Succubus Heat CHAPTER 11

Cody asked the obvious question.Soif hes ka compose(p) how did that exit?Hugh rubbed his waitress. He was summoned.Oh, shit, utter Peter. His fun-in-the- sunbathe joy fadeed. He looked as charnel as Hugh and me. That changes everyaf sane.I glanced among him and Hugh, relishing as nave as Cody. Whats that remember exactly? Ive heard of summoning, further thats ab prohibited it. I dont chi flush toilete any specifics. I dont live anyone its happened to.Peter nodded. Me either, exclusively I ac fill inledge what it is. Basic all(a)y, a powerful homosexual calls and binds a demigod to his or her will. That human can then imprison and control the demon.Like Marlowes Dr. Faustus .We all false to st be at Cody. Citing laid- hindquartersbrow literary references was usually my thing, non his.What? he asked, looking uncomfort fitted under our scrutiny. I had to read it in high school.I looked okay at Peter. Okay, were immortal, and we could never even scratch a demon. How could a human control one?Humans who use trick wield a different soft of power than immortals. Besides, from what Ive heard, those who summon demons very untold postulate help, explained Peter. He glanced at Hugh for confirmation.From an opposite demon, the imp say.Whoa. Lets go coering to the part some(prenominal) or slight controlling demons. What exactly is this human do Jerome do? asked Cody.Probably nonentity, verbalise Hugh. Or else salubrious-nighbody would defy vomit up him by now. My guess is hes just being hidden.Cody frowned. whitherfore? If youve got a pet demon, w presentfore not use him? Otherwise, whats the blame?It all came to matureher now. To conduct him stunned of the picture, I verbalize slowly. Thats it. The final piece in all this unearthly demon intrigue. Thats what all the misdirection was building toward.Right. Cedric go fars rid of Jerome, and suddenly in that respects an actuate in Seattle for a new archdemon. And if Jerome do esnt return soon, they will get a new archdemon and reestablish the hierarchy here. Hugh gestured to all of us. The status quo will resume.Lets trounce to when he returns and not if, I said. And I dont c one beative Cedrics behind it.Of means Cedrics behind it, said Hugh. Theyve been fighting over territory, right? You of all cud should know that.I shook my ear, recalling Cedrics exasperation and Nanettes smug look. NoI regard Cedrics being set up here. If you ask me, its Nanette whos behind it. I gave them a quick recap of my observations of her with both Cedric and Jerome.Hugh arched an eyebrow. Portland Nanette? Shes hot, Ill give you that, exactly shes not that strong.All the more than reason for her to mess with Jerome and Cedric. Shes been worried ab step up them dragging her into their turf war. Besides, if she combined her power with a human adequate of a summoningYeah, he admitted. She could maybe do it exactly that doesnt mean she did. My moneys hush up on Ced ric.Wouldnt she get in trouble for that? asked Cody.Only if shes caught, said Peter.I sighed. And in the mean period, this is bad for Jerome.Glad to teach your powers of stating the obvious didnt disappear with your shape-shifting, remarked Hugh.I shot him a gl are. I mean reputation-wise. Nanette told me lots of pile start reveal been keeping an eye on Jerome because of all the stuff thats asleep(p) down here-especially with letting nephilim escape. They appreciate he cant keep control. Even if he surfaces tomorrow, Ive got to imagine that getting summoned in the first place wont look good.It wont, concord Hugh. In fact, thats the other reason I hindranceped by. A fortune of demons are having a meeting tonight to talk to the highest degree(predicate) replace him. Back room of the Cellar at seven.Wow, they move fast, said Cody.Its zipper sullenicial. Once word got by that Jerome was gone, every demon maneuvering for power travel in identical that. Hugh snapped his f ingers. I refrained from pointing out that all demons were maneuvering for power as a general rule. Theyre mostly just here to assert themselves-show how rugged they are, cozy up to gentleness and Mei. They might try to schmooze us a little, actually.Why? We dont have any say in this, said Peter. He glanced between us all. Do we?No, except eventually individual from precaution will come here to size up the speckle and will talk to us in their assessment. Everything plays a part. Those wanting the office staff will strut or so, show how they could keep this place in line, and put their bids in.Is Nanette exhalation to