The Whisperers: A Three Book Box Set Page 7

“Sorry, it’s just such a shock. And I want to know everything.”

  “Then you better have a six-pack of cold ones in the ‘fridge.”

  Teddy squealed and ran from the room. Mik chuckled and followed her. Suddenly she was excited to tell Teddy all about Jed. It’d been a long time since good things had happened for their family. Giving a silent thanks to whatever force had steered them in the direction they’d taken, she plopped down at Teddy’s kitchen table and accepted a beer.

  Before she knew it, the six-pack was gone and someone was knocking on Teddy’s front door. “That’s them.”

  “Them?”

  “Jed and Jake.”

  “Well invite them in. I can’t wait to see this guy!”

  Mik grinned and hurried to answer the door.

  “Hey, beauty,” Jed said with a sexy grin.

  “Hey, handsome.”

  “Hey, what about me?” Jake asked from behind Jed.

  “Sorry. Hey there good-lookin’.” Mik laughed and stepped back. “Come on it. I want you to meet my sister.”

  Almost in unison, Jed and Jake whipped off their hats. Mik looked over her shoulder as Teddy entered the room. “Guys, this is my sister, Teddy Morgan. Teddy, this is Jed and Jake Nash.”

  Teddy’s eyes widened then a smile appeared on her face. “Well, you weren’t lying, Mik.”

  “Excuse me?” Jed looked at Mik.

  “She said you were pure sin in jeans.”

  Jed’s eyes widened fractionally but only for a split second then he gave Teddy a sexy smile and stepped up to her. “It’s a pleasure, Ms. Morgan.”

  “Call me Teddy.”

  “My pleasure. I’m Jed.”

  “Nice to meet you Jed. Hope I didn’t embarrass you.”

  Jed looked over at Mik and grinned. “Nope. Not at all.”

  Mik chuckled, and then grunted as Jake gave her a pinch on the side. “Oh, sorry. Teddy, meet Jake.”

  “I don’t suppose she had anything to say about me,” Jake gave Teddy a smile that Mik was willing to bet warmed her in places men didn’t have.

  “Well, come to think of it she did say something about you being hot as an Arizona sidewalk in August.”

  Jake grinned. “Thank you. My ego is repaired. Funny thing, though, Mik didn’t say a thing about having a sister beautiful enough to make a man go weak in the knees.”

  Teddy took the hand he offered. “Hmmm, imagine that.”

  Mik rolled her eyes and sidled over to stand beside Jed. Jake was looking at Teddy like she was the only sweet roll on the plate, and if Mik wasn’t mistaken Teddy had that look that said Jake looked as good as an all-day-lollipop.

  “You two sure don’t look anything alike,” Jake said. “Mik looks like some Indian princess and you… you look like something from a fairy tale.”

  Mik wouldn’t have disagreed. Teddy was beautiful. A few inches taller than Mik, she was like a willow, slim and graceful with a cascade of blond waves and curls that fell to mid-back. Eyes the color of new leaves in spring set in a face that defined delicate femininity.

  The ironic part was that Teddy was not the delicate flower she appeared to be. Something that came as a shock to people once they got to know her. And unless Mik was way off base, getting to know Teddy was uppermost in Jake’s mind.

  “So,” Mik broke into the eye-lock Teddy and Jake had going. “We were going to go for burgers at the Grill in Waxhaw, Teddy. Want to join us?”

  “Ummm, yes, I believe I do.”

  “Then let’s saddle up.”

  Teddy groaned. “Please, no horse lingo. Besides, there’s no point in me riding with you. You’d just have to bring me back. Why don’t I follow you?”

  “Works for me. Jed? Jake?”

  “Fine by me,” Jed agreed.

  “Why don’t I ride with Teddy?” Jake asked. “That way if we get separated she won’t get lost.”

  “What a gentleman, “ Mik teased, earning a snort from Jed. “Okay. Oh hey, hold on. We just killed a six-pack. Teddy you shouldn’t drive.”

  “I’ll drive,” Jake cut in quickly then added to Teddy. “If you trust me to drive your car that is.”

