"I don't like it when you say that," she admitted, turning her head to look at him at last. She caught his eyes and held them, hoping that, if he wanted to talk about something she didn't care to discuss, he would say so.
"About Jack," he explained. "But not here. We need to go somewhere more private." There were still a lot of people milling around, and he had other reasons for wanting to be alone as well.
"There's a park near Uncle Mike's house," she replied, referring to Mike Cook as Uncle Mike out of habit. "We could go there."
"Yeah, okay," Aaron replied, as if he knew exactly where she was talking about. He threw the car in reverse and began to exit the parking lot.
"Hey," Cadence said, placing her hand on his arm as he waited on traffic at the intersection. "You know how we talked about me waiting a while before I date anyone?"
"Yeah," he replied, a lilt of a question in his voice as he wondered where she was going with this.
"Well, I was thinking, this obviously isn't a date, right?"
He hit the gas and pulled out into traffic, clearly knowing exactly where the conversation was leading. "Right." The questioning tone was still there.
"So, just because we're not dating, that doesn't mean that we can't do other stuff, right?" she asked, running her hand up and down his sleeve, wishing his coat wasn't so thick.
He was beginning to see where she was going and cracked a small smile before asking, "Cadence, do you honestly think I'm going to drive you to a secluded park and not kiss you?"
She smiled and slid her hand into his. "In that case, could you drive a little faster?"
Even though he was already going well over the speed limit, he accelerated, reaching the park within a few moments. There was an area of the park toward the back that had no playground or other amenities, and he pulled the car into the parking lot on the end. The snow had drifted here as well, and it looked to be several inches deeper. Heavy pine trees lined the perimeter, and several forested areas dotted the landscape. There was no one else around, and by the look of the snow, there hadn't been anyone in this part of the park for several days.
Before he had the car completely in park, Cadence was kissing him. Leaning across the middle console, she pulled him to her, placing both of her hands on the sides of his face and showing him exactly how much she had missed him. Though he was surprised, it wasn't unwelcome, and he kissed her back just as passionately. After a few minutes, however, he attempted to stop her, aware that he needed to talk to her about the situation with Jack sooner rather than later.
"Cadence," he said between kisses. "We need to talk."
"Okay," she said, sliding her tongue into his mouth again.
He kissed her back and then tried once more. "Cadence, now." He pulled away from her this time, and it seemed like she might have momentarily regained her composure. She looked at him for a moment, her brown eyes flickering in and out of self-control, before she finally pulled him to her one last time. This kiss was much slower and restrained, however, as if she were storing a memory for later.
"All right," Cadence said, releasing him. "What do you want to talk to me about?"
Aaron was aware that, if they stayed in the tight confines of the car, they might not get any actual talking done. "Why don't we go for a walk?" he asked.
Cadence nodded in agreement and flipped open the car door. The cool December air felt refreshing on her flushed skin, and she took a second to breathe it in before she pushed the car door closed behind her.
"Are you going to be okay in those shoes?" he asked, waiting for her at the hood of the car.
Cadence glanced down at her dress shoes. They weren't a very high heel, not nearly as high as the boots she usually wore when she was hunting. She had on rather thick black tights and a long black dress beneath her winter coat. "I think so," she replied.
He nodded and took her arm as she stepped out of the parking lot onto the snow-covered grass. There was a path through the trees, indicated by periodic markers, which were the only evidence of its existence in the snow. Cadence had been here before and had an idea of where the little pathway ran. She led him over to it, thinking it might be easier for her to walk on the path than the grass.
"I'm sorry," Cadence said quietly after a few minutes.
Aaron smiled at her. "You don't need to be," he replied. "I wasn't exactly pushing you away."
"I know," she admitted. "But I didn't intend. . . I just. . . it's been an emotional day."
"Yes, it has," Aaron concurred. He did not add that it was about to get even more so, but the thought certainly crossed his mind.
There was a bench ahead, covered in several inches of snow. Nevertheless, it seemed like a decent place to talk. Aaron let go of her arm, brushing the snow off of the bench the best he could before offering her a seat and joining her. The look of concern was back on Cadence's face, and he wasn't exactly sure how to start this difficult conversation.
"Cadence, we need to talk about Jack," he said quietly, not quite looking at her.
"We do need to talk about Jack," Cadence agreed, crossing her arms and keeping about a foot of space between them. "Some weird things are happening."
Aaron paused for a moment, unsure of what she was talking about. "What do you mean?" he asked, cautiously.
"Well," she began, "the night that we were in Lincoln, when we were leaving the hospital, I got this weird call from a guy who sounded like Jack. And then, when I got back here, I got another call. It was so creepy! The guy sounded just like Jack. He said he was on his way. Isn't that insane? Who would do that?"
"You got two calls from someone identifying himself as Jack?" Aaron clarified.
"Yes!" Cadence declared. "And then, at the memorial service, I know you're going to think I'm crazy, but I swear, I saw someone who looked exactly like Jack. When I was on stage, giving my speech. I know it's ridiculous, but I swear I saw him, Aaron. I'm starting to think I'm losing my mind."
Aaron took a deep breath and stared down at the ground for a moment. "You're not losing your mind, Cadence," he said, trying to keep his tone even. "I'm not exactly sure how to tell you this," he paused, looking up at her for a second. She was clearly confused and bracing herself for whatever he was about to say. "Cadence, Jack isn't dead. He's . . . undead."
