Page 85 of Deck of Scarlets

“Remi, are you even listening to me?” my mother snapped.

I glanced at my mother. “Yeah, I just thought I saw someone.” If he were here, that could only mean one thing…

After last night’s briefing at the frat house, I made it my mission to trash my cap and pager. I even double-bagged the items before chucking them in the dumpster.

She followed my line of sight, searching with me, and said, “A friend from school?”

I ignored her much too excited tone. “No.” I picked at my nails underneath the table.

“Like I was saying, I have taken an offer to buy—”

Remi.

My heart stopped. Just beyond the table near ours sat Josh, dressed in his hunter gear, the bow and quiver strapped securely to his back. He twirled a stone that hung from his neck; the pearlescent color reflected off the dining room lights. I abruptly stood, the chair hitting the table, causing some glasses of water to spill on the white tablecloth. Could they see him like I did?

“Remi!”

Go to the bathroom. Now.

I flinched from his harsh demand. “Fuck no.”

“Remi! What did you just say to me?” Mom snapped. I didn’t realize I’d said it out loud.

I tore my eyes away from Josh’s stern expression to see my father dab at the damp cloth with his napkin. Aiden seemed unaffected by the chaos I sparked, while the look Mom gave me would’ve burned through my clothes if she could produce fire from her eyes. If I didn’t move fast, Josh might make his presence known, and I wasn’t ready to deal with that encounter with my family. Ever.

Josh sat, watching, waiting; not a single crack in the hard exterior of his face told me he wasn’t going to leave until I followed his order. There wasn’t any other way to escape without him finding me either.

There needed to be a way out of this without exposing Josh, who sat unbothered two tables down. Mom waited for me to respond, but instead, at the last second, I slapped my hand to my mouth, pretending to be sick, and rushed to the nearest women’s bathroom, hoping it was the right one.

“Remi!” I prayed she didn’t follow me.

Thank heavens the bathroom had a lock. I double-checked under the stalls, finding every one empty, and secured the door.

I pushed my back against it, giving myself a few seconds to chill out before noticing a sticky note taped to one of the stall doors. The words ‘change here’ in black letters were written in the center. Confused, I opened the stall to find a black garment bag tacked to the wall behind the toilet. I unzipped the bag, finding the color scarlet spilling out inside.

“How the hell…” How he got this inside without one of the staff catching him, I couldn’t imagine. Hidden inside was my pager, beeping. How the f—

“Are you just going to stare at it all night or change? We’re on a tight schedule.”

I swung my arm around, only to have it blocked by Josh and his rough hand. “Easy there.”

“What the hell are you doing in here?” Still holding onto my arm, Josh leaned forward, his lips inches from mine.

“You did one hell of a job hiding all day, only for me to locate your belongings at one of the dumpsters on campus.”

I’d made the split decision to hide out at my parents’ house, taking a taxi first thing in the morning after trashing my stuff. The excuse to my parents was enough to endure their questioning for the night. “And your point?”

“Stop trying to run from this. I am well aware of the little wall you built between our connection, but know this, I will always find you.” That last sentence sent waves of desire in the lower region of my body. I clearly needed therapy.

“I made it pretty clear by my lack of communication that I want out.”

“I never met such a pain in the ass before. Your grandmother would be disappointed.”

Fury flamed inside me. “Don’t you dare talk about my grams. Ever.”

“Then get your act together. I will fight with you all day, and I’ll even enjoy it, but I won’t ever stop pushing you. This is where you belong.”

Those baby blues pierced through my soul, leaving me trembling. “Why are you even here, dressed like that?” My voice, breathless from his words and proximity, was enough to send anyone overboard, begging for the cool tide to snuff out the fire.