“It’s only a car.”
“To you.” I took a deep breath, partly to ease my nerves and partly to bask in the glorious scent of the gorgeous yellow beast.
“My mom’s a stickler for insurance. If you wreck it, the insurance company will get me another one. No big deal. Drive. Or we’ll be late.”
I turned the key and felt, rather than heard, the low hum of the engine.
“You want the top up?” Hayden reached toward the dashboard.
“Dude, it’s a convertible.” I swatted his hand away. “Top stays down. Are you crazy?”
He laughed. “Maybe a little.”
I knew that already. “When everyone sees us arrive together, what are you going to tell them?” I glanced over to see him frowning. “You didn’t think ahead, did you?”
“They’ll think the truth — that I picked you up. They can fill in the blanks if they want to. Who cares?”
“That works for you, doesn’t it? They’ll assume we’re sleeping together. Feeds your ego,” I said evenly.
“My ego is already glutted. Like I need another notch.” He snorted. “Trust me, hanging out with you does nothing to further my social life. But so what if they think we slept together? It’s not like you’re a virgin. And I don’t talk about the girls I date, so they’ll never know for sure.” He glanced sideways. I could feel him watching me, but kept my eyes glued to the road. “It might open some doors for you. Let it go, Tessa, and reap the benefits.”
Now I felt dirty. How did he know anything about my sex life anyway? “Earlier this year, you told everyone about Heather.”
He shook his head. “Only because she had it coming—”
“Really?” I squeaked, appalled at his lack of compassion.
“I wouldn’t have said a thing, but she spread lies about me. I had to set things straight.”
“Whatever.” I concentrated on the purr of the engine and the smooth handling of the car. A few blocks later, I eased it through the gate of the chain-link fence and found a spot near the school entrance. Grabbing my books, I tossed him his keys and got out without looking back.
I didn’t even notice whether anyone stared and didn’t care. It didn’t matter if he watched over me today or not. I wanted to be away from him.
As if that were possible when we shared every class.
* * * *
Eating lunch became a chore. It wasn’t enough that so many people stared or that they assumed I’d slept with Hayden. I knew that’s what they were thinking, because their pictures of us flooded me during each class and in between. It was a cruel joke. All the effort I’d put into resisting Hayden and not kissing him and then I had to face this barrage of images of us doing exactly that. I got a looping reminder of what I missed out on.
Each visual seemed more realistic than the last and they built in my belly, forming a lump of fire. My body pumped adrenalin, forcing me to take off my sweater. It was almost as if I’d really made out with Hayden. In a way, I felt cheated, because I hadn’t.
But God, I wanted to.
Since the first day Hayden had hit on me, I’d laid down the law. And he’d been pretty decent. Except I knew he shouldn’t have roughed up poor Bryce. I should’ve felt badly for my friend, but the only thing going over and over through my head was that Hayden had thought I was in danger and had come to my rescue. If he didn’t do something despicable soon, I might stop fighting the urge to make out with him and take the plunge.
My dry spell — no dates or kissing in months — made me more susceptible to Hayden and his steamy yumminess. If it came to that and I succumbed, my dying wish would be that Hayden kissed sloppy, like trying to swallow my whole face and slathering me in saliva. I’d kissed a guy once who did that. It didn’t matter how hard he tried afterward, I could never go there again. If Hayden did that, I’d never be tempted again.
“Well?” Corinne’s eyebrows rose expectantly.
Apparently, my reprieve was over. I had hoped Corinne and Nadia would continue scowling at me in silence.
“Why are you holding out on us?” Nadia asked. “That’s so not cool.”
“Because I don’t know why he drove me.” I threw my hands in the air. “He showed up at my house and offered.”
“At least you said yes this time or I would’ve seriously questioned your sanity.” The furrow between Nadia’s brows disappeared.
“Only because of the Viper.” I snickered. “Impossible to resist.”
“Word on the street says he let you drive,” Corinne said.
