Blade of Darkness

"It really doesn't freak you out, even a  little bit, knowing I can see things from your past, present, and  future? Knowing that the more time we spend together, the more I'll see  and the more I'll know about you that you may not want me to know? Because I will see stuff you don't want me to, Aidan. I always do. And it always ruins things."  

Leaning forward, Aidan crossed his arms and braced  them on the table. "It doesn't freak me out at all, Dana, because I'm in  the same boat."  

She frowned. "What?"  

Aidan took one of those pauses that made her think  he questioned the wisdom of speaking. "I'm in the same boat," he  repeated. "I haven't dated in a long time because I was born with gifts  similar to yours that tend to make others uncomfortable."  

Disappointment filled her. Seriously? He was mocking her?  

"You look a bit like you want to hit me over the  head with the breadbasket," he stated, brow creasing, "so—to keep you  from thinking whatever it is that's making your eyes flash with  fury—I'll tell you that I'm telepathic and can prove it if you'll give  me permission to read your thoughts."  

Hell yes, she was furious. This was Jason all over  again. That asshole had pretended he had psychic abilities like hers in a  lame attempt to get into her pants. He hadn't realized she actually was psychic and would see through his bullshit.  

Dana leaned back in her chair and crossed her arms. "You're telepathic?"  

"Yes."  

"Prove it."  

"I can read your thoughts?"  

"You tell me," she countered, a blatant dare. Read my thoughts, my ass,  she mentally grumbled. She had thought Aidan was different, but to mock  her like this by pretending he had a special gift, too? What a  disappointment.  

"I am different," he insisted. "And I'm not  pretending. I do have a special gift. More than one, if you're to know  the truth of it."  

She frowned. Had he just read her thoughts?   

"Yes," he said.  

She narrowed her eyes. Yes, what? Yes, he had read her thoughts? Or was he just guessing the path they would naturally take?  

"Yes, I read your thoughts," he said. "And yes, I could've guessed the path they would take, but I didn't."  

She stilled. Okay. That was a little spot-on.  

"And to prove it," he continued, "I'll tell you that, although I have not been listening to your thoughts on our date, I did give them a listen both times you gave me a reading and know that you've had two visions about me that you failed to mention."  

Her heart began to pound. How did he know that?  

"In the first one," he said, lowering his voice, "we were naked in bed and I was touching your—"  

"Holy crap," she whispered, dropping her arms and gaping at him.  

His lips twitched. "I was going to say breast, but—"  

"How do you know about that?" she blurted.  

"The same way I know that in the second vision, you  were cupping my face in your hands—as you did earlier—and I kissed you  and pulled you up against me, sliding my hand down over your lovely  bottom. I read your thoughts and saw it as clearly as you did."  

Speech eluding her, Dana stared at him so long that her eyes began to burn.  

"Blink," he instructed.  

She did.  

"I know it's a bit of a shock," he murmured, eyeing her with some concern.  

"A bit of a shock," she parroted numbly.  

"I know it feels intrusive. But I didn't read your  thoughts the whole time. Most of the time I can control what I hear and  don't hear and can block others' thoughts fairly easily." Younger  telepathic immortals weren't so lucky. "But when the visions struck you,  I saw them as clearly as you did without even trying. I think because  we're both gifted."  

She hadn't told anyone about those visions. There  was no way he could've known about them without reading her mind. "Holy.  Crap."  

His eyebrows rose.  

"Are you reading my thoughts right now?" she asked.  

"Yes. They're a little chaotic. I'm sorry I've  shaken you up so much. I just wanted you understand why I haven't dated  in so long and hoped you'd appreciate my honesty."  

Honesty! He had read her thoughts! He had apparently  been reading them all this time, saying exactly what he knew she wanted  him to say and—  

His brows drew together. "Now wait a minute. That's  not true. I would never use what I saw in your thoughts to manipulate  you. If that had been my intent, I never would've told you I'm  telepathic."  

"Dude," a voice interrupted, "you told her you're telepathic?"  

Aidan swung around and shot a glare at Sheldon.  

Dana guessed Sheldon was in his early twenties.  Tracy looked to be thirty or thereabouts. Both eyed her and Aidan with  great interest as they gathered their laptops and gear and stopped by  Dana and Aidan's table on their way to the door.  

"Sheldon," Aidan growled, definitely a warning.  

"You know he's telepathic?" Dana asked his friend.  

"Yeah," Sheldon responded simply. The woman at his  side nodded. Neither seemed to view it as anything extraordinary, as if  she had just asked them if they knew Aidan could play the piano.  

"It doesn't bother you?" Dana pressed.  

Sheldon gave a dismissive shrug. "Nah. Aidan's a good guy. He almost never reads my mind."  

Aidan grimaced. "Because there's too much porn and weird shite up there."  

Tracy laughed and gave Sheldon's shoulder a shove. "Freak."  

Sheldon grinned. "You know it." Then he caught  Dana's eye. "I'm surprised he told you. People don't usually react well  when they find out he's different. I'd think you'd understand that since  you're different, too."  

He knew she was a psychic? "How did you—?"  

"I heard a rumor that Aidan was smitten with a psychic." He shrugged. "When I saw you two together, I assumed you were her."  

Aidan frowned. "Where'd you hear that?"  

Sheldon hesitated. "Cliff let it slip while we were  playing video games. You won't hold it against him, will you? He didn't  mean to. He was just more distracted than usual. And Tracy is the only  person I've told."  

Aidan shook his head. "It's fine."  

Tracy smiled. "We'd better go before Sheldon says  anything else that will embarrass you." Taking Sheldon's arm, she urged  him toward the door. "You two have a nice evening."  

"What'd I say that embarrassed him?" Sheldon asked, puzzled.  

She whispered something to him.  

Sheldon snorted. "Yeah, right. Like she didn't already know he's smitten. It's so obvious."  

Tracy pushed him into the hallway and closed the door after them.  

In the wake of their departure, Aidan swung back  around and met Dana's gaze with obvious reluctance. "Apparently there's  something else I failed to tell you that you should probably know."  

Seriously? Something else? "What's that?" she asked, unsure she wanted to hear it.  

He sighed. "I suck at dating."  

Dana laughed.