The Arrangement by Simon Smith-Wilson Page A

being fired back and forth across the
battlefield of the café table.
    ‘Well,
to be honest.’ Brandon leaned a little closer forward and
whispered very quietly. ‘I am not a big fan of crime dramas,
but don’t tell anyone that.’
    Scarlett
giggled. ‘That is surprising because you write such amazing
stories.’
    ‘Thank
you.’ She was starting to notice that every compliment caused
him to look away in a really shy cute manner. ‘I never intended
my novels to be about psychics working with the police. I mean you
look on television and there have already been so many shows with
this same sort of theme. I wanted to do a story about a medium that
makes the reader think about the big questions about life, death, the
universe.’
    ‘I
try to do the same thing.’
    ‘That
is why I love your book,’ replied Brandon. ‘You have such
believable characters and the chemistry between them is so realistic.
I liked the fact that when I finished your story I walk away thinking
about the same questions that you put to your characters. It is sheer
genius.’
    ‘I
think you give me too much credit.’ Scarlett tried to contain
the blush.
    ‘I
don’t think I have given you enough.’ He smiled a
gorgeous smile.
    She
couldn’t help it.
    The
blush appeared.
    She
picked up her hot coffee and took a small sip. It was the only thing
she could think of doing. Being complimented by such a handsome and
gifted writer made her feel all shy and girly.
    ‘What
inspired you to write paranormal investigation books?’ he
asked.
    ‘I
have just always been into that sort of thing,’ shrugged
Scarlett. ‘My grandmother was a professional psychic medium and
I was fascinated by the things she could do. I loved the way she knew
things I was going to say, or do, before I actually did them, or how
she could just know so much about a place we have never been too
before, or how she could know so much about a person she had never
met before. It was something that has stuck with me for many years.’
    ‘Your
grandmother sounds like an amazing woman.’
    Scarlett
smiled softly. ‘She really was.’
    ‘Do
you have any of her gifts?’ Brandon took a sip of his drink.
Scarlett regarded him for a long drawn out moment with her light blue
ocean coloured eyes. ‘Is something wrong?’
    ‘Oh,
I am sorry.’ She tried to laugh it off. ‘I don’t
normally talk to people about these types of things. You mention
ghosts and psychic mediums and they think you are a complete
madwoman. My father and mother didn’t buy into the things my
grandmother could do and neither does my fiancée. My sister
does, but apart from that I haven’t really spoke about this
with that many people, so it is kind of embarrassing in a way.’
    ‘You
don’t have to feel like that.’ He disarmed her with a
smile. ‘My mother was psychic. She used to do tarot readings
and help people through her dreams, but it was weird with her because
she couldn’t talk to spirits directly. She was very gifted, but
in a roundabout kind of way.’
    ‘That
is really amazing. Do you have any of her gifts?’
    Brandon
thought about this for a moment. ‘I think sometimes I do, but I
don’t know. I mean I get the odd dream now and again that comes
true, or I feel something like the face of an old friend I haven’t
thought about in years and then an hour later I bump into them. Silly
things like this. You never answered my question. Do you have any of
your grandmother’s gifts?’
    ‘I
like to think I do, but sometimes I am not sure. I think I want to
have her gifts so badly that sometimes I look for things that are not
there, or put normal everyday matters that can be easily explained
into the paranormal category, if that makes sense?’
    ‘It
does.’ He smiled that smile that had the power to break a
woman’s heart. ‘Would it be out of the question for me to
give you my phone number?’ Scarlett could feel her heart skip a
beat within her chest. He must have noticed the surprised look