Free Wicked Days by Lily Harper Hart Page A

didn’t mean to invade your privacy.”
    “You sensed I was having some trouble?” The dark glint in his eyes caused Felicity to inadvertently shudder as a quick flash of ravaging hate arced out from his soul.
    Without even realizing what she was doing, Ivy reached across the table and wrapped her hand around Jack’s wrist, drawing his attention to her. The air around them sparked, and Jack’s eyes softened as they met Ivy’s concerned face. The pink in his aura pushed in on the gray, tamping down the hurt he was so desperate to hide. “She doesn’t mean anything by it. She just has … feelings about people. It’s okay.”
    Jack nodded, momentarily mesmerized by Ivy’s face. “I … .”
    “This is a difficult thing for all of us to deal with. I know I’ve been … obnoxious. I’m sorry. No one is trying to upset you,” Ivy said. “We all need to work together to find out who this girl is, and what happened to her.”
    Jack cleared his throat, the spell breaking as Ivy slowly retracted her fingers. “I’m sorry for … snapping at you. This whole case is … throwing me. Whenever I don’t understand what’s going on, I tend to get my hackles up. I think Ivy is right, though. We need to work together, not turn on each other.”
    “Okay,” Felicity said, exhaling heavily. “Um … I think the best way to proceed is for me to see what I can find on the symbols. I’m sure you have other things you want to check out. I’ll be in touch the second I find anything.”
    “Good,” Jack said, rubbing the tender spot between his eyebrows. When he risked a look back in Ivy’s direction, he found her eyes trained on him. Instead of the animosity he’d found there earlier, he saw nothing but softened interest flowing through her now. “I’ll keep in touch with you, too.”
    Ivy forced a small smile for his benefit. “It’s going to be okay. We’ll figure it out.”
    Felicity couldn’t hide her grin as she watched the interaction. It was if they were in their own little world. She couldn’t help but wonder if that world would strengthen or crumble in the coming weeks. Personally, she was rooting for it to strengthen.
    Jack Harker might just turn out to be the man her tempestuous niece needed to finally break through and touch her well-protected heart. Of course, Ivy might also be the person to soothe Jack’s troubled heart – if he gave her the chance, that is.
    It was certainly going to be entertaining to watch either way.

Nine
    “Do you want to tell me what’s going on?”
    Ivy lifted her eyes from the book she was reading at Felicity’s store counter and fixed a quizzical look on her face. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
    After the computer search took longer than expected, and Jack and Ivy couldn’t take another second of fighting the urge to touch one another, Shadow Lake’s newest detective bid them farewell and promised to keep in touch. The second he left the store, Ivy’s mood lifted.
    “Oh, don’t do that,” Felicity said, smiling at her only niece. “You’re like a daughter to me. I know when something is up with you. Something is definitely up with you.”
    “He just rubs me the wrong way.”
    Felicity snorted. “I think it’s actually the opposite, but if you need to tell yourself that, then go ahead.”
    “Excuse me?”
    “You’re attracted to him,” Felicity said, refusing to back down. “It’s written all over your face.”
    “I think you read auras better than you do faces,” Ivy replied, nonplussed.
    “Your aura says it, too.”
    “Maybe you’re just off your game today.” Ivy focused back on the book. “I haven’t found anything that helps us yet. How much longer do you think the computer search will take?”
    She was trying to change the subject. There was no way Felicity was going to let that happen. “He’s very handsome,” Felicity said. “There’s something rather pleasing about his face. I think it’s that strong jaw of