Following Bliss (The Quest series) (5 page)

Daniel walked
into the coffee shop and looked around. The smell of roasted coffee beans
wafted in while the sounds of the espresso machine tinged with indie rock
filled the air. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary, until he went up to the
counter to order his usual decaf coffee. He casually turned to the right and
saw a mass of blonde hair leaning over a piece of paper scribbling furiously.

It was Shelby.

# # #

Daniel stood
frozen for several minutes.

“Excuse me, sir,
would you like to order something?”

Daniel put his
hand up and shook his head. He realized then that he was speechless. His mind
was not able to process the series of events as quickly as they were occurring.
It didn’t make any sense. He had frequented this coffee shop at least weekly
for a
year
. And never, never before had he seen that beautiful head of
hair. Because Daniel’s mind wasn’t working at 100 percent, he walked right over
to Shelby and stood there, still unable to speak.

Slowly, her
frantic writing simmered as she looked up to see who was standing before her.
When she got to Daniel’s face, she smiled so big that she thought her cheeks
might burst. Meanwhile, her mind tried to come up with all the ways and
possibilities that he could have known she was at CoffeeTime (it didn’t have
much success, as the possibility was completely illogical). Then, her mind jumped
in to remind her of the woman’s voice, the dream and the message she was
supposed to give Daniel. Because all of this was happening, she couldn’t speak,
there was too much to process.

So, they stood
there looking at one another like that for what seemed like hours, but in truth
was only a couple of minutes.

“Shelby. I am so
glad to see you,” Daniel finally sputtered.

“Daniel, I’m so
glad to see you. How did you know I was here?”

“I didn’t!
That’s what is so crazy. Can I sit down?”

“Oh, yes, of
course! I’m sorry. Go ahead,” Shelby scooted over so Daniel could join her in
the booth. She turned to face him. “So, what got you here?”

“Well, I
meditated for like the first time in forever, because I was freaking out that I
had lost your number. I couldn’t find it anywhere. I mean, I tore my entire car
apart. I almost ripped those khaki pants I was wearing apart too. But, you
know, I held back—they were really good khaki pants.”

Shelby sat
nodding and smiling, her mind attempting to understand the words he was saying.
A meditation led him to the coffee shop she was at. Not finding her card had
led him to meditate. She had been told to tell him to meditate. Shelby’s inner
dialogue screamed at her to say to him:  SOME WOMAN CAME TO ME IN MY SLEEP LAST
NIGHT AND TOLD ME TO TELL YOU TO MEDITATE AND THAT YOU NEEDED TO OPEN YOUR
HEART. Instead, she said:

“They
were
really great khakis. I’m so grateful you didn’t kill them over my number. But
you lost my card?? How??”

It just seemed
like a more sane response than what was screaming through her. And if Daniel
noticed that there was more happening within her, he didn’t show it. Probably
because what he really wanted to say to Shelby was: I’M GOING TO GET A BOOK
DEAL BECAUSE OF YOU AND I REALLY WANT TO SPEND MORE TIME WITH YOU AS SOON AS
POSSIBLE. AND GOD, YOU LOOK GORGEOUS. But, instead he said:

“I have no clue
how I managed to lose your card—it’s so bizarre. But I meditated for 45 minutes
and when I came out of it, I felt peaceful and like everything was going to be
okay. And then I had this super strong urge to come here and I had no idea why,
but knew that something was at play, so I followed it. And now look. You’re
here and I’m here. It’s freakin’ magic.”

Shelby was
totally stunned. It
was
magic. What were the odds? And did she even dare
tell him about her dream last night?

“Wow, Daniel.
That is magical. I’m sorry I’m not saying more. I literally feel speechless.”

“I know, me too.
And since we’re here, can I buy you a cup of coffee or tea or a pastry—or do
you want to go for a walk?”

“Actually, you
know what?” Shelby said, grinning. “I’m up for all of the above.”

Chapter 3

The coffee
turned into a walk and the walk turned into lunch. Daniel found himself having
the best non-date date of his life.

By the time
their lunch of grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup came around at The
Huckleberry Pub on Northwest Kearney, Shelby decided she had to tell Daniel
about her dream. Just looking at him made energy move in her body that she had
never felt before—and he didn’t even have to say anything. Throughout the day,
she would look over at him and feel joy, simply from his presence. When he talked
about his writing in such a passionate way, staring directly into her eyes, she
melted. She wanted to tell him everything, about everything. She didn’t care
how crazy it sounded.

Daniel must have
noticed her thoughts drifting as he paused, took a sip of his soup and asked,
“Am I coming on too strong? Is this too intense?”

