Parallel (Travelers Series Book 1) (11 page)

Satisfied with my appearance, I’m ready to meet Alex in five minutes flat. I’m not exactly sure where he lives and how long it will take him to get here, so I don’t want to waste any time. With my cell phone in hand, I rush down the stairs and take a quick peek in the kitchen. Maggie is already there, cooking up some bacon. Seriously, since my arrival, I’ve never seen my aunt in any other room in the house. I walk back into the hallway. I don’t want to get into a discussion about boys and relationships, so I avoid the kitchen, so as not to alert her to the fact that I’m already up. I sneak out to the backyard as quietly as I can.

What Alex is expecting to accomplish by coming over this early in the morning, or what I hope to gain from this talk, I don’t know. But after what happened last night, I know we can’t leave it unsettled. In a way, I’m almost glad he chose to have this conversation before school. For all I know, this could lead to a heated discussion and I’d rather not call attention to myself in the middle of a crowded lunch room.

I’m glad I didn’t spend too much time getting ready, as Alex doesn’t have me wait long for him to arrive. By the time I take a seat in one of the lounge chairs, he’s already coming through the back gate.

“Thanks for meeting me.” He says with a sheepish grin and takes over the lounge chair next to mine. We’re in the exact same spots as we were last night, almost as if we never left.

“Sure. Why so early? Do you think I’m still mad at you?”

“The thought did run through my mind. I just wanted to make sure we were okay and I want to apologize again. This time for being such a jerk. You know, for trying to push you into doing something you aren’t comfortable with yet.”

I smile to reassure him. “Already forgotten.”

Alex clears his throat. “Look Etta, I meant what I said last night. You’re different.”

“I’m not sure if that’s a compliment, but I’ll take it. I feel something too, but if it’s okay with you, I’d like to take it slow.”

“I understand. I came over to let you know that I’m here for you Etta.” He moves in closer and takes my hand in his.

“Thanks.” I’m flattered he feels that way. Now I’m glad I chose to answer his text this morning.

He leans in and kisses me on the cheek. “I better get back home and get ready for school. See you there?” He gets up from the chair.

“Yeah and I’ll even let you walk me to class,” I kid.

Alex quietly slips out of the backyard, leaving me to digest everything. I lean back and take in the early morning scenery. Not being a morning person, this is something new. The only thing missing is a cup of coffee. Now I regret not going into the kitchen and grabbing a cup.

All of the sudden, I hear shouting from Alex and a car door slamming. What the hell? I run out the side gate, into the front yard and watch in amazement as Alex is about to get into a confrontation with Cooper.

“What are you doing here?” Alex’s chest is all puffed up, ready to take Cooper on.

“Just here to see if Etta needs a ride to school.” Cooper, to his credit, takes a step back.

It’s obvious he doesn’t want to get into a showdown with Alex and I’m glad he backed down. Even though Alex looks like he can hold his own, I know Cooper can take him down quite easily, judging by his build.

“If she needs a ride, she can ask me.”

Cooper catches me lurking by the side of the house. He looks somewhat embarrassed at having me witness the scene between him and Alex, but recovers quickly. “If it’s all the same, why don’t we just ask Etta?” Cooper tilts his head in my direction.

Alex’s face turns flush when he realizes that I’ve been standing there, watching the two of them. “Is this the guy who gave you a lift yesterday? What the hell is he doing here?” His eyes suddenly went wide. “Wait a minute. Is this why you turned me away last night? Are you seeing this guy?”

“Yes. Cooper gave me a ride yesterday and no, I’m not going out with him.” I hope Alex doesn’t notice that I avoided his other question.
Oh yeah, about that. I can’t decide which of the two of you I want to be with more.

Cooper shoots me a confused look. Shit, I forgot he can read my mind.

“How do you even know this guy? Alex demands.

“Just from around.” I’m not about to explain Cooper to him. Forget curve balls, the universe is hell bent on striking me out. Why did Alex have to come over and talk to me this morning? This scene could have been avoided all together. “Alex, I need to talk to Cooper alone.”

