Wherever She Goes (Psychic Seasons by ReGina Welling (you can read anyone txt) 📕

Zack drove them to the municipal parking lot, empty at this time of day on a Sunday. As he did, he kept up a running description of what he was doing while he drove and what he wanted her to do when they got there. For this first foray, he only wanted her to get used to the feel of the pedals and steering.

As he explained about how the gas and brake pedals worked, and what each gear was used for, she felt a pleasant sense of anticipation welling up inside. This adventure might just turn out to be fun. She asked questions and his patient answers helped release the tension she felt in his presence. The man ran hot and cold.

When he laughed at her rapid fire grilling over the finer points of where to position her hands on the steering wheel, she became distracted by the crinkles in the corner of his eyes, by the deep tones in his voice. They sent shivers through her until she had trouble focusing her mind on what it was he wanted her to do.

Oh well, she was a quick study and if a sixteen year old could learn how to drive, there was no reason she should find it any more difficult.

Zack stopped the car and before she knew it, Kat was behind the wheel. He helped her adjust the seat then directed her to set the mirrors.

“Now, firmly press on the brake and move the shifter from park to drive. Then, release the brake and apply gentle pressure to the gas pedal.”

Gentle pressure is a relative term, Kat realized as she thought she was barely touching the pedal but the car shot forward. She mashed the brake and then held on tight as they lurched to a stop. Breathing deeply to quiet her nerves, she gave Zack a sidelong glance expecting him be annoyed. Instead, to her surprise, he had a mile wide grin on his face.

“Sorry,” Kat’s face flamed red.

“You did fine. Now, try it again. Just ease into it.”

This time she knew what to expect so the takeoff was smoother, more controlled and she was fine until she got to the end of the lot and overshot the turn a bit and had to slam on the brakes again.

Still smiling, Zack put her at ease, showed her how to correct the error before directing her to continue driving.

After the fourth circle around the perimeter, Kat was beginning to have fun. This wasn’t so bad after all. Zack’s reassuring presence increased her confidence. The man was a natural born instructor with a surprising amount of patience.

Six times around, then seven and Kat was becoming bored. The car rolled to a stop, she looked over at Zack.

“Now what?” This must have been what it was like to be sixteen and just learning to drive; that feeling of anticipation tinged with fear. Added to the nerve-tightening effect of being nearly shoulder to shoulder with a man who smelled like sin and Kat savored the delicious shot of adrenaline. It made her feel reckless.

“Am I ready for the road?”

“Let’s try turning left first.” The quirk of his eyebrow was at odds with the twinkle in his eye. He was enjoying this, she could tell. For the first time ever, she felt daring around him and was tempted to flirt. Though, just as the thought crossed her mind, so did the realization that the last time she had done any flirting was when she was fourteen. Never mind.

Instead, she scoffed. “Come on, give me a real challenge.”

The twinkle in his eye turned wicked. “Okay then. How about a few circles in reverse.”

Kat dropped the shifter into place and turned to look over her right shoulder. Without thinking, she pressed on the gas with the same pressure she had been using to go forward, the car lurched and when she turned the wheel, went in the opposite direction to the one she had intended. A soft, “Oh,” of surprise was all she had time for as she cranked the wheel hard in the other direction, over compensating and the car lurched again then swayed as she turned the wheel the other way.

Breathing hard, she jammed the brake and slammed the shifter into park while the car was still rocking. When she heard a muffled snort from her passenger, Kat spoke between clenched teeth, “You did that on purpose. Why didn’t you warn me the steering was different?”

“You asked for a challenge.” He wasn’t even trying to hide the amusement now and when she glared at him, he only laughed harder.

“I fail to see the humor.” But seeing him more relaxed and open than she ever had before did something to her. Zack’s laugh was infectious and before long, she found herself laughing with him. As much as she wanted to stay mad, seeing him cut loose a little showed her a different side of him.

Between his job, the drama with his family and the worry she could always see hovering over him with Logan still gunning for Gustavia, the man had a lot on his plate. If getting tickled over her aborted attempt to back up helped him release a bit of tension, she could live with that.

“You want to try again?”

Providing him with a little comic relief was fine, but her pride would not allow her to quit. “Of course.”

This time, she was prepared and with some effort, managed a complete circle, then to show off, a second one in the other direction before stopping to swap places with him so he could take her home.

Chapter 8

Julie called a few hours later with an invite for a girl’s night at Hayward House. Kat knew from her inflection that Julie had something to share.

Amethyst picked Kat up on her way.

“Hey, you changed your hair,” Kat noticed right away. Amethyst’s chin length, blunt cut wedge