Part 6 (2/2)

'I dont get it, I said softly, 'whats with all the aggro?

Seths reply began with a bitter laugh. 'Oh man . . . Then he shook his head. 'Look, just forget it, okay? Forget what? 'And just stay away from Hamill, he continued. 'I wont always be around to bail you out, right?

And then he walked away. And left me standing there. Great. I was supposed to be a mind-reader now? Forget what? Were we talking in code and someone forgot to give me my copy of the text? Still confused, I watched him move towards the pool area. Broad shoulders in a white tapered s.h.i.+rt that hung down over dark jeans that covered the cutest b.u.t.t G.o.d ever made. Okay, so the guy was talking in tongues he was still the swoon-worthiest thing in this room. My eyes stayed on him till he finally blended into a dark corner of the courtyard and I lost clear sight of him.

The one thing I knew was that I was not going to go out after him.

Id barely turned away when Macey sidled up, a Diet c.o.ke can in one hand. 'So whats happening?

'Whats happening? Whats happening is that your brother needs a translator and I want to split this place now. Go home. Vamoose. Im already over this party or wake or whatever it is. It feels too weird.

Her eyes narrowed. 'Have you discovered anything useful?

'Not a thing . . . Except that for people who are supposed to be so close, they dont really seem to like each other.

'Im figuring you mean the Angels? At my nod she continued. 'Yeah, the guys are skittish too. Davo just put me through the third degree about you. And Mitch asked me for your number.

I closed my eyes and squeezed. 'Please tell me its the dress . . .

She shrugged. 'It doesnt hurt; you do look hot. But I was pretty sure it was more than your looks and charm. And by the time Id finished chatting to them about the Facebook messages, I was convinced. Whatevers going on must be pretty big; Mitch was nearly peeing himself.

'Oooh just the character trait I look for in a hot guy; one who can pee on cue at a party . . .

Suddenly tired, I moved towards the wall and flopped into a hot-pink designer chair shaped like a hand its fingers cupped ready to accept me and blew out a huge sigh. Macey was right; I did have to find out about JoJo but where was I supposed to start? I wasnt some freaking detective!

Macey followed and dropped elegantly into the pink chairs orange cousin and crossed her bare legs. 'And by the way what went down between you and Seth over there?

That caused me to blow out another gigantic sigh. 'Nothing. Something. Who knows? Actually, I havent got a clue. Hes gone all cryptic.

I sensed the questions itching to be asked, but Macey didnt get a chance to voice them because Teahna chose that moment to come over and talk. And in a way that was a good thing, because it got my mind off Seth, which was quite a feat considering thats where my mind totally wanted to be.

I noticed Teahna was drinking mineral water, which surprised me. Her eyes were bright and watchful as they slid first over Macey and then me.

'Are you having a nice time? she asked in her best hostess voice.

Nice? Did you have a 'nice time at a wake? Was that what you aimed for?

'Peachy. Love the dead theme, Macey answered dryly. 'You should start a business.

Teahna didnt flinch and Macey rolled her eyes at me. I fought back a grin which was doubly tough when Teahna continued to ignore her and focussed on me. 'I just noticed you dont have a drink let me fix that. What would you like? We have everything. Hard or soft. Your call.

I stood up to meet her face to face, and shook my head. 'But thanks anyway. Still she stared. 'By the way, great house. Oh and great hair, I muttered, wondering what to say next. 'Um this is really cool of you to do this for everyone. I guess you must still be really cut up over JoJo.

Teahna lowered her eyes. 'She was my best friend. We had no secrets we shared everything. Its really hard to lose someone that close. Im not sure Ill ever get over it.

Okay, so again I felt really bad. But, like, I could relate to this. What if it had been Macey? Then again, it was still hard to imagine anyone being really close to someone as cold as JoJo. And I didnt mean in her present state which was ultra, ultra chilled. That thought brought on a sudden shudder andfrankly I would have been happy to leave right then, but this was my chance to dig a bit deeper.

Before I could act on that thought, Teahna sniffed and caught my attention again. 'I . . . I just wish I had something special of hers, but I suppose Ill have to make do with memories, she whispered. Well, whispered loud enough to be heard over the rock band that was still belting out music loud enough to reach Saturn.