She found his
slight bit of insecurity endearing. And she totally understood it. There had
been many times in her life where she felt like she was too intense in
relationships. No one could match her passion—not until now anyway. Daniel seemed
to share that same trait with her and it gave her a tremendous amount of
comfort.

“No! Not at all.
In fact, I was admiring you as you spoke.”

Daniel smiled,
shaking his head. “You are something else Shelby. I don’t know what is
happening between us, but it is pretty incredible. I feel so grateful.”

“I feel the same
way Daniel. Very grateful. And you know, there is something I want to share
with you that is also pretty incredible. It might sound kind of crazy,
especially since we just met, but the timing of it all has me really curious.
You up for it?”

Daniel’s hazel
eyes grew wide with anticipation. He looked like a cross between intrigued and
freaked out. Shelby saw and felt his reaction immediately. She reached out and
put her hand on his arm.

“Don’t worry, I’m
not about to reveal some deep, dark secret—not yet anyway. I had a very vivid
dream last night and I’m wondering if you might be able to help me figure it
out.”

Shelby went on
to share the details with Daniel, every last one, even the woman saying that
Shelby was the one that could help him. Daniel watched Shelby carefully as she
spoke. This made her slightly nervous, but she continued on, hoping that some
part of him understood the message.

“So…I’m really
curious who this woman might be and why she is telling me to connect with you.
The fact that you meditated this very morning for the first time in a long time
tells me that something magical is going on here, as that was part of her
message to you. Do you have any thoughts about this?”

Shelby noticed
that Daniels eyes were filling with tears.

“My mom died
when I was 27,” he blurted out. “Breast cancer. And when she was sick, I took
it seriously, but not seriously enough. I didn’t do enough to help her. Since
she passed, I’ve been discovering all sorts of healing modalities that can help
folks heal cancer and it kills me that I didn’t do that work while she was
still here—maybe some of it would have saved her life.”

Shelby squeezed
Daniel’s arm and nodded. Goosebumps ran up her arms and legs. She knew it had
to be his mother that was communicating with her.

“I loved her so
much and I didn’t show her enough. Ever since she passed, it’s been so
difficult for me to open myself up. I’ve spent so much time berating myself for
not being a better son. I can’t help but think that the woman and little boy
you saw was me and my mom. I don’t know why she’s reaching out to you, though.
I’ve never even had one dream with her in it in the past 11 years since she’s
been gone.”

“I don’t know
either Daniel, but there is clearly a message that she is trying to send you.
Are you open to regular meditation to see how that might shifts things for
you?”

“Yes,
definitely. It’s so wild that I haven’t meditated in so long and then felt the
inspiration to do so and it brought me to you.”

Daniel looked
lovingly into Shelby’s eyes.

“I didn’t know
what I was going to do if I couldn’t find your number. But, I didn’t need to. The
Universe—and apparently my mom—was leading me to you the whole time.”

This time Daniel
took Shelby’s hand, gently moving it up to his mouth and kissing it, never once
taking his eyes off of her.

Shelby could
barely restrain herself, she wanted to reach across the table—allowing grilled
cheese and tomato soup to land where it may—and kiss Daniel passionately. The
electricity passing between them was powerful. Suddenly Shelby felt a soft
breeze blow around her. She looked around but didn’t see any windows open in
the restaurant, and it was one of those Indian summer days with no clouds and
no wind.

“You felt that
too?”

Daniel was
looking at her rather intently.

“You mean the
breeze?”

“Yep. Where
could that have come from?”

“I have no
idea,” Shelby said, continuing to look around as though a gust of wind through
an open window or fan might suddenly appear to explain everything.

Goosebumps rose along
her arms and legs again. She lifted her arm to show Daniel. “Something is going
on.”

“I’m feeling a
chill all around me right now,” Daniel said, sounding a bit concerned.

Shelby was
curious, but not afraid. She wondered if his mom was around them now.

Tell him.

The hairs on her
arms and the back of her neck rose.

Tell him,
Shelby.

Shelby had no
idea what more she needed to tell him. And she was still having trouble making
sense of the fact that Daniel’s deceased mother was communicating with her.

Tell him I’m
proud of him. Tell him, Shelby.

Something must
have changed in her face during this because Daniel became concerned, holding
her hand tighter.

“Shelby, what’s going
on? Your eyes just drifted off, you looked like you went somewhere else far
away.”

He’s definitely
going to think I’m insane if I tell him this, Shelby thought. I’ll tell him
later, like I did with the dream, she decided.

“Oh nothing,
just tripping out about the dream, the breeze, the chills and everything. I’ve
never really experienced anything like this before.”

