Chapter 8 #2
What was Calvin’s weird obsession with him? Did he think that she was interested in him? Was Calvin interested in him? Did he already know him, and the two of them had some sort of shady past together?
… No, that last one was impossible. Kieran was the least ‘shady past’ kind of person Diana had ever met. And she was pretty damn sure that Calvin was interested in her at this point, rather than trying to use her to somehow get to Kieran.
As if that would even work, anyway!
“I have no interest in him as anything other than a friend,” she said, a little sharply. “And anyway, he’s so married, you wouldn’t believe it.”
“What? No! I didn’t mean it like that!” Calvin exclaimed, before rubbing at his eyes with a sigh. Looking back up at her, he said, “I was just wondering if he ever told you anything about himself, that’s all. Like why the B&B has a griffin on the weathervane.”
On… the weathervane?
Diana was so confused that she couldn’t help letting out a short laugh. She’d barely even noticed the weathervane when she went there to visit, beyond wondering where one would even get a weathervane in this day and age.
She shrugged. “Because he thought it looked cool, I guess? I never asked.”
“Well, it does look kind of cool,” Calvin said, looking a little pained, “but… okay. Change of approach.”
He looked her in the eye, his gaze oddly intense. “Have you ever noticed anything strange about this town, or the people in it?”
This is getting really weird! Diana thought, confused. I feel like I’m in some sort of interrogation scene. All he needs is a bare lightbulb swinging overhead to complete the picture.
Dismissing the silly thoughts, she tried to concentrate on his question, bizarre as it was.
Strange things… strange things…
Well, the fact that Girdwood Springs was so lovely could be considered strange in itself, she supposed.
Not that she had much experience of living elsewhere, but her time in college had been enough to disabuse her of the notion that the world was an incredibly safe place where strangers could always be relied upon to lend a helping hand or friendly ear.
And there was the statistically improbable hyperabundance of tall, hot guys who’d moved to the town in recent years, of course. But could she really blame them for doing so, when Girdwood Springs was so inviting? Hot guys deserved nice places to live in, too.
Anything else? Other strange things?
Thoughtfully, she said, “Well, all the food and plants that Gale grows are amazing. You remember that lemonade from yesterday?”
Calvin nodded curiously.
“Of course you do,” she muttered to herself, feeling stupid. It wasn’t likely he’d forget all that in the space of a day.
More loudly, she went on, “Well, the lemons came from Gale’s trees – that’s why it tasted so good.
And the berries on your waffles would’ve been grown by him, too.
And all of the new plants lining the streets are his work as well – even the older plants are looking way healthier than they used to.
” She shook her head. “I don’t know what his secret is, but he clearly has some sort of Midas touch when it comes to plants.
It’s like magic.” Raising her head to look him square in the eye, she added, “Is that strange enough for you?”
Calvin, oddly, looked like he was having some sort of argument inside his head. Fascinated, Diana watched as his face twitched, before a resigned expression crossed his face. Clearly, whatever argument he’d been having with himself, he’d lost it.
Sighing, he seemed to come to a conclusion.
He reached out both his hands, not quite touching hers, giving her the option to reach out and take them – which she did, gladly.
That same strange electrical thrill from when they’d touched hands yesterday suddenly ran through her again, running up both arms this time, and she gasped – but she didn’t let go.
He held her gaze steadily, and the buzzing faded to a kind of pleasant background hum. She shivered.
“What… what is that?” she whispered.
“Would you believe it if I said that I’m not like other people?” he asked, his voice quiet and serious.
Well, that much is obvious, the smart aleck part of her brain replied, while the rational part of her brain tried to comprehend just what he was asking. That ass is definitely one of a kind!
Shush, she muttered to herself. I’m trying to think.
Now that the shock was wearing off… she didn’t really know what to think. The electric tingling thing when they touched was weird, obviously. But a bit of static didn’t really mean a whole lot. And while things had been a bit strange over the past day, she couldn’t quite put her finger on why.
Though, she suddenly remembered, he’d been cagey at the diner earlier, too. Making enigmatic comments about ‘guessing his secrets’ and all that.
She needed more information.
“Define ‘not like other people’ for me,” she said, trying to keep her voice firm and calm.
He paused, apparently thinking for a moment about what to say next.