be at this meeting? I asked suspiciously.Yes, said Hugh, eyeing me. And so will Cedric.I eyed him right back. Im severaliseing you, its not Cedric. Im trustworthy of it.What, you have donuts with him for a week, and now you guys are BFF?No, but I know him better than you do. And I think I understand Nanette better than you a comparable(p)wise, I shot back.S o, you guys began Cody, a questioning note in his vocalization.Are you quiescence with Cedric? Hugh demanded. Are you playing both sides now?NoIt kind of sounds ilk it.You guys, repeated Cody.Look, I said, you just want to believe Nanettes innocent because you think shes hot.She is hot. For a demon.You guys yelled Cody. We turned to him. What more or less us?What about us? I asked.What are we? Codys face was pinched and worried. Like Peter, he no languish rest seemed that excited about his newfound unloosedom. Are we human?I opened my mouth to answer and then fell silent. I aboveboard didnt know. Hugh glanced at me and shrugged.Not exactly, said Peter. I think were kind ofin stasis. Were neither mortal nor immortal.We have to be one or the other, argued Hugh. Theres no purgatory equivalent to mortality.Peter shrugged. Hells still got the lease on our souls. Thats not divergence to change, no matter who our archdemon is. Removing him from the equation lose weights us off fr om the abilities we get with immortality, but thats temporary.But does it cut us off from immortality itself? asked Cody. Can we die? be quiet fell.Shit, said Hugh.I think Peter bit his lip. I had a feeling he was at the end of his knowledge on this subject. I think theyd bring us back if we did.You think ? asked Cody incredulously.Peter threw up his throws. I dont know This has never happened to me before, okay? perchance we are human. Maybe we can get sick. Maybe we can lose in a fight. Maybe Georginall get her period. I dont know, okay?Whoa, I said, straightening up. What do you mean- notwithstanding stop it, all of you, exclaimed Hugh. Were not pass to figure any of this out right now. Just go to the meeting and find out on that point. Grace and Mei are assay to manage things for now, and theyll know whats up. No point in panicking now.We sit down there, and I knew that despite his language, we were all indeed panicking. My die hard was rolling, but this time, it wasnt a reaction to the severing of my bond with Hell. This was born of pristine terror. When things were bad in my life-particularly after band and I had broken up-there had been time when Id hated immortality. Death had sounded appealing. I honestly hadnt been able to fathom how I could endure the centuries to come and had envied the finite life spans of humans. But now? set about with the appraisal that I could actually die? Suddenly, desperately, I wanted to adhere to my immortality with every scrap of my strength. Death was bleak, dark, and frightening. All the worlds dangers descended on me at once, all the things Id hitherto been able to ignore. Car accidents. Electrocution. Bird flu. The world was no interminable safe.If the vampires felt any such misgivings, they apparently decided it wasnt leaving to get in the way of their last some days as free men. They rose as one and made motions to leave.Well, if Jeromes waiver to get replaced with or without us, then theres no p oint sitting and moping, said Peter.We got cut off without warning, I told him. We could get reconnected to Hells circuit board just as suddenly, you know. Arent you a little nervous about getting caught out in the sun?Theyre not going to make any decisions in the next flipper hours, said Peter brashly- overly brashly, I impression.He paused a signification, his gaze rootless to my move upow and the blue sky beyond it. There, in his dark eyes, I saw the tiniest, tiniest bit of longing. It occurred to me then just how much he essential have missed the sun these last thousand years or so. Like the rest of us, hed willingly sold his soul for immortality. Along with that, hed gotten miraculous strength and speed in exchange for a dependency on blood, a denial of sunlight, and a concern as a dispenser of timidity and nightmares. I certainly had regrets about my hellish deal some days no doubt he did too. And maybe, despite his lax, overconfident posture about the sun, he truly wa s alert of the lay on the line of getting fried-and opinion it was worth it after all this time.He and Cody left, leaving me and a still bleak-looking Hugh. I gently agitateed the imps elevate. Im sure thisll work out.He cut me a wry look. Really?I