“No. Etta wait,” Alex pleads. His eyes are brimming with jealousy. “You don’t have to talk to him.”

I hate to see him so upset, especially since he has no clue as to what’s really going on. “I have to Alex. Please, just wait here.” I walk over to Cooper and point to the SUV, indicating that we should talk in there.

I look at Cooper and the feelings I had when I first met him come rushing back. His presence alone gives me goose bumps. This is an entirely different feeling than when I’m around Alex. My whole body turns flush whenever I’m around him. My feelings are confirmed when I look straight into Cooper’s eyes as we head over to the Rover.

Alex is still behind me. I turn around to face him. “I just need a moment alone with him okay?”

“Etta,” Alex says again. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

I put my hand up to motion him to stop from coming any closer. “He’s my friend okay. He’s not going to do anything. Isn’t that right Coop?”

Cooper’s mouth twitches into a grin at hearing the nickname and he raises both hands up in the air, signaling a truce. “Hey, I’m not here to cause a scene.”

“See?” I say turning back to Alex. “We’re just going to chat for a second.” Satisfied that Alex isn’t going to physically stop me, I hop into the Land Rover, remembering to roll the window back up. Cooper must have rolled it down when Alex first approached him. The last think I need is Alex listening in on our conversation.

Setting my feelings for Cooper aside, I’m going to demand he tell me what he knows about my father. He may stir up some inner emotions I didn’t know I had, but he still has information I want to know, so for the time being, I ignore my feelings and determine to be all business.

“So, any word about my dad?”

Cooper stares at me, as if he was drinking me all in. “No. Has he been in contact with you?”

I shake my head in response. “So now what? Why are you here anyway? I still don’t know why you keep showing up if you don’t have anything new to tell me.”

He seems more relaxed, now that he’s not dealing with Alex. “Chalk it up to curiosity, I suppose.”

“You haven’t even given me your number so I can call you. How am I supposed to get in touch with you if something happens?” Does he view me as some kind of pet science project? Let’s take the poor orphan girl from the foster hell and stick her in another universe. “I suppose you find this amusing.”

“No, not at all,” he laughs. “There’s nothing wrong with me just checking up on you is there? I did bring you here after all. At least allow me the courtesy of making sure you’re okay from time to time. And before you say anything else, here is my number.” He scribbles something on a scrap of paper. “You may not always be able to reach me, but if you leave a text, I’ll get it eventually.”

Great, so there’s no guarantee I can even reach him if I was ever in trouble. I take the piece of paper and tuck it into my jeans pocket. I glance back up at him and I can’t help myself, but I have to ask. “You’re not the one responsible for my father’s mysterious disappearance are you?” I probably should have asked that from the beginning. At this point, it seems unlikely that my father is away on business. “You brought me here under the impression that my father was here waiting for me. It’s seems a bit sketchy that he goes missing only days before I arrived.”

“No. I don’t have anything to do with your father’s disappearance. I’m worried about him myself. And I’m not entirely sure why I agreed to bring you back. Maybe this was a mistake on my part.”

“I don’t understand. You said yourself that my coming back reversed whatever it is that put our reality in danger. Did it work?” I ask.

“To be honest, I don’t really know. Did you find anything out from your aunt?”

“I already told you she doesn’t know anything. Where do you think he is? I don’t even know what he does for a living.” Whatever it is, it must be important, judging from the house standing right in front of me. He’s probably some sort of big-wig in Washington.

Cooper pauses for a moment. “He’s a scientist—an independent contractor for the government.”

So he is some sort of government hot-shot. What, if anything, does his job have to do with alternate dimensions? It just doesn’t add up. “What part of the government?”

“Department of Defense.”

“Oh.” Okay, I don’t know why I asked as I have no idea if that’s good or bad.

Cooper shifts the conversation in a different direction. “So what’s up with the guy with the scowl? He seems overly protective of you. Are you involved with him?”

I can’t help but notice his expression is nothing short of jealous. It’s similar to the look Alex had a few moments ago. I don’t know what it means, but it pleases me to see Cooper squirm as I mull over my answer.

