Read Online Duality (Cordelia Kelly #1): Empath Urban Fantasy by Ryanne Hawk - Free Book Online
Authors: Ryanne Hawk
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ease his burdens.
“Hey,” I said as I reached my hand across the table and touched his arm trying to change whatever thought pattern had put the faraway look in his eyes. “Are you all right, Dixon? If you want to do this another night…” I let the reprieve dangle out there, hoping he’d take the bait because quite frankly, I didn’t feel much like socializing and making nice.
Dixon pulled his arm away with a jerk, and his eyes narrowed. For a second he seemed otherworldly, but then he recovered and his eyes cleared. He shook his head and said, “I’m sorry, Cordelia. Today has been rough. I doubt I will be good company.”
“Do you want to talk about what’s bothering you?”
He shrugged and lifted his hand in the air with his empty glass, signaling for more of whatever liquid courage he’d been drinking. “Not really.”
I’d met Dixon at a charity event to raise money for extracurricular activities at my school. He was the featured speaker and a big supporter of the school’s scholarship fund. We’d struck up a conversation, and he invited me out. I was flattered, and the lonely woman in me jumped at a chance to socialize and have some fun.
Now, I was second-guessing the wisdom of this date. Fuck, why couldn’t I just have a normal life. If I’d learned to listen to my senses, I’d have gotten the hell out of his presence, but stubbornness was a family trait. A blessing and a curse.
I swallowed my anxiety and plastered a concerned expression on my face. “Is your irritation work-related? I’m sure being in charge must put you under a lot of pressure.”
His hollow and bitter eyes snared me. “Do you ever quit yapping?” He said with his hand pressed against his forehead. Then he slammed his fist down on the table, making me jump in my seat. “Just shut up, would you.”
Part of me wanted to bolt and run for the safety of my home. The other half of me felt a sense of duty to relieve the tension mounting around his aura. His quick fire anger laced its way around my wrists and tugged at me, demanding I take notice. I wove the pissed off anxiety in between my fingers and heat raced down into my nerves and boiled my blood. I welcomed the burn, swallowing down the potent fusion and melting the anger with my ice, trying to bank his temper, sending him coolness through the strands.
“I received some unexpected bad news today,” he finally blurted out. “Fuck, it was a lot of bad news.”
I sat quietly, my face calm and hopefully serene, beseeching him with my eyes to continue.
A mix of emotions twisted his face. “A business deal went horribly wrong, and my company stands to lose millions. I’ll have to answer to the board of directors about the huge mess, and oh, by the way, the police are snooping around asking questions about a woman I dated a few months ago who is now missing.”
“Missing? How awful. I’m sure the situation will be cleared soon.” Red flags jumped up in front of me, hollering at me to leave, but instead, I reached out and held his hand, sending soothing waves of calm.
Across the table, he startled, and his chair moved back as he stood up with force, sloshing the water out of the glasses on the table. Before I registered the new emotions, he grabbed me by the arm, propelled me out of my seat, and pushed me toward the door.
“We’re leaving. I don’t want to be here.”
Shock overwhelmed my better judgment but I managed to snatch my purse quickly as my traitorous feet moved with every tug of his strong arm. When we got to the hostess platform, he merely said, “We’re not hungry.”
Dixon opened the glass doors, and I sputtered, “You’re hurting me.”
Patrons of the restaurant stared at us with confused expressions and opened mouths. A few of the women looked down into their laps.
He acted as if I’d said nothing and threw open the back door to his car, shoving me inside and climbing in next to me. He didn’t take his eyes off my skirt. The raw
“Hey,” I said as I reached my hand across the table and touched his arm trying to change whatever thought pattern had put the faraway look in his eyes. “Are you all right, Dixon? If you want to do this another night…” I let the reprieve dangle out there, hoping he’d take the bait because quite frankly, I didn’t feel much like socializing and making nice.
Dixon pulled his arm away with a jerk, and his eyes narrowed. For a second he seemed otherworldly, but then he recovered and his eyes cleared. He shook his head and said, “I’m sorry, Cordelia. Today has been rough. I doubt I will be good company.”
“Do you want to talk about what’s bothering you?”
He shrugged and lifted his hand in the air with his empty glass, signaling for more of whatever liquid courage he’d been drinking. “Not really.”
I’d met Dixon at a charity event to raise money for extracurricular activities at my school. He was the featured speaker and a big supporter of the school’s scholarship fund. We’d struck up a conversation, and he invited me out. I was flattered, and the lonely woman in me jumped at a chance to socialize and have some fun.
Now, I was second-guessing the wisdom of this date. Fuck, why couldn’t I just have a normal life. If I’d learned to listen to my senses, I’d have gotten the hell out of his presence, but stubbornness was a family trait. A blessing and a curse.
I swallowed my anxiety and plastered a concerned expression on my face. “Is your irritation work-related? I’m sure being in charge must put you under a lot of pressure.”
His hollow and bitter eyes snared me. “Do you ever quit yapping?” He said with his hand pressed against his forehead. Then he slammed his fist down on the table, making me jump in my seat. “Just shut up, would you.”
Part of me wanted to bolt and run for the safety of my home. The other half of me felt a sense of duty to relieve the tension mounting around his aura. His quick fire anger laced its way around my wrists and tugged at me, demanding I take notice. I wove the pissed off anxiety in between my fingers and heat raced down into my nerves and boiled my blood. I welcomed the burn, swallowing down the potent fusion and melting the anger with my ice, trying to bank his temper, sending him coolness through the strands.
“I received some unexpected bad news today,” he finally blurted out. “Fuck, it was a lot of bad news.”
I sat quietly, my face calm and hopefully serene, beseeching him with my eyes to continue.
A mix of emotions twisted his face. “A business deal went horribly wrong, and my company stands to lose millions. I’ll have to answer to the board of directors about the huge mess, and oh, by the way, the police are snooping around asking questions about a woman I dated a few months ago who is now missing.”
“Missing? How awful. I’m sure the situation will be cleared soon.” Red flags jumped up in front of me, hollering at me to leave, but instead, I reached out and held his hand, sending soothing waves of calm.
Across the table, he startled, and his chair moved back as he stood up with force, sloshing the water out of the glasses on the table. Before I registered the new emotions, he grabbed me by the arm, propelled me out of my seat, and pushed me toward the door.
“We’re leaving. I don’t want to be here.”
Shock overwhelmed my better judgment but I managed to snatch my purse quickly as my traitorous feet moved with every tug of his strong arm. When we got to the hostess platform, he merely said, “We’re not hungry.”
Dixon opened the glass doors, and I sputtered, “You’re hurting me.”
Patrons of the restaurant stared at us with confused expressions and opened mouths. A few of the women looked down into their laps.
He acted as if I’d said nothing and threw open the back door to his car, shoving me inside and climbing in next to me. He didn’t take his eyes off my skirt. The raw
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