The 45th Parallel Read online

  She was right. Touching his erection provided no release, only pain and desire. Greg’s hands began to shake. He crawled toward the edge of the circle and was again thrown back by the magic fence.

  “God help me,” Greg whispered.

  “Only I can help you,” she whispered back. Greg could hear her as clearly as if she were next to him whispering in his ear.

  By the time the first golden rays of dawn pierced the darkness, Greg lay in a puddle of his own sweat, shaking with exhaustion. When he could no longer feel her presence, he dragged himself to the edge of the circle and tentatively reached his hand over the border.

  The fence had worked as planned, no longer effective with the break of dawn. Greg crawled over to the window and looked out to the yard below. She was gone. Greg imagined this was what a drug addict must feel like after the initial detox. He took a deep breath, leaned his back up against the wall and closed his eyes. The first night was over.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  John called Kat several times, but she did not return his calls. She was afraid he would “charm” her into trying to figure out what happened to his parents again. She didn’t trust herself to be able to say no. Kat came home from work on a Thursday evening feeling lethargic and depressed.

  “I heard your cell phone ringing and picked it up,” Aunt Mary said. Kat had stopped carrying her phone so she would not be tempted to talk to John if he called. “It was your friend, Jennifer Bright. She said she and Kelly Doherty are coming up to visit you this weekend. They are driving up tomorrow.”

  Jennifer and Kelly were Kat’s college roommates. They had both graduated in May and had moved back to their hometowns. Jennifer was in Cleveland and Kelly was in Detroit.

  “I have to work this weekend. I wish they had let me know sooner.” Kat sighed.

  “I hope you don’t mind, but I called Jack and talked him into letting you off this weekend. You seem like you could use a little girl time.”

  “Thank you, Aunt Mary.” Kat gave her a big hug.

  Kat didn’t realize how much she had missed her girlfriends until she saw them pull up in front of Mary’s house. Kelly climbed out of the car first. She was long and lean and stood about five feet ten inches tall. Her straight, dark brown hair flowed past her shoulders. She was so darkly tanned she could have passed for a Native American Indian. Jennifer, by contrast, was about five feet three inches with wavy, auburn hair that just touched her shoulders. She had a curvy figure, but would still be described as petite. Kat felt a rush of joy at seeing their beautiful, familiar faces.

  They all hugged, and Kat asked how the drive was.

  “I feel so ill after driving with lead foot,” Kelly complained.

  “I wouldn’t have been driving so fast if you had put the correct address in the GPS,” Jennifer retorted.

  “Let’s deposit our bags and go get some beverages,” Kelly said.

  “I want to go to the dive bar where you work,” Jennifer said to Kat.

  “All right…I’ll take you to Muldoon’s, but don’t get me fired.”

  “Oh…we’ll behave,” Jennifer and Kelly said mischievously. After allowing time for Jennifer and Kelly to get cleaned up, they walked over to Muldoon’s. When they entered the bar, Kat smelled the familiar odor of greasy food and stale beer. Jack looked up from the bar and waved.

  “Table or bar?” Kat asked.

  “Belly up to the bar, of course,” Kelly said.

  “Hello Kat,” Jack said as they approached the bar. “Who are these pretty ladies?”

  “These are my college roommates, Kelly and Jennifer.” Jack reached out and shook their hands.

  “Aren’t you a little old for those ladies, Jack?” a man sitting a couple stools down from the girls asked. “Look at all the snow you have on the roof.”

  Jack was about fifty but had a young face. His hair, on the other hand, was completely white. He had told Kat it started turning in his thirties.

  “My hair may have turned on me, but at least it hasn’t deserted me,” Jack said to the man as he reached over and patted the man’s bald head. That caused a round of good natured, back and forth insults from the men around the bar.

  Kat turned to Jennifer and Kelly. “Welcome to Muldoon’s,” she said.

  Kat ordered burgers and beers while Kim and Kelly picked some songs on the jukebox. They ate dinner and chatted about their new jobs, old boyfriends, and new boyfriends. This was the most normal Kat had felt all summer. She didn’t mention John. She wasn’t sure how she would explain their relationship. Kelly saw a group of young men playing darts in the back of the bar.

