15 Desser (2/2)

Meaghan didn't believe them, but the evening was going well, so she didn't argue.

Later, replete from the meal, the drive back to Meaghan's was quiet, as Rickie stopped at the front of their terrace house.

However, as soon as he alighted from his truck, Rickie felt a tingling sensation between his shoulder blades and quickly scanned the area by the house. His instincts were telling him they were being watched, but he was unable to determine where the lurker was. The malevolence in the air made it seem almost metallic, and he wanted to get Meaghan and her sister inside as soon as possible.

Quickly walking around to the passenger side, he handed out first one girl, then the other, then hustled them towards their door.Meaghan must have felt the urgency; she didn't protest as he practically pushed her to the door.

He didn't take a deep breath until Meaghan had unlocked and opened the front door, and Leaf had slipped inside.

Meaghan turned and looked at Rickie, who was distractedly looking around her front yard. She hesitantly touched his arm, feeling the warmth of his skin. He turned and focused on her, those points of blue staring into her eyes.

”Thank you for this evening, En Ahmad.My sister appreciated it, too.”

[A/N: ”En” is a Malaysian way to address someone, the equivalent of ”Mr” or ”Mrs”]

”Rickie. I'd like you call me Rickie, and I had a good time, too.”

He placed a hand over the one Meaghan had on his arm. Suddenly self-conscious, she tried to pull away, but he had her hand trapped. He gave it a slight squeeze and released it.

Meaghan could feel the hairs of his arm as she removed her hand, and stopped herself from wiping it on her skirt to try and stop the tingling. She nodded, quickly went through her door, and closed it behind her. But not before she looked at his face a final time.

Rickie felt a moment of triumph; Meaghan was no longer avoiding eye contact or keeping her head down. The moment was short-lived when he remembered the feeling he had when they drove up to the house. He stared into in the dark shadows along the road, but could not discern any movement.

The feeling of evil had faded, leaving nothing more than a bitter tang in the air. Rickie glanced one more time at the front door, and walked back to his truck.