Liam

Chapter 2

"Did ya get lucky?" Megan yelled as soon as Rayne walked into the shop. Thankfully the bookstore was still closed so only she and Kalli heard Megan's comment.

"He was a perfect gentleman, this time", she mumbled the last two words under her breath. "He's coming over for dinner and a movie tomorrow night."

"Ooohhh, you should do a reading before your first client gets here. Maybe it'll give you a heads up on how the night's going to go tomorrow," Megan teased. Kalli walked around the desk holding my basket, adding her unspoken agreement to her girlfriend's suggestion.

"Fine, if it will get you two to leave me alone, then I guess I have to do what I have to do.". Rayne shuffled her Oracle deck, asking the dark goddesses to tell her more about Liam. The first card she pulled was Hine-Nui-Te-Po. "Well apparently he's had problems in the past with trust issues just like me," Rayne said as she began to draw a second card. Gaia, Goddess of creation, and finally she drew Oya the African Goddess of Deliverance and Death. "Girls, I'm not sure what to make of this. His present card indicates he's going under change or creating something new, and his future holds Oya. I'm not sure if that means death or rebirth that requires the death of a part of your life. Maybe I'll have a better idea what the cards meant after tonight.". Rayne placed the cards back on the deck and shuffled them again, gently wrapping them in the altar cloth. This is where they would remain until her clients arrived.

"Rayne, you know damn good and well that all of those cards mean something's going to happen with you two. It means a new beginning and possibly a future," Kali said. Her statement shocked Rayne, normally Kali stayed quiet and let Megan do all the talking.

The rest of the day passed quickly. Rayne had a fairly full schedule of private readings that kept her busy until well past 9 o'clock. She was the last one to lock up and leave. As she locked the door and turned to go, she noticed someone across the street that seemed to be watching her. She acted as if she had not seen the person, but stayed vigilant. As she suspected the stranger began to follow her to her car. When she reached her car door, she turned and yelled, "What?" The figure stopped for a moment, shimmered, and then disappeared.

"What the hell is going on? Two strange visits in two days? Guess it's time to strengthen the wards. I should place a few over the shop as well," Rayne said to herself. She checked the windows of her car before getting in, locking the doors, and driving home.

When she arrived at the apartment, she noticed a large raven near her window. "Blessings," she said quietly. "Be safe and be well. This is no place for a beauty such as yourself." The raven tilted his head, looked at Rayne, and flew away. She went into her apartment, locked the doors, lit her candles, and got busy resetting her protection wards, even on the bathtub since apparently, that was a weak spot. When the last sigils had faded into the walls and floors, she extinguished the candle and climbed into bed.

Rayne tossed in her sleep. She felt like someone was in the bed with her, stroking her hair, and kissing her neck. While it was enjoyable, she couldn't rest. She heard Liam's voice in her dreams. She liked the way he whispered her name into her ear. Rayne let out a small moan as she tossed under the sheets. Half awake, she felt the wetness between her legs and reached down to rub herself. She remembered the way his fingers slipped in and out of her folds that night, how she had begged him to take her. Her own fingers quickened their pace. She whispered his name as if she were still at the club, held in his embrace. She quickly felt her orgasm wash over her. She could have sworn she heard Liam say goodnight before she fell into a deep sleep.

***

The next morning Rayne woke early, feeling tired but excited. She took a quick shower and headed to the bookstore. As she pulled on the door, she had her head down looking at a book and suddenly bumped into someone. "Oh, I'm so sorry, I wasn't looking where I was going," she said, still not looking up.