Page 6 of Beneath My Skin

“I do.” I tried to sound as firm as I didn’t feel.

“Here. Let me give you my card.” He dug around in his pocket and pulled out a sleek black piece of paper. “Contact me and we’ll get together to talk about paying for the bumper.”

“I’d rather you give me a check,” I muttered, edging toward the driver’s side door.

“You want the money now, huh?”

He studied me, and I shrank back, feeling his gaze on my skin and—I’m embarrassed to say—liking it. Immensely. “Uh, yes. Yes, I would. I’m sorry.”

“It’s absolutely fine. Please just give me a minute.”

I tried not to feel embarrassed, crossing my arms over my chest and watching him remove a checkbook. He must have deep pockets.

“To whom should I make it out?” he asked politely.

“I told you. It’s Mariella.”

“Last name too, dear.”

Double shit. “Revely. Mariella Revely.”

A shot like a bee sting pinched the skin at my wrist, followed by a string of pain all the way up to my elbow. Wincing, I shifted until my arm was behind my back, legs crossed at the ankles.

Dax glanced up once, looked back at the check, then snapped his attention up to my face. “Are you all right?”

The gesture I made with my head was a circle of movement somewhere between a shake and a nod. “I’m…great.”

“You’re sure? You look like you’re about to explode.”

I swallowed a groan. Dammit, Cer. “Yes, I’m great. I’m fine. A little stressed.”

“The holidays will do that to a person.” He stood to his full height, imposing shoulders blocking out the view of the parking lot, then he walked slowly toward me. Pursing his lips to blow on the ink. “Here you are.”

It took me several tries to take the paper from his fingers. “I really appreciate it.”

He slid his index finger along the center of my palm. “Anything I can do to help after the trouble I caused. You’d better get going. It’s starting to come down now.”

My stomach churned when I once again returned my attention to the swirling snow. “Jeez, yeah.” Breath caught in my throat and I struggled to swallow against the pocket of air.

“It was a pleasure to meet you, Miss Revely. I hope we can see each other soon and under better circumstances,” he said.

The polite retort died in my throat as I watched him snap his fingers and disappear in a funnel-cloud of lavender smoke.

This day was not going the way I’d planned. Not by a long mile.

The third curse took me by surprise, slicing across my arm with the force of a log splitter the second I slipped into the driver’s seat. Or was it the fourth? I didn’t want to look. Didn’t want to know what kind of sage demonic wisdom Cer had to offer at the moment.

After fighting the good fight for a few seconds and losing abysmally, I shoved my sleeve up and stared at the fresh words crisscrossing the others.

You’re welcome.

“And you’re a bitch,” I bit out. My foot went down on the gas pedal and I reversed out of the parking lot, making sure to keep an eye out for any other suicidal men who wanted to pop out of thin air and wreck my car.

The bumper clanked and sparks flew from the loose piece dragging along the ground. Dax’s card burned a hole in my pocket and I could only hope it wouldn’t ignite the check.

Whatever sick and twisted game my guardian was playing by putting me at Target that day, I wasn’t sure. With her there was always an ulterior motive, and I stayed ten steps behind. Nothing like falling victim to some cosmic game to make a girl feel stupid.

I fought the urge to scratch as I drove home, sneaking glances at the gray gloom of the sky. I wondered if I was undergoing some dire neurological event.

I sighed. Sometimes the universe worked in mysterious ways. I didn’t know God and I didn’t know the Devil. But I knew Cer. And I didn’t think too kindly of her right then.

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