won. `Outside. Now .Śhe
hopped off the barstool at his command, but before she fell into step behind
him, she tipped his empty scotch glass over and nudged it into a roll that sent
it crashing at Farley’s feet. The bartender looked up in shock. `Take it easy,
Nick. Those glasses are brand new.´ `Sorry, Ted. I’ll pay for it.´ Nick rubbed
his tired eyes and stalked outside into the chilly, moonlit parking lot with
mayhem on his mind. Callie followed Nick across the parking lot of Farley’s Bar
to a shadowy spot behind his parked truck. On the way, she morphed her outfit
from the waitress garb to a sassy little black dress. She shivered when the
wind picked up her flouncy skirt, but the look in Nick’s eyes when he turned
around and saw her new attire was worth any discomfort. `How’d you do that?´
His gaze traveled up from her strappy pumps to her cascading updo. `Pop,śhe
said. `Would you like a matching outfit?´ `No ´ Before Nick could complete his
protest, she had done away with his tan work shirt and faded denims and
replaced them with a sleek black t-shirt and skinny jeans. Steel toed alligator
boots and a belt with a fist-sized buckle came next, and she capped it all off
with a black cattleman’s hat. Except for his sandy blond hair and those
piercing blue eyes, he looked like Clint Black. Callie took his arm and did a
quick two-step. `Don’t we look cute?´ Nick didn’t comment on his new duds, and
Callie pouted, mimicking Miranda. `Is this how you’re going to play it or do
you really have my friends in on your little psycho experiment?´ `Friends? When
was the last time you had a real friend, Nick? Sure, a lot of people like you. You’re
charming and very handsome, especially dressed like this.Śhe tipped his
hat back, and the combined effect of his new black outfit and equally dark
expression made her a little light-headed. `But how close are you really to those people in there?´ `Are
you a faerie or a shrink?´ `I’ll be whatever you need me to be to convince you
that this is all for real.´ Nick gave her a long look that made her feel
tingly. How could a human do that? She broke eye contact after a second and
stared at the gravel beneath her shoes. `All right, so you can be invisible
sometimes.´ `Any time I want.Śhe glanced up. `Like today at the
construction site.´ His eyebrows bunched together, and his mouth formed a hard
line. `You were there?´ Nick looked around the parking lot like he couldn’t
believe what he was hearing. `The whole time. I saw John Burns’s secretary
flirting with you, just like Diane, the waitress.´ `Teresa?´ `She put on a
fresh coat of lipstick when she heard you were on your way to her office. Don’t
worry though. She really likes John, but he ignores her most of the time, and he’s her boss so she doesn’t think it
will work out anyway. They’re a perfect couple for us to start on. Maybe if you
pretend to be interested in her, John will get jealous and ask her out.´ `What
are you talking about? How do you know all this?´ `I’ve been doing this for
centuries. I can read signals.Ánd the ones she was reading now from Nick told
her he was on the edge of an outburst. He didn’t believe her, didn’t trust her,
but he couldn’t quite figure out what to do about her. All that showed in his
narrow gaze, his wide stance and the way he kept shaking his head. `If you’re
so good at this, what do you need me for?Śhe sighed and leaned against the
cold body of his truck. The chill intensified her shivering, but she ignored
it. `I keep asking myself that same question. But this was Freya’s decision. I
didn’t choose you, but I’m stuck with you, and I have to make the best of it.
We can do this. I know we can.´ `You followed me to work.´ Why was he still
stuck on that? `Yes. And I’m pleasantly surprised that you asked John for a
job. That means you’re planning to stick around for a while.´ `No, it doesn’t.´
He crossed his arms over his chest and
hopped off the barstool at his command, but before she fell into step behind
him, she tipped his empty scotch glass over and nudged it into a roll that sent
it crashing at Farley’s feet. The bartender looked up in shock. `Take it easy,
Nick. Those glasses are brand new.´ `Sorry, Ted. I’ll pay for it.´ Nick rubbed
his tired eyes and stalked outside into the chilly, moonlit parking lot with
mayhem on his mind. Callie followed Nick across the parking lot of Farley’s Bar
to a shadowy spot behind his parked truck. On the way, she morphed her outfit
from the waitress garb to a sassy little black dress. She shivered when the
wind picked up her flouncy skirt, but the look in Nick’s eyes when he turned
around and saw her new attire was worth any discomfort. `How’d you do that?´
His gaze traveled up from her strappy pumps to her cascading updo. `Pop,śhe
said. `Would you like a matching outfit?´ `No ´ Before Nick could complete his
protest, she had done away with his tan work shirt and faded denims and
replaced them with a sleek black t-shirt and skinny jeans. Steel toed alligator
boots and a belt with a fist-sized buckle came next, and she capped it all off
with a black cattleman’s hat. Except for his sandy blond hair and those
piercing blue eyes, he looked like Clint Black. Callie took his arm and did a
quick two-step. `Don’t we look cute?´ Nick didn’t comment on his new duds, and
Callie pouted, mimicking Miranda. `Is this how you’re going to play it or do
you really have my friends in on your little psycho experiment?´ `Friends? When
was the last time you had a real friend, Nick? Sure, a lot of people like you. You’re
charming and very handsome, especially dressed like this.Śhe tipped his
hat back, and the combined effect of his new black outfit and equally dark
expression made her a little light-headed. `But how close are you really to those people in there?´ `Are
you a faerie or a shrink?´ `I’ll be whatever you need me to be to convince you
that this is all for real.´ Nick gave her a long look that made her feel
tingly. How could a human do that? She broke eye contact after a second and
stared at the gravel beneath her shoes. `All right, so you can be invisible
sometimes.´ `Any time I want.Śhe glanced up. `Like today at the
construction site.´ His eyebrows bunched together, and his mouth formed a hard
line. `You were there?´ Nick looked around the parking lot like he couldn’t
believe what he was hearing. `The whole time. I saw John Burns’s secretary
flirting with you, just like Diane, the waitress.´ `Teresa?´ `She put on a
fresh coat of lipstick when she heard you were on your way to her office. Don’t
worry though. She really likes John, but he ignores her most of the time, and he’s her boss so she doesn’t think it
will work out anyway. They’re a perfect couple for us to start on. Maybe if you
pretend to be interested in her, John will get jealous and ask her out.´ `What
are you talking about? How do you know all this?´ `I’ve been doing this for
centuries. I can read signals.Ánd the ones she was reading now from Nick told
her he was on the edge of an outburst. He didn’t believe her, didn’t trust her,
but he couldn’t quite figure out what to do about her. All that showed in his
narrow gaze, his wide stance and the way he kept shaking his head. `If you’re
so good at this, what do you need me for?Śhe sighed and leaned against the
cold body of his truck. The chill intensified her shivering, but she ignored
it. `I keep asking myself that same question. But this was Freya’s decision. I
didn’t choose you, but I’m stuck with you, and I have to make the best of it.
We can do this. I know we can.´ `You followed me to work.´ Why was he still
stuck on that? `Yes. And I’m pleasantly surprised that you asked John for a
job. That means you’re planning to stick around for a while.´ `No, it doesn’t.´
He crossed his arms over his chest and
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