  “Sure,” Teddy said with a smile. “Just give me five minutes to change.”

  “I’ll wait on the porch.” Mik turned and headed for the door with Jed one step behind her.

  Once they were outside, he moved in close to her. “You do know that he’s going to make a move on her, right?”

  “Yep.”

  “And that doesn’t bother you?”

  “Nope.”

  A puzzled look came on his face then a frown. Mik chuckled and hugged him. “Don’t worry about Teddy. She can handle herself and she didn’t just fall off the turnip truck. She’ll be fine. Besides, it’s her life. Not up to me to tell her what to do.”

  “Nice philosophy, but not always easy to do when you see them screwing up.”

  “Screwing up is just part of growing up,” Mik said, almost to herself as she thought about all the mistakes she’d made. “Besides, Jake’s liable to find out that she’s not a pushover. There’s steel hiding beneath that soft skin and a brain that’s sharp as a tack underneath all that blond hair.”

  Jed smiled. “Wouldn’t that be something?”

  “What?”

  “For Jake to meet one he couldn’t use his ability on?”

  Mik’s smile brightened. “I think he’s in for one hell of a surprise if he tries to rely on that. Teddy has abilities of her own.”

  “Oh? Just what kind of ability does Teddy have?”

  “She’s empathic to a degree. And… she’s a psychometrist.”

  “A What?”

  “Psychometry. Able to get information from objects about their owners.”

  “No shit?”

  “No shit. Give her something that belonged to someone she can tap into their energy and tell you all about them.”

  Jed opened his mouth to respond but at that moment, Teddy walked out onto the porch. “Mik, here’s that envelope. Sorry, I almost forgot. Jake’s taking a bathroom break and I’m going to dash upstairs and change clothes. I promise I’ll be fast.”

  A wave of nausea swept through Mik as her hand closed on the envelope. The last thing she wanted to do was see its contents.

  “You okay?” Jed asked.

  “Yeah, fine. I’m just not sure I want to open this right now. It’s something from my parents.”

  “You want me to give you some space?”

  “No.” Having Jed beside her made her feel stronger. “I’m fine. Just being silly, I guess.”

  She ripped open the envelope and up-ended it. A small box and a folded sheet of paper slid out. Mik unfolded the paper and read aloud.

  Mikayla,

  Your dad and I debated giving this to you every year since you came to us. It was the only thing we were given that belonged to your mother and we were supposed to give it to you on your 16th birthday. But something kept us from doing as we promised and for that, we apologize. We don’t know what this signifies; only that it’s supposed to be something that was passed down in your biological mother’s family for generations.

  Forgive us if we made a mistake in not giving this to you. I suppose we just wanted to keep you all to ourselves and not share any part of you with the woman that gave you up.

  We love you, baby.

  Mom and Dad

  Mik blinked back tears and slid the letter back into the envelope, placing it on a chair on the porch. Then she opened the box and plucked out the silver coin nestled inside.

  And pain ripped through her strong enough to prevent the scream that rose in her throat. A split second later darkness claimed her.

  Jed saw her throat constrict and her eyes roll back in her head. His heart jumped, feeling for all the world like it was trying to lodge in his throat. When Mik started to fall, he caught her, swept her up in his arms and hurried into the house.

  “Jake! Call 911!”

  Jake emerged from the h
allway at a dead run at about the same moment Teddy bounded down the stairs.

  “Oh, shit!” Jake grabbed his cell phone.

  “No, wait!” Teddy put her hand on his arm for a moment until he nodded then hurried over to the sofa where Jed was placing Mik.

  He moved to allow Teddy to sit beside Mik but kept hold of Mik’s hand, kneeling by the couch.

  Teddy put her hands on either side of Mik’s face and closed her eyes. It seemed like hours ticked by even though Jed knew it was no more than a minute. Mik’s eyes fluttered then opened.

  Teddy released Mik’s face and sat back. Mik blinked a couple of times then looked from Teddy to Jed, to Jake who was standing behind Jed.

  “Honey, are you okay?” Jed asked.

  “Yeah, I’m fine. I just need a minute.”

  “What happened?”