laughed softly. No, not actually. Im just trying to make you feel better. I never cognise before how much you care yourwhat would you call it? Imp vision?This finally got him to smile. You invariably thought of me as a stem pusher?Nah, no one uses paper anymore. Its all electronic.Not in Hell, he said, standing up. They kind of like cutting down forests.I followed him to the door. Well, hang in there, and Ill see you tonight.What are you going to do with your newfound freedom? he asked, devote on the doorknob.I frowned. What do you mean? This whole thing isnt quite the equal for you and me as it is for the vampires.The look Hugh gave me then was genuinely amused and well-nigh pitying. Georgina. Your shape-shifting and other a bilities are fueled by human life. If you cant do those things, then you dont regard the null-just like Cody and Hugh dont pick out blood. Cant you feel it? The whole systems likely shut off.I froze and almost stopped breathing for a moment-which might not have been so wise in my current state. What ?He laughed again. How could you have not considered that?Wellbecause I was more focused on the entire stuff of Seattles demonic hierarchy being unraveled. That and the possibility that we could all die. Inside, my mind was replaying his words over and over, like a record that kept skipping You dont necessitate the energy, you dont wishing the energy I shook my head. I cant believe that. It isnt possible. Id wanted it for too long, the ability to be with someone without the dire side effects. It was one of those things you ever so longed for but knew, deep down inside, could never happen. Like winning the lottery. Or, um, breathing forever.Neither is a vampire going into the su n, said Hugh. Yet here we are. He leaned down and kissed my archness. Think about it. This is a once in a lifetime-er, eternity-chance.He started to leave, and then something Id nearly forgotten about popped back into the forefront of my mind. Hugh? Did you get my mental object earlier? About the Canadian Satanists? subsequently everything else, a few signs on the Space Needle suddenly seemed absurdly unimportant.Yeah, he said, with a grimace. They had a huge spectacle there, freaked people out. They made the give-and-take and got arrested. Not sure whatll happen now. The international thing makes it all interesting.Were you able to tell Jerome?No, couldnt get a hold of him-not surprising if that was near the time of the summoning. I ended up getting a hold of Mei, and I think she did something to minimize how much the media found out. She was hoping that nobody in Management would notice.Yeah, well, theyre all noticing us now.Hughs face was hard as he nodded his agreement. That s an understatement. lose fun, sweetie.He departed, leaving me standing there and staring at the door.I was still breathing heavily, my heart thudding in my chest. I necessitate to calm down and think this finished and through. After all, who knew what could happen if I had a panic attack? Would I go into cardiac arrest or something? All bets were off now. Anything was possible.I sank down to the floor, wrapping my arms some myself, and focused on slowing my breathing. This was all too surreal. I couldnt exploit it. It wasnt possible that I could be mortal. It wasnt possible that I could die. It wasnt possible that I could actually touch a man without harming him. Over and over I told myself those things. Meanwhile, Aubrey strolled over to me and rubbed her head against my leg. R from each oneing out, I stroked her back, still aware of my actions.What was I going to do? We had five hours until the meeting, which couldnt come soon enough as far as I was concerned. I needed answ ers now . I couldnt live with this uncertainty. My heart started racing again. Fuck. I really was going to have a heart attack. Hugh was a doctor in his day job maybe I should call him about my blood pressure.CallAn idea hit me then, and I stood up to go find my purse. Producing my cell phone, I dialed Dante. If anyone might know about this, it would be him. He probably wouldnt know the intricacies of how this affected my infernal standing, but he had to know something about demon summoning. Dark magic was his specialty. Besides, I wanted more than just his expertise. I suddenly just wantedwell, comfort. I wanted to see him. I wanted him to hold me and reassure me. I needed him to tell me everything was going to be okay.But the phone rang and rang without answer, sending me to his voice mails friendly message Talk.So much for that plan. I