Also, if they fought, I’d get roped in, and my temper would end in a magical mess.
Jerry seemed frozen in place. “It doesn’t feel like nothing.”
“You know how badly he wants to be human.”
“I do...”
“That’s all there is to it.” Why couldn’t that explanation be good enough for him? At the end of the day, that’s what everything Preston did went back to: being human. The guy was fixated on it. “Do us all a favor and act like you care a little more. I know you’re Mr. Realist, but all three of us have to work together toward whatever goal we have. Divided we fail. Failing means bad stuff happens to Desi. I’m tired of her suffering, aren’t you?”
Jerry lifted his head slightly in a nod. “We’ll need to discuss our common goals again soon.”
“Yes, of course.” He loved meetings. Always meetings to go over what the plan was to make sure we all wanted the same things. After so many years together, I thought he’d grow tired of them, but he clearly is very Type A. Not my type at all.
In all of that time, Desdemona had gotten into her car and driven to the library to pick up all the books. I don’t actually know how to read. If I could, I’d like all of the books too. What I could do was listen to the stories as they passed through her thoughts. Reading time was the time of day I liked to connect with her the most. We all had our special moments we loved to share with her. That was mine.
“Pick up something romantic,” I urged. Something that might inspire her! Plus, I loved a good romance. Those were my favorite, and close second were the mysteries!
She walked into the general fiction section and started to browse the titles. One caught her eye, and she took it off the shelf to inspect it further. Again, I can’t read, so I’m not sure what the title was, but the cover had the sun setting over mountains. Very beautiful. I liked it.
“I know you didn’t ask for my opinion, but that is a great read,” a male voice said from behind.
Desi startled, nearly dropping the book. “No, I didn’t ask.”
She spun and faced the guy, and her cold, angry heart softened just a little. I could hardly blame her. He was handsome and adorable all at once. Dark hair, lean, kind eyes. That last part was the most important of all. Kind eyes meant a kind heart. And when I took the time to gaze into those eyes and deeper into his soul, I got a glimpse of his gentle spirit.
For a moment, the two simply looked at one another. Their eyes were locked, and Desi’s heartbeat quickened. She liked him too. I gave her a slight nudge with my magic to be nice.
“But I appreciate the recommendation,” she said, saving herself before she pushed him away.
“The only reason I had to say something is because it was that good.” He continued to smile, completely not fazed by her attitude. “There aren’t many books I’ll go out of my way to do that for. This one though...it’s life changing.”
“Life changing, huh?” She studied the cover again. “That’s a pretty strong endorsement.”
He held up his hands and laughed. “If you get done and hate it, I’ll make it up to you.”
“Promise?” She smirked.
“Yes, I’ll get you comfort food! To help smooth over the wounds I’ve created!” He ran a hand through his dark hair. “Fair?”
She nodded, holding her own hand out for him to shake. “Fair.”
They shook on their new deal, and it was super cute. I liked him. A lot.
Desi then reached into his pants pocket for his phone. For a moment, he squirmed, a mixture of shock, horror, and lust all over his face. She casually entered her number into his contacts. “I’m Desi. This is my number. Now I’m going to send myself a text so that I can call you when I have a final verdict.” She then stage whispered, “This is the part where you tell me your name.”
“Toby,” he whispered. A small blush spread over his cheeks. Could he get any cuter?
“Expect a call then.” She smiled and turned back to the shelf.
He then squeaked out, “When?”
“Hmm?” She gazed back at him from over her shoulder.
“When should I expect a call?” He cleared his throat. “You could always do it before you finish if you wanted to talk about it as you go.”
“Like a book club?”
He shrugged. “Just a thought.”
Come on Desi, don’t let me down! I almost gave her another nudge with my magic, but it ended up not being needed.
She smiled. “All right. Though, expect a text. That’s a little more my style.”
“I eagerly await to hear from you, Desi.” He gave a sheepish wave, and he was grinning from ear to ear.
I squealed a little, excited. Perhaps things were finally changing!
Chapter Four
Jerry
Toby seemed like a dream come true on paper. Polite, calm, attractive in nontraditional ways, and interested in Desi for reasons that were beyond physical. Dear, sweet, innocent Brie was smitten on Desdemona’s behalf.
“I think she should call him right away. Bite the bullet and make her interest known! We should nudge her toward him now! While everything is fresh!” she urged.
While Desi’s constant thinking of him certainly proved that to be true, something felt off to me.
“It’s best to wait or we’ll come across as desperate,” I said. It felt like the best way to squash her enthusiasm without being mean and blunt about what I truly thought. The one I had to persuade wasn’t Brie, however. It was Preston.
He’d been unusually quiet, and that rattled my scales. For the first time since the meeting in the library, Preston spoke. “Being desperate is a big turn off for a guy.”
“Toby doesn’t strike me as a guy who gets a lot of dates. I bet he’d love her forwardness!” Brie protested.
“Let her start reading the book first, so she has something to talk about,” I said, or rather snapped at her. I hadn’t meant to. Why did she suddenly get to decide everything? We were supposed to be a team.
Brie didn’t seem to mind my minor outburst. “Yes, good idea. I will nudge her to read it instead!”
“She doesn’t need a nudge. Don’t waste your magic!” Would she ever learn?
After running into Toby at the library, Desdemona took the time to find three other books. One for making jewelry out of glass beads, a quick mystery novel, and a book about Paris. As usual, she didn’t seem to know what she wanted. Most of them would end up unread on the coffee table.
From the library, she went to get a coffee, and then to get some fresh air at the park. The intention had been to start reading right away on a bench. Instead, she stared ahead of herself blankly at the ducks swimming in a pond. She didn’t feel happy. Shouldn’t she have felt the same excitement as Brie over meeting Toby? Hypothetically, if he was the guy to pursue, she’d be a lot more joyous from the encounter. What was wrong?
I settled in close to her scalp. She reached up to itch the spot, a normal reaction when I did that. Whenever I connected to her skin directly, a spark went off. I liked to save our bonding moments for when she was angry or sad. The moments when she most needed my help! That was the whole point of being a guardian, to help her.