My Soul Laid Bare: Book 4 (The Soul Keeper Series) (14 page)

“
You're my only ransom. You know that,” he says casually.

“
How much further? I'm pretty sure smuggling me across the border is illegal in Texas.”

“
You are so impatient. We’re almost there,” he whispers. 

I giggle out and press my back further into his chest. He plants a kiss just under my right ear, which experiencing blindfolded, heightens my skin’s awareness of his soft hot lips.
I don't care if we ever get there as long as he keeps doing that.
We meander along for a long while. The sounds of hoof steps and nature are lulling me into a trance. Harmonious little birds serenade our trail, and the dull buzz of the cicada bounces from tree to tree. It’s spring in Texas, and I’m loving it

Sam is just finishing up his residency, and I have just been hired at the D.A's office in Houston. Sadly, Sam's dad passed away two years ago. He and his sisters have been trying to keep the ranch running smoothly, but with the girls living it up at Kappa Kappa Gamma, over at A&M, they don’t get home much. Sam’s been having to pull eighty hour work weeks. I'm figuring he's taking me to celebrate my newfound job somewhere on his expansive property. Suddenly Clancy gets pulled to a stop, and Sam helps me down. He unties the blindfold, and I have to blink a few times to make sure I'm seeing this correctly

I'm standing in front of something called,
The Redneck Country Club
, and here I thought he was trying to be romantic. I glance around wondering where in the world we are. We left Sam's house no more than half an hour ago.

“
Since when do you have a bar in your backyard?”

“
The highway is right over there. You haven't been on this side of the property in years. They opened this place up about five years ago. It's where everybody goes to water up.”

“
So, what's with the blindfold?”

“
Turn around.” I do what he says wondering if Sam's been inhaling too much ammonia at work. As I do, my eyes about fly out of their sockets, and my mouth hangs open in utter shock. Standing in a row and casually waiting, I see Jesson, Elena, Inara and Will. My arms fly open as I run to welcome each of them with bear hugs. I haven't seen them in so long, not since Emily's funeral.

“
Oh my word, how did you get them all here?” I say hugging Sam's neck lastly to thank him.

“
You should have seen the way he ever so politely asked,” Elena is quick to chide. She hasn't changed a bit.
So, we are going to party with a bunch of angels tonight. This should be interesting.
We make our way into the countrified club. The building is made of reclaimed barn wood. Old sofas are scattered around the large bar. A dance floor takes up a chunk of real estate in the middle of the bar. The other side has a small lounge with saloon doors separating the spaces.

I'm violating Elena's dress code six ways to Sunday in a red sundress and black western boots with a red accents cut out of the leather. They were a gift from Sam for Christmas last year. My long hair is gone now, replaced last year with a medium length that brushes just past my shoulders.

Sam has only gotten more attractive over the years. We’re twenty seven now. Every time I visit him at work, I notice how the nurses swoon over him. Sometimes I wonder if I'm still the girl of his dreams. He tells me this at least once a day, but I suppose I feel like I don't deserve to be. I still think about Elijah, and as far as I know, he still protects me. My nerves are beginning to show up with the old gang all back together.

Surely they can see him right now. Each one reveals a sadness in their eyes, hidden behind the joy of our reunion. They're trying hard not to show it, but they're incapable of lying. They wear their emotions plain as day, especially Inara. She's feeding me her condolences without meaning to through her gift. It sucks the happiness right out of me, and Sam picks up on my sudden sadness.

“You okay?” He runs his fingers in slow circles over my back, guiding me to where he wants us to sit. I nod and try to shake off Inara's depressing vibes. I focus on the ladies styles instead. Inara’s caramel skin looks polished next to the black sleeveless dress she’s working like no angel should be allowed.  Her tightly curled hair is held back with two blue sapphire crusted hair clips. She is radiant tonight. Elena is the picture of elegance in a vibrant blue top that clings to her slim body, and sits off the shoulders. Simple wide legged trousers, paired with shoes to die for, finish her look. Her hair is in a loose up-do with her coffee colored locks cascading down around her neck, showing off its graceful arch.

