or faking it or mean. Or else she would have pestered me to do it some more. Believe me, you learn pretty quick what people will accept.”
Marnie looked thoughtful. “Those people staring at you in there.” She pointed. “What tipped you off? Did a spirit tell you they knew you were psychic?”
Jazzy had almost forgotten about them. Almost. “No. I have very good intuition. I think it goes along with the psychic thing. I can tell when people are lying or when they think I’m lying. I can tell when people are covering up something. And I know when they know things.”
“So if they knew, so what? What’s there to be afraid of?”
Jazzy exhaled. “I don’t know. I got this creepy feeling, like they could see me with my clothes off. Usually if people find out I’m psychic they want things from me. Or they treat me differently. I hate that.”
“You have a lot of burdens for someone your age,” Marnie said. “At this point in your life you should be carefree. Going to college or traveling. Going out with friends.”
“I’m okay,” Jazzy said. “My grandma was the same way as me. When I was growing up, she did a good job explaining all about our special gift. ” She put the last two words in finger quotes. “Grandma died a few years ago, but I still feel her sometimes. And Dylan understands and is supportive, so that’s good.” The truth of it was, Jazzy mused, that if you had at least one person who believed in you, you could tolerate almost anything. “I just wish I knew what to do with it all. I always feel like I’m falling short somehow.”
“You’re young,” Marnie said. “You have all the time in the world.”
The door to the restaurant opened, and out came Laverne and Rita. “You gals missed one heck of a dessert,” Laverne said. “Strawberry cheesecake. The cheesecake was the baked kind and the strawberries were fresh. It was to die for.” She came up to Jazzy and patted her on the back. “You should be indulging at your age. That slim figure won’t last forever, you know. At some point you’ll have to watch your weight. Enjoy it while you can. Yep, that was a heck of a dessert.”
Behind her, Rita smiled. “I have to agree. The cheesecake was outstanding.” She pulled her car keys out of her purse. “What do you say we head to the hotel? We have a lot of driving to do tomorrow.”
Chapter Twenty
Marnie couldn’t help but think that if you’d seen one Marriott Hotel, you’d seen them all. Rita expressed a preference for the chain, though, because she had some kind of rewards card thing. Funny how one person could dominate a group. Well, it was hard to be irritated with her. Rita was a true lady, one of those women who set a lovely table, did volunteer work, and talked about their church friends. The type who quietly did good work, visiting people in the hospital, going on mission trips, planting flower beds, making the world a better place. Not asking for credit or praise, or getting it, for that matter, just doing what needed to be done. Like offering to drive on this trip. That was nice of her. Marnie never would have had the guts to drive across the country on her own, but with Rita driving, and the other two women in the car for support, anything seemed possible. She’d have her own posse when she went to confront Kimberly. The thought comforted her.
The hotel’s front desk was busy tonight. When it was finally their turn, the clerk apologized for the delay, saying it was because of a wedding.
“We don’t have a reservation,” Rita said. “What is your room availability?”
Laverne nudged her way in and said, “I don’t know about you gals, but I don’t think the four of us sharing a room is gonna work.” She leaned on the counter and turned to get their reaction. None of them seemed to have thought through the sleeping arrangements ahead of time, but one by one they all agreed that four women in one room was too many. No one wanted to share a bed or
Marnie looked thoughtful. “Those people staring at you in there.” She pointed. “What tipped you off? Did a spirit tell you they knew you were psychic?”
Jazzy had almost forgotten about them. Almost. “No. I have very good intuition. I think it goes along with the psychic thing. I can tell when people are lying or when they think I’m lying. I can tell when people are covering up something. And I know when they know things.”
“So if they knew, so what? What’s there to be afraid of?”
Jazzy exhaled. “I don’t know. I got this creepy feeling, like they could see me with my clothes off. Usually if people find out I’m psychic they want things from me. Or they treat me differently. I hate that.”
“You have a lot of burdens for someone your age,” Marnie said. “At this point in your life you should be carefree. Going to college or traveling. Going out with friends.”
“I’m okay,” Jazzy said. “My grandma was the same way as me. When I was growing up, she did a good job explaining all about our special gift. ” She put the last two words in finger quotes. “Grandma died a few years ago, but I still feel her sometimes. And Dylan understands and is supportive, so that’s good.” The truth of it was, Jazzy mused, that if you had at least one person who believed in you, you could tolerate almost anything. “I just wish I knew what to do with it all. I always feel like I’m falling short somehow.”
“You’re young,” Marnie said. “You have all the time in the world.”
The door to the restaurant opened, and out came Laverne and Rita. “You gals missed one heck of a dessert,” Laverne said. “Strawberry cheesecake. The cheesecake was the baked kind and the strawberries were fresh. It was to die for.” She came up to Jazzy and patted her on the back. “You should be indulging at your age. That slim figure won’t last forever, you know. At some point you’ll have to watch your weight. Enjoy it while you can. Yep, that was a heck of a dessert.”
Behind her, Rita smiled. “I have to agree. The cheesecake was outstanding.” She pulled her car keys out of her purse. “What do you say we head to the hotel? We have a lot of driving to do tomorrow.”
Chapter Twenty
Marnie couldn’t help but think that if you’d seen one Marriott Hotel, you’d seen them all. Rita expressed a preference for the chain, though, because she had some kind of rewards card thing. Funny how one person could dominate a group. Well, it was hard to be irritated with her. Rita was a true lady, one of those women who set a lovely table, did volunteer work, and talked about their church friends. The type who quietly did good work, visiting people in the hospital, going on mission trips, planting flower beds, making the world a better place. Not asking for credit or praise, or getting it, for that matter, just doing what needed to be done. Like offering to drive on this trip. That was nice of her. Marnie never would have had the guts to drive across the country on her own, but with Rita driving, and the other two women in the car for support, anything seemed possible. She’d have her own posse when she went to confront Kimberly. The thought comforted her.
The hotel’s front desk was busy tonight. When it was finally their turn, the clerk apologized for the delay, saying it was because of a wedding.
“We don’t have a reservation,” Rita said. “What is your room availability?”
Laverne nudged her way in and said, “I don’t know about you gals, but I don’t think the four of us sharing a room is gonna work.” She leaned on the counter and turned to get their reaction. None of them seemed to have thought through the sleeping arrangements ahead of time, but one by one they all agreed that four women in one room was too many. No one wanted to share a bed or
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