Page 1030 of One More Kiss

Chapter3

“Let me help you.”I opened the door on my purple Dodge Charger as wide as it would go and took Mom’s arm, helping her to lower herself into the seat. She wasn’t completely disabled, but her knees were getting worse. She’d had to give up her job as she couldn’t stand for more than fifteen minutes at a time. The store had tried, but they needed employees who were versatile. Having an employee sitting on a stool at the checkout all day wasn’t an option for a small business.

“Thanks, Li-Li.” That Mom accepted my help spoke volumes about the amount of pain she was in. She prided herself on independence.

Eminem blasted from my speakers as I started the car and I rushed to turn it down. Mom hated rap music. To me it was life, but I tried to be considerate. I shifted into gear and crossed my fingers that today wouldn’t be the day that the transmission gave up for good.

“What do you want for your birthday? It’s only a few days away.” Mom glanced at me with a huge smile on her face.

I frowned. It was three days, actually. Three days to rescue my sister from the Faerie realm. If she wasn’t out of there by midnight on our 21st birthday she’d be stuck there forever.

Mom’s smile looked forced. I knew she loved me, but birthdays had to be hard for her. Once there were two of us, me and my twin. But now she only had me. Thank goodness for Aunt Joey. I’d be glad when she got back from her trip. And look, we relied on her too much, I knew. But I was doing my best, and if Mom went into another one of her funks I’d need all the help I could get.

We arrived at the Doctors and I walked Mom inside.

“I’ll be fine, you don’t need to wait.” She shooed me away, and I took full advantage. I’d use the free time to run to the grocery store and get us organized for the week. That was usually Mom’s domain, but I was saving her from over-using her dodgy knees. She’d scold me, but I could deal.

By the time I got back, Mom was ready to go home and I loaded her into the car. She shook her head at the groceries in the back seat, but didn’t scold. That was ominous.

“How did it go?” I shifted gears gently, babying my car as much as I could. Maybe I should have accepted Clara’s bonus so I could get it fixed. But no. It wouldn’t have been right.

“Apparently I’m an excellent candidate for the knee replacement operation. Recovery takes a while, but if I get them both done at once I’ll be back up and walking as good as new.” She patted my leg. “It will work out, you’ll see.”

I wish I had her optimism. I wasn’t sure how much an operation like that would cost, but it wouldn’t be cheap.

I got Mom home and settled and the groceries unpacked, then went upstairs to change for my job with Clara.

I’d adopted a uniform of sorts. Soft, supple, black leather pants and a matching jacket. A tank top worn under the jacket, with a spine sheath for my sword down my back. I had knives strapped to each leg and another in a sheath on my belt. My favorite Doc Marten boots with another knife hidden inside. A girl can never have too many knives.

Something about my Fae blood meant that guns didn’t work for me. They were more likely to misfire or explode, hurting me instead of the bad guy.

I used my shadow magic to keep my weapons out of sight. It was second nature, the power drain the equivalent of keeping your shoulders back or sucking in your tummy. If I brushed against anyone I got some funny looks, but I was careful. I had to be.

My real weapon, though, was my body. I was fast, and I had the moves. I’d trained my whole life so I’d never be taken by surprise.

I met Clara a block from the cafe and we walked from there. She’d thought it would be safer meeting in a public place and I agreed. Jett was more likely to try and maim me somewhere private, than in a place where normal humans could see.

We arrived at the cafe to see Jett was already there, sitting with his back to us. Clara circled around to approach him head on and he stood, reaching out to shake her hand. I slowly came around to stand behind and slightly to one side of her, keeping Jett where I could see him and my hands free. This was the most dangerous moment for Clara. And me.

Jett’s eyes widened as he caught sight of me, his hand going to his hip as he turned my way. I couldn’t see the weapon but was sure it was there. “You.”

He swung back to Clara. “What the hell is she doing here?”

“She's with me.” Clara didn’t miss a beat, although I’d have loved to have seen her expression when she realized that she wasn’t the one in danger from Jett. “Let’s talk business.”

Jett slowly sank back into his seat, his eyes never leaving me. Clara sat, placing her bag on one of the spare seats. I didn’t move an inch. I was ready for anything.

“Sit down, Liandra.” Jett’s eyes travelled the length of my body, lingering on the shadows where my knives were strapped in place. Pretty sure he could see them. But he didn’t notice the one in my boot.

I kept my grin to myself and moved up beside Clara. It wasn’t up to me, or him, whether I sat or stood. This was her call.

Jett looked between us, his eyebrows lowered into a frown. His gaze settled on Clara. “You think you need a body guard? From me?” His tone was incredulous. “What sort of operation do you think I run?”

“Sit with us, Liandra.” Clara’s voice was even and she appeared to be totally calm and in control of herself. There was no sign of the worried hand wringer from the previous day. She tapped the spare seat between herself and Jett.

The waitress appeared as soon as I sat and we all ordered coffees. I had no intention of touching mine, I was on the job. A jealous twinge hit my middle when Jett ordered the big breakfast. I knew it was good. This cafe was one of my favorites for a reason.

“Do you want to tell me what’s going on?” Jett’s voice was low and hard. His eyes glittered. “And why I shouldn’t get up and leave right away?”

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