  “Excuse me, but I need to school these boys,” she said as she walked over to the dart board. Kelly was fantastic at darts. She had won a lot of money in college playing against unwitting opponents.

  “When are you going to go back and finish your degree?” Jennifer asked. “You only need a few more classes to graduate.”

  “I know,” Kat said. “I just can’t bear the thought of going back to MSU. You guys have graduated…and there are too many ghosts there.”

  “Daniel and Missy have graduated too. They won’t be there.”

  “I’m just not ready…financially or emotionally.”

  “You can’t put your life on hold forever,” Jennifer said.

  “What is my life? When Daniel and I were together, I had a clear vision of my future. We talked about getting married, having kids, buying a house. Now I don’t even know what city I will be living in. I feel like I was set adrift.”

  “I never did understand why you let Daniel define you. He told you who to be, and you morphed into that person on command. Now that he is out of the picture, I’m looking forward to seeing the real Kat Collins. For Pete’s sake, you are only twenty-three! You have your whole life ahead of you.”

  “Would you ladies like to dance?” an inebriated man in a baseball cap asked.

  “No thanks,” Kat said.

  “Ted, would you go sit down and leave these ladies alone,” Jack chimed in from behind the bar.

  Ted ignored him and kept talking to Kat and Jennifer. “Ahhh, come on ladies. Give an old guy a shot,” he slurred.

  “Ted, this is not a dance bar. You better sit down before you fall down,” Jack said. Ted shrugged and shuffled off to the other end of the bar.

  “How is your new job?” Kat asked. She wanted to get Jennifer talking about herself so she would stop questioning her.

  Jennifer told Kat about her job at an insurance company until Kelly returned with a crisp, freshly won, twenty dollar bill.

  “Can we have another round, Jack?” Kelly asked.

  “Coming right up. Keep your money, this one is on the house,” Jack said.

  “Thanks Jack,” Kat said. “So, what would you guys like to do tomorrow? I can get my cousins to take out my uncle’s sailboat, or we can just do some sight-seeing.”

  “What about that Cherry Festival starting this weekend?” Kelly asked.

  “We can go there in the evening. I think they have fireworks tomorrow,” Kat suggested.

  As they walked out of Muldoon’s to head home, Kat noticed a man sitting by himself in a corner booth. The light above his table was out, so it was difficult to make out his facial features. When he looked up from his beer his eyes glowed. I’m seeing things again. Kat looked away. When she looked back, he had a small twisted smile on his face.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  They spent Saturday doing the usual tourist things. They drove out to Sleeping Bear Sand Dunes in the morning, went to Glen Arbor for lunch, and then to a couple of wineries to taste some wine. Kat managed to steer clear of North Light Winery. They hit the Cherry Festival in Traverse City around seven. Kelly insisted they ride on the Ferris wheel. After that, they bought some cherry ice cream and watched the cherry pit spitting contest.

  “I think I have my fill of all things cherry,” Kelly said. “Let’s walk around.” Kat and Jennifer followed Kelly though the crowds. They
passed a group of young men and Kelly elbowed Kat. “Did you see the cute one in the red shirt?”

  “Oh…I didn’t notice,” Kat said. Kelly gave her an exasperated look.

  “You need to stop moping over Daniel. He’s a jerk. I’m not sure what you saw in him anyway,” Kelly said.

  Kat could feel the anger rising up through her chest. “He was normal. That’s what I saw in him,” she snapped. “Since my mother’s suicide, my life seemed so disjointed. My dad checked out and spent most of his time at work. We moved around a lot. I just wanted to have a normal all American family.” And I wanted to pretend that thing in the box, locked deep within me, wasn’t there.

  “First of all,” Kelly started, “there is no such thing as a normal family. Every family is dysfunctional, it’s just a question of degree.”