disconnected and leaned against my counter. Slowly, steadily, I felt my head teacher waking up, trying to find a scrap of reason through my fear. It wasnt in my nature to be passive. I had to do something about this. I couldnt ask until tonight for answers.Lets research this ourselves, Aubrey, I said. The average human knew nothing about the true nature of Heaven and Hell and how we operated. Yet, every once in a while, if you looked hard enough into arcane writings, you could stumble crosswise a piece of truth that some adept mortal had put outed. cardinal percent of what Id find would be inaccurate, but an Internet search could uncover some grain of truth about demon summoning. It was a add together long shot, but it was the best I could do for now.Only, when I went to get my laptop, I discovered an unfortunate fact Id left it at the bookstore. I groaned. Now what? Another plan shot down.You idiot , a voice inside me chastised. Youre a few blocks away. Get off your ass and get it .That logic made perfect sense, of course. Until I looked out the window.The same fear Id had earlier returned. The cars moving along poof A nne Avenue seemed too fast, the wind stirring the trees too strong, the people on the side flip too dangerous. How could I go out there? How could I put myself at risk? Better to quench in here where it was safe.And yethow could I wait around? I was going to go crazy if I sit down here. Glancing down at Aubrey, I saw her watching me with her green eyes. She had that incessantly wise look cats had sometimes. It wasnt exactly encouraging, but it soothed me a little.Okay. I could do this.I found my coat and started to shape-shift my messy cop into a tasteful arrangement-except, of course, I immediately agnize I couldnt shape-shift it. Not a problem, I assured myself. I did my sensory hairsbreadth all the time when I wasnt in a rush. This was no different. With a quick dash to the restroom, I napped my hair into a sleek ponytail and prepared to face the world.Stepping outdoors, I was make noise with stimuli. I stood on the steps to my building, shell-shocked and unable to move. This had never happened to me. Never, never had I been afraid of the world. Id eternally rejoiced in it and been eager to see what it had to offer. Slipping my move over into my purse, I reached for my cigarettes, seeking them like a safety blanket. When I took them out, I realized something else. I wasnt necessarily immune to them anymore. This stasis probably wouldnt last longbut how could I risk it? How could I expose myself to carcinogens when I had no idea how vulnerable I truly was?Putting the cigarettes back, I took a deep breath and plunged forward.The distance to the store was barely three blocks, but it felt like miles. I walked as far away as I could from traffic and flinched each time someone passed me. When I finally reached the intersection to cross over to Emerald City, I was sweating. Queen Anne Avenue is not an overly crazy road. This particular spot had three lanes and unfaltering traffic, with a moderate speed of 30 (which meant people could usually be found g oing 35?C40).Nonetheless, standing there, I might as well have been trying to cross I-5 itself, with five lanes racing in each direction. The crosswalk was red, giving me time to build up courage and instigate myself that Id crossed here hundreds of times-jaywalking more often than not. I was being irrational, freaking out at things I had no business worrying about. The light dinged and gave me the go-ahead.I set out, each step agony. Id almost reached the far curb when a Honda turning on red from the cross street suddenly pulled into the intersection, having scarce checked for cars and not pedestrians. Seeing me, the driver slammed on her brakes a bit more harshly than she probably needed. They squealed, and the car came to a stop about two feet from me. While moderately alarming, this wasnt anything that probably would have panicked me too much under ordinary circumstances. The car had stopped, after all, and I was almost across anyway. Yet, I was so on edge already that when I heard the brakes and saw how close she was, I alone froze. I stood there, caught-literally-in the headlights.I couldnt think or move. It was so stupid. Seven more steps, and I would have been safe. The womans panic over avoiding me turned to annoyance when she realized I was blocking her way. She pressed down on her horn, which was a particularly loud and obnoxious one. Unfortunately for her, it was ineffectual. If anything, the noise simply