“So I guess he likes you?” Nadia asked. “I mean, that’s not a stretch. You’re gorgeous. But, you know, they usually stick to their own kind. Hayden doesn’t seem like a guy who’d go against his peeps.”
“Or…” Corinne sneered. “The bastard has some bet with them. You know, like in the movies. He’s betting he can get you to fall for him. But maybe he’s fallen for you instead.”
“Wow.” I held up a hand. “You guys are blowing this way out of proportion. He only hit on me once, and that was days ago. The party isn’t a date. He probably gave me a ride this morning out of obligation or maybe he just happened to be in the area. Who cares?”
“We do,” they said in unison.
I groaned.
* * * *
“Meeting with Linton?” Hayden asked after our PE class.
“He said to go ahead and work with you then see them after. Fawn will drive me home so you don’t have to worry about it.” I scanned the vicinity, noting many students still milling about. “You’re brazen these days. Driving me to school, walking next to me and even talking to me. What will people say?” I asked, injecting a little bite to my tone.
“It doesn’t matter. You’re already in the circle. Brad proved that yesterday by hitting on you.”
“He showed up at my work last night with Skyler and a few others.”
“Really?” Hayden growled.
If I didn’t know better, I’d say Hayden sounded jealous. Not possible though. My guess was that Brad and Hayden had something else going on.
* * * *
“Are you okay driving with Agent Phillips?” Hayden asked later in the library.
“I guess so. Why wouldn’t I be?”
“No reason.” He closed the book we’d been studying and tossed it casually into his backpack. “If you weren’t a hundred percent comfortable, I’d come pick you up after my errands. They’re close by.”
Let’s see… drive with Fawn or ride in that cool car with a super hot guy? “Do I get to drive again?”
“Sure.” One side of his mouth twitched like he was trying not to laugh.
Why would he offer me a ride when he knew I already had one? Maybe Corinne and Nadia were right. Maybe Hayden liked me.
No, I wouldn’t go there. The scenario was all too familiar: Guy is attracted to girl, but has no intention of keeping her. Guy flirts with girl and lets her believe he really cares. Girl eventually sleeps with him. Guy dumps girl.
Hayden didn’t actually like me. He only liked the way I looked and that I wasn’t easy. That fact hadn’t stopped me from agreeing to hitch a ride with him. Stupid, stupid Tessa. “I guess I’ll see you outside the auditorium in about an hour?”
“Yeah, let’s get you to your meeting.” He rose from the chair.
I rose too, watching him surreptitiously as he gathered the rest of his things. He glanced at me while reaching for his backpack. When the strap jumped into his hand, I jumped too. Surely, I was seeing things. Inanimate objects didn’t move by themselves. Or did they? If Hayden had powers like me… No. Mr. Linton would’ve detected him, like he detected me.
Unless he got a false negative.
My mind must’ve warped from all the stress.
No. I knew what I saw. He didn’t notice the jumpy strap, because when he’d reached for it, he’d been looking at me.
“What’s wrong?” Hayden asked.
“I’ve been up late every night. Sleep deprived.” I cou
ldn’t tell if he bought the excuse or not. Regardless, he couldn’t force the answer from me and I’d never tell him that I saw his backpack move on its own. He’d think I was crazy.
* * * *
“So have you had a chance to practice reading and blocking?” Fawn asked.
“No. Between classes, tutoring Hayden and work, I haven’t had any time to myself. I got in a little bit the day before though.”
“And tonight?” Mr. Linton asked.
I scrunched up my face, knowing I looked like a slacker. “I’m going to a Halloween party.”
She smiled. “Don’t worry about it. You have the weekend, right?”
“Yeah. Hey, I have a question.” They looked as if they were waiting so I plowed on. “As a Detector, you can get a false negative, right?”
Mr. Linton nodded.
“So could there be other Movers or Readers here at this school?”
“I doubt it. We’re very rare. It’s extremely unlikely to find two in the same city, much less the same school.”
