Oh, man, all of this had bad life choice written all over it. If he’d told me who he was—who he was to Stacey and that he’d known Zayne, I would’ve demanded to know exactly what the message was before agreeing to help. I would’ve sure as Hell contacted Zayne first, not just to tell him that Sam’s spirit was hanging around but also to find out what had happened to Sam.
Come to think of it, why hadn’t Sam asked why I was living with Zayne? He hadn’t asked a single question about who I was or how I was involved.
“Dude...” I said.
“It’s okay.” Sam’s gaze swung back to mine. “Really. Let’s go up to her.”
“You need to tell me what’s going on.”
Sam turned to me. “This can’t wait. You don’t understand. I’m running out of time.”
I stared him down. “You’re not at all curious about who I am?” I whispered. “What I am?”
“I figured since you’re with Zayne, you’re good people.” His gaze bounced to where Stacey sat. “I know what he is.”
“But you said the reason you didn’t tell me who she was was because you didn’t know me. You didn’t trust me—”
“I lied. Okay?” He threw up his arms, one of them going through the chest of a man who walked past us. The man stopped, frowning, and then walked out, shaking his head. “I know what you are. The moment I realized you could see me, I knew what you are, and I knew if you were with Zayne, it had to mean something, but I didn’t know if you were...if you were one of the good ones.”
“What?” I gaped at him. “Okay. You need to tell me everything, and you need to make time—”
“Trinity?”
My head jerked up at the sound of Stacey’s voice. She was staring in my direction, starting to rise. Crap.
“Look.” Sam grabbed for my arm, but his hand went through it. “She’s seen you.”
Every instinct was telling me this was going to end badly, but it was too late to duck and run. Mentally cursing myself and Sam up and down the street, I shuffled over to the booth. As I drew closer, I saw Stacey’s fingers flying over the screen of her phone. I drew in a shallow breath as I glanced over the table—
Was that a...pack of Twizzlers next to the ice cream in front of Stacey?
It was.
Oh my God, who ate Twizzlers with ice cream? That was the grossest thing ever.
“I didn’t expect to see you here.” A thick fringe of bangs fell over her forehead as she placed her phone down and looked around the parlor.
“Same,” I murmured, and Stacey’s brows disappeared under her bangs.
Exhaling loudly, I glanced at Sam, who was sitting next to Stacey. “This is going to sound really random, but—”
“I’m used to random. Are...are you okay? You look a little pale...” She trailed off, frowning as she looked at where Sam sat.
Their faces were inches apart, his thigh pressing against hers, but she couldn’t see him and that...that killed Sam. As ticked off as I was at the spirit, I could see raw pain as he stared at her.
“She felt me, didn’t she?” The pinch eased from Sam’s features. “Wow. She felt me.”
I couldn’t answer him. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah.” Stacey’s frown smoothed out as she rubbed her hands over her arms. “Just... I don’t know. I’m sorry? You were saying something about this being random?”
“It’s okay.” I forced an easy smile I hoped didn’t come off as weird as it felt. I started to speak...and felt warmth flare in my chest.
Zayne.
He was nearby. Dammit. If I felt him, then he was feeling me and probably wondering what in the world I was doing out in the city. Despite the way things were between us right now, I so planned on telling him about this development. I just hoped he didn’t freak out.
“Trinity?” Stacey’s brows lifted when I focused on her.
I took a deep breath. “I have something to tell you. It’s going to sound really out there, and you’re probably not going to believe me.”
A half smile appeared. “Okay.”
“I...” This was always the most awkward part. “I see...spirits.”
Stacey’s mouth opened, but she said nothing, which caused Sam to grin. “That’s her she-doesn’t-know-how-to-respond face. I know that face pretty well.”
“Yeah, I figured that,” I muttered, and Stacey’s nose wrinkled. “I know this sounds completely bizarre, but there’s someone here who wants to talk to you. He’s apparently been hanging around, trying to get your attention.”