She let him take his time, her own thoughts whirling. What on earth was he going to say in response? She’d never had a mysterious man take her into the forest, give her electric zaps, and ask her to guess his secrets before – she really was flying blind in this whole thing.
Diana was so distracted by the muddle in her mind that it took her a moment to realize that he was leaning in closer to her, his face mere inches from hers.
She gasped.
Looking into his eyes, she saw only caution and consideration – he clearly wasn’t trying to force himself on her. And she definitely wanted him to come closer – oh, how she wanted it!
Even though part of her was feebly fighting back against it with protestations of Don’t you dare think that you can distract me from getting my answers, mister, it was a losing battle. She wanted to kiss Calvin, answers be damned. She could get them later.
Closing her eyes, she leaned forward, bringing her lips toward his –
And a sudden gust of cool air startled her eyes back open again, even as goosebumps raced over her skin.
What on earth was that?!
The day was still hot – she could feel the sun’s heat enveloping her – but the air around her face was crisp and cool.
She focused on Calvin again, his face still close to hers. He didn’t seem startled by the sudden atmospheric change, but his expression was concerned, worried.
Somehow she knew that the concern wasn’t about the cold – it was about her reaction to it.
I’m not like other people.
Did he… did he have some sort of coldness superpower?
Her mouth dropped open slightly.
It made zero sense. It was ridiculous.
And yet…
Hadn’t her house stayed lovely and cool after Calvin visited last night, even though the A/C was broken?
Hadn’t the oppressively hot kitchen in the diner cooled down as soon as Calvin had arrived?
Wasn’t Calvin the sweetest, most attractive man she’d ever met?
In the end, that was the only thing she really cared about right now. The rest of it could wait.
She moved in closer to him – so close that the coolness of his breath on her neck sent a delicious shiver through her whole body.
Gasping, she leaned in and closed the gap completely, her lips finding his. They were shockingly cool, but they warmed up almost instantly, the air between them becoming heated once more.
I’m kissing Calvin, she thought dreamily as she opened her mouth and deepened the kiss, the whole thing barely feeling real.
He was a gentleman in this as in all other things, when all she really wanted was for him to tear off her clothes and have his way with her. But his gentlemanliness was one of the things she liked most about him.
And, I suppose, she thought hazily, I really should find out why he’s a human air conditioner before we progress on to the next stage.
With more than a little reluctance she pulled back, letter her lips linger for one last glorious moment before withdrawing completely, the buzzing in her fingers where they still held Calvin’s somehow deepening her excitement further.
“Wow. Okay.” She laughed, adrenaline making her a little jittery. “What was that? The cold bit, I mean, not the kiss. I know what that was.”
It was damn good, is what it was.
Calvin still looked a little dazed himself, which was a nice little ego boost. It had been years since Diana had kissed anyone, and even more since it had been done with passion – it was nice to know that she still had the knack.
He took a deep breath, clearly gathering himself.
“Diana, I – I’m not human. Not really.”
Somehow, it wasn’t quite as surprising as it should’ve been. He definitely had something unusual going on.
Still… how was she supposed to react to that?
She laughed nervously.
“Can you elaborate on that a little? Are you an alien? A mutant? An ancient god carved from clay, reanimated in modern times?”
“What?” Calvin shook his head in bewilderment. “No, none of those things. I’m a shifter.”
Diana didn’t know what she’d been expecting him to say, but ‘shifter’ wasn’t it.
“Uh…”
She searched around for the right words. She didn’t want to be rude, but she really, really had no idea what it was he was saying.
In the end, she settled for being straightforward.
“What’s a shifter?”
Diana waited, rapt, as Calvin opened his mouth –
And then he jumped up suddenly, looking upward.
Diana followed his gaze – but before she could work out what was going on, a tortured, impossibly loud creeaaak from directly above made it abundantly clear.
One of the maple tree’s boughs was splitting away from the trunk with a horrendous sound that somehow managed to convey just how monstrously heavy it was.
A monstrously heavy weight that was about to drop directly on her head.
She opened her mouth to cry out, to tell Calvin to jump out of the way – it was too late for her, seated as she was, but he still had a chance – but nothing came out, her lungs paralyzed.
Ash, she thought, as images of her son – her beautiful, serious, beloved son – flashed before her eyes. Ash, I’m so sorry. Calvin, please take care of Ash and Bella for me.
I’m so sorry. I love you.
And then everything went dark.