But not impossible. They could have spotted me and quit looking. “It requires a Detector to detect them, right? Which means Fawn wouldn’t have known about me if you hadn’t told her.”
She shook her head. “At first, yes. But you’re completely open to all of us now.”
“So…” I struggled to wrap my head around that. “How does it work?”
“You’ve been opened up, your power released so we sense it,” he said.
“Like a can of tuna.” Fawn smirked. “You don’t smell anything until you open the can.”
“You’re comparing me to tuna?” I cocked my head. “I don’t love your analogies.”
She grinned.
* * * *
Fawn and Mr. Linton had me practice sensing them and their energy. I thought they were crazy at first, but after a few experiments, I was a believer. A witch’s entire body perceived the energy, as though it permeated our skin and seeped into our blood.
They had taken me to the school office where teachers and staff still worked. I closed my eyes and gave them the location of every worker. When Ms. Phillips or Mr. Linton approached, I felt the shift as though they were on a different wavelength.
Even better, as a non-witch neared me, I saw his or her pictures and knew who they were. I’d forward the picture to Ms. Phillips and Mr. Linton who casually hung nearby. They’d tell me I was right. It was surreal.
After practice, I couldn’t help but smile when Hayden handed me his keys. Hopefully, he wouldn’t get me addicted to the damn car. That seemed to be a trend for me these days — addictions. First Hayden, then his stupid car. What next — his kisses?
The drive home would’ve been a perfect opportunity to see if I could detect anything from Hayden. Unfortunately, I couldn’t concentrate on maneuvering an eighty-thousand-dollar car and chew gum at the same time. I’d wait until the party to see if Hayden was one of us. At least it gave me a reason to go.
If I had an excuse to delay my arrival at home — an errand or something — without looking like I was taking advantage of him, or worse, that I wanted to spend time with him, I would have used it. Instead, I drove us directly to my house.
“’Bye.” I climbed out of the car.
He popped out the other side and rounded the hood to stand beside me. “I’m not sure what condition I’ll be in when you get to Christina’s tonight.”
“Yeah?” Why was he telling me that?
“Remember, I’m giving you self-defense lessons tomorrow?” He shoved a piece of paper into my hand. “That’s my address with directions on the back. Tomorrow morning, park in the driveway, then walk to the end and you’ll see a smaller house on the right. That’s where I live.”
“You don’t live in the main house?”
“No, my parents got tired of the noise, so they kicked me out. I usually only go to the main house to eat.”
Nice.” I was more than a little envious.
“In case I don’t hear you knock, go ahead and come in.”
“Got it.”
“I’ll see you at the party later.”
“Uhm. Okay.” My eyes darted away. “Well… see ya.” I turned and dashed inside.
* * * *
Around eight, Nadia and Corinne arrived as I was about to tuck Bree into bed. “I’ll be here a few more minutes if you need anything. Okay, Cutie?”
Bree smiled a toothless grin. “Love you. ’Nite.”
I bent over to kiss her forehead and she closed her eyes. I left the night light on and slipped out of her room. Nadia and Corinne met me in the hallway. I wondered what they had in store for me. Whatever it was, I needed to entice Hayden to stick around long enough for me to sense if he was a sorcerer.
“C’mon. Let’s go to my room,” I whispered, closing Bree’s door.
In my room, Nadia flung a pair of patent leather pants on the bed, then a matching tank top cut way too low. I grimaced.
“We’re not done yet.” Corinne emptied a bag and a pair of knee-high boots tumbled out.
“I’m going to be a hooker?” I asked, my mouth curling up.
“No,” Nadia answered without looking up. “Better.”
I laughed. “What could be better than that?”
She tossed a can of spray and a pair of dark sunglasses on the bed. “First, try on the pants. We don’t want to put that in your hair if the pants aren’t right. They should be good though, since you and I are the same size.”
“You’re going to spray that in my hair? It’s temporary, right?” I picked up the can and examined the label. “Black? Who am I supposed to be?”