froze me up more.Suddenly, someone grabbed a hold of my arm and started tugging me to the curb. The bitch in the Honda kept honking, and I think I was nearly as startled by it as I was when band yelled to her, Oh, shut up alreadyHis steady hands guided me to the sidewalk where I promptly froze up again, inattentive to the curious cars and pedestrians. Cupping my face, he forced me to look up at him. His eyes were like warm molasses, and something about them spread comfort through me and brought me back to myself.Georgina, are you okay?My whol e body trembled, and it took me a moment to gather myself and speak. II think soHis voice was so, so gentle when he spoke. What happened there?I blinked back draws. nullthat is I couldnt finish. I was going to break down, then and there, right on Queen Anne Avenue. I hated myself for being so weak and scared.Never mind, said stage set, taking hold of my arm again. It doesnt matter. Youre safe. Lets go inside.If any of my co-workers saw Seth leading me through like an invalid, I didnt notice. In fact, I was barely aware of the trek at all until we were inside my office. Seth sit down me down and then shut the door. He leaned down toward me.Do you need anything? Water? Something to eat?Slowly, almost robot-like, I shook my head. N-no. II just came for my laptop.The normal look of timidity hed worn around me late had vanished, replaced by something stern and concerned-something that wouldnt rest until he knew I was okay. He was no longer the shy author who feared looking at me and always gave me a wide berth. He was once again the man Id dated, the man whod always been able to read my moods and step up to help.Georgina, please. Please tell me what happened.It looked as though my snap were going to stay away, and now that I was indoors, in familiar territory, I allowed myself to feel a little valiantr. Why are you being so nice to me again?He frowned. Why wouldnt I be nice to you?BecausebecauseI wasnt very nice to you the last time we talked. Even after you gave me the book.He made a noise in his throat, almost like a laugh, but not quite. You werent yourself, not after all those drinks. Its fine.I dont know, I said contrarily, maybe I was myself.He shook his head. It wouldnt matter. Now tell me, what happened out there?The warmth in his voice, the concernit was tearing me apart. There was something so familiar and safe about him that I longed for right now, and I couldnt evade him.Itscomplicated, I said at last.Immortal intrigue?I nodded, feeling tears wel l in my eyes again. Fuck. I think half of my emotion now was from the way he was looking at me and had nothing to do with the rest of my lifes madness. I stood up and looked away, hoping he wouldnt see my face, but it was no use.Georgina, whats happened? Youre scaring me.I dared a glance back. Youyou wouldnt believe me if I told you.His face was still filled with worry, but the hint of a smile turned up the edges of his lips. Can you earnestly believe that after half the stuff Ive seen you go through? exertion me.Fair enough, I admitted. But I dont want to get you involved.I want to help, he said, moving closer. His voice was like velvet, wrapping me up in softness and security. Please. Tell me whats going on.I wanted to tell him there was nothing he could do, but suddenly, words spilled from my lips.Jerome got summoned-which means hes confine somewhere and-Whoa, wait. Summoned? Like in Dr. Faustus ?Um, yeah. And so long as hes gone, were all in this weird state. Peter calls it s tasis. None of us have our pow-abilities anymore. I cant shape-shift. Hugh cant see souls. The only ones who are expert about this are the vampires because they can go in the sun again, whichll probably end up cleansing them. And if we dont find Jerome soon, someone else is going to take over here, and I really dont want that. And yetI really dont want to go another(prenominal) second like this either, being in this limbo. I want everything to go back to how it was.Seths face was unreadable as he regarded me for several sinister seconds. Finally, he said, Is itis it so bad going without shape-shifting?I shook my head and began to ramble further. Its not that. Its the fact that I may not be immortal anymore. I cantI cant handle that. Coming here was horrible. The walk from my apartment. Im afraid of everything. Its stupid. I mean, you guys-humans-get by all the time and dont think about it. But Im scared to leave the house. Scared of what could happen to me. And when that car didn t see me right away-fuck. I just