  “The way you describe your future life with Daniel,” Jennifer said as she looked up toward the sky and batted her eyes, her voice was heavy with sarcasm, “it sounds so…so…lovely.” Both Jennifer and Kelly started laughing. Kat was indignant she had just bared her soul and they were making a joke of it.

  “My God, if you had stayed with Daniel, you would have died of boredom before you hit thirty!” Kelly said.

  “Thank you for your love and understanding,” Kat said angrily.

  “You have not been on a single date since you two broke up. You wouldn’t even go out with that cute guy in your finance class.”

  “I’ve had a couple dates since I’ve been here,” Kat said, hoping that would shut them up.

  “Who have you dated?” Kelly demanded.

  “I went out with my cousin’s friend. He owns a winery up by Northport.”

  “Really? How old is he?”

  Kat could see the wheels turning in Kelly’s head. She was picturing some fifty year old married man with a pot belly.

  “He is twenty-nine.”

  “What does he look like?” Jennifer asked looking off to her left.

  “He is about six feet tall, has dark hair, blue eyes.” Before Kat could finish, Jennifer turned abruptly and began walking toward a white tent. Kat looked to see where she was going. WINE PAVILION, a sign read.

  “I think I need a glass of wine,” Jennifer called back over her shoulder. She was walking over to the North Light Winery booth. She had been looking right at John as Kat was describing him.

  “Oh no…Jennifer, I’m going to kill you. We are not dating anymore.” Jennifer and Kelly completely ignored Kat and made a beeline to John. Kat thought about making a run for it but it was too late. He looked up as Kat’s friends approached. He smiled at them then he looked directly at Kat. Kat felt her stomach do a flip as her heart rate picked up. She reluctantly followed her friends over to the booth.

  “Hello Kat.” John seemed to be amused by her discomfort. “You look beautiful.”

  Kelly raised her eyebrows and looked at Kat.

  “Are you going to introduce me to your friends?”

  “Um…John, this is Jennifer and this is Kelly. They are college buddies of mine.”

  “It’s nice to meet you both. Would you like to try some wine?” John said smoothly as he filled three tasting glasses.

  Kelly and Jennifer were staring at John in a daze. Kat nudged Jennifer with her elbow.

  “Oh, yes…thank you,” Jennifer said. Kat was glad to see he had the same effect on them as he had on her. John handed them the glasses.

  “So, how do you know Kat?” Kelly asked. Kat gently kicked the back of Kelly’s ankle.

  “Her cousins introduced us.”

  “Hello Kat,” Greg said as he walked up behind John.

  “Hi Greg, these are my friends, Kelly and Jennifer.”

  Greg reached out and kissed both their hands. “Would you ladies like to join us on John’s boat to watch the fireworks in an hour?”

  Kat started to shake her head no, but Kelly and Jennifer immediately said yes. Kat looked up to see John watching her closely with his intense eyes.

  “Why don’t you ladies grab the table right there? We should start closing up this booth in about ten minutes,” Greg said as he motioned to an empty table a few feet away. Kat and her friends walked over and sat down.

  John came out from behind the booth with three more glasses. “You just tried a pinot noir, now you can try our cab.”

  “Thank you.” Jennifer giggled.

  As soon as he was out of ear shot, Jennifer and Kelly started.

  “And to think we were feeling sorry for you!”

  “We only went out twice. I haven’t seen him since.”

  “Oh come on! Did you see the way he looks at you? He didn’t take his eyes off you the entire time we were standing there,” Jennifer said in a hushed voice.

  “It’s not what you think,” Kat started to protest but stopped talking when Greg came over and sat down.

  “While they are closing up the booth, I’ll take you to John’s boat.” Greg smiled.

  “You look like you are feeling much better,” Kat said. His color was back to normal and he seemed to have his usual spunkiness.

  “Your aunt’s, ah, remedy, must have helped. I feel a million times better.”

  Greg seemed to be back to his old, flirtatious self. They all finished their wine and followed Greg. John looked up at them, shook his head, and continued packing up the wine bottles. The boat was docked in the marina right behind the wine pavilion. Kat knew this was not a good idea. She could already feel her thin layer of resolve slipping away. When they got to the boat, Greg jumped on board and helped the girls on.

