“No.” Sheridan laughed, as if the suggestion was absurd. “I’m just fine. No one is bothering me. Well, until now.” She looked at them pointedly.
“You planned to come down here?” Gabby asked, “Because everyone is pretty worried.”
“Hell no, I didn’t plan this. I was on my way to Washington to do an aura reading for the president, not of the president but of the Speaker of the House. It was not my idea, nor is it a service I advertise, but he’s the president. I was just going to end up telling him to calm down and do his job like a big boy.”
Markus’s jaw dropped. “What?”
“You heard me. That’s the relationship we have. He needs some encouragement. I need a job. That’s the way the world works.”
Gabby’s jaw was on the floor. People always seemed so normal until they opened their mouths.
The couple set up their mats and sat down in lotus pose facing the ocean like they were posing for a brochure about a yoga retreat.
“So how’d you get here?” Markus asked.
“I thought the private jet was an upgrade. When I realized what had happened, I asked them to turn the plane around, and G said no. I was upset for a minute, but then I took a nap. Now here I am in paradise with an umbrella drink.”
Markus said, “That’s an abduction. He took you somewhere without your consent.”
“I don’t think consent is a thing G’s thought a lot about. No one’s probably ever said no to him.”
“So he just thought he was going to pick you up and make your day?” Gabby asked.
“Pretty much. And I can’t say he was wrong.” Sheridan gestured to the surroundings. “I needed a break. He’s harmless, so I called and told everyone I was outtie for a week.”
Markus gazed into the mid-distance thoughtfully before saying, “What does Genesis want from you? I guarantee it wasn’t altruistic.”
“I’m a present for Jasmine, his wife. He’s under the impression that Jasmine’s a huge fan.”
Gabby and Markus stared back dumbly for a fraction of a second.
“They’ve been arguing, and he’s trying anything to save his marriage, including kidnapping me from the president, which probably wasn’t that smart.”
Gabby had no words.
“The funny thing is,” Sheridan said, “I don’t even think she’s a fan. She’s aware of me, to be sure, but a fan, I don’t think so.”
Bringing Sheridan to the resort was Genesis’s version of gas station carnations and waxy chocolates. He was Phil as a movie star billionaire.
“Anyway, I need a vacation, and that man needs some advice. It’s a mutually beneficial situation.”
“Are you sure?” Markus asked, “Because we arrived with the intention of evacuating you to safety.”
Gabby looked at the pink sky and the frothy waves crashing onto the shore.
Talk about a bad gift. Genesis had activated national security with his recklessness. On the upside, this mission was going to be short and sweet. All they had to do was clarify the misunderstanding and spend the next couple of days sipping umbrella drinks and writing a glorified Yelp review of Inner-G.
But even if there hadn’t been a kidnapping, it wasn’t all cool. Markus explained, “Ms. Lane, in your capacity as the president’s psychic, you have been read in on a variety of sensitive information. Inner-G is not the kind of place where you or that information is necessarily safe.”
Sheridan smiled. “You act like I know something.”
“The president thinks you know something.”
She arched a brow. “The president is attributing more power to me than I have. I am not a mind reader. I’m a good listener with powerful intuition. There’s a difference.”
Markus leaned forward. “The point is, if everyone thinks you know something, you aren’t safe.”
Sheridan stood and pressed the wrinkles out of her caftan. “If we’re done here, I’d like to get back to the cottage. I’m binging that new Keira Knightley thriller. Spoiler alert: The prime minister is rotten. You don’t need to be psychic to know that, though.”