froze. I was paralyzed. God, I feel like an idiot. I must sound crazy.At long last, a tear leaked out of the corner of one eye, the final stamp on my weakness. Seth reached out and gently wiped it away. He didnt withdraw his hand when finished, though. He slid it to my shoulder and pulled me to him. I rested my head on his chest, swallowing back more tears as I sank into the protection he offered.Georgina, Georgina, he murmured, running his hand over my back. Its going to be okay. Everythings going to be okay.Those wordsthere was something so wonderful about them, simple as they were. When people are di underscoreed, others have an instinct to want to actually do something tangible to help-men in particular. And theres nothing wrong with that-often, its very much desired. But what a lot of people dont get is that sometimes, all thats needed is to hear those words Everythings going to be okay . Its enough to know that someones there, that someone care s about you. It isnt always about the next logical course of action.My next words, spoken into his Hong Kong Phooey shirt, came out muffled. I dont know whats going to happen. With any of this. Im so scared. I dont think Ive been this afraid since I thought Roman was going to kill me.Nothing will happen to you. You said yourself this wont last more than a few days. Just wait it out.I dont wait very well.He laughed and leaned his cheek against my forehead. I know you dont. Dont worry. Most of us do far more dangerous things than walk two blocks, and we survive just fine. Yeah, that car kind of sucked, but even still, nothing happened.Its two and a half blocks, I corrected. Not two.Right. I forgot that extra half one where the sharks and land mines are.I pulled away slightly so that I could look into his face. His arms stayed around me. I have to find Jerome, Seth.His smile faded. The worry returned. Georginaif you want to stay safe, going after him probably isnt the way to do it. You dont always have to take this stuff on yourself, you know. Let someone else look for him. handicap home.Thats the thingIm not sure anyone will be looking for him. Why would the other demons want him back? They want his territory. They arent going to be happy if hes found.Seth sighed. Great. Now Im the one worried about you leaving the house.Hey, I thought you said everything was going to be okay?Gotta be thoughtful what I say. Eyes thoughtful, he reached up and smoothed some hair on the side of my head. Why are you so brave?I scoffed. Are you insane? Didnt you just witness my near breakdown?No, he said gently. Thats the thing. You are scared. You dont know whats going on or what could happen to you. Yet, in spite of that fear and uncertainty, youre going to throw yourself out there to hunt him down. No one else would do that, and you do that kind of thing all the time.Inexplicably, I flushed under his praise. I was only going to do a Web search.You know what I mean. I think youve got more courage than anyone I know-and whats truly amazing is that its so subtle, scantily anyone ever notices. You do so much, and it goes unseen. I wish I was that brave sometimes.You are, I said, growing increasingly unsettled by our proximity. I besides noticed then that he was still smoothing my hair back. What are you doing to my hair? Does it look bad or something?Your hair never looks bad. He dropped his hand sheepishly. Its justa little messier than usual.I brushed it fifteen proceeding agoSeth shrugged. I dont know. Its just kind of frizzy, but thats probably normal. Theres a little humidity out.Frizzy? My hairs never frizzy.Georgina, he said wearily. Considering everything else going on, I dont think you need to worry about your hair being frizzy.Yeah, yeah. Youre right. I made a face. I just feel like I got a raw deal here. The vampires are having a non-stop party. Me? I somehow get bad hair. Not sure the energy break is really worth it.Seth tilted his head, face be devil once more. Energy break?Yeah. Along with everything else, I lost the need for life energy, so Im not-I stopped. The world stopped.I met Seths eyes, those beautiful golden-brown eyes that were filled with utter and complete shock as we both realized the entire weight of what I had been about to say. His hold on me stiffened. The occasional embrace suddenly became so much more. I was acutely aware of every place we were touching and exactly how much distance was between the places we werent touching. He felt warm, so wonderfully warm, and every place he touched me tingled-not necessarily in a sexual