She looked at me and then around like she was waiting for someone to intervene, which was a common reaction and also meant it was time to bite the bullet.
“It’s...it’s Sam,” I told her. “And he wants to talk to you.”
Blood drained so rapidly from her face I was afraid she might faint. All she did was stare at me.
“You...you know a Sam, right?” I asked, startled when I felt the pulse in my chest intensify.
“Yeah. I knew a Sam. Did Zayne tell you about him?”
“No, he didn’t.” I glanced at the spirit. “He’s actually sitting right next to you.”
Her head swung to her left so quickly I wondered if she pulled a muscle.
“I’m right here,” Sam said, and I repeated what he said.
Stacey didn’t respond. She stared at where Sam sat for so long I started to really worry she’d passed out sitting up with her eyes open.
Was that even possible?
Adding it to my list of things to google later.
Stacey’s cheeks flushed a mottled red, and my stomach sank. Her gaze lifted to me. “Is this some kind of joke?”
“Tell her it’s not a joke,” Sam said needlessly.
“It’s not a joke. I know it may seem like that, but Sam is here. He’s actually been around for a while,” I repeated. “And he wants me to tell you something. It seems to be really important—”
“Good God.” Her lower jaw moved as she leaned against the table, toward me. “What is wrong with you that you would do something like this? Is it because of Zayne?”
“What?” I jerked. ‘This has nothing to do with him—”
“Because we had a thing once? And you’re mad about it?”
“Oh my God, no. Seriously. Nothing is wrong with me. I swear. You can ask Zayne. Or even Layla. They know I can do this. I’m not making this up.” Feeling the heat in my face increase, I turned to Sam. “I think it’s time for you to tell me your message.”
“I know there’s a lot of weird stuff out there in the world that I don’t know a lot about, but I’m not stupid. You need to leave right now,” Stacey said, her voice low. “Like right now.”
Sam cursed. “Tell her that she can’t go back to that school.”
Confusion thundered through me. “What kind of message is that?”
“Are you pretending to talk to him?” Her voice rose as she placed her hands on the table. I didn’t need to look around to know people were probably starting to stare. “Are you freaking serious right now?”
“Yes.” My attention shifted to her. “Sam is here, and I have no idea why he says you can’t go back to school, but that’s what he’s saying.”
Stacey laughed, made it sound coarse and twisted. “Do you really think I’m going to believe you? If it was, why has no one mentioned your little talent?”
“Because it’s not really any of your business,” I snapped.
“Excuse me?” Her eyes widened.
“Look, I’m not making this up. He—” I sucked in a sharp breath as the warmth in my chest flared intensely.
Oh, no.
Oh, no, no.
No way.
“Zayne!” Stacey called out, shooting to her feet. “You need to come get your girl.”
My stomach dropped to my toes. I took a breath, but it got stuck in the rising disbelief and confusion.
Sam was saying something, but I couldn’t hear him over the pounding of my heart. Stacey was staring behind me, her brown eyes wide, and she was saying something, too, but none of her words were making sense.
My gaze shifted to the table—the table that wasn’t meant for only one person—and I thought about what Sam had said, referring to them instead of her. My breath felt funny in my chest as things began to click into place. Zayne hadn’t told me what he was doing today. Just that he had stuff to do.
Just like he’d had stuff to do the last time he’d made plans and, other than meeting with the apartment manager, he hadn’t told me what they were.
Slowly, I turned around.
In the mess of blurred faces and bodies, I saw him in the light blue shirt he’d left the apartment in, parting the crowd like some kind of hot Moses.
I took a step back, looking around this cute little ice cream shop, and I realized I knew this place. This was the ice cream parlor his father used to take him to, a tradition Zayne had kept with Layla as he grew older. This place was important to Zayne.
And he’d never brought me here.
This place was important to him, and yet he’d never shared it with me. But he’d gotten mad because I’d said a kiss meant more? A kiss could be anything or nothing, but sharing a piece of your past with someone meant a whole lot.