Lost In Rewind (Audio Fools #3) by Tali Alexander Page B

hear a scraping sound across the floor. Kali moves her chair, positioning it close to mine. I instantly have a need to tell her how unstable I am. She shouldn’t be moving closer to me, she should be running away. I can end her curiosity in five minutes and get the fuck out of here. I’ll tell her the futile prophecy bestowed upon me by her dead grandmother, and then she will leave me alone and let me live out the rest of my life sentence on this earth without the ones I love.
    “What are you doing?” My voice sounds harsh. I know exactly what she’s doing, but she shouldn’t be nice to some stranger. She knows nothing about me. “You know what? I think it’s best if I just write down what your grandmother said to me and then go. You’ll have all the time in the world to read it over and over and then try to decipher what her fortunetelling actually meant. I can assure you that her prophecy never came true and I have yet to understand any of her predictions.” That’s my head talking.
    She smiles at me—a knowing, one-sided grin revealing no teeth but plenty of disappointment. She looks away, nodding her head to herself. “Okay, Jeff from New York City. You’re right—perhaps it’s best you go. I don’t want you wasting your time on a dead fortuneteller’s granddaughter. I mean, what can I possibly say to you that would give meaning to Joella’s reading if you yourself haven’t a clue? After all, it must not have been that important to you if you’ve waited all these years to come here to make sense of her words.” The chair scrapes the floor with a soul-piercing sound, the loss of eye contact and her sudden withdrawal from my space begins to cause a panic that makes zero sense.
    I feel like I’m letting this girl I know nothing about down. Why is she agreeing for me to go so quickly? Only minutes ago, she had her hands wrapped around me and moving her chair to be closer and now she’s prepared to walk away?
    “Kali!” I call after her. “Kali, look at me!” I say her name with more ownership. She finally turns with a victorious, knowing grin on her lips.
    Checkmate.
    She knows I don’t want to go.

 

     
    “ I Can’t Hold Back ”by Survivor
     
     
    H e seems too old to still be playing games, but then again, some men just play games forever. I can see how badly he wants to talk to me. I can feel how much he wants me to help him make sense of things he’s probably never spoken to anybody about. He and I may have just met, but we have one thing in common—Joella. I never knew enough to be able to talk about her, and I’m pretty sure he’s been pretending they never met. But he can’t pretend with me that this is no big deal to him. I didn’t miss the look of fear that just passed in his eyes. He needs me just as much as I think I need him.
    “Are you going to stop pretending and playing games? I’m not your girlfriend—you don’t have to worry about me. You have information that I want, and I may have the explanation you seek. I’m not trying to come on to you … I just want you to feel comfortable enough to talk to me. If my gut is right, I bet I’ll be the only person you’ve ever spoken to about what Joella Gitanos enlightened you with, right?”
    He nods.
    “Let’s start over. I get that I first need to know you a little better in order for my grand-mère’s words to mean to me what they mean to you. Are you willing to be truthful and open about your life with me?”
    I hold my breath as I wait for him to answer. I may have just said that I am not his girlfriend, but I feel something, and he intrigues me in more than a brotherly way. I can’t deny that his eyes are doing silly things to my stomach. But he doesn’t need to know that, he just needs to feel at ease to want to talk to me.
    He takes two huge strides toward me, and a tingle a little south of my stomach comes to life. He holds out his hand again, as if to shake mine, and I comply. But instead of a handshake, he