Rebecca York - Sudden Attraction

As he huddled in the cold, he played the scene again in his mind. Why had Buckley come out in the first place? Did he suspect someone else was on the property? Or was he just jumpy about something to do with his alias?

One thing was sure: renting a cottage on the plantation had put Luke Buckley in the wrong place at the wrong time—as far as George was concerned. Too bad for him.

LUKE AND GABRIELLA HURRIED onto the porch as the storm finally broke, sending rain pouring down.

“Close call,” he muttered as he opened the door.

When she hung back, he stepped quickly inside and turned on two of the battery-powered lamps that he’d bought after Mrs. Boudreaux had told him the electricity often went out in the middle of a storm.

Gabriella came in after him. As she looked around at the mess he’d made of the living room, he suddenly wished that he hadn’t been so quick to offer the lamps. However, if he hadn’t, she might not have come inside.

He knew she was staring at the epitome of a junked-up bachelor pad. He’d been working, and he’d left papers all over the desk. Books and other research materials were stacked on the coffee and end tables. Sitting on top of them were several plates and glasses that he hadn’t carried to the kitchen area, which was at the side of the room.

Of course, he hadn’t expected company, but still, he should have kept the place a little neater. What if his landlady dropped by?

Well, that wasn’t going to happen, he reminded himself.

He quickly picked up the glasses and plates and ferried them to the sink. Probably he should have hired a maid. But then he’d have to put his papers away. They were confidential, and dangerous, come to that.

He swept them into a pile now, putting them into a desk drawer.

He didn’t want Gabriella poking around his research, for her sake as well as his. The less she knew about the New Jersey mob, the better.

Of course, she’d been poking around in his mind, he reminded himself. Which meant she already knew too much.

Turning, he said, “I’m sorry about your mother.”

“Thank you. Or whatever you’re supposed to say.”

“That works. Why don’t you sit down,” he offered, thinking how lame that sounded.

Without comment, she took one of the easy chairs facing the sofa.

He leaned his hips against the kitchen counter, trying to look as if he wasn’t studying her, seeing in person what he’d only seen in his mind. Her short blond hair framed a narrow face, and her large, expressive eyes were either green or blue. She was staring back, taking his measure with as much interest. He knew his dark hair was too long and that he hadn’t shaved in a couple of days. Probably he looked like a criminal. Which might be what she was already thinking.

To break the silence, he asked, “Can I get you something? A beer? I’ve got some from the local brewery.”

She pursed her lips. “Okay. Maybe I could use one.”

“Yeah, I guess you had a rough day.”

“Uh-huh.”

It was a strange conversation, two people who should know nothing about each other. But not really. Not when they’d suddenly gotten inside each other’s heads.

Although he wanted to ask, that mind to mind thing ever happen to you before? he hadn’t worked up the nerve yet.

He pulled out two bottles out of the refrigerator and twisted off the caps.

“Do you want a glass?”

“No, this is fine.”

He moved back to the living area and set one of the bottles on the coffee table, then lowered himself to the other easy chair.

Outside the rain pounded down, giving him a feeling of two people meeting at the end of the world, like in the science fiction stories he’d read as a kid. Science fiction had appealed to him, maybe because he’d been disappointed with reality.

They each took a sip of beer.

Although he’d turned on a couple of battery lights, he thought the conversation might go better in semidarkness.

She ran her finger around the outside of the beer bottle before breaking the silence. “What happened out there?”

He winced. “I thought you were sneaking up on me.”

“Lucky you didn’t shoot me.”

“Yeah.”

“That was a gun I felt in your waistband.”

“Yeah,” he said again, pulling it out and setting it on the table between them.

She stared down at it and took another sip of beer before saying, “I didn’t mean—why did you tackle me. I meant—what happened when we touched?”

She’d been brave enough to ask the question. All he could say was, “We read each other’s thoughts and memories.”

“Which should be impossible.” She added, “So the next question is—how did it happen?”

He shrugged. “I don’t know.” The silence stretched again before he asked, “Do you have some psychic ability?”

She hesitated. “Not that you could … document.”

“Which means what?”

She raised one shoulder. “It means, there were times when I got a glimpse of the future.”

“Like what?”

“My mom called this afternoon. I knew it was going to be her, and I sensed that something bad …” Her voice trailed off, and she started again, “Something bad was going to happen. I didn’t know she was going to … die.” Her voice cracked, and he could see she was struggling not to cry.

He wanted to cross the room and put his arms around her, pull her close and stroke her back, her hair. But he stayed where he was.

When it looked as if she’d regained control, he said, “And you feel guilty about not dropping everything and coming here.”

“Yes.”

“But you were too far away to change what happened.”

“That doesn’t make it better.”

He nodded.

“What about you?” she asked. “I mean have you had psychic experiences?”

He tried to answer as honestly as he could. “I’m an investigative journalist.”

“Working on a book that will blow Rudy Maglioni’s New Jersey mob operation wide open.”

“Yeah. But let’s not get sidetracked,” he said in a tight voice.

“Okay.”

“I always thought that I had better than average instincts for stories. Good instincts for interviews. I’ve got a pretty good idea when someone’s lying to me. I know when I can push them to say more than they intended. I know when letting the silence stretch will make them jump to fill the vacuum.”

“Useful.”

“But nothing like … that thing outside has ever happened to me.”

“So what was different tonight?” she pressed.

“We’re both on edge. I mean, your mother just died, and I …”

“You’re hiding out from the … wiseguys. You’re willing to risk your life to finish the book.”

“Like I said, let’s drop it,” he snapped. “And that doesn’t explain the weird stuff.”

“I guess not.”

They stared at each other.

“I should leave,” she said.

“I wouldn’t advise it. You said you sometimes have an inkling of the future. What if you didn’t want to stay in the house because of … the stalker.”

“What stalker?”

“Come on. That’s what your mom called about.”

She sighed. “Inconvenient that you picked that up from my mind.”

“Like your knowing too much about my damn book. Inconvenient.”

Again, they lapsed into a tense silence.

He was used to letting the other person do the talking, but he ventured, “We picked up all that stuff from each other … when we touched.”

“Yes.”

He shifted in the chair. “We could try it again. See what happens.”

Her posture became more guarded. “There was more than just an exchange of information,” she said in a hard voice. “You wanted … me.”

“It wasn’t exactly one-sided. You wanted me, too.”