Read Online Spirit Storm by E.J. Stevens - Free Book Online

hungry at all while surrounded by food inside, but now that Cal and I were alone I was starving.
    “I hope pizza sounds good, because I told Simon and Emma that we’d meet them at the Leaning Tower of Pizza downtown,” Cal said, smiling.
    Pizza? Heck yes. I needed to get away from thoughts of madness, death, and murder and feel some sense of normalcy. Going out for pizza with my boyfriend, best friend, and Simon was as close to normal as my life gets. Plus, I was starving. Maybe there was something to funerals making you hungry after all.
    “I knew there was a reason why I fell in love with you,” I said, grinning.
    Cal leaned over, his eyes half closed, lips moist, and said throatily, “And here I thought it was my kissing.”
    “Mmmm…that would be reason number one,” I said. Our lips met and our bodies melted together. Oh yeah, definitely reason number one.
    *****
    Cal and I arrived at the Leaning Tower of Pizza a few minutes late. What can I say? My hair was tousled and I had lost many of the small bells from my updo, but my hair wasn’t quite as wild looking as Cal’s. His hair was always shaggy, but I had been running my hands through it while kissing and now it looked like he had stuck his finger into an electric outlet. I thought about saying something, but he just looked so adorable.
    Emma and Simon were sitting in a corner booth and we hurried to join them. I was immediately aware of the seating arrangement. Emma and Simon were both sitting on the same red vinyl bench seat leaving the opposite side of the table for me and Cal. It wouldn’t have seemed so strange if they were any other two people on the planet, but Emma and Simon couldn’t stand each other. They nearly scratched each other’s eyes out every time they were in the same room together and, though Emma had established the upper hand earlier in the day, I was sure that their battle for dominance wasn’t over. I wondered again if they really had been holding hands at the funeral. Emma had a lot of explaining to do.
    “You two look awfully cozy,” I said, lightly. “Something happen at the funeral?”
    Cal raised one eyebrow, but didn’t say anything.
    “She finally succumbed to the Simon charm is all,” Simon quipped. “It was bound to happen eventually. I am irresistible.”
    “You are so full of it,” Emma said, leaning her head back against the padded booth and closing her eyes. “I have the most horrendous migraine from Hell. Yuki, how do you deal with having these all the time?”
    “The threat of drinking your headache ease tea usually keeps them at bay,” I said. “But you never get headaches. Any idea what triggered it?”
    “Yeah, talking snake,” Emma said with a sigh. Oh.
    “Looks like your friend will be joining us for training,” Simon said, smiling at me slyly. “The things some girls will do to get my attention.” He winked. “Of course, I’ll be deeply wounded if she just sits back and falls asleep during our sessions.”
    “Oh shut up ,” Emma said exasperatedly. “I am not falling asleep. I’m resting my eyes since they feel like they’re about to mutiny and jump out of my skull. And I am not taking sleep insults from a guy who has to turn in circles before he can lay down for a nap.”
    Simon growled in response, but turned his attention to the menu. Emma continued to rest her eyes while a satisfied grin spread across her face. Interesting. I never witnessed a person so effectively trade insults with their eyes closed. It was kind of impressive.
    We decided on one extra large meat lover’s pizza for the guys, a personal veggie and cheese pizza for me, and bread sticks for Emma. Pizza is one of the reasons I could never go vegan. I have to have my cheese. Emma tried to make a case against the guy’s pizza by explaining the origins of sausage, but Simon just mumbled something about “yummy lips and gizzards” around a mouthful of pizza. Emma went back to nibbling her bread sticks in disdain. Once