Read Online Forgotten by Sarah J. Pepper - Free Book Online Page A

was a gigantic pain
in my backside, and refused to get a clue and move onto his next
conquest, he had to have the sexiest voice on Earth. I had to give
him that. Taking in a deep breath, I took in his otherworldly scent
blowing in the breeze, when a vision ripped me from
reality.
    The black water hid
everything under its surface. Nothing showed through, except for
the faint outline of a calloused hand. Just when I was about to
look away, a single blue flame sparked just below a ripple of
water. The flame danced and flickered in the water like it would
have in the wind.
    “ What happened just now,
Gwyneth?” Jace asked. Concern clung to his question.
    Shaking my head, I opened my eyes and
walked away without replying. He reached for me. I missed my
footing when his hand grazed my jacket, just above my hips. I
gradually faced him, keeping a hand on the rail. If my balance
faltered, he might not notice. His brilliant outline offset the sea
of dark shadows passing by.
    “ Don’t know what you’re
talking about because I wasn’t looking at anyone in particular. I
like to feel the sun on my skin, and I was trying to enjoy the
first seconds of freedom before –”
    He silenced me unexpectedly. Not by
clenching my arm, arguing with me, or making me sick. He gently
tucked my hair behind my ear, being careful not to actually touch
my skin.
    “ Tell me what just happened
to you, Gwyneth.”
    I swallowed hard, summoning the
ability to speak or think. When neither returned, I aborted my task
of acting like a sensible human and simply pushed off the rail only
to immediately lose myself in the crowd of students.
    Without looking back, I made my way to
the nearest building with a punching bag. The smell of sweat
comforted me, wrapping its glorious stench around me. KnockOuts
were my home away from home. I changed out of my school uniform and
slipped into some gym clothes.
    The manager pulled two leather gloves
from the bin behind him. He was one of the only people who turned
me down to feel his face – my way of picturing how people look.
Charlie said he didn’t want to ruin the illusion of the young,
athletic man I imagined him being. I’d covered up my chuckle with a
cough when he told me so. The husky, wide shadow gave me the
impression that he used to be fit, but over the years his waist
line grew with his age. His voice was rough, and raspy from smoking
too many cigarettes. Often, I caught him rubbing his face after
taking off what looked like glasses. I sincerely doubted he had
much for hair since it would require him taking care of that too.
Even though he kept the gym in decent condition, he slid me a few
bucks to clean the place when it started to turn south.
    Charlie bumped the counter with a pair
of gloves before tossing them into the air. The counter bump was my
warning. My depth perception was almost worthless, so I stood in
defensive mode, protecting my face. One glove fell short and hit
the ground a few feet from me, but the other grazed my
shoulder.
    “Speed bag is reserved for you,
Winnie,” Charlie hollered from the front desk.
    “Thanks, Charles.”
    He groaned, “How many times have I
told you to call me Charlie? You make me sound like an old man
calling me Charles!”
    “How many times have I told you I’ll
punch you in the face if you call me Winnie again?”
    He chuckled until it turned into a
cough. He spit a moment later. “One glove is two feet straight
ahead of you and the other is about four paces over your right
shoulder. Oh, Hector said that he’d be a few minutes
late.”
    Following his instructions, I picked
up the gloves and headed to the speed bag on the opposite side of
the room from the front desk. Keeping my hand along the wall, I
walked the perimeter of the room since there was a large boxing
arena in the middle. My fingers traced the cracks along the cement
bricks of the wall, leading me to the familiar worn leather where
I’d lose time beating out my anger/frustration/irritation for