So it wasnt just a random comment. Deliberate? Why? To get me to hand over the phone? Two could play at this game. I put my hand on Teahnas arm. 'You poor thing. What was she really like? I mean, I didnt know her very well.

'She was a b.i.t.c.h and she liked to manipulate people.

'Jade! Teahna warned and amazingly all signs of her grief seemed to have disappeared.

But the girl whod just pushed herself into our conversation, a blonde JoJo look-alike, wasnt going to be warned off. With black mascara running down her face in muddy rivers, she put up one wavering hand to silence Teahna. 'She was a mega- meg . . .

'Megalomaniac? offered Macey. 'As in someone who craves power?

'Craves? Like shes still doing it, you mean? A loud sniff followed as Jade stumbled closer. 'Cos the thing is we dont know, do we? Maybe it really is ”craves”. Do we really know shes dead? Its not like we looked in the freakin coffin! And if it wasnt her then that answers a lot of questions, doesnt it!

'Shes definitely dead, I answered without thinking. In fact Id been so absorbed in Jades outburst that Id kind of lost my way there for a moment. But it only took the suddenly still expressions on the growing sea of faces around me to find it again. 'I mean . . .

'How do you know shes really dead? Teahna asked carefully. 'I thought you only saw the car and you called triple zero because you found the car.

It seemed for a minute like everyone in the room was waiting for my answer. Well, everyone in earshot anyway. Theyd stopped talking and were hanging on every word. Thank G.o.d the music prevented my words carrying, because the tension radiating from the small group around me was enough to spark memories of old westerns Id watched with my grandfather. Specifically lynching parties . . . 'I, um well, I saw a body. I mean the body. I mean, I wasnt right up close but I saw enough . . .

That tension was curling through me and I straightened my back. It was the truth, but even to my ears it sounded like a weak attempt to convince them.

'Then why are you so sure shes dead?

The answer rolled silently around in my head. 'Because her ghost is living in my bedroom! Yeah, thatd go down well. Not.

I caught a tiny head-shake from Macey. Admitting anything like that to these people was sure to get a one-way ride to the nearest loony farm.

I licked my suddenly dry lips. 'Um because . . .

'Because shed be here if she was alive. Right? Macey stood also. 'Do you think shed miss an opportunity to party with you guys? Do you think shed chance missing the latest goss? I mean, come on! What? Shes gonna give up this to be where? Hiding out somewhere? Tucked away in South America or somewhere? Why?

One by one heads started nodding, but if I expected to see relief, it didnt happen. Just the opposite. And as glances were exchanged, I couldnt remember seeing so much fear in so many eyes at one time.

I darted a look at Macey but the look she shot back told me she was just as confused as I felt. There was only one thing left and that was to find Seth and get him to tell me what was going on. Easy. Yeah right. He hadnt bothered coming back inside, so I figured he still wasnt happy.

Maybe Pete was a better bet? He was the one whod seemed most willing to talk earlier. But then, Pete had also got a bit weirded-out, too.

Before I made up my mind, Teahna, now the perfect hostess again, stopped the music and called for everyone to come inside. 'Its time for the official part of the evening and I have Daddy to thank for organising this.

Waving for us to follow, she led the way into the private theatre. The red velvet seats looked comfy and I wriggled into the back row and snagged one, sat down and crossed my legs. I looked for Macey but somehow wed become separated. The seats either side of me were empty and stayed that way till the lights dimmed and it was only then I felt someone slide in beside me.

Seth.

Id know if that guy was within a twenty-mile radius of me let alone almost on my lap. Because thats how close he was. Hed pulled on a leather jacket and it creaked as he moved. And he moved. His thigh was pressed in against mine, and even though he looked straight ahead at the screen, I knew he couldnt have missed that fact.

I didnt dare move or breathe. His scent surrounded me. His aftershave. The rich scent of real leather. The sultry scent that was pure Seth. Citrus and the fresh tang of the ocean blended into an exotic mix that rolled over me and trickled down my spine.

Music started pouring from speakers behind us but my hormone-fuzzed brain couldnt work out what it was, or who was singing. I barely computed that the smiling blonde on the screen was JoJo and she was the whole reason we were here.

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