  Mik was trying to get her mind wrapped around an answer to that question. She pushed herself into a sitting position and leaned her head back against the couch. “That… coin. It’s evil.”

  “What coin?” Teddy asked.

  Jed stood and went to the porch. The coin lay on the wood, the box beside it. He bent to pick it up but before his fingers could touch it, nausea bubbled in his stomach and his vision blurred.

  “Jake!”

  Jake hurried out and Jed pointed to the coin. “Can you pick that up?”

  “You suddenly get old and down in the back?” Jake jested and bent over.

  Before his hand reached the coin, he staggered. Jed grabbed him and when Jake straightened, his face was pale. “What the hell’s going on?”

  “Teddy?” Jed called.

  “Yeah?”

  “Could you come out here?”

  A moment later Teddy joined them on the patio, followed by Mik. “Can you pick up that coin?”

  “Well of course I can.” Teddy bent over, but before she could pick up the coin, Mik brushed by the men, grabbed Teddy around the waist and hauled her back.

  “Don’t touch that thing!”

  “Mikayla!”

  “I mean it, Teddy. Do not touch it.”

  “Well, we can’t just leave it lying there.”

  “Get me a spatula from the kitchen.”

  “Mik, this is silly. It’s just a—“

  “Do it!”

  Teddy locked eyes with Mik for a split second then turned and marched inside.

  Jed and Jake looked at each other and then at Mik. “Somebody want to tell me what the hell’s going on?” Jake asked. “And why that coin made me feel like I’d just been split out of a tornado?”

  “Here,” Teddy held out a plastic spatula as she returned.

  Mik took it and scooped up the coin, dumping it back into the box that’d housed it.

  “Is this what was in the envelope?” Teddy asked. “That’s odd. Why would mom and dad leave you a silver dollar? And what’s the big deal about touching it?”

  Mik shook her head. “I don’t know how they came to have this or why but do know that it’s evil.”

  “Then let me hold it and find out why.”

  “No!” Mik slammed the box closed. “No,” she repeated a bit more gently. “We’ll deal with this later. We’ll need Alex.”

  “Who’s Alex?” Jed asked.

  “Our sister.”

  “Why do you need her?”

  “Alex is a medium.”

  “You’re not talking about her size, I take it?”

  “Nope. She can… well, she can talk to the dead.”

  “The dead?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Quite the family you have there, Mik.”

  “Ain’t it just?” She looked up at Jed. “Do you have a safety deposit box by chance? A place we can put this where it will be… insulated from everyone?”

  “Yeah, but the bank is closed.”

  “You can leave it here,” Teddy offered.

  Mik turned to her sister. “But can I trust you not to touch it?”

  “Mik, it’s not going to hurt—“

  “I’ll need your word, Teddy.”

  “Fine. I won’t touch it.”

  “Swear it.”

  “I swear.”

  “On Mom’s grave.”

  “Damn, Mik. Fine, on Mom’s grave I swear I won’t touch it. Bring it inside. I have a little personal safe in the bedroom closet. We’ll put it there until you decide what to do with it.”

  Mik nodded and followed Teddy inside, leaving the men standing on the porch. “What the hell?” Jake asked. “Do you think she’s right? I mean, how can a silver dollar be evil?”

  “Beats the shit out of me but you felt it.”

  “This is freaky.”

  Jed nodded. It certainly was. Not only had the coin affected Mik but him and Jake. He was curious if it would’ve had the same effect on Teddy but understood Mik protecting her sister from possible harm.

  The question was, as Jake asked, how could something like a silver dollar be evil, and if it was then why had Mik’s parents left it to her?

  Chapter Nine

  Mik stood at the fence, enjoying a short break and letting the wind cool her skin as she watched the horses graze. Sometimes it was difficult to believe that she’d been on the ranch for two months. Others, it seemed that she’d always been there. The land, the animals and the people had crept in and taken residence in her soul. Particularly Jed.

  Thoughts of Jed brought a small pang of sadness. Mik hadn’t intended on falling in love with him. It was supposed to be just great sex and a kindred spirit to share things others didn’t understand. How had she fallen so fast and so hard?