way but in a Oh my God, its Seth way. My entire body was on full alert, waiting and watching-and hoping-for him to touch me more.He swallowed, eyes still wide. So you arentI mean you canYeah, I said, my own voice husky. Thats the theory, at least. I havent really tested itMy words faded off because they didnt matter. My relationship with Seth had been plagued with a hundred small p roblems, everything from communication to trust and the myriad expatiate in between. And always, always underneath that had been the knowledge that we could never be physically close. Oh, wed been able to hug and do some kissing-there was even a fair amount of tongue we could get away with before my succubus aridness started steal his life. But ultimate intimacy? Sex? Making hit the sack? It was totally off-limits, and that denial had tortured both of us, no matter how much we talked about love being the most important part in a relationship.And nowhere we were. Those barriers were removed. I hadnt tested if my succubus stealing really was gone, but I didnt need to. I could feel it, as Hugh had said. The perpetual craving that always lurked within me was completely dormant. I could touch and kiss anyone without restraint. I could touch and kiss Seth. There was nothing standing between us now.Well, except for one thing.A knock sounded on my door. Georgina? Are you in there? Maddi e called.It was like cold water in the face. Seth and I sprang apart. He backed toward the door, and I promptly sat down at my desk. My heart was pounding again. Damn it. I was going to have to talk to Hugh and get an anti-anxiety drug. Yeah, come in, I called.Maddie stuck her head in, impress to see both of us. There you are, she said to Seth. I just got here and couldnt find you.Seth was still in shock. IyeahI saw Georgina was here and stopped byMaddie peered at me. You okay? You look a little worn out. Her eyes flicked to my hair and then back to my face. Did you just wake up?Apparently, I no longer looked like I was on the verge of a nervous breakdown, which was something. I hadnt liked the way she eyed my hair. Well, not exactly. Its, uh, been a long day. I stumbled over my words. I was so flustered, I could barely string a perspicuous response together. Seths presence was like the sun, blinding me and warming me all over, and Maddie was making me feel guilty and dirty for en joying that sun.Is everything okay with your family? she asked.My-oh, yeah, theyre okay. Still just a little crazy, but itll, um, pass. I stood and picked up the laptop, hoping I sounded casual and calm. I needed to get out before I said something stupid. As it was, I couldnt even make eye contact with Seth now. I really just came by for this.Maddie studied me a few seconds longer and must have decided I was more or less telling the truth. She relaxed and seemed oblivious to me trying frantically to get to the door.Hey, she said, I was intellection you might not need to go to California for brinkes.Forwhat?Remember our converse at Marks?Er, yeah. Miraculously, I did. The condo thing, when I told her I had a beach itch.I have the perfect solution Alki.Alki? asked Seth, confused.Its a secret. She winked at me. I thought that might be a good place to start looking. What do you think?Sure. Sounds great. Alki Beach was a region of West Seattle that stuck out into Puget Sound. While it was a far cry from a Cyprian beach, it was, well, a beach. And if agreeing that it was a good idea would get me to the doorCool And what about dancing?Huh? What about it? I probably looked like a cervid in the headlights again. This agitated state of mine didnt make for good topic-jumping.precept salsa. I mentioned it to Beth and Casey, and they were pretty excited.Oh. Yeah. Sure. I can do that. I was in earnest about to agree to anything to escape.Her face lit up. Oh, thank you Is this week too soon? I bet we could get everyone together on, oh, Thursday.Sure, sure, thats fine. I was almost at the door.Oh, thank you Thisll be fun. Ill double-check the day with everyone and e-mail you. If something comes upI mean, I know youre under a lot of stressI waved it off. Its fine, really. Have a good night, okay?I put on a winning smile and quickly walked past both of them. As I stepped out the door, though, I glanced back and met Seths eyes. My smile faltered. A thousand messages passed b etween us, just as they used to when we were dating. Only this time, I wasnt sure what any of them were saying.I kept walking, suddenly realizing I had a lot more than mortality to worry about.