“What does he have to do with anything?” I play it safe and let him wonder about what’s going on between me and Alex. Plus, I’m getting nowhere with Cooper and this conversation is becoming more and more like a tennis match.

“Just the same, I’d be a lot more comfortable knowing you watched yourself around him.” Now, his eyes just show a display of concern. I know he isn’t saying it because he thinks Alex will harm me in any way. I imagine it’s because he doesn’t like seeing me with someone else.

“I’m not doing anything until you tell me why.” If I want to pursue something with Alex, it isn’t any of Cooper’s business. I may find him attractive and he may make my insides tingle, but I don’t know anything about Cooper, other than the fact that he can time-travel—or whatever it is he can do. Alex on the other hand is easier to figure out. He’s just a seventeen-year-old high school kid whose only major life crises revolve around sports and girls.

“Look, things aren’t exactly what they appear to be. That’s all I can say right now without altering the timeline. Just know I’m here to look out for you.” He starts the engine up. I think that is my cue that this discussion is over. “You better get back to your friend.”

I get out of the SUV and watch Cooper roll out of the driveway.

“Just who are you?” I hear myself ponder out loud, watching as he drives away.

O
nce he had gotten well away from the Fleming residence, Cooper slammed his fists against the steering wheel. He hated this. Etta had a right to know everything, but he couldn’t bring himself to give her the answers she so desperately wanted to know. When he had conspired to bring Etta back, he had known their mission was the right one, but what he didn’t realize at the time was how hard it would be. At least for now, he knew she was safe.

The constant traveling between realities was beginning to wear his body out. While jumps were, for the most part, non-taxing, continuous traveling was slowly beginning to suck the energy out of him.

“That bad, huh? Don’t stress yourself out. You said it yourself, this is the only way,” his wife said as he entered the house.

He needed to learn how to cover his expressions better, only it was hard to keep his emotions in check around her. He wiped his shoes on the mat by the door and joined his wife in the living room, where she’d been working all morning. “You’re right. I just feel like the biggest jerk, dropping her off in a world she doesn’t know.”

“If it makes you feel any better, I absolve you of all perceived wrong doings, even if it’s for the right reasons,” she teased him.

When they had made the drastic decision to alter their reality, Cooper’s wife knew her husband would have the toughest job out of the two of them. As a high ranking official on the Council, she stood by the Council’s decision as a whole, but she could tell the assignment was taking a toll on her husband—both mentally and physically. In many ways, it wasn’t fair what she was asking him to do, but they had agreed early on that it was for the betterment of their world.

He laughed. “You’re not the one I’m worried about. Etta is one feisty girl.” Cooper related the morning’s events to his wife.

“Feistier than me? Should I be jealous?”

Cooper had moved in towards his wife and drew her closer to him. He nuzzled her neck and whispered in her ear. “You never have to worry about me, darlin’. I’d travel through all dimensions, hell and back even, to be together with you.”

After everything they’d been through, she knew in her heart that what he said was true. “I know.”

W
ith Cooper gone, Alex immediately rushes over to my side. He’s acting as if I’d been abducted by aliens. Then again, since I’m not entirely sure where Cooper comes from, Alex’s apparent concern might be justified.

“Etta! I can’t believe you got in the truck with him. What did he want? You two looked awful serious in there.” Alex is taking his concern a little bit too far.

I can’t really blame him. For the last couple of days I’ve been acting totally bizarre and now I have Cooper showing up everywhere I go. “It was nothing, I promise.”

He doesn’t seem convinced. “Are you sure you’re not involved in something I should know about?”

“Nothing is going on. I’m sorry things got a bit out of hand.”

“How well do you even know this guy? He could have just driven off with you,” he scolds me. “How old is he anyway? He doesn’t even look like he’s in high school.”

I assure him that I’m fine and remain unscathed. “Seriously, I’m fine and I promise he’s just a friend.” I don’t know how many times I’m going to have to keep saying this. “If you really have to know, his dad works with mine and I asked him to stop by to see if his dad had heard from him. I’ve been missing my dad’s calls.” There. It’s as close to the truth as I can get without outright lying to him.