  Jed never spoke of love. She understood. He and his brothers were convinced that the Nash curse made happiness impossible. Too many men had come before them that had failed in marriage. Too many deaths and tragedies.

  She couldn’t blame them for being afraid. She might have felt the same way in their shoes. But she wasn’t in their shoes. She was wearing the boots of a woman who’d fallen in love with a man that could never love her back.

  And that blew big solid chunks in her way of thinking.

  “Penny for your thoughts, beauty.”

  The object of her thoughts stepped up beside her, running a hand down her hair and around her waist to pull her snuggly to his side.

  “It’s beautiful here,” she said softly. “Your family’s lucky to have this.”

  “Yeah, we are.”

  She cut her eyes up at him. “What brings you out here this time of morning? I thought you were busy with the feed delivery.”

  “Finished sooner than I thought and wondered what you were up to.”

  “Helping Jake with a class this morning and then we’re going to work with Thrasher.”

  “You’re not going to try and ride that beast?”

  “You’re damn Skippy I’m going to ride him.”

  “Mik, that horse is crazy. None of us have been able to sit him. Just when you think you’ve gotten through to him that crazy bastard takes a chomp outta your hide and tries to trample you.”

  “He’s just misunderstood,” she argued.

  “He’s dangerous.”

  “You worried for my safety, cowboy, or just don’t think I can cut the mustard?”

  Jed turned her to face him. “Mik, I don’t have any doubts in your ability with animals. You don’t have to prove yourself. And yeah, I am worried. Thrasher’s a killer and I’m loco to keep him around. Should have gotten rid of him long ago.”

  “I’m going to ride him, Jed.”

  “No, you’re not.”

  “Watch me.”

  “I’ll fire you.”

  “You already did that once.”

  “I’ll do it again.”

  “You don’t have to fire me to fuck me. We’re past all that.”

  The blaze in his eyes told her she’d hit a nerve. Maybe that’s what she’d subconsciously intended. Maybe she wanted to piss him off, push him. Just maybe something inside her needed to hear him say that’
s all it was. Sex. Nothing else. Maybe that’s what it’d take to convince her uncooperative heart to give up on the idea that she could ever have anything more with him.

  “I haven’t ever fucked you, Mik, but if that’s what you want you let me know. In the meantime, you’re not riding that horse. Not even if I have to tie you up to stop you.”

  “Then you better get a rope, stud.”

  She knew she was being unreasonable. But his response had been like a kick to the gut. If he wasn’t fucking her then what were they doing? She couldn’t allow herself to think it was anything else because that just put her back to longing for more than he had to give.

  It was a sorry state of affairs but one of her own making. He’d never made her a promise and she was wrong for wanting to elicit one. But damn it, she loved him and couldn’t help if it pissed her off that she’d found someone she wanted this much and could only have part of. So, yeah, she was in one hell of a bitchy mood and didn’t give a fat shit who she pissed off, or for that matter, on, at the moment. And she was going to ride that damn horse.

  Jed watched her march away, her head high and firm butt twitching. Something had crawled up her ass, but he didn’t have a clue what it was. He thought things were going pretty damn well. Had he missed something?

  Damn women. They had some kind of secret language. No way in hell you could hope to decipher it yet they expected you to vibe in on it and figure out what had them in a twitch.

  Well, he’d deal with her twitch or itch or whatever it was later. Right now, he’d better head her off before she bit off her nose to spite her face and climbed on Thrasher.

  Mik could feel him watching her and picked up her pace. She had no doubt that he’d try and stop her. Not because he loved her. He just didn’t believe Thrasher could be ridden.

  Truth was, she wasn’t so sure. He might be right. Thrasher was a beauty. Sixteen hands high, black as night and as wild as a storm. There wasn’t a hand on the ranch that hadn’t tried to sit him. And not a one had succeeded. Even Jake had been thrown.

  Jed had refused to try and proclaimed Thrasher unbreakable.

  Mik couldn’t believe that. Thrasher was wild and could be downright spiteful, but sometimes he was sweet and playful. She’d spent a lot of time with him the last few weeks and had even managed to sack him, something no one else had accomplished.