Chasing Peace Read Online Free Page B

Sometimes Lyla sounds just like a
mother, although I’d never accuse her of looking like one. I made eye contact
and then she touched me, a soft hand at my back, rubbing small circles, somehow
knowing that I might lash out or run and hide at any moment.

Chapter 3
    I’d forgotten how hard it is to sit in class all day. It’s
Tuesday afternoon and I’ve made it through my first day and a half. Logic is
neither a typical freshman class nor a requirement for biology majors, but it
sounded interesting and filled some liberal arts requirements. Shoving my junk
in my bag, I speculate that this class might help to keep my mind off things.
If I could go through life without remembering, I’d be fine, so logic it is.
    Outside, I head to philosophy with Annie and surprisingly I
look forward to seeing her again. Philosophy is a new challenge for me too, but
as a freshman level class I’m sure it won’t be all that challenging.
    “Hey, lady in red!” I hear a shout and it reminds me of the
woman in the cocktail lounge on Friday night. I smile at having evaded her
before feeling immediately guilty for pushing her toward the new piano man, poor
guy. “Hey, wait up.”
    Fingers curl around my upper arm, pulling me from Friday’s
memory and flinging me headlong into another. I react in terror and
self-preservation, the restraining hand on my right arm, my bag on my left and
it’s heavy. I whirl right, my bag gaining momentum as it flies in an arc around
my body. My aim is spot on heading for his shoulder, neck and head, thanks to
self-defense classes this summer.
    Around far enough to see his face, I realize my mistake. I
try to stop, really I do, but the momentum gets the best of me, my bag jerking
on my arm as I try to restrain it, pulling me off balance, mid spin.
    I’m headed for an inglorious fall right at the feet of a
stranger, not the man I expected. Okay, maybe I’ll land a little to the right.
My bag has some serious momentum and is now hauling me along behind.
    He reacts more quickly than I. My sideways slide is arrested
when his arm slips beneath mine, knocking my breath away as I land against his
chest and stop short. My underarm is secure in the crook of his elbow. My
cheek, nose and half my mouth are pushed into the leather of his jacket. My
hips are angled perpendicular to his. My knees buckled leaving my feet resting
sideways on the cement. It feels like forever although the logical part of my
mind tells me it’s only seconds.
    “Are you okay?”
    “Mmmf Hmmmf.” My voice is muffled by his jacket as I try to
get my feet under me, my shoes scrabbling on the sidewalk.
    “Here. Let me help.” His free hand cups my right elbow and
he lifts until my eyes are level with his mouth and my feet are underneath me.
    “I’m so sorry. I thought you were someone else,” I
apologize.
    “I should hope so. I can’t imagine you meet many new people
like that.” A smile hovers around his mouth and when I finally tear my eyes
away, raising my gaze to his, I find the same smile lurking in his eyes as they
sparkle with mirth.
    Something inside me jolted and then fell, much like that
falling sensation when you drop off to sleep. I feel foolish, whether in
response to my swing, the laughter in his eyes or the hands still holding me. I
look away. My cheeks are flaming hot and I can’t quite catch my breath as we
stand in the middle of the walkway, people streaming by on either side.
    I step back awkwardly, dropping my bag as the fingers under
my elbow slide to my wrist before falling away while the other arm skims the
side of my breast until he pulls away too. For some reason making eye contact
with this guy is uncomfortable. My eyes skate away when he looks at me.
    “Where are you headed?” He bends down, lifting my bag from
the ground. “I’ll walk you.”
    “I don’t need a keeper,” I snap, irritated by his mirth and
my own discomfort. “I can walk myself.” His eyes sparkle and his lips quirk in
response, one