The only place able to seat our large group, i
s in the lounge area. I gather this room is used for karaoke. A small stage with a microphone holds promises of drunken humiliation at some point tonight. We converge on a group of chairs and sofas. A coffee table made of an old wooden reel sits in the middle of the arrangement. An M.C. announces that they are about to start karaoke in a few minutes, and if we want to sing, we should sign up. A youthful brunette stands by my side wearing cutoffs and a barely there tank top, asking for our order.

“
I'll have a Grey Goose martini, please,” I reply. Sam orders his usual single bottle of beer. Even after we turned twenty one, he still would not allow himself to get drunk. I think he's still afraid of having a blackout. The angels all order wine. Wine reminds me of Elijah, and I never drink it anymore because of that. I don't bake cheesecake or eat French food, and I don't listen to Coldplay or ride the Ferris wheel either. No matter how hard I try to avoid them, the memories still flash through my mind day and night about the times we shared.

Jesson slides between me and Sam on the sofa.
“I can't believe how long it’s been. I guess you've been busy,” I say mock slapping him on the leg. I see Sam wander off, perhaps giving me a moment to catch up with Jesson.

“
Yes, well after my wife put me through the wringer with her training exercises, they finally made me an Elite.” He looks past me as he talks, and the only thing behind me is a blank wall. Elijah must be talking to him. Envy sears through my chest leaving a burning ice trail all the way down to my toes.

Jesson snaps out of his daze and gives an apologetic look.
“Don't, it’s okay,” I say holding up a hand. “I'm sure he's missed you all too.”

Jesson's brow dips low, and he shakes his head like he's disagreeing with something said. The waitress returns promptly with our drinks, and I gulp mine down ordering another before she's done passing them out. It's not like we can drunk drive a horse home. Maybe I can drown the memory of him out for the rest of the night with vodka.

The crowd in the room has grown considerably in the last few minutes. Elena slides in next to me, forcing Jesson to move over. “So, I hear you passed the bar and are at the DA's now. You know once you get in there, you have to start using your gifts,” she uses the tone that I loathe on me. My gifts seem to have been honed into a fine tuned instrument of brain washing power over the years, and I avoid using them unless absolutely required. I’ve learned how to stay out of people’s heads when I don’t want to intrude, and that makes life a hell of a lot easier.

“
I remember the plan. You drilled it into my skull night and day. How could I forget?” I'm not ready to read the filth in people’s minds, much less manipulate them into carrying out the Keeper's plot. These last few years flew by in a blur. It seems like just yesterday that Lexi and I were sharing a bathroom as freshmen. Now I'm an attorney. How the heck did that happen?

Speaking of the ponytailed she-devil, Lexi and Asher come bouncing through the doors. She’s in a lustrous
ivory sleeveless dress that hugs every curve on her body like it were vacuum sealed around her. I leap up to hug her. I haven’t seen her since her wedding three years ago. Her family flew everyone out to Malibu for the lavish soiree. No expense was spared on Daddy’s little angel.

“
Okay, it’s been way too long. You guys need to discover the miracle of the bargain priced Texas real estate market,” I tease.

“
Can’t get much cheaper than free. Daddy bought us a condo in San Fran overlooking the Golden Gate Bridge when Asher got a position with the firm.” The waitress spots the wealth dripping off of them and circles back around.

“
What can I get you two?”

“
I’ll have a bottle of water, and he’ll have your finest glass of bourbon, neat. Oh, and he only gets two tonight. I don’t care how much he tips you.”

“
Got it,” the waitress says with a new spring in her step.

“
Water Lexi?” She’s always been a health nut like me, but perhaps living in California has doubled the effect.

She rubs her flat stomach, and her eyes dance with a luminosity that makes the stars look like dull flashlights.
“You’re going to be an Aunt come February fourteenth.”