“Try them on first,” Corinne said.
I stripped down, then squeezed into the pants.
“Wow. Those are magical or something.” Nadia put out her hand for a high five from Corinne. As if they alone were responsible for the shape of my body.
“Uhm… Okay. So who am I supposed to be?”
“We’ll tell you when we’re done.” Corinne grinned at Nadia.
For the next forty-five minutes, I allowed them to order me around. They sprayed my hair black and fussed with it until it looked messy, but in a good way.
“You’re going to be perfect,” Corinne said as she helped me with the boots.
When they’d finished tweaking and abusing me, I stood in front of the mirror. “What, no gun? So what am I supposed to be?”
“A fallen angel.” Nadia snickered. “You were sent to help, but got exiled for falling in love with the wrong guy.”
“That’s sending Hayden the wrong message, don’t you think?” My mouth gaped.
“Depends on how you look at it. One thing’s for sure, Hayden won’t be able to take his eyes off you.” Corinne gave a sly smile.
Though I wanted to look into Hayden’s supernatural abilities, if any, this costume went way beyond what I needed to accomplish that. It could get me in a lot of trouble. Butterflies wrought havoc in my stomach, rioting as if at war. My only hope was that Hayden would be too preoccupied with another girl to come over and make me more nervous. If luck was truly on my side, he wouldn’t show up at all.
* * * *
Nadia, as the devil’s helper with horns and red boots, and Corinne, as the slutty nurse in her flimsy low cut white dress, walked with me up the narrow path to Christina’s house.
“Remember, Hayden invited you. He wants you here. So there’s no reason for you to be nervous,” Corinne said, just before we got to the door.
“Plus, you will be the hottest girl here. And he’ll know it.” Nadia turned the doorknob and paused. “Act cool. If you’re not feelin’ it, don’t say anything and everyone will assume you’re stuck up. Which will look like confidence to them. It’s a good thing.”
“If it’s so easy to blend in with those people, why haven’t you done it already?” I asked.
“I did.” Nadia laughed and threw open the door. “I’ll tell you about it another time.”
We plunged into the dark,
smoky room reeking of over-privileged indulgence, expensive hair products and designer labels. People covered every possible surface, even tabletops. It amazed me how many could fit in the room. Visions assaulted my mind of kids making out in even darker rooms. Which meant there probably weren’t any adults around.
I didn’t belong there. I shouldn’t have come.
“Relax, Tessa. Let’s get you something to drink.” Nadia tugged on my hand.
“I can’t. I’m the designated driver, remember?” I said, stumbling behind her.
She paused, unable to pass through a throng of partiers. “Corinne and I decided that this is your night. I’m driving. All you need to worry about is having fun and luring Mr. Muscles to the dark side.”
I gave a pained laugh and glanced around the room. “Oh, I didn’t realize that was my only purpose for coming.”
I knew when Hayden spotted me because his view of me flashed in my head. Somehow, I knew the picture was seen through his eyes. And I instinctively knew where he stood. When my eyes found him, he was already moving toward us, his gaze locked on mine.
He stopped in front of me and grinned. “Wow. Nice. What are you supposed to be?”
“Fallen angel.” I dropped my gaze, tucking some hair behind my ear.
“We’ll be right back.” Nadia dragged Corinne away. Hopefully, Hayden didn’t notice how they purposely left me alone with him.
My eyes were drawn to his bare chest. The dude worked out and had the abs to prove it. Add his well-defined arms and he seemed a little older. Yum.
“You look hot.” He sent me a devilish grin. “I’m going to have to steal the keys so you can’t leave.”
“Haha.” Not wanting to appear as though I liked him, I focused on the dangling chains attached to thick metal bands around each of his wrists. A thicker, wider metal band adorned his neck. “Stripper?”
“Hell no.” He laughed. “Slave.”
I stared at him blankly. “Don’t slaves wear shirts?”
“Love slaves don’t. If I were your love slave, would I be fully clothed?” His mouth twitched.