Gift of Fire

room. “I was wondering where you were, Verity. What did you do with the flashlight? It’s not in the duffel bag, and we need it in the west wing. Oh, hello, Elyssa. You two having a nice visit?”
    Elyssa rose to her feet. She gave Jonas one of her temple-priestess smiles. “Hello, Jonas. Verity and I were having a woman-to-woman chat. But we’re finished now. I can see there is no more to be said. Goodbye, Verity. Please try to open your mind and allow yourself to be guided by your inner light. It is the only way to achieve lasting happiness and satisfaction.” She walked out of the room with one last smile for Jonas.
    “What the hell was that all about?” Jonas demanded as he closed the door behind Elyssa. “What’s a woman-to-woman chat?”
    “We were discussing your potential as a stud.”
    “The hell you were.” He looked astounded.
    “Elyssa would like to borrow your services for a short while. Until she gets pregnant.” Verity hid her grin. She had never seen Jonas look so outraged. She thinks you would make an ideal mate. She ought to know. Apparently she’s already spent one previous lifetime fooling around with anything in pants, and intends to spend this one the same way. She wants you, but being the noble, sincere, honest little hussy that she is, she thought she would clear it with me first.”
    “Let me get this straight. She asked you for permission to screw me?” A dull redness was staining Jonas’s high cheekbones. “I don’t believe it!”
    “I guess it’s the New Age approach to the man shortage.”
    “Verity, do you mean to tell me that you sat here and calmly discussed this with that blond kook?”
    Verity smiled sedately. “Of course. We women communicate very well with each other.”
    “Jesus, I just can’t believe it.” Jonas slammed his hand against the wall. He stared at Verity from beneath hooded lashes. “Well?”
    “Well, what?” she asked innocently.
    “What did you tell her when she asked to borrow me?”
    “I told her you weren’t that kind of man.”
    Jonas stalked over to Verity. His expression was only one step short of rage. “You think this is all very funny, don’t you?”
    “It had its moments.” Verity could no longer repress a giggle. Her eyes were brimming with laughter when she looked up into his thunderous glare. “I thought about telling her you’d already given your procreative all to me and that I doubted if there was anything left over, but I figured you might be insulted.”
    “I ought to turn you over my knee. Dammit, Verity, one of these days you’re going to go too far.”
    “Promises, promises,” she said, mimicking him.
    “A joke. That’s all it is to you, isn’t it? A stupid joke. Some other woman tells you she wants to hop into the sack with me and make a baby, and you just laugh it off. Where’s the goddamned flashlight?”
    It finally dawned on Verity that Jonas was not seeing the humor in the situation. He was disgruntled and aggrieved, as if her lack of jealousy hurt him.
    She opened her mouth to explain to him that it wasn’t other women she feared. When it came to their relationship, her fears focused on the unknown factors in Jonas himself, not anything as straightforward and simple as another female making a pass at him. The truth was, she trusted him implicitly in some matters. Jonas would never have an affair behind her back. But it was clear that he was not in the mood for another relationship discussion.
    “The flashlight is under the bed,” Verity said slowly, in answer to his question. “I didn’t have room for it when I packed your duffel bag for the trip to town.” Verity leaned down and retrieved the large flashlight.
    Jonas raised beseeching eyes toward the ceiling. “Anything else of mine hidden under there?”
    “Nope. That’s it.”
    “I’m grateful.”
    Verity ignored his sarcasm as she slowly sat down on the bed. She didn’t know how to apologize for not having shown sufficient jealousy, so she decided to move on to a safer topic.
    “You know something, Jonas? Elyssa and Preston are both aware of the fact that you were tested at Vincent College. Preston has kept it quiet. He claims he respects your desire for anonymity. The only one he told was Elyssa—that’s why she’s convinced you’re a psychic.”
    Jonas glanced up from checking the flashlight batteries. He frowned. “How much do they know about what happened at Vincent? Did you find out?”
    Verity shook her head.