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Chance stood "We’ll be in touch then"

Great We had time to kill in Laredo

Just Like You

Investigating officer Jesse Saldana walked us out

As Chance headed for the parking lot, the cop caught me by the shoulder, and I felt that soft little static shock again where we connected I gazed at his hand pointedly and he lifted it with an apologetic look

"I wanted to speak to you alone a minute"

Gay, I decided with a touch of disappointment, not that I’d ever had a shot with Saldana except in my own fantasies He probably wanted to knohether Chance swung that way, and it wouldn’t be the first tiive him the benefit of the doubt and assume he intended to wait until the case was resolved beforea ave a halfhearted thu for faux redheads

His half smile reflected a patient amusement I couldn’t interpret "You don’t know?"

Concluding his interest wasn’t sexual and delightfully inappropriate, I lifted a brow "What I don’t knoould fill a set of encyclopedias Care to be more specific?"

He touched ainst mine, and for the third ti down, I saw the soft blue discharge "What the hell, are you wearing special shoes or so incredulous "You really don’t know"

"Knohat?"

I feltforon the Camry’s roof, Chance had no doubt passed that point Maybe it was s hi for some kind of emotional display, proof Chance wasn’t as icy as he see rattled him At least, it hadn’t His emotions skated a lot closer to the surface these days

Saldana spared a glance for the desk officer who pretended he wasn’t listening "Perhaps we’d better return to my office" At my hesitation, he added, "I’ll be brief Promise"

"What the hell" It wouldn’t hurt Chance to stew a bit, and being annoyed withabout his mother

"Usually your parents would advise you," he explained once we reached his office and he closed the door behind us "I guess it falls to nize each other, although sometimes it comes from someone with a latent ability"

I didn’t sit down because he had My intention was to preserve the height advantage in the encounter, but standing before his desk left h I’d been summoned to the principal’s office, so I sank into the chair opposite

For a norance Ability? What ability? But I was sure he kneas different so Why his opinion mattered, I don’t know, but I didn’t want hi every static shock I’ve received came from someone else who has some ability, whether they’re aware of it or not?" My tone sounded skeptical

He shook his head "No, there’s regular static and then there’s e do You’ll only see the blue spark when two talents react on each other It’s quite different, but I guess you wouldn’t know that if you haven’t been educated To the uninitiated, it’s rather like tasting the difference between types of honey"

"There are different types of honey?" I settled back to listen

Christ, Chance is going to kill me

"Yeah For now I just wanted to find out whether you have an excellent poker face or if you didn’t know I’m like you"

That sounded like a line He was like me only in that ere both bipedal in nature "Uh-huh"

"You’re doubtful, a little sad Conflicted about being here Worried about Chance"

I sat forward then, gripping the edge of his desk "How did you--" Shit, did he know I’d been picturing hi spoons?

"And now," he continued with a grin, "you’re feverishly embarrassed I’m curious to knohy, actually"

"Emotions," I realized aloud "You’re an empath"

"Yeah It helps in my line of work Cops work hunches all the time, and what I do doesn’t deviate too far from that" His dark eyes flickered to istered the scars e shook "You’re a handler? You can’t come by it naturally, or it wouldn’t come with such a steep price"

A reasonable assumption under the circuift--but I still felt mild astonishment that a cop, a bastion of law and order, could accept what I did Could make the mental leap without scorn or fear of the unholy In thatht"

He acknowledged that with a nod and a knowing look that said he probably understood s "For now, I’ll be brief There’s an underground," he said softly "When you ID someone this way, proceed with caution They may think they’re alone, as you did, and you never kno they’re going to react"