Daniel stood up.

“I know! Me
either. But honestly, I’m so glad you’re here.  I would be spooked if I was left
to experience this on my own with no one to share the play-by-play with. Do you
want to get out of here?”

Tell him
Shelby, he needs to know this.

Shelby flipped
her hair hoping his mom would get the hint that it wasn’t going to happen right
now.

“Sure! Where to
next?”

Shelby stood up and
turned to grab her purse. She felt a bit off kilter and stumbled forward. She
felt Daniel as he put his hands on her waist.

“You okay?” he
said, pulling her in closer to him.

Shelby turned
around to face him.

“Well, I’m much
better now.”

Daniel looked
down at her (she was 5’4 to his 5’11) and smiled.

“You are
incredibly beautiful, you know that, don’t you?”

She wanted him
to kiss her so badly she could barely breathe.

Tell him
Shelby. He has to hear this and it has to come from you.

His mother was
beginning to get on her nerves. Couldn’t she see they were getting intimate
right now? Shelby wrapped her arms around Daniel more closely and hugged him
tightly. He responded, his arms extending over her hips, the side of his face
pressed into hers. He smelled like vanilla with spices mixed in. She felt
Daniel’s face tilt towards her and she slowly leaned her head back. Their noses
were touching and he smiled softly.

“May I kiss you,
Shelby?”

“Right here in
this restaurant?”

“Right here,
right now.”

Shelby pushed
her body closer in to Daniel’s, whispering, “Yes.”

His lips touched
hers lightly at first and then began pressing into her more firmly. He pushed
his body into hers and the two of them were standing so close not even a breeze
could have moved between them. Shelby responded with a soft moan. He tasted
like vanilla and mint and…and….she wasn’t sure, but whatever it was, it was
delicious. His tongue flicked inside her mouth and Shelby felt her panties get wet.
She wanted him right there, right now. His erection pushed into her more firmly
as their lips stayed intertwined. She could have stood there like that (with
maybe a few less clothes on) forever.

Except that damn
voice kept coming in.

Shelby, tell
him I’m proud of him. Do it now.

Shelby pulled back,
looked into Daniel’s eyes and said, “Thank you.” Then she wrapped her arms
around him more tightly.

Shelby. If
you don’t tell him now
—

“Okay! Fine!
Jesus Christ, just leave me alone.”

Daniel pulled
back with a start.

“What? What did
you say?”

Shelby was now 50
different shades of red.

“I’m so sorry
Daniel—I didn’t mean to say that to you. It’s, well, there’s more than the
dream happening right now. I’m getting some kind of message for you.”

Just then the
waitress came by. “You two all finished?”

Daniel didn’t
take his eyes off Shelby, “We’re going to need a few more minutes here.”

The waitress
must have felt the intensity in their exchange, as she quickly turned and
walked away.

“You’re getting
messages for me? From who? My mom?”

“I know. This is
crazy. But yes, I think so.”

“Okay, yeah,
this is nearing crazy-town. What did she say?”

They were
standing face to face, no longer touching, but still close enough to kiss.
Shelby cursed his mother’s poor timing; his lips seemed to be calling her name.
Nevermind that now though, she had to focus on delivering the message.

“Well, okay. She
is very emphatically instructing me and she is quite demanding—but you may
already know that.”

She looked up,
Daniel wasn’t smiling. Shit, Shelby thought. Humor may not coincide with
delivering messages from the other side very well.

“She says—um—she
says that she’s—“

“Please just say
it. I’m dying over here.”

“She says she’s
proud of you. And it’s important that you know that.”

Daniel’s eyes
once again filled with tears, he looked down and put both hands to his face. It
seemed like the room was spinning.

“Do you want to
sit down? I’m sorry Daniel, I don’t know what’s going on any more than you do.”

Daniel nodded
and sat back in the chair. His head was spinning now, as flashes of his
childhood, adolescence, his twenties and now his thirties flashed before him.
He had to leave, he had to get out of there.

“I have to go
Shelby. I have to go.” Daniel said as he looked up. “I appreciate you giving me
this message and sharing with me about the dream, but I’ve been blocking
feeling this for a long time and I can’t process this right now and in front of
you. I have to go. We’ll talk later.”

Shelby’s heart
sank. She had scared him. She hadn’t meant to and she was only following the
message coming in, but it was too late. She nodded and pulled out her
Hello
Portland
business card.

“So, I’ll try
again. Here’s my card.”

Daniel took it
and managed to give her a feeble smile. 

“I won’t lose it
this time,” He opened up his wallet and placed it inside.