  “How in the world did you get this dock space for the Cherry Festival?” Kat asked.

  Greg smiled at Kat.

  “Never mind, I don’t want to know.”

  “This is a great boat,” Kelly said.

  “She’s a beauty,” Greg said in agreement. “How about some more wine?” he asked. He was doing his best to get them all tipsy. Kelly and Jennifer needed no encouragement. He turned on some music and brought out a cheese plate.

  “You guys are really ready to party,” Kat said.

  “We have been docking here during the Cherry Festival for a couple years now. It’s a great way to spend the Fourth.

  Kat wondered who else had been invited, hoping Trish would not show up.

  “How many people can this boat hold?” Kat asked.

  “This is a small private party,” Greg winked at her.

  Kat heard footsteps coming down the dock. John, Martine, and a distinguished looking black man were walking toward the boat. Martine looked at Kat and smiled.

  “It’s nice to see the guest list has improved since last year!” she joked.

  “How are you?” Kat asked.

  “I’m fine. Kat this is my friend, Jerome.”

  Kat introduced Jennifer and Kelly to Martine and Jerome as they climbed on the boat. After another ten minutes, Jason arrived with four of the winery employees, two women and two men, who had been working that night. Kat managed to keep her contact with John to a minimum. He went down into the cabin and she stayed up top. Kat had been sitting with Kelly, Jennifer, Jason, Greg, and one of the winery employees, Will, in the cockpit.

  As the sun was starting to get low in the sky, Greg seemed jumpy, looking at his watch every five minutes.

  “I better get going,” he said as he stood suddenly.

  “You’re kidding, it’s not even dark yet,” Jason said.

  “I have an early morning tomorrow,” Greg said as he kissed Kat and her friends on the cheek. Greg hopped off the boat, and disappeared into what remained of the festival crowd.

  “He must have a hot date,” Will said as they watched him go. With Greg’s departure, Will slid over next to Kelly while Jason seemed to home in on Jennifer. Kat was starting to feel like the proverbial fifth wheel, so she moved up on the deck of the boat to get a better view of the fireworks.

  John came up out of the cabin, looked at the happy foursome and turned to look for Kat. He paused, ran h
is hand through his hair, and then came up on deck to sit next to her. Kat’s heart started to beat faster. The reaction he provoked in her was unsettling. Will, Jason, Kelly, and Jennifer were absorbed in conversation and completely ignoring them.

  “Why haven’t you returned my calls?” John asked quietly.

  “Because I would like to keep my sanity until I am at least thirty.”

  “I am not responsible for your visions, Kat. You will have those with or without me in your life.” John was leaning forward staring down into his wine glass.

  “I’m not sure I can help you figure out what happened to your parents.” Kat paused. “It scares me to try.”

  John leaned back and reached over to touch her cheek. “Then I won’t ask you again.”

  She looked up into his gorgeous face and heard the first Fourth of July explosion. She could see the reflection of the fireworks in his eyes. He gently ran his index finger over her lips then he leaned over to kiss her. His lips against hers awakened every nerve in her mouth and unleashed a molten desire. She reached around with one hand and grabbed the back of his head to pull him closer. She lay back against the deck as he leaned over on top of her. Kat opened her lips and she could feel his tongue entering her mouth.

  What am I doing? I have to stop. She put her hands on John’s chest and pushed him away. John slowly pulled back; his eyes blazing and his breathing quick.

  “Are you charming me?” Kat whispered.

  “No, I think you are charming me.”

  “Hello, there are other people here!” Kat heard Jason yell then laughter.

  “I think we have an audience,” he said softly.

  “I forgot all about them,” Kat whispered.”

  John smiled and started to lean over to kiss her again when a plastic cup hit the back of his head.

  “We are still sitting here!” Jason said disgusted.

  John slowly pulled away and they both sat up. “There are some things that are better than fireworks.” He smiled at Kelly, Jennifer, Will, and Jason and lifted his wine glass to toast.

  “Cheers,” they yelled back obnoxiously.