That date nails me in the gut, and I fall back on the sofa behind me. Congratulations fall out of my mouth I think. I’m still too stunned to know.

The crowd erupts into applause as a singer takes the stage. My head whips around as Sam's voice comes out of the speakers.

“
Jesson, Will, Asher, get up here. I need your help with something.”

“
Oh, my word, Sam is going to sing in front of a crowd. He's not even drunk,” I say stunned yet again. Inara scoots in next to us on the sofa to watch the train wreck unfold. A familiar bass pumps through the speakers. I know this song. It was a huge hit years ago,
Blurred Lines
. That's it.

Sam, Jesson, Will
and Asher all pick a part to sing to the once top forty hit. We all stare with open jaws at the craziness of our men getting funky on stage. They look like they are having so much fun. Sam is moving his hips around like my own personal male stripper. Good God in heaven! He is hot as hell. Club girls line up by the stage looking as if they're ready to pull out their dollar bills. These men are all cut like Adonis blowing up the entertainment value off the charts. They get more and more into the song, and by the end, we are all dying of laughter.

Jesson and Will make their way off stage. I try to spot where Sam went, but the crowd is thick with people.

“Hey everyone, can you do me a huge favor?” I hear Sam's voice over the speakers again. His voice drips with that sexy velvet tone I love. The crowd gets a little quieter. “Can I get your help? You see tonight I want to sing a song to my girlfriend, and I'm kind of nervous.” The lights go all out, and a spotlight hits me square from above. Another one bounces off of him as if we're the only two people in the room now. The crowd has gone dead silent.

“
Thank you.”

Sam starts in on a song I've never heard before,
All of Me
. His smooth voice carries perfectly in the small room. The song itself is perfect for us. When the chorus begins, I grip the stem of my martini glass for dear life as a tear escapes down my cheek.  He sings, “
All of me loves all of you
.” Elena and Inara both sigh in unison, as well as the audience. Sam comes off the stage half way through the song and kneels down in front of me. Seeing him humbled kneeling before me, I can’t hold back the tears any longer. He finishes the song, and both spotlights are still on us.

“
Brennen Elizabeth Hale, I've waited my whole life to ask you this question. I've known you were the one since the first day I saw you breeze through the doorway in class. And later I fell in love with your generosity and pure spirit. I love everything about you, and I love that I discover something new to love about you just about every day. I want to spend the rest of my life learning every last one of those things, Brennen. Will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?”

He pulls a small velvet box out from behind his back and opens it to reveal a dazzling diamond ring. The hope reflecting in his eyes says more than any words he's ever spoken before. My heart’s unsteady rhythm pounds out in earnest. This is it, the moment of no return. How can I say yes to him? How can I not?
I love him. “
You're someone else’s wife
,” my subconscious reminds me as if I haven't relived every minute of those short months over and over again. Five months and eight days of wedded bliss, that's all Elijah and I had. That's all we'll ever have.  Malphas murdered Emily and effectively slaughtered my marriage. His master plan was to drive me so far away from Elijah there'd be no hope of redemption. Judging from the crushing weight pressing down on my heart right now, Malphas has succeeded.

“
Yes, I’ll be your wife Sam,” I say barely able to choke the words out. Tears blur my eyes yet again as he slides the cool gold band over my finger. A large diamond sparkles in its vintage setting like my own personal supernova. I muster every scrap of strength I have inside to pull a smile from the pain tearing through me right now. The room fills with cheers in one loud uproar. Our friends give us hugs and congratulate us. As the excitement finally begins to wear down, Elijah takes up full residence in my mind. I can feel his cool navy eyes boring into me, willing me to see him, see how hurt he is.

Even after all these years, I can still feel when his emotions are strong. I can feel him now tugging on my heart. His grief is all consuming. My soul feeds off of his. There is nothing I can ever do to stop the chain reaction. The smile drops from my face as I sink down to the sofa feeling hopeless and utterly lonely. My gaze filters out over the mass of people, and I let Elijah take my memories on a journey.