and if not for the bump in his nose and the fact that his eyes were brown, he would have been an exact replica of Rome.

Brittan’s lips twitched. “I thought for sure I’d beat you this time.”

“Like that will ever happen.” Lexis stepped back and waved him inside. “Come in.”

“Hey, bro,” Brittan said, walking forward. He clapped Rome on the shoulder with genuine affection. Up close, I could see that Rome was taller than his brother and the younger of the two. Silver was woven through Brittan’s hair, and there were fine lines around his eyes.

Brittan saw me and frowned. “Who’s she?” he asked, giving me a chin nod.

“Belle Jamison,” I answered before someone else (namely Lexis) could introduce me as Troublemaker. “ Rome ’s friend.”

“Co-worker?” he asked, but I wasn’t given the chance to answer.

“Uncle Brit, Uncle Brit! Stop ignoring me!” Sunny squirmed in her daddy’s arms and threw herself at Brittan. Amid her giggling, he hugged her tightly. “You saw me a few hours ago, squirt, but I like this kind of greeting.”

“I need you to watch her for a few days, Brittan. Don’t take her back to your apartment, take her out of the building,” Lexis instructed. “To our safe house on Peach Street.”

Brittan lost all hint of joviality. “Is something going to happen?”

No one doubted a single word out of perfect Lexis’s perfect mouth, apparently, even when those words predicted a future no one could know for sure.

Lexis gave Sunny a pointed glance, and Brittan nodded in understanding. Obviously, they didn’t want her to know what was going on. I wasn’t exactly sure what was going on, either. Either Lexis wanted the girl away from me because she simply didn’t like me, or Rome really had told her about me and she wanted her daughter out of the line of fire. Literally. That would explain her hostility toward me.

Rome came up to my side, his heat wrapping around me. I don’t know why, but just having him near made me feel better. Calmer about everything. Even though the bastard had married Lexis. And slept with her. And given her a child.

Lexis placed little kisses all over Sunny’s face. “I’m going to miss you so much, but I know you’ll have fun with Uncle Brit as always.”

“Daddy said you’re going away again,” Sunny said. “How long this time?”

“Two weeks,” Lexis said.

“Two days,” Sunny countered.

“One week,” Rome said.

Sunny thought about it for a moment. “Deal.”

“Give me a kiss before you go, sunshine.” There was a tremor in Rome ’s voice now.

He was upset that she was leaving, which was heartbreaking. I reached out and laced our fingers. He didn’t pull away, but squeezed in thanks. Sunny leaned away from Brittan, who kept a tight hold on her, and stretched past Lexis to plant her lips on Rome ’s with a loud smack.

“I love you,” he said.

“Love you, too.”

Tears filled Lexis’s eyes, and I admit they filled mine, as well. I felt kind of guilty for intruding on this very personal, very private family goodbye. I felt even more guilty for causing it.

“Get out of here now,” Lexis said. “Go on.”

“Bye, stranger,” Sunny said to me. I smiled and waved.

Brittan anchored Sunny at his side with one hand and gathered her bag with the other. They were out the door a few seconds later, chatting about bears.

Silence filled the foyer until Rome gave me a half smile and said, “What do you know. You not only